City report · Queensland, Australia
Gold Coast Air quality today
Air quality in Gold Coast currently reads AQI 26 (Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
AQI 26
Air quality right now
Good
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 4.6
- tree cover
- 17.3%
- trees in this area
- 23.9K
- more trees needed
- 17.6K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Surfers Paradise QLD, Australia (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Nov 5, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Gold Coast · AQI 26 (Good)
Gold Coast's tree count comes to 23,914 trees across 5.53 km² of land, 13 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 17,555 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Gold Coast today: AQI 26, Good
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 12, 01:00 local time via World Air Quality Index Project ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · Southport, 5.2 km away
Health signal
Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
PM2.5
4.6
PM10
10.8
NO₂
—
O₃
—
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: World Air Quality Index Project, Air quality | Environment, land and water | Queensland Government
- 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 Gold Coast's daily AQI at 52 on average, from 43 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 62 on Nov 7.
Where Gold Coast stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Gold Coast: Critically low
17.3% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 5.53 km² of land.
Trees in this area
23,914
Target trees
41,469
More trees needed
17,555
CO₂ if planted / yr
386.2 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Gold Coast lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Gold Coast has lost about 251 hectares of forest (about 350 football pitches): 21% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (98%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads.
2017: satellite photo from August 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km northwest of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 251 haabout 350 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 21%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 247 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2010, when about 36 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 | 9 ha | under 1 ha | 10 ha |
| 2002 | 13 ha | under 1 ha | 13 ha |
| 2003 | 17 ha | under 1 ha | 17 ha |
| 2004 | 18 ha | under 1 ha | 18 ha |
| 2005 | 9 ha | under 1 ha | 9 ha |
| 2006 | 17 ha | under 1 ha | 17 ha |
| 2007 | 10 ha | under 1 ha | 11 ha |
| 2008 | 21 ha | under 1 ha | 22 ha |
| 2009 | 7 ha | under 1 ha | 8 ha |
| 2010 | 36 ha | under 1 ha | 36 ha |
| 2011 | 21 ha | under 1 ha | 21 ha |
| 2012 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2013 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2014 | 9 ha | under 1 ha | 9 ha |
| 2015 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2016 | 12 ha | under 1 ha | 12 ha |
| 2017 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2018 | 6 ha | under 1 ha | 6 ha |
| 2019 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2020 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2021 | 4 ha | under 1 ha | 4 ha |
| 2022 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2023 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2024 | 14 ha | under 1 ha | 14 ha |
| 2025 | 9 ha | under 1 ha | 9 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Gold Coast?
- Towns and roadscleared for good97% · 245 ha
- Unknown causescause unknown1.8% · 5 ha
Also: farms, pasture and plantations.
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
- 2,920 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 2,790 ha
- Overall change
- −126 haless forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Gold Coast shrank from about 2,920 hectares to 2,790 hectares, a net loss of about 126 hectares (−4.3%). New forest grew on about 56 hectares, but 182 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 Gold Coast
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Logan City51.1 km
Australia
- Tree cover
- 35%
- Air quality
- 15
- Brisbane71.2 km
Australia
- Tree cover
- 20%
- Air quality
- 11
- Toowoomba153.3 km
Australia
- Tree cover
- 31%
- Air quality
- 13
- Sunshine Coast153.4 km
Australia
- Tree cover
- 33%
- Air quality
- 12
- Newcastle570.5 km
Australia
- Tree cover
- 17%
- Air quality
- 130
- Central Coast635.0 km
Australia
- Tree cover
- 75%
- Air quality
- 59
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Frequently asked
Questions about Gold Coast
What is the air quality (AQI) in Gold Coast right now?
The latest reading for Gold Coast shows an AQI of 26 (Good), measured Nov 12, 01:00 local time by the Southport ground monitoring station, 5.2 km away, via OpenAQ. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Gold Coast today?
At AQI 26 (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 Gold Coast been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Gold Coast's daily AQI at 52 on average, from 43 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 62 on Nov 7. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Gold Coast lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Gold Coast has lost about 251 hectares of forest (about 350 football pitches): 21% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (98%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Gold Coast shrank from about 2,920 hectares to 2,790 hectares, a net loss of about 126 hectares (−4.3%). New forest grew on about 56 hectares, but 182 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Gold Coast?
Gold Coast has an estimated 23,914 trees across the 5.53 km² of land measured — 17.3% tree cover, 13 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Gold Coast need?
Gold Coast needs roughly 17,555 more trees to close a 13-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 386.2 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Gold Coast's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Surfers Paradise QLD, 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 Surfers Paradise QLD; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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