City report · Zimbabwe
Mutare Air quality today
Air quality in Mutare currently reads AQI 58 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Air quality right now
AQI 58
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 13.8
- tree cover
- 36.6%
- trees in this area
- 115K
- more trees needed
- 0
Measured across a 2 km radius around Target Area, Zimbabwe (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 14, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Mutare · AQI 58 (Moderate)
Mutare's tree count comes to 114,982 trees across 12.57 km², already at or above the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Mutare today: AQI 58, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 13:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 2 ground-station cities within 225 km, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Estimate · model corrected with 2 station cities within 225 km, e.g. Chitungwiza and Harare
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
13.8
PM10
12.4
NO₂
0.9
O₃
111.0
SO₂
1.7
CO
111.0
- 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 Mutare's daily AQI at 70 on average, from 59 on Nov 10 to an hourly peak of 103 on Nov 11.
Where Mutare stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Mutare: Healthy tree cover
36.6% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.57 km².
Trees in this area
114,982
Target trees
114,982
More trees needed
0
CO₂ if planted / yr
0 kg
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Mutare lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Mutare has lost about 2,590 hectares of forest (about 3,600 football pitches): 22% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it was lost to logging, so much of it can grow back. About 856 hectares (33%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns.
2017: satellite photo from September 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km northeast of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 2,590 haabout 3,600 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 22%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 856 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
Forest loss has stayed about the same: about 98 hectares a year in 2021–2025, against 129 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2019, when about 202 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 | 12 ha | 48 ha | 60 ha |
| 2002 | 6 ha | 28 ha | 35 ha |
| 2003 | 3 ha | 4 ha | 7 ha |
| 2004 | 17 ha | 39 ha | 55 ha |
| 2005 | 12 ha | 60 ha | 72 ha |
| 2006 | 48 ha | 73 ha | 121 ha |
| 2007 | 21 ha | 118 ha | 139 ha |
| 2008 | 3 ha | 13 ha | 16 ha |
| 2009 | 70 ha | 18 ha | 88 ha |
| 2010 | 113 ha | 69 ha | 182 ha |
| 2011 | 6 ha | 51 ha | 58 ha |
| 2012 | 28 ha | 120 ha | 147 ha |
| 2013 | 31 ha | 109 ha | 140 ha |
| 2014 | 40 ha | 133 ha | 173 ha |
| 2015 | 35 ha | 132 ha | 167 ha |
| 2016 | 33 ha | 82 ha | 114 ha |
| 2017 | 51 ha | 47 ha | 98 ha |
| 2018 | 33 ha | 40 ha | 73 ha |
| 2019 | 33 ha | 169 ha | 202 ha |
| 2020 | 33 ha | 123 ha | 156 ha |
| 2021 | 43 ha | 72 ha | 115 ha |
| 2022 | 35 ha | 65 ha | 100 ha |
| 2023 | 54 ha | 25 ha | 79 ha |
| 2024 | 58 ha | 57 ha | 115 ha |
| 2025 | 38 ha | 41 ha | 80 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Mutare?
- Loggingcan grow back67% · 1,730 ha
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good29% · 763 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good3.1% · 79 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
- 17,000 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 15,200 ha
- Overall change
- −1,780 haless forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Mutare shrank from about 17,000 hectares to 15,200 hectares, a net loss of about 1,780 hectares (−11%). New forest grew on about 213 hectares, but 2,000 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 Mutare
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Chimoio86.9 km
Mozambique
- Tree cover
- 16%
- Air quality
- 25
- Beira247.2 km
Mozambique
- Tree cover
- 8%
- Air quality
- 27
- Kadoma298.8 km
Zimbabwe
- Tree cover
- 15%
- Air quality
- 44
- Kwekwe300.4 km
Zimbabwe
- Tree cover
- 13%
- Air quality
- 32
Also compared:Mutare vs BulawayoMutare vs Gweru
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Frequently asked
Questions about Mutare
What is the air quality (AQI) in Mutare right now?
The latest reading for Mutare shows an AQI of 58 (Moderate), observed Nov 11, 13:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 2 ground-station cities within 225 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 Mutare today?
At AQI 58 (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 Mutare been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Mutare's daily AQI at 70 on average, from 59 on Nov 10 to an hourly peak of 103 on Nov 11. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Mutare lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Mutare has lost about 2,590 hectares of forest (about 3,600 football pitches): 22% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it was lost to logging, so much of it can grow back. About 856 hectares (33%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns. Forest loss has stayed about the same: about 98 hectares a year in 2021–2025, against 129 hectares a year in 2016–2020. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Mutare shrank from about 17,000 hectares to 15,200 hectares, a net loss of about 1,780 hectares (−11%). New forest grew on about 213 hectares, but 2,000 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Mutare?
Mutare has an estimated 114,982 trees across the 12.57 km² measured — 36.6% tree cover, already past the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Mutare need?
Mutare has already reached its tree-cover target, so no additional trees are needed to close the gap.
How are Mutare'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 Target Area; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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