City report · New Jersey, United States
Elizabeth Air quality today
Air quality in Elizabeth currently reads AQI 31 (Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Air quality right now
AQI 31
Good
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 4.1
- tree cover
- 15.1%
- trees in this area
- 47.3K
- more trees needed
- 46.7K
Measured across a 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around Elizabeth, NJ, USA (4.9 sq mi), from a satellite image of Sep 8, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Elizabeth · AQI 31 (Good)
Elizabeth's tree count comes to 47,343 trees across 4.8 sq mi (12.54 km²) of land, 15 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 46,716 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Elizabeth today: AQI 31, Good
Main pollutant: NO₂ · Observed Nov 11, 09:00 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · Elizabeth Trailer, 1.6 mi (2.5 km) away · median of 5 stations
Health signal
Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
PM2.5
4.1
PM10
—
NO₂
63.0
O₃
15.7
SO₂
3.9
CO
458.2
Data: OpenAQ · AirNow
- 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 Elizabeth's daily AQI at 33 on average, from 20 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 77 on Nov 6.
Where Elizabeth stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Elizabeth: Critically low
15.1% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 4.8 sq mi (12.54 km²) of land.
Trees in this area
47,343
Target trees
94,059
More trees needed
46,716
CO₂ if planted / yr
1,028 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Elizabeth lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Elizabeth has lost about 92 acres (37 hectares) of forest (about 70 football fields): 1% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (76%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads.
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 92 acres (37 ha)about 70 football fields
- Share of its forest
- 1%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 70 acres (28 ha)deforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2021, when about 10 acres (4 hectares) of forest were lost.
Acres 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 | 3 acres (1 ha) |
| 2002 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | 3 acres (1 ha) |
| 2003 | under 1 ha | 3 acres (1 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) |
| 2004 | 8 acres (3 ha) | under 1 ha | 9 acres (4 ha) |
| 2005 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2006 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | 3 acres (1 ha) |
| 2007 | 4 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 5 acres (2 ha) |
| 2008 | 6 acres (3 ha) | under 1 ha | 7 acres (3 ha) |
| 2009 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2010 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | 3 acres (1 ha) |
| 2011 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2012 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2013 | 4 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 6 acres (2 ha) |
| 2014 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | 3 acres (1 ha) |
| 2015 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2016 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2017 | 6 acres (3 ha) | under 1 ha | 7 acres (3 ha) |
| 2018 | 6 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 6 acres (3 ha) |
| 2019 | 4 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 5 acres (2 ha) |
| 2020 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2021 | 10 acres (4 ha) | under 1 ha | 10 acres (4 ha) |
| 2022 | 6 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 7 acres (3 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 Elizabeth?
- Towns and roadscleared for good77% · 71 acres (29 ha)
- Unknown causescause unknown23% · 22 acres (9 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
- 25,200 acres (10,200 ha)
- Forest in 2020
- 25,300 acres (10,200 ha)
- Overall change
- +166 acres (67 ha)more forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Elizabeth stayed about the same size, at about 25,300 acres (10,200 hectares): new forest grew on about 410 acres (166 hectares), and about 242 acres (98 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 Elizabeth
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Staten Island12.8 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 43%
- Air quality
- 54
- New York18.1 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 15%
- Air quality
- 76
- Brooklyn22.1 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 23%
- Air quality
- 33
- Edison23.5 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 39%
- Air quality
- 18
- Manhattan24.5 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 40%
- Air quality
- 33
- Paterson28.3 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 26%
- Air quality
- 29
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Frequently asked
Questions about Elizabeth
What is the air quality (AQI) in Elizabeth right now?
The latest reading for Elizabeth shows an AQI of 31 (Good), measured Nov 11, 09:00 local time by 5 ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ (the median of their readings; the nearest is Elizabeth Trailer, 1.6 mi (2.5 km) away). The main pollutant is NO₂. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Elizabeth today?
At AQI 31 (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 Elizabeth been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Elizabeth's daily AQI at 33 on average, from 20 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 77 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 Elizabeth lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Elizabeth has lost about 92 acres (37 hectares) of forest (about 70 football fields): 1% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (76%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Elizabeth stayed about the same size, at about 25,300 acres (10,200 hectares): new forest grew on about 410 acres (166 hectares), and about 242 acres (98 hectares) were lost.
What is the tree count in Elizabeth?
Elizabeth has an estimated 47,343 trees across the 4.8 sq mi (12.54 km²) of land measured — 15.1% tree cover, 15 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Elizabeth need?
Elizabeth needs roughly 46,716 more trees to close a 15-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 1,028 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Elizabeth's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Elizabeth, 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 Elizabeth; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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