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Airleaf

City report · England, United Kingdom

Bexley Air quality today

Air quality in Bexley currently reads AQI 56 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.

AQI 56

Air quality right now

Moderate

Main pollutant: PM2.5
PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
11.6
tree cover
39.5%
trees in this area
124K
more trees needed
0

Measured across a 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around Bexley, UK (4.9 sq mi), from a satellite image of Aug 25, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.

Bexley · AQI 56 (Moderate)

Dark green marks tree cover detected inside the study radius.Sentinel-2 L2A (ESA Copernicus) via Earth Search, captured Aug 25, 2026

Bexley's tree count comes to 124,093 trees across 4.9 sq mi (12.57 km²), already at or above the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area.

Air quality detail

Air quality in Bexley today: AQI 56, 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 · Bexley - Belvedere West, 3.7 mi (6 km) away · median of 7 stations

Health signal

Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.

PM2.5

11.6

PM10

22.5

NO₂

36.6

O₃

32.0

SO₂

10.3

CO

—

Data: OpenAQ · London Air Quality Network

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 Bexley's daily AQI at 70 on average, from 36 on Nov 4 to an hourly peak of 97 on Nov 8.

Last 7 days · model estimateavg 70 · peak 97
Nov 4: AQI 36 (peak 51)Nov 5: AQI 52 (peak 63)Nov 6: AQI 83 (peak 95)Nov 7: AQI 91 (peak 95)Nov 8: AQI 86 (peak 97)Nov 9: AQI 73 (peak 84)Nov 10: AQI 70 (peak 76)
Nov 4Nov 10

This is the US EPA AQI. How it differs from the UK's Daily Air Quality Index

Where Bexley stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest

Tree cover detail

Tree cover in Bexley: Healthy tree cover

39.5% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 4.9 sq mi (12.57 km²).

Target reached

Trees in this area

124,093

Target trees

124,093

More trees needed

0

CO₂ if planted / yr

0 kg

Deforestation · 2001–2025

How much forest has Bexley lost?

Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Bexley has lost about 17 hectares of forest (about 24 football pitches): under 1% of the forest it had in 2000. The biggest cause was towns and roads (44%). About 7 hectares (44%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns.

Satellite image of the area around Bexley, July 2017

2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.

Forest lost since 2001
17 haabout 24 football pitches
Share of its forest
under 1%of what there was in 2000
Cleared for good
7 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns

The worst year was 2008, when about 4 hectares of forest were lost.

Forest lost each year around Bexley, 2001–2025

Hectares of forest lost each year

Forest lost each year around Bexley, 2001–2025. Use the left and right arrow keys to read each year.3.9

Show the figures as a table
Forest lost each year around Bexley, 2001–2025
YearCleared for goodCan grow backTotal
20012 haunder 1 ha3 ha
2002under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2003under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2004under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2005under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2006under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2007under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
20082 ha2 ha4 ha
2009under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2010under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2011under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2012under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2013under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2014under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2015under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2016under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2017under 1 ha2 ha2 ha
2018under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2019under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2020under 1 haunder 1 ha1 ha
2021under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2022under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2023under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2024under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha
2025under 1 haunder 1 haunder 1 ha

What is causing deforestation around Bexley?

  • Towns and roadscleared for good44% · 7 ha
  • Loggingcan grow back17% · 3 ha
  • Unknown causescause unknown38% · 6 ha

Also: farms, pasture and plantations.

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
10,300 ha
Forest in 2020
10,700 ha
Overall change
+360 hamore forest than in 2000

Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Bexley grew from about 10,300 hectares to 10,700 hectares, a net gain of about 360 hectares (+3.5%). New forest grew on about 420 hectares, while 60 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 Bexley

Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.

  • Walthamstow

    United Kingdom

    20.3 km
    Tree cover
    22%
    Air quality
    81
  • London

    United Kingdom

    20.5 km
    Tree cover
    18%
    Air quality
    56
  • Basildon

    United Kingdom

    25.6 km
    Tree cover
    31%
    Air quality
    51
  • Sutton

    United Kingdom

    26.2 km
    Tree cover
    45%
    Air quality
    71
  • Gillingham

    United Kingdom

    28.3 km
    Tree cover
    23%
    Air quality
    56
  • Enfield Town

    United Kingdom

    28.4 km
    Tree cover
    31%
    Air quality
    76

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Bexley air quality (AQI) and tree cover — measured by Airleaf
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Frequently asked

Questions about Bexley

What is the air quality (AQI) in Bexley right now?

The latest reading for Bexley shows an AQI of 56 (Moderate), measured Nov 11, 15:00 local time by 7 ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ (the median of their readings; the nearest is Bexley - Belvedere West, 3.7 mi (6 km) away). The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.

Is it safe to exercise outside in Bexley today?

At AQI 56 (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 Bexley been like this week?

Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Bexley's daily AQI at 70 on average, from 36 on Nov 4 to an hourly peak of 97 on Nov 8. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.

Is Bexley's AQI the same as the UK's Daily Air Quality Index?

No. Airleaf shows the US EPA Air Quality Index (AQI), the scale used by IQAir and most air-quality apps. The UK's Daily Air Quality Index (DAQI), published by Defra, runs from 1 to 10: 1–3 low, 4–6 moderate, 7–9 high and 10 very high. It is a different scale altogether, so a US AQI figure can't be read on it directly; both, though, are built from the same main pollutants, with fine particles (PM2.5) usually the one that decides the reading.

How much forest has the area around Bexley lost since 2001?

Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Bexley has lost about 17 hectares of forest (about 24 football pitches): under 1% of the forest it had in 2000. The biggest cause was towns and roads (44%). About 7 hectares (44%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Bexley grew from about 10,300 hectares to 10,700 hectares, a net gain of about 360 hectares (+3.5%). New forest grew on about 420 hectares, while 60 hectares were lost.

What is the tree count in Bexley?

Bexley has an estimated 124,093 trees across the 4.9 sq mi (12.57 km²) measured — 39.5% tree cover, already past the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.

How many more trees does Bexley need?

Bexley has already reached its tree-cover target, so no additional trees are needed to close the gap.

How are Bexley's air quality and tree cover measured?

Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Bexley, 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 Bexley; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.

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