Emalahleni vs Soweto
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.
Emalahleni has more tree cover — 23.7% against 14.2%.
Emalahleni has cleaner air right now — AQI 54 against 97.
- Tree cover gap
- 9.5 points
- Emalahleni is ahead.
- Air quality gap
- 43 AQI
- Emalahleni is cleaner.
- Trees between them
- 29.8K
- Emalahleni has more standing.
South Africa
South Africa
Tree cover
Share of the 2 km radius under canopy.
23.7%
14.2%
Air quality index
US EPA index, live, with its band. Lower is better.
54 · Moderate
97 · Moderate
Trees standing
Estimated from the measured canopy area.
74.5K
44.6K
Trees still needed
To reach the same canopy target. Fewer is better.
19.8K
49.6K
CO₂ absorbed each year
By the trees already standing.
1.6M kg
981K 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. Soweto is read from nearby ground stations and Emalahleni is modelled — worth knowing, since the two are not quite like for like.
PM2.5
Fine particles, the pollutant that usually sets the index.
13.4 µg/m³
34.2 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 | Emalahleni | Soweto |
|---|---|---|
| 22 Sept | 86 | 105 |
| 23 Sept | 101 | 73 |
| 24 Sept | 100 | 86 |
| 25 Sept | 87 | 119 |
| 26 Sept | 75 | 98 |
| 27 Sept | 80 | 76 |
| 28 Sept | 46 | 66 |
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. Emalahleni leads here at 23.7%.
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: Emalahleni reads 54 (moderate) and Soweto reads 97 (moderate) right now.
Frequently asked
Emalahleni and Soweto, answered
Which has more trees, Emalahleni or Soweto?
Emalahleni, with roughly 74,456 trees inside its 2 km radius against 44,611. Tree cover tells a slightly different story from raw count: Emalahleni has the denser canopy at 23.7%.
Which has better air quality, Emalahleni or Soweto?
Emalahleni right now, at AQI 54 against 97 — a gap of 43 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?
Emalahleni needs about 19,792 more to reach its canopy target, and Soweto about 49,637. 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
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