City report · New South Wales, Australia
Central Coast Air quality today
Air quality in Central Coast currently reads AQI 51 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
AQI 51
Air quality right now
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 7.9
- tree cover
- 74.8%
- trees in this area
- 224K
- more trees needed
- 0
Measured across a 2 km radius around Springfield NSW 2250, Australia (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Mar 10, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Central Coast · AQI 51 (Moderate)
Central Coast's tree count comes to 223,947 trees across 11.98 km² of land, already at or above the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Central Coast today: AQI 51, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 12:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 2 ground-station cities within 85 km, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Estimate · model corrected with 2 station cities within 85 km, e.g. Sydney and The Hill
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
7.9
PM10
11.9
NO₂
2.4
O₃
107.0
SO₂
5.2
CO
97.0
- 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 Central Coast's daily AQI at 36 on average, from 22 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 62 on Nov 5.
Where Central Coast stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Central Coast: Healthy tree cover
74.8% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 11.98 km² of land.
Trees in this area
223,947
Target trees
223,947
More trees needed
0
CO₂ if planted / yr
0 kg
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Central Coast lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Central Coast has lost about 768 hectares of forest (about 1,100 football pitches): 4.5% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (66%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads.
2018: satellite photo from December 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km west of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 768 haabout 1,100 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 4.5%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 510 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2006, when about 77 hectares of forest were lost, mostly to wildfires.
Hectares of forest lost each year
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Cleared for good | Can grow back | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 13 ha | 1 ha | 14 ha |
| 2002 | 15 ha | 3 ha | 18 ha |
| 2003 | 16 ha | 8 ha | 23 ha |
| 2004 | 24 ha | 1 ha | 26 ha |
| 2005 | 37 ha | 3 ha | 40 ha |
| 2006 | 24 ha | 53 ha | 77 ha |
| 2007 | 28 ha | 2 ha | 30 ha |
| 2008 | 16 ha | 4 ha | 20 ha |
| 2009 | 28 ha | 5 ha | 33 ha |
| 2010 | 11 ha | 1 ha | 12 ha |
| 2011 | 19 ha | 2 ha | 21 ha |
| 2012 | 32 ha | 4 ha | 36 ha |
| 2013 | 13 ha | 32 ha | 45 ha |
| 2014 | 6 ha | under 1 ha | 7 ha |
| 2015 | 42 ha | 11 ha | 53 ha |
| 2016 | 28 ha | 7 ha | 35 ha |
| 2017 | 20 ha | 14 ha | 34 ha |
| 2018 | 17 ha | 25 ha | 41 ha |
| 2019 | 18 ha | 10 ha | 28 ha |
| 2020 | 16 ha | under 1 ha | 16 ha |
| 2021 | 23 ha | 19 ha | 42 ha |
| 2022 | 31 ha | 8 ha | 38 ha |
| 2023 | 6 ha | 2 ha | 9 ha |
| 2024 | 8 ha | 8 ha | 16 ha |
| 2025 | 22 ha | 34 ha | 55 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Central Coast?
- Towns and roadscleared for good62% · 475 ha
- Wildfirescan grow back28% · 214 ha
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good4.5% · 35 ha
Also: logging, storms, floods and other natural causes, unknown 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
- 19,000 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 19,100 ha
- Overall change
- +69 hamore forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Central Coast stayed about the same size, at about 19,100 hectares: new forest grew on about 323 hectares, and about 253 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 Central Coast
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Newcastle67.4 km
Australia
- Tree cover
- 17%
- Air quality
- 130
- Wollongong119.0 km
Australia
- Tree cover
- 26%
- Air quality
- 12
- Canberra291.3 km
Australia
- Tree cover
- 42%
- Air quality
- 8
- Gold Coast635.0 km
Australia
- Tree cover
- 17%
- Air quality
- 26
- Toowoomba655.0 km
Australia
- Tree cover
- 31%
- Air quality
- 13
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Frequently asked
Questions about Central Coast
What is the air quality (AQI) in Central Coast right now?
The latest reading for Central Coast shows an AQI of 51 (Moderate), observed Nov 11, 12:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 2 ground-station cities within 85 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 Central Coast today?
At AQI 51 (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 Central Coast been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Central Coast's daily AQI at 36 on average, from 22 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 62 on Nov 5. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Central Coast lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Central Coast has lost about 768 hectares of forest (about 1,100 football pitches): 4.5% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (66%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Central Coast stayed about the same size, at about 19,100 hectares: new forest grew on about 323 hectares, and about 253 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Central Coast?
Central Coast has an estimated 223,947 trees across the 11.98 km² of land measured — 74.8% tree cover, already past the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Central Coast need?
Central Coast has already reached its tree-cover target, so no additional trees are needed to close the gap.
How are Central Coast'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 Springfield NSW 2250; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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