City report · Lesotho
Maputsoe Air quality today
Air quality in Maputsoe currently reads AQI 31 (Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
AQI 31
Air quality right now
Good
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 4.4
- tree cover
- 11.4%
- trees in this area
- 35.8K
- more trees needed
- 58.4K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Maputsoe, Lesotho (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 12, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Maputsoe · AQI 31 (Good)
Maputsoe's tree count comes to 35,814 trees across 12.57 km², 19 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 58,434 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Maputsoe today: AQI 31, Good
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 10:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 3 ground-station cities within 245 km, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Estimate · model corrected with 3 station cities within 245 km, e.g. Maseru and Sasolburg
Health signal
Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
PM2.5
4.4
PM10
6.3
NO₂
0.4
O₃
111.0
SO₂
2.8
CO
138.0
- 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 Maputsoe's daily AQI at 40 on average, from 26 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 69 on Nov 10.
Where Maputsoe stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Maputsoe: Critically low
11.4% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.57 km².
Trees in this area
35,814
Target trees
94,248
More trees needed
58,434
CO₂ if planted / yr
1,286 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Maputsoe lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Maputsoe has lost about 33 hectares of forest (about 47 football pitches): 16% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (74%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 33 haabout 47 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 16%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 25 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2016, when about 18 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 | 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 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 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 | 4 ha | under 1 ha | 4 ha |
| 2015 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2016 | 15 ha | 4 ha | 18 ha |
| 2017 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2018 | under 1 ha | 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2019 | 1 ha | 3 ha | 4 ha |
| 2020 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 2 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 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2025 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Maputsoe?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good73% · 24 ha
- Loggingcan grow back24% · 8 ha
- Unknown causescause unknown3% · 1 ha
Also: towns and roads.
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
- 915 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 914 ha
- Overall change
- −1 haless forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Maputsoe stayed about the same size, at about 914 hectares: new forest grew on about 41 hectares, and about 42 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 Maputsoe
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Botshabelo121.6 km
South Africa
- Tree cover
- 6%
- Air quality
- 31
- Mafeteng122.3 km
Lesotho
- Tree cover
- 4%
- Air quality
- 13
- Virginia133.3 km
South Africa
- Tree cover
- 33%
- Air quality
- 49
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Frequently asked
Questions about Maputsoe
What is the air quality (AQI) in Maputsoe right now?
The latest reading for Maputsoe shows an AQI of 31 (Good), observed Nov 11, 10:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 3 ground-station cities within 245 km, US EPA index. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Maputsoe today?
At AQI 31 (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 Maputsoe been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Maputsoe's daily AQI at 40 on average, from 26 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 69 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 Maputsoe lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Maputsoe has lost about 33 hectares of forest (about 47 football pitches): 16% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (74%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Maputsoe stayed about the same size, at about 914 hectares: new forest grew on about 41 hectares, and about 42 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Maputsoe?
Maputsoe has an estimated 35,814 trees across the 12.57 km² measured — 11.4% tree cover, 19 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Maputsoe need?
Maputsoe needs roughly 58,434 more trees to close a 19-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 1,286 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Maputsoe'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 Maputsoe; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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