City report · United States
Baltimore Air quality today
Air quality in Baltimore currently reads AQI 52 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Air quality right now
AQI 52
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 9.7
- tree cover
- 10.0%
- trees in this area
- 29.3K
- more trees needed
- 58.6K
Measured across a 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around Downtown, Baltimore, MD, USA (4.9 sq mi), from a satellite image of Aug 29, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Baltimore · AQI 52 (Moderate)
Baltimore's tree count comes to 29,280 trees across 4.5 sq mi (11.72 km²) of land, 20 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 58,559 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Baltimore today: AQI 52, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 09:00 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · Essex, 7.5 mi (12.1 km) away · median of 4 stations
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
9.7
PM10
18.0
NO₂
42.5
O₃
5.9
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: OpenAQ · AirNow
- Outdoor exercise
- Fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier
- Windows
- Fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution
- Mask
- Not needed for most people
- Air purifier
- Worth running if you are sensitive
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Baltimore's daily AQI at 36 on average, from 23 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 72 on Nov 10.
Where Baltimore stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Baltimore: Critically low
10.0% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 4.5 sq mi (11.72 km²) of land.
Trees in this area
29,280
Target trees
87,839
More trees needed
58,559
CO₂ if planted / yr
1,288 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Baltimore lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Baltimore has lost about 335 acres (136 hectares) of forest (about 250 football fields): 2.5% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (91%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads.
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km south of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 335 acres (136 ha)about 250 football fields
- Share of its forest
- 2.5%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 305 acres (123 ha)deforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2017, when about 48 acres (20 hectares) of forest were lost.
Acres of forest lost each year
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Cleared for good | Can grow back | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 15 acres (6 ha) | under 1 ha | 16 acres (7 ha) |
| 2002 | 10 acres (4 ha) | under 1 ha | 12 acres (5 ha) |
| 2003 | 15 acres (6 ha) | under 1 ha | 16 acres (7 ha) |
| 2004 | 17 acres (7 ha) | under 1 ha | 18 acres (7 ha) |
| 2005 | 6 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 7 acres (3 ha) |
| 2006 | 9 acres (4 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) | 12 acres (5 ha) |
| 2007 | 14 acres (6 ha) | 2 acres (1 ha) | 17 acres (7 ha) |
| 2008 | 5 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 7 acres (3 ha) |
| 2009 | 6 acres (3 ha) | under 1 ha | 8 acres (3 ha) |
| 2010 | 8 acres (3 ha) | under 1 ha | 9 acres (4 ha) |
| 2011 | 6 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 6 acres (3 ha) |
| 2012 | 6 acres (3 ha) | under 1 ha | 7 acres (3 ha) |
| 2013 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2014 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2015 | 5 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 5 acres (2 ha) |
| 2016 | 11 acres (4 ha) | under 1 ha | 11 acres (4 ha) |
| 2017 | 48 acres (19 ha) | under 1 ha | 48 acres (20 ha) |
| 2018 | 12 acres (5 ha) | 4 acres (2 ha) | 15 acres (6 ha) |
| 2019 | 10 acres (4 ha) | under 1 ha | 12 acres (5 ha) |
| 2020 | 10 acres (4 ha) | under 1 ha | 10 acres (4 ha) |
| 2021 | 15 acres (6 ha) | under 1 ha | 16 acres (6 ha) |
| 2022 | 8 acres (3 ha) | under 1 ha | 8 acres (3 ha) |
| 2023 | 25 acres (10 ha) | under 1 ha | 25 acres (10 ha) |
| 2024 | 24 acres (10 ha) | under 1 ha | 24 acres (10 ha) |
| 2025 | 20 acres (8 ha) | 6 acres (2 ha) | 26 acres (11 ha) |
What is causing deforestation around Baltimore?
- Towns and roadscleared for good91% · 304 acres (123 ha)
- Unknown causescause unknown9.1% · 30 acres (12 ha)
Causes for 2025 are estimates, based on what caused forest loss in the same places up to 2024.
Forest gained and lost, 2000–2020
- Forest in 2000
- 25,400 acres (10,300 ha)
- Forest in 2020
- 25,400 acres (10,300 ha)
- Overall change
- +30 acres (12 ha)more forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Baltimore stayed about the same size, at about 25,400 acres (10,300 hectares): new forest grew on about 551 acres (223 hectares), and about 521 acres (211 hectares) were lost.
These 2000 and 2020 maps, from the University of Maryland, count any land with trees taller than 5 m as forest, including plantations and orchards. Forest that was cut or burned and had grown back by 2020 counts in both years, so the loss here is smaller than the yearly figures.
These figures cover everything within 10 km of the city center, a wider area than the report above, because forest is usually lost at a city's edges.
Source: Hansen/UMD/Google/USGS/NASA, Global Forest Change (GFC-2025-v1.13); causes: WRI/Google DeepMind drivers of forest loss; both CC BY 4.0, summed by Airleaf for each area. Forest gained and lost 2000–2020: Potapov et al. 2022, UMD GLAD Global Land Cover and Land Use Change, CC BY 4.0. Images: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data. How it's measured
In the same region
Measured cities near Baltimore
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Alexandria65.8 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 30%
- Air quality
- 64
- Philadelphia144.3 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 12%
- Air quality
- 64
- Allentown175.0 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 29%
- Air quality
- 17
- Richmond206.7 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 23%
- Air quality
- 66
- Edison232.1 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 39%
- Air quality
- 18
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Frequently asked
Questions about Baltimore
What is the air quality (AQI) in Baltimore right now?
The latest reading for Baltimore shows an AQI of 52 (Moderate), measured Nov 11, 09:00 local time by 4 ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ (the median of their readings; the nearest is Essex, 7.5 mi (12.1 km) away). The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Baltimore today?
At AQI 52 (Moderate): fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier. Windows: fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution. Masks: not needed for most people. The reading changes through the day, so check again before a long run or ride.
What has the air quality in Baltimore been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Baltimore's daily AQI at 36 on average, from 23 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 72 on Nov 10. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Baltimore lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Baltimore has lost about 335 acres (136 hectares) of forest (about 250 football fields): 2.5% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (91%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Baltimore stayed about the same size, at about 25,400 acres (10,300 hectares): new forest grew on about 551 acres (223 hectares), and about 521 acres (211 hectares) were lost.
What is the tree count in Baltimore?
Baltimore has an estimated 29,280 trees across the 4.5 sq mi (11.72 km²) of land measured — 10.0% tree cover, 20 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Baltimore need?
Baltimore needs roughly 58,559 more trees to close a 20-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 1,288 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Baltimore's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Downtown, via OpenAQ; the 7-day trend is the Open-Meteo / CAMS model's estimate. Tree cover is measured from Sentinel-2 L2A (ESA Copernicus) via Earth Search satellite imagery at 10 m detail across a 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around Downtown; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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