City report · Zimbabwe
Gweru Air quality today
Air quality in Gweru currently reads AQI 53 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Air quality right now
AQI 53
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 10.0
- tree cover
- 14.9%
- trees in this area
- 46.8K
- more trees needed
- 47.4K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Gweru, Zimbabwe (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 17, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Gweru · AQI 53 (Moderate)
Gweru's tree count comes to 46,810 trees across 12.57 km², 15 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 47,438 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Gweru today: AQI 53, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 16:00 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · KDT Mkoba Gweru, 5.3 km away
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
10.0
PM10
—
NO₂
—
O₃
—
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: OpenAQ · IQAir, Kgotso Development Trust
- 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 Gweru's daily AQI at 38 on average, from 8 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 85 on Nov 8.
Where Gweru stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Gweru: Critically low
14.9% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.57 km².
Trees in this area
46,810
Target trees
94,248
More trees needed
47,438
CO₂ if planted / yr
1,044 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Gweru lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Gweru has lost about 90 hectares of forest (about 130 football pitches): 10% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (96%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
2017: satellite photo from September 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 90 haabout 130 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 10%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 86 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2017, when about 15 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 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2002 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2003 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2004 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2005 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2006 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2007 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2008 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2009 | 6 ha | under 1 ha | 6 ha |
| 2010 | 7 ha | under 1 ha | 7 ha |
| 2011 | 4 ha | under 1 ha | 4 ha |
| 2012 | 10 ha | under 1 ha | 10 ha |
| 2013 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2014 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 4 ha |
| 2015 | 5 ha | under 1 ha | 5 ha |
| 2016 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 4 ha |
| 2017 | 15 ha | under 1 ha | 15 ha |
| 2018 | 12 ha | under 1 ha | 12 ha |
| 2019 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2020 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2021 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2022 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2023 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2024 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2025 | 2 ha | 2 ha | 3 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Gweru?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good65% · 59 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good29% · 26 ha
- Mining and energycleared for good1.4% · 1 ha
Also: 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
- 1,630 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 1,340 ha
- Overall change
- −290 haless forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Gweru shrank from about 1,630 hectares to 1,340 hectares, a net loss of about 290 hectares (−18%). New forest grew on about 28 hectares, but 318 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 Gweru
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Kadoma124.6 km
Zimbabwe
- Tree cover
- 15%
- Air quality
- 44
- Chitungwiza207.6 km
Zimbabwe
- Tree cover
- 5%
- Air quality
- 41
Build your own
Compare Gweru with anywhere
This place
Gweru
Use this data
Put Gweru's numbers on your site
Free to embed. Updates itself as the measurement refreshes.
Frequently asked
Questions about Gweru
What is the air quality (AQI) in Gweru right now?
The latest reading for Gweru shows an AQI of 53 (Moderate), measured Nov 11, 16:00 local time by the KDT Mkoba Gweru ground monitoring station, 5.3 km away, via OpenAQ. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Gweru today?
At AQI 53 (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 Gweru been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Gweru's daily AQI at 38 on average, from 8 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 85 on Nov 8. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Gweru lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Gweru has lost about 90 hectares of forest (about 130 football pitches): 10% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (96%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Gweru shrank from about 1,630 hectares to 1,340 hectares, a net loss of about 290 hectares (−18%). New forest grew on about 28 hectares, but 318 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Gweru?
Gweru has an estimated 46,810 trees across the 12.57 km² measured — 14.9% tree cover, 15 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Gweru need?
Gweru needs roughly 47,438 more trees to close a 15-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 1,044 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Gweru's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Gweru, 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 Gweru; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
See your own area
What does your neighborhood look like?
Pick any point and radius to get the same air-quality and tree-cover breakdown.
Check my address