Christchurch vs Manukau City
Tree cover and air quality for both, measured the same way: Sentinel-2 imagery at 10 m detail over a 2 km radius from each city centre, and the live US EPA air quality index. Same radius and same index, so the two numbers compare directly.
Christchurch has more tree cover — 33.9% against 29.7%.
Christchurch has cleaner air right now — AQI 47 against 52.
- Tree cover gap
- 4.2 points
- Christchurch is ahead.
- Air quality gap
- 5 AQI
- Christchurch is cleaner.
- Trees between them
- 13.2K
- Christchurch has more standing.
New Zealand
New Zealand
Tree cover
Share of the 2 km radius under canopy.
33.9%
29.7%
Air quality index
US EPA index, live, with its band. Lower is better.
47 · Good
52 · Moderate
Trees standing
Estimated from the measured canopy area.
106K
93.2K
Trees still needed
To reach the same canopy target. Fewer is better.
0
942
CO₂ absorbed each year
By the trees already standing.
2.3M kg
2.1M kg
Air quality in detail
What each city is breathing
Concentrations in µg/m³, measured at the same moment as the index above. Lower is better in every row. Christchurch is read from nearby ground stations and Manukau City is modelled — worth knowing, since the two are not quite like for like.
PM2.5
Fine particles, the pollutant that usually sets the index.
11.2 µg/m³
12.4 µg/m³
PM10
Coarser particles — dust, pollen, road grit.
23.6 µg/m³
20.1 µg/m³
Nitrogen dioxide
Mostly traffic and combustion.
18.1 µg/m³
3.7 µg/m³
The last week, day by day
A single reading can catch a city on a bad afternoon. The week says whether it was the weather or the place.
| Day | Christchurch | Manukau City |
|---|---|---|
| 23 Sept | 24 | 43 |
| 24 Sept | 22 | 20 |
| 25 Sept | 22 | 29 |
| 26 Sept | 21 | 27 |
| 27 Sept | 20 | 33 |
| 28 Sept | 19 | 53 |
Reading these numbers
What is actually being measured
Tree cover
The share of ground under canopy inside a 2 km radius of each city centre, read from Sentinel-2 satellite imagery at 10 m detail. It is a measurement of that circle, not of the whole municipality — which is exactly what makes the two comparable, since city boundaries are drawn to wildly different rules around the world. Christchurch leads here at 33.9%.
Air quality index
The live US EPA index, computed from current pollutant concentrations — ground stations where a city has them nearby, and a model everywhere else. It moves hour to hour, so this is a snapshot rather than a verdict on either place: Christchurch reads 47 (good) and Manukau City reads 52 (moderate) right now.
Frequently asked
Christchurch and Manukau City, answered
Which has more trees, Christchurch or Manukau City?
Christchurch, with roughly 106,393 trees inside its 2 km radius against 93,212. Tree cover tells a slightly different story from raw count: Christchurch has the denser canopy at 33.9%.
Which has better air quality, Christchurch or Manukau City?
Christchurch right now, at AQI 47 against 52 — a gap of 5 points. This is a live reading rather than an annual average, so it can reverse within a day.
How many more trees does each city need?
Christchurch needs about 0 more to reach its canopy target, and Manukau City about 942. The target is the same share of ground for both, so the figures are directly comparable.
Are these two measured the same way?
Yes — that is the point of the page. Identical radius, identical satellite source at 10 m detail, and the same US EPA index for air. Nothing here is adjusted for population, city limits or climate, so the numbers describe the same-sized circle of ground in each place.
Keep going
Other comparisons nearby
- Christchurch vs Wellington49% tree cover · AQI 23Compare
- Christchurch vs Dunedin50% tree cover · AQI 9Compare
- Christchurch vs Lower Hutt55% tree cover · AQI 26Compare
- Christchurch vs Hamilton51% tree cover · AQI 53Compare
- Christchurch vs Auckland32% tree cover · AQI 54Compare
- Christchurch vs Tauranga47% tree cover · AQI 25Compare
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