City report · Minas Gerais, Brazil
Contagem Air quality today
Air quality in Contagem currently reads AQI 18 (Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Air quality right now
AQI 18
Good
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 3.3
- tree cover
- 16.3%
- trees in this area
- 51.2K
- more trees needed
- 43.0K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Novo Eldorado, Contagem - MG, Brazil (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Nov 6, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Contagem · AQI 18 (Good)
Contagem's tree count comes to 51,208 trees across 12.57 km², 14 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 43,040 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Contagem today: AQI 18, Good
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 10, 11:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Model estimate · no ground station nearby
Health signal
Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
PM2.5
3.3
PM10
4.0
NO₂
4.3
O₃
52.0
SO₂
3.1
CO
152.0
- Outdoor exercise
- A good day to be active outside
- Windows
- Open them to air the house
- Mask
- Not needed
- Air purifier
- Not needed
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Contagem's daily AQI at 40 on average, from 15 on Nov 10 to an hourly peak of 80 on Nov 6.
Where Contagem stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Contagem: Critically low
16.3% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.57 km².
Trees in this area
51,208
Target trees
94,248
More trees needed
43,040
CO₂ if planted / yr
946.9 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Contagem lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Contagem has lost about 743 hectares of forest (about 1,000 football pitches): 14% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (97%) 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 north of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 743 haabout 1,000 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 14%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 721 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2001, when about 65 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 | 64 ha | under 1 ha | 65 ha |
| 2002 | 22 ha | under 1 ha | 23 ha |
| 2003 | 29 ha | 1 ha | 31 ha |
| 2004 | 18 ha | under 1 ha | 19 ha |
| 2005 | 37 ha | under 1 ha | 37 ha |
| 2006 | 15 ha | under 1 ha | 15 ha |
| 2007 | 26 ha | 1 ha | 27 ha |
| 2008 | 36 ha | 3 ha | 38 ha |
| 2009 | 37 ha | 1 ha | 38 ha |
| 2010 | 16 ha | under 1 ha | 16 ha |
| 2011 | 24 ha | 2 ha | 26 ha |
| 2012 | 25 ha | under 1 ha | 26 ha |
| 2013 | 17 ha | under 1 ha | 17 ha |
| 2014 | 34 ha | under 1 ha | 34 ha |
| 2015 | 30 ha | under 1 ha | 30 ha |
| 2016 | 31 ha | under 1 ha | 31 ha |
| 2017 | 42 ha | 7 ha | 49 ha |
| 2018 | 36 ha | under 1 ha | 36 ha |
| 2019 | 18 ha | under 1 ha | 18 ha |
| 2020 | 41 ha | under 1 ha | 41 ha |
| 2021 | 27 ha | under 1 ha | 27 ha |
| 2022 | 30 ha | under 1 ha | 30 ha |
| 2023 | 25 ha | under 1 ha | 26 ha |
| 2024 | 14 ha | 1 ha | 15 ha |
| 2025 | 29 ha | under 1 ha | 29 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Contagem?
- Towns and roadscleared for good63% · 470 ha
- Mining and energycleared for good33% · 244 ha
- Loggingcan grow back1.2% · 9 ha
Also: farms, pasture and plantations, 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
- 5,240 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 4,870 ha
- Overall change
- −375 haless forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Contagem shrank from about 5,240 hectares to 4,870 hectares, a net loss of about 375 hectares (−7.2%). New forest grew on about 128 hectares, but 503 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 Contagem
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Belo Horizonte12.2 km
Brazil
- Tree cover
- 14%
- Air quality
- 21
- Betim15.6 km
Brazil
- Tree cover
- 32%
- Air quality
- 13
- Ribeirão das Neves18.6 km
Brazil
- Tree cover
- 32%
- Air quality
- 14
- Nova Lima22.4 km
Brazil
- Tree cover
- 59%
- Air quality
- 21
- Sabará26.3 km
Brazil
- Tree cover
- 60%
- Air quality
- 16
- Santa Luzia27.8 km
Brazil
- Tree cover
- 50%
- Air quality
- 17
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Frequently asked
Questions about Contagem
What is the air quality (AQI) in Contagem right now?
The latest reading for Contagem shows an AQI of 18 (Good), observed Nov 10, 11:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Contagem today?
At AQI 18 (Good): a good day to be active outside. Windows: open them to air the house. Masks: not needed. The reading changes through the day, so check again before a long run or ride.
What has the air quality in Contagem been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Contagem's daily AQI at 40 on average, from 15 on Nov 10 to an hourly peak of 80 on Nov 6. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Contagem lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Contagem has lost about 743 hectares of forest (about 1,000 football pitches): 14% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (97%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Contagem shrank from about 5,240 hectares to 4,870 hectares, a net loss of about 375 hectares (−7.2%). New forest grew on about 128 hectares, but 503 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Contagem?
Contagem has an estimated 51,208 trees across the 12.57 km² measured — 16.3% tree cover, 14 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Contagem need?
Contagem needs roughly 43,040 more trees to close a 14-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 946.9 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Contagem'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 Novo Eldorado; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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