City report · Massachusetts, United States
New Bedford Air quality today
Air quality in New Bedford currently reads AQI 24 (Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Air quality right now
AQI 24
Good
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 2.6
- tree cover
- 19.1%
- trees in this area
- 45.6K
- more trees needed
- 26.0K
Measured across a 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around New Bedford, MA, USA (4.9 sq mi), from a satellite image of Sep 15, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
New Bedford · AQI 24 (Good)
New Bedford's tree count comes to 45,603 trees across 3.7 sq mi (9.55 km²) of land, 11 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 26,025 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in New Bedford today: AQI 24, Good
Main pollutant: Ozone · Observed Nov 11, 09:00 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · Fall River, 13.0 mi (20.9 km) away · median of 2 stations
Health signal
Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
PM2.5
2.6
PM10
—
NO₂
—
O₃
53.0
SO₂
1.3
CO
—
Data: OpenAQ · AirNow
- 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 New Bedford's daily AQI at 25 on average, from 12 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 49 on Nov 9.
Where New Bedford stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in New Bedford: Below target
19.1% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 3.7 sq mi (9.55 km²) of land.
Trees in this area
45,603
Target trees
71,628
More trees needed
26,025
CO₂ if planted / yr
572.5 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has New Bedford lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of New Bedford has lost about 1,180 acres (477 hectares) of forest (about 890 football fields): 3.3% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (87%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads.
2017: satellite photo from August 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km west of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 1,180 acres (477 ha)about 890 football fields
- Share of its forest
- 3.3%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 1,030 acres (415 ha)deforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2018, when about 103 acres (42 hectares) of forest were lost.
Acres of forest lost each year
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Cleared for good | Can grow back | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 26 acres (11 ha) | under 1 ha | 28 acres (11 ha) |
| 2002 | 40 acres (16 ha) | 2 acres (1 ha) | 43 acres (17 ha) |
| 2003 | 36 acres (15 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) | 39 acres (16 ha) |
| 2004 | 35 acres (14 ha) | under 1 ha | 37 acres (15 ha) |
| 2005 | 65 acres (26 ha) | under 1 ha | 67 acres (27 ha) |
| 2006 | 35 acres (14 ha) | 4 acres (2 ha) | 39 acres (16 ha) |
| 2007 | 40 acres (16 ha) | under 1 ha | 41 acres (17 ha) |
| 2008 | 30 acres (12 ha) | under 1 ha | 32 acres (13 ha) |
| 2009 | 35 acres (14 ha) | under 1 ha | 36 acres (15 ha) |
| 2010 | 20 acres (8 ha) | under 1 ha | 22 acres (9 ha) |
| 2011 | 40 acres (16 ha) | 58 acres (24 ha) | 98 acres (40 ha) |
| 2012 | 43 acres (17 ha) | 9 acres (4 ha) | 52 acres (21 ha) |
| 2013 | 49 acres (20 ha) | under 1 ha | 50 acres (20 ha) |
| 2014 | 18 acres (7 ha) | 28 acres (12 ha) | 47 acres (19 ha) |
| 2015 | 42 acres (17 ha) | under 1 ha | 44 acres (18 ha) |
| 2016 | 68 acres (27 ha) | under 1 ha | 68 acres (28 ha) |
| 2017 | 73 acres (29 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) | 75 acres (31 ha) |
| 2018 | 101 acres (41 ha) | under 1 ha | 103 acres (42 ha) |
| 2019 | 44 acres (18 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) | 46 acres (19 ha) |
| 2020 | 35 acres (14 ha) | under 1 ha | 37 acres (15 ha) |
| 2021 | 47 acres (19 ha) | under 1 ha | 48 acres (20 ha) |
| 2022 | 53 acres (22 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) | 57 acres (23 ha) |
| 2023 | 31 acres (13 ha) | under 1 ha | 32 acres (13 ha) |
| 2024 | 10 acres (4 ha) | 9 acres (4 ha) | 19 acres (8 ha) |
| 2025 | 8 acres (3 ha) | 9 acres (4 ha) | 17 acres (7 ha) |
What is causing deforestation around New Bedford?
- Towns and roadscleared for good71% · 840 acres (340 ha)
- Mining and energycleared for good11% · 134 acres (54 ha)
- Loggingcan grow back8.4% · 99 acres (40 ha)
Also: farms, pasture and plantations, storms, floods and other natural causes, 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
- 39,600 acres (16,000 ha)
- Forest in 2020
- 38,900 acres (15,800 ha)
- Overall change
- −613 acres (248 ha)less forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around New Bedford stayed about the same size, at about 38,900 acres (15,800 hectares): new forest grew on about 455 acres (184 hectares), and about 1,070 acres (431 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 New Bedford
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Providence45.4 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 25%
- Air quality
- 31
- Boston81.2 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 12%
- Air quality
- 18
- Worcester100.5 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 27%
- Air quality
- 21
- Lowell115.5 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 31%
- Air quality
- 19
- Hartford146.7 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 30%
- Air quality
- 19
- Springfield147.1 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 31%
- Air quality
- 12
Build your own
Compare New Bedford with anywhere
This place
New Bedford
Use this data
Put New Bedford's numbers on your site
Free to embed. Updates itself as the measurement refreshes.
Frequently asked
Questions about New Bedford
What is the air quality (AQI) in New Bedford right now?
The latest reading for New Bedford shows an AQI of 24 (Good), measured Nov 11, 09:00 local time by 2 ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ (the median of their readings; the nearest is Fall River, 13.0 mi (20.9 km) away). The main pollutant is Ozone. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Is it safe to exercise outside in New Bedford today?
At AQI 24 (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 New Bedford been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put New Bedford's daily AQI at 25 on average, from 12 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 49 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 New Bedford lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of New Bedford has lost about 1,180 acres (477 hectares) of forest (about 890 football fields): 3.3% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (87%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around New Bedford stayed about the same size, at about 38,900 acres (15,800 hectares): new forest grew on about 455 acres (184 hectares), and about 1,070 acres (431 hectares) were lost.
What is the tree count in New Bedford?
New Bedford has an estimated 45,603 trees across the 3.7 sq mi (9.55 km²) of land measured — 19.1% tree cover, 11 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does New Bedford need?
New Bedford needs roughly 26,025 more trees to close a 11-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 572.5 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are New Bedford's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near New Bedford, via OpenAQ; the 7-day trend is the Open-Meteo / CAMS model's estimate. Tree cover is measured from Sentinel-2 L2A (ESA Copernicus) via Earth Search satellite imagery at 10 m detail across a 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around New Bedford; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
See your own area
What does your neighborhood look like?
Pick any point and radius to get the same air-quality and tree-cover breakdown.
Check my address