The cumulative impact of the mountain pine beetle in British Columbia is just over 17 million hectares, but that's not in a single year. This is the whole outbreak cycle since about 2000. The statistics for the defoliators vary, and all of these are cyclical insects. The area affected by insects is far greater than the area affected by either harvest or by fires, but the intensity of the impact of either of these other human or natural disturbances is far greater because insects kill.... The defoliators reduce growth rates and kill some trees through multiple outbreaks or through multiple years of defoliation to a 30% to 50% mortality, whereas a wildfire typically kills 100% or nearly 100% of the trees.
On November 22nd, 2018. See this statement in context.