City report · Xinjiang, China
Ghulja Air quality today
Air quality in Ghulja 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)
- 9.1
- tree cover
- 16.7%
- trees in this area
- 52.5K
- more trees needed
- 41.8K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Gulja, Ili, Xinjiang, China (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 20, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Ghulja · AQI 51 (Moderate)
Ghulja's tree count comes to 52,465 trees across 12.57 km², 13 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 41,783 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Ghulja today: AQI 51, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 23:00 local time via World Air Quality Index Project ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · Yili (伊犁哈萨克), 2.4 km away · median of 2 stations
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
9.1
PM10
16.2
NO₂
—
O₃
—
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: World Air Quality Index Project
- 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 Ghulja's daily AQI at 66 on average, from 55 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 92 on Nov 6.
Where Ghulja stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Ghulja: Critically low
16.7% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.57 km².
Trees in this area
52,465
Target trees
94,248
More trees needed
41,783
CO₂ if planted / yr
919.2 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Ghulja lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Ghulja has lost about 9 hectares of forest (about 12 football pitches): 7.1% of the forest it had in 2000. The biggest cause was logging (29%), after which forest can grow back. About 3 hectares (34%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns.
2017: satellite photo from August 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 9 haabout 12 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 7.1%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 3 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2001, when about 2 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 | 2 ha |
| 2002 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2003 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2004 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2005 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2006 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 2 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 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2010 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2011 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2012 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2013 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2014 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2015 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2016 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2017 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2018 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2019 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2020 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2021 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2022 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2023 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2024 | under 1 ha | 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2025 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Ghulja?
- Loggingcan grow back29% · 3 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good20% · 2 ha
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good13% · 1 ha
Also: 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
- 341 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 681 ha
- Overall change
- +340 hamore forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Ghulja grew from about 341 hectares to 681 hectares, a net gain of about 340 hectares (+over 99%). New forest grew on about 355 hectares, while 15 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
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Frequently asked
Questions about Ghulja
What is the air quality (AQI) in Ghulja right now?
The latest reading for Ghulja shows an AQI of 51 (Moderate), measured Nov 11, 23:00 local time by 2 ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ (the median of their readings; the nearest is Yili (伊犁哈萨克), 2.4 km away). The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Ghulja 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 Ghulja been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Ghulja's daily AQI at 66 on average, from 55 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 92 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 Ghulja lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Ghulja has lost about 9 hectares of forest (about 12 football pitches): 7.1% of the forest it had in 2000. The biggest cause was logging (29%), after which forest can grow back. About 3 hectares (34%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Ghulja grew from about 341 hectares to 681 hectares, a net gain of about 340 hectares (+over 99%). New forest grew on about 355 hectares, while 15 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Ghulja?
Ghulja has an estimated 52,465 trees across the 12.57 km² measured — 16.7% tree cover, 13 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Ghulja need?
Ghulja needs roughly 41,783 more trees to close a 13-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 919.2 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Ghulja's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Gulja, 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 2 km radius around Gulja; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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