City report · Moldova
Cahul Air quality today
Air quality in Cahul currently reads AQI 82 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Air quality right now
AQI 82
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 26.1
- tree cover
- 23.9%
- trees in this area
- 74.9K
- more trees needed
- 19.1K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Cahul, Moldova (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 18, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Cahul · AQI 82 (Moderate)
Cahul's tree count comes to 74,859 trees across 12.53 km² of land, 6 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 19,106 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Cahul today: AQI 82, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 10, 22:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 2 ground-station cities within 165 km, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Estimate · model corrected with 2 station cities within 165 km, e.g. Chișinău and Iași
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
26.1
PM10
19.4
NO₂
7.5
O₃
42.0
SO₂
2.0
CO
244.0
- 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 Cahul's daily AQI at 47 on average, from 26 on Nov 7 to an hourly peak of 72 on Nov 8.
Where Cahul stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Cahul: Below target
23.9% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.53 km² of land.
Trees in this area
74,859
Target trees
93,965
More trees needed
19,106
CO₂ if planted / yr
420.3 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Cahul lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Cahul has lost about 231 hectares of forest (about 320 football pitches): 13% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it was lost to logging, so much of it can grow back. About 2 hectares (under 1%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns.
2017: satellite photo from August 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km southeast of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 231 haabout 320 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 13%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 2 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2025, when about 45 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 | 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2002 | under 1 ha | 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2003 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2004 | under 1 ha | 2 ha | 2 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 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2009 | under 1 ha | 2 ha | 2 ha |
| 2010 | under 1 ha | 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2011 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2012 | under 1 ha | 33 ha | 33 ha |
| 2013 | under 1 ha | 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2014 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2015 | under 1 ha | 2 ha | 2 ha |
| 2016 | under 1 ha | 5 ha | 5 ha |
| 2017 | under 1 ha | 14 ha | 14 ha |
| 2018 | under 1 ha | 5 ha | 5 ha |
| 2019 | under 1 ha | 17 ha | 17 ha |
| 2020 | under 1 ha | 5 ha | 5 ha |
| 2021 | under 1 ha | 15 ha | 15 ha |
| 2022 | under 1 ha | 17 ha | 17 ha |
| 2023 | under 1 ha | 31 ha | 31 ha |
| 2024 | under 1 ha | 30 ha | 30 ha |
| 2025 | under 1 ha | 45 ha | 45 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Cahul?
- Loggingcan grow back93% · 215 ha
- Wildfirescan grow back2.5% · 6 ha
- Unknown causescause unknown3.3% · 8 ha
Also: farms, pasture and plantations, storms, floods and other natural causes.
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
- 1,220 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 1,430 ha
- Overall change
- +209 hamore forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Cahul grew from about 1,220 hectares to 1,430 hectares, a net gain of about 209 hectares (+17%). New forest grew on about 263 hectares, while 54 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 Cahul
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
Build your own
Compare Cahul with anywhere
This place
Cahul
Use this data
Put Cahul's numbers on your site
Free to embed. Updates itself as the measurement refreshes.
Frequently asked
Questions about Cahul
What is the air quality (AQI) in Cahul right now?
The latest reading for Cahul shows an AQI of 82 (Moderate), observed Nov 10, 22:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 2 ground-station cities within 165 km, US EPA index. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Cahul today?
At AQI 82 (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 Cahul been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Cahul's daily AQI at 47 on average, from 26 on Nov 7 to an hourly peak of 72 on Nov 8. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Cahul lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Cahul has lost about 231 hectares of forest (about 320 football pitches): 13% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it was lost to logging, so much of it can grow back. About 2 hectares (under 1%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Cahul grew from about 1,220 hectares to 1,430 hectares, a net gain of about 209 hectares (+17%). New forest grew on about 263 hectares, while 54 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Cahul?
Cahul has an estimated 74,859 trees across the 12.53 km² of land measured — 23.9% tree cover, 6 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Cahul need?
Cahul needs roughly 19,106 more trees to close a 6-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 420.3 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Cahul's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality comes from ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ where one reports nearby, and otherwise, as here, from the Open-Meteo / CAMS model, which may differ from street-level monitors. 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 Cahul; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
See your own area
What does your neighborhood look like?
Pick any point and radius to get the same air-quality and tree-cover breakdown.
Check my address