City report · Eastern Cape, South Africa
Mthatha Air quality today
Air quality in Mthatha currently reads AQI 51 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Air quality right now
AQI 51
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 9.3
- tree cover
- 26.1%
- trees in this area
- 82.0K
- more trees needed
- 12.3K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Norwood, Mthatha, 5100, South Africa (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Mar 11, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Mthatha · AQI 51 (Moderate)
Mthatha's tree count comes to 81,996 trees across 12.57 km², 4 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 12,252 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Mthatha today: AQI 51, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 07:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 2 ground-station cities within 185 km, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Estimate · model corrected with 2 station cities within 185 km, e.g. Mdantsane and KuGompo City
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
9.3
PM10
14.4
NO₂
5.4
O₃
69.0
SO₂
6.2
CO
250.0
- 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 Mthatha's daily AQI at 40 on average, from 17 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 72 on Nov 10.
Where Mthatha stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Mthatha: Below target
26.1% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.57 km².
Trees in this area
81,996
Target trees
94,248
More trees needed
12,252
CO₂ if planted / yr
269.5 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Mthatha lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Mthatha has lost about 39 hectares of forest (about 55 football pitches): 6.5% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (80%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
2017: satellite photo from February 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 39 haabout 55 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 6.5%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 31 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2003, when about 6 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 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2002 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2003 | 5 ha | 1 ha | 6 ha |
| 2004 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2005 | 6 ha | under 1 ha | 6 ha |
| 2006 | under 1 ha | 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2007 | under 1 ha | 2 ha | 2 ha |
| 2008 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 4 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 | 1 ha |
| 2012 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2013 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2014 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2015 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2016 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2017 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 3 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 | 1 ha |
| 2021 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | 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 Mthatha?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good43% · 17 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good36% · 14 ha
- Storms, floods and other natural causescan grow back8.2% · 3 ha
Also: logging, 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
- 624 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 641 ha
- Overall change
- +17 hamore forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Mthatha grew from about 624 hectares to 641 hectares, a net gain of about 17 hectares (+2.7%). New forest grew on about 38 hectares, while 22 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 Mthatha
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Mdantsane177.0 km
South Africa
- Tree cover
- 42%
- Air quality
- 28
- East London178.6 km
South Africa
- Tree cover
- 29%
- Air quality
- 28
- Queenstown183.8 km
South Africa
- Tree cover
- 19%
- Air quality
- 30
- Bhisho188.5 km
South Africa
- Tree cover
- 28%
- Air quality
- 21
- Mohale's Hoek202.8 km
Lesotho
- Tree cover
- 22%
- Air quality
- 18
- Mafeteng245.8 km
Lesotho
- Tree cover
- 4%
- Air quality
- 13
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Frequently asked
Questions about Mthatha
What is the air quality (AQI) in Mthatha right now?
The latest reading for Mthatha shows an AQI of 51 (Moderate), observed Nov 11, 07:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 2 ground-station cities within 185 km, 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 Mthatha today?
At AQI 51 (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 Mthatha been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Mthatha's daily AQI at 40 on average, from 17 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 72 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 Mthatha lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Mthatha has lost about 39 hectares of forest (about 55 football pitches): 6.5% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (80%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Mthatha grew from about 624 hectares to 641 hectares, a net gain of about 17 hectares (+2.7%). New forest grew on about 38 hectares, while 22 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Mthatha?
Mthatha has an estimated 81,996 trees across the 12.57 km² measured — 26.1% tree cover, 4 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Mthatha need?
Mthatha needs roughly 12,252 more trees to close a 4-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 269.5 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Mthatha'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 Norwood; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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