City report · Tennessee, United States
Knoxville Air quality today
Air quality in Knoxville currently reads AQI 60 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Air quality right now
AQI 60
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 14.1
- tree cover
- 28.6%
- trees in this area
- 84.2K
- more trees needed
- 4.1K
Measured across a 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around Downtown, Knoxville, TN, USA (4.9 sq mi), from a satellite image of Sep 15, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Knoxville · AQI 60 (Moderate)
Knoxville's tree count comes to 84,189 trees across 4.5 sq mi (11.78 km²) of land, 1 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 4,121 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Knoxville today: AQI 60, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 09:00 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · AIR LAB, 1.5 mi (2.4 km) away · median of 2 stations
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
14.1
PM10
—
NO₂
—
O₃
—
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: OpenAQ · AirNow
- 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 Knoxville's daily AQI at 43 on average, from 25 on Nov 4 to an hourly peak of 79 on Nov 10.
Where Knoxville stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Knoxville: Below target
28.6% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 4.5 sq mi (11.78 km²) of land.
Trees in this area
84,189
Target trees
88,310
More trees needed
4,121
CO₂ if planted / yr
90.7 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Knoxville lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Knoxville has lost about 2,360 acres (955 hectares) of forest (about 1,800 football fields): 6.1% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (90%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads.
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 6 km south of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 2,360 acres (955 ha)about 1,800 football fields
- Share of its forest
- 6.1%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 2,130 acres (862 ha)deforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2007, when about 225 acres (91 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 | 103 acres (42 ha) | 10 acres (4 ha) | 112 acres (46 ha) |
| 2002 | 104 acres (42 ha) | under 1 ha | 105 acres (42 ha) |
| 2003 | 86 acres (35 ha) | under 1 ha | 88 acres (36 ha) |
| 2004 | 182 acres (74 ha) | 14 acres (6 ha) | 196 acres (79 ha) |
| 2005 | 95 acres (39 ha) | 20 acres (8 ha) | 115 acres (46 ha) |
| 2006 | 201 acres (81 ha) | 13 acres (5 ha) | 213 acres (86 ha) |
| 2007 | 200 acres (81 ha) | 26 acres (10 ha) | 225 acres (91 ha) |
| 2008 | 149 acres (60 ha) | 15 acres (6 ha) | 163 acres (66 ha) |
| 2009 | 42 acres (17 ha) | 12 acres (5 ha) | 54 acres (22 ha) |
| 2010 | 79 acres (32 ha) | 39 acres (16 ha) | 118 acres (48 ha) |
| 2011 | 54 acres (22 ha) | 30 acres (12 ha) | 83 acres (34 ha) |
| 2012 | 26 acres (11 ha) | under 1 ha | 28 acres (11 ha) |
| 2013 | 30 acres (12 ha) | under 1 ha | 30 acres (12 ha) |
| 2014 | 23 acres (9 ha) | under 1 ha | 23 acres (9 ha) |
| 2015 | 57 acres (23 ha) | under 1 ha | 58 acres (24 ha) |
| 2016 | 107 acres (43 ha) | 7 acres (3 ha) | 114 acres (46 ha) |
| 2017 | 56 acres (23 ha) | 6 acres (3 ha) | 62 acres (25 ha) |
| 2018 | 62 acres (25 ha) | 11 acres (5 ha) | 73 acres (30 ha) |
| 2019 | 48 acres (19 ha) | under 1 ha | 49 acres (20 ha) |
| 2020 | 97 acres (39 ha) | under 1 ha | 97 acres (39 ha) |
| 2021 | 70 acres (28 ha) | under 1 ha | 72 acres (29 ha) |
| 2022 | 91 acres (37 ha) | under 1 ha | 93 acres (38 ha) |
| 2023 | 28 acres (11 ha) | under 1 ha | 29 acres (12 ha) |
| 2024 | 74 acres (30 ha) | 2 acres (1 ha) | 77 acres (31 ha) |
| 2025 | 68 acres (27 ha) | 15 acres (6 ha) | 83 acres (34 ha) |
What is causing deforestation around Knoxville?
- Towns and roadscleared for good84% · 1,990 acres (807 ha)
- Loggingcan grow back8.4% · 198 acres (80 ha)
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good4.7% · 110 acres (45 ha)
Also: mining and energy, 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
- 45,000 acres (18,200 ha)
- Forest in 2020
- 44,200 acres (17,900 ha)
- Overall change
- −781 acres (316 ha)less forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Knoxville stayed about the same size, at about 44,200 acres (17,900 hectares): new forest grew on about 1,000 acres (405 hectares), and about 1,780 acres (721 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 Knoxville
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Chattanooga161.7 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 16%
- Air quality
- 53
- Murfreesboro222.8 km
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- Tree cover
- 42%
- Air quality
- 28
- Athens227.8 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 59%
- Air quality
- 53
- Sandy Springs230.2 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 61%
- Air quality
- 73
- Lexington230.9 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 53%
- Air quality
- 32
- Atlanta249.6 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 25%
- Air quality
- 53
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Frequently asked
Questions about Knoxville
What is the air quality (AQI) in Knoxville right now?
The latest reading for Knoxville shows an AQI of 60 (Moderate), measured Nov 11, 09:00 local time by 2 ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ (the median of their readings; the nearest is AIR LAB, 1.5 mi (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 Knoxville today?
At AQI 60 (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 Knoxville been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Knoxville's daily AQI at 43 on average, from 25 on Nov 4 to an hourly peak of 79 on Nov 10. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Knoxville lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Knoxville has lost about 2,360 acres (955 hectares) of forest (about 1,800 football fields): 6.1% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (90%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Knoxville stayed about the same size, at about 44,200 acres (17,900 hectares): new forest grew on about 1,000 acres (405 hectares), and about 1,780 acres (721 hectares) were lost.
What is the tree count in Knoxville?
Knoxville has an estimated 84,189 trees across the 4.5 sq mi (11.78 km²) of land measured — 28.6% tree cover, 1 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Knoxville need?
Knoxville needs roughly 4,121 more trees to close a 1-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 90.7 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Knoxville's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Downtown, 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 Downtown; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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