City report · Zambia
Mongu Air quality today
Air quality in Mongu currently reads AQI 65 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Air quality right now
AQI 65
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 15.0
- tree cover
- 21.1%
- trees in this area
- 66.3K
- more trees needed
- 28.0K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Mongu, Western, Zambia (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 26, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Mongu · AQI 65 (Moderate)
Mongu's tree count comes to 66,288 trees across 12.57 km², 9 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 27,960 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Mongu today: AQI 65, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 10, 16:00 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
15.0
PM10
17.9
NO₂
0.6
O₃
89.0
SO₂
0.7
CO
159.0
- 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 Mongu's daily AQI at 63 on average, from 48 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 86 on Nov 5.
Where Mongu stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Mongu: Below target
21.1% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.57 km².
Trees in this area
66,288
Target trees
94,248
More trees needed
27,960
CO₂ if planted / yr
615.1 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Mongu lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Mongu has lost about 19 hectares of forest (about 26 football pitches): 5.9% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (77%) 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
- 19 haabout 26 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 5.9%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 14 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2001, when about 3 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 | 1 ha | 2 ha | 3 ha |
| 2002 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2003 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2004 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2005 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2006 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2007 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2008 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2009 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2010 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2011 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2012 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2013 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2014 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2015 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2016 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2017 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2018 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2019 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2020 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 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 Mongu?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good74% · 14 ha
- Storms, floods and other natural causescan grow back6.5% · 1 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good2.2% · under 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
- 1,580 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 1,490 ha
- Overall change
- −83 haless forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Mongu shrank from about 1,580 hectares to 1,490 hectares, a net loss of about 83 hectares (−5.3%). New forest grew on about 75 hectares, but 158 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 Mongu
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Livingstone409.4 km
Zambia
- Tree cover
- 25%
- Air quality
- 19
- Rundu464.6 km
Namibia
- Tree cover
- 3%
- Air quality
- 61
- Tshilenge476.7 km
Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Tree cover
- 53%
- Air quality
- 65
- Solwezi491.3 km
Zambia
- Tree cover
- 10%
- Air quality
- 59
- Mazabuka499.6 km
Zambia
- Tree cover
- 13%
- Air quality
- 98
- Luena518.6 km
Angola
- Tree cover
- 17%
- Air quality
- 54
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Frequently asked
Questions about Mongu
What is the air quality (AQI) in Mongu right now?
The latest reading for Mongu shows an AQI of 65 (Moderate), observed Nov 10, 16:00 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 Mongu today?
At AQI 65 (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 Mongu been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Mongu's daily AQI at 63 on average, from 48 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 86 on Nov 5. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Mongu lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Mongu has lost about 19 hectares of forest (about 26 football pitches): 5.9% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (77%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Mongu shrank from about 1,580 hectares to 1,490 hectares, a net loss of about 83 hectares (−5.3%). New forest grew on about 75 hectares, but 158 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Mongu?
Mongu has an estimated 66,288 trees across the 12.57 km² measured — 21.1% tree cover, 9 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Mongu need?
Mongu needs roughly 27,960 more trees to close a 9-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 615.1 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Mongu'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 Mongu; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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