City report · Gabon
Libreville Air quality today
Air quality in Libreville 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)
- 11.7
- tree cover
- 12.3%
- trees in this area
- 32.4K
- more trees needed
- 46.6K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Petit Paris, Libreville, Gabon (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Jun 29, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Libreville · AQI 53 (Moderate)
Libreville's tree count comes to 32,382 trees across 10.53 km² of land, 18 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 46,598 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Libreville today: AQI 53, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 10, 22:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Model estimate · no ground station nearby
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
11.7
PM10
12.0
NO₂
8.5
O₃
25.0
SO₂
3.6
CO
821.0
- 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 Libreville's daily AQI at 42 on average, from 28 on Nov 10 to an hourly peak of 76 on Nov 9.
Where Libreville stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Libreville: Critically low
12.3% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 10.53 km² of land.
Trees in this area
32,382
Target trees
78,980
More trees needed
46,598
CO₂ if planted / yr
1,025 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Libreville lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Libreville has lost about 1,510 hectares of forest (about 2,100 football pitches): 20% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (89%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads.
2017: satellite photo from February 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km northeast of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 1,510 haabout 2,100 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 20%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 1,340 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
Forest loss has stayed about the same: about 47 hectares a year in 2021–2025, against 60 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2014, when about 215 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 | 64 ha | 2 ha | 66 ha |
| 2002 | 9 ha | under 1 ha | 9 ha |
| 2003 | 11 ha | under 1 ha | 12 ha |
| 2004 | 14 ha | under 1 ha | 14 ha |
| 2005 | 124 ha | 7 ha | 131 ha |
| 2006 | 8 ha | under 1 ha | 8 ha |
| 2007 | 31 ha | under 1 ha | 32 ha |
| 2008 | 48 ha | under 1 ha | 48 ha |
| 2009 | 23 ha | 1 ha | 25 ha |
| 2010 | 21 ha | under 1 ha | 21 ha |
| 2011 | 117 ha | 6 ha | 123 ha |
| 2012 | 60 ha | 1 ha | 62 ha |
| 2013 | 146 ha | 9 ha | 155 ha |
| 2014 | 194 ha | 21 ha | 215 ha |
| 2015 | 49 ha | 5 ha | 53 ha |
| 2016 | 45 ha | 20 ha | 65 ha |
| 2017 | 89 ha | 16 ha | 105 ha |
| 2018 | 37 ha | 15 ha | 52 ha |
| 2019 | 43 ha | 16 ha | 59 ha |
| 2020 | 15 ha | 6 ha | 22 ha |
| 2021 | 28 ha | 7 ha | 35 ha |
| 2022 | 22 ha | 10 ha | 32 ha |
| 2023 | 12 ha | 2 ha | 14 ha |
| 2024 | 40 ha | 16 ha | 56 ha |
| 2025 | 89 ha | 9 ha | 98 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Libreville?
- Towns and roadscleared for good78% · 1,170 ha
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good11% · 160 ha
- Shifting farmingcan grow back10% · 154 ha
Also: storms, floods and other natural causes, 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
- 4,260 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 3,440 ha
- Overall change
- −821 haless forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Libreville shrank from about 4,260 hectares to 3,440 hectares, a net loss of about 821 hectares (−19%). New forest grew on about 242 hectares, but 1,060 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 Libreville
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Bata167.3 km
Equatorial Guinea
- Tree cover
- 19%
- Air quality
- 31
- Ciudad de la Paz202.5 km
Equatorial Guinea
- Tree cover
- 52%
- Air quality
- 26
- Ebebiyin286.0 km
Equatorial Guinea
- Tree cover
- 59%
- Air quality
- 48
- São Tomé302.9 km
Sao Tome and Principe
- Tree cover
- 50%
- Air quality
- 23
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Frequently asked
Questions about Libreville
What is the air quality (AQI) in Libreville right now?
The latest reading for Libreville shows an AQI of 53 (Moderate), observed Nov 10, 22:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Libreville 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 Libreville been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Libreville's daily AQI at 42 on average, from 28 on Nov 10 to an hourly peak of 76 on Nov 9. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Libreville lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Libreville has lost about 1,510 hectares of forest (about 2,100 football pitches): 20% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (89%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Forest loss has stayed about the same: about 47 hectares a year in 2021–2025, against 60 hectares a year in 2016–2020. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Libreville shrank from about 4,260 hectares to 3,440 hectares, a net loss of about 821 hectares (−19%). New forest grew on about 242 hectares, but 1,060 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Libreville?
Libreville has an estimated 32,382 trees across the 10.53 km² of land measured — 12.3% tree cover, 18 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Libreville need?
Libreville needs roughly 46,598 more trees to close a 18-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 1,025 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Libreville's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality comes from ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ where one reports nearby, and otherwise, as here, from the Open-Meteo / CAMS model, which may differ from street-level monitors. 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 Petit Paris; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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