City report · Gambia
Banjul Air quality today
Air quality in Banjul currently reads AQI 64 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
AQI 64
Air quality right now
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 16.0
- tree cover
- 24.7%
- trees in this area
- 26.3K
- more trees needed
- 5.6K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Jollof Town, Banjul, The Gambia (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Jun 25, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Banjul · AQI 64 (Moderate)
Banjul's tree count comes to 26,305 trees across 4.26 km² of land, 5 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 5,644 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Banjul today: AQI 64, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 15:00 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · McCarthy Square, Banjul, 500 m away
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
16.0
PM10
—
NO₂
—
O₃
—
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: OpenAQ · IQAir, Permian Health The Lung Institute
- 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 Banjul's daily AQI at 70 on average, from 63 on Nov 6 to an hourly peak of 98 on Nov 7.
Where Banjul stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Banjul: Below target
24.7% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 4.26 km² of land.
Trees in this area
26,305
Target trees
31,949
More trees needed
5,644
CO₂ if planted / yr
124.2 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Banjul lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Banjul has lost about 5 hectares of forest (about 6 football pitches): 1.6% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (89%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
2017: satellite photo from March 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 5 haabout 6 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 1.6%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 4 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2008, when about 2 hectares of forest were lost.
Hectares of forest lost each year
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Cleared for good | Can grow back | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2002 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2003 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2004 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2005 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2006 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2007 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2008 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2009 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2010 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2011 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2012 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2013 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2014 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2015 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2016 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2017 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2018 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2019 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2020 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2021 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2022 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2023 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2024 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2025 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Banjul?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good64% · 3 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good24% · 1 ha
- Unknown causescause unknown13% · under 1 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
- 971 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 994 ha
- Overall change
- +23 hamore forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Banjul grew from about 971 hectares to 994 hectares, a net gain of about 23 hectares (+2.4%). New forest grew on about 87 hectares, while 63 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 Banjul
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Kaolack95.0 km
Senegal
- Tree cover
- 1%
- Air quality
- 56
- Ziguinchor103.8 km
Senegal
- Tree cover
- 20%
- Air quality
- 49
- Mbour115.5 km
Senegal
- Tree cover
- 6%
- Air quality
- 58
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Frequently asked
Questions about Banjul
What is the air quality (AQI) in Banjul right now?
The latest reading for Banjul shows an AQI of 64 (Moderate), measured Nov 11, 15:00 local time by the McCarthy Square, Banjul ground monitoring station, 500 m away, via OpenAQ. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Banjul today?
At AQI 64 (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 Banjul been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Banjul's daily AQI at 70 on average, from 63 on Nov 6 to an hourly peak of 98 on Nov 7. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Banjul lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Banjul has lost about 5 hectares of forest (about 6 football pitches): 1.6% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (89%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Banjul grew from about 971 hectares to 994 hectares, a net gain of about 23 hectares (+2.4%). New forest grew on about 87 hectares, while 63 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Banjul?
Banjul has an estimated 26,305 trees across the 4.26 km² of land measured — 24.7% tree cover, 5 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Banjul need?
Banjul needs roughly 5,644 more trees to close a 5-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 124.2 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Banjul's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Jollof Town, 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 2 km radius around Jollof Town; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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