City report · Kelantan, Malaysia
Pasir Puteh Air quality today
Air quality in Pasir Puteh currently reads AQI 52 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Air quality right now
AQI 52
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 9.8
- tree cover
- 44.4%
- trees in this area
- 139K
- more trees needed
- 0
Measured across a 2 km radius around Pasir Puteh, Kelantan, Malaysia (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Jul 6, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Pasir Puteh · AQI 52 (Moderate)
Pasir Puteh's tree count comes to 139,487 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 Pasir Puteh today: AQI 52, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 23:00 local time via World Air Quality Index Project ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · Besut, Terengganu, Malaysia, 15.9 km away
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
9.8
PM10
22.7
NO₂
—
O₃
—
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: World Air Quality Index Project, Malaysia Department of Environment (DOE); Air Polluant Index Management System
- 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 Pasir Puteh's daily AQI at 22 on average, from 17 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 44 on Nov 6.
This is the US EPA AQI. How it differs from Malaysia's API (IPU) · The full guide
Where Pasir Puteh stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Pasir Puteh: Healthy tree cover
44.4% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.57 km².
Trees in this area
139,487
Target trees
139,487
More trees needed
0
CO₂ if planted / yr
0 kg
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Pasir Puteh lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Pasir Puteh has lost about 4,710 hectares of forest (about 6,600 football pitches): 33% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (85%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
2019: satellite photo from April 2019 of a 5 × 5 km area about 5 km west of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 4,710 haabout 6,600 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 33%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 4,000 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
Forest loss has stayed about the same: about 292 hectares a year in 2021–2025, against 267 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2024, when about 640 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 | 101 ha | 1 ha | 102 ha |
| 2002 | 55 ha | 1 ha | 56 ha |
| 2003 | 44 ha | under 1 ha | 45 ha |
| 2004 | 76 ha | 11 ha | 88 ha |
| 2005 | 43 ha | under 1 ha | 43 ha |
| 2006 | 49 ha | under 1 ha | 50 ha |
| 2007 | 189 ha | 3 ha | 192 ha |
| 2008 | 72 ha | 2 ha | 73 ha |
| 2009 | 224 ha | 11 ha | 235 ha |
| 2010 | 177 ha | 9 ha | 186 ha |
| 2011 | 102 ha | 4 ha | 106 ha |
| 2012 | 100 ha | 4 ha | 104 ha |
| 2013 | 101 ha | under 1 ha | 101 ha |
| 2014 | 257 ha | 109 ha | 366 ha |
| 2015 | 124 ha | 46 ha | 170 ha |
| 2016 | 247 ha | 181 ha | 428 ha |
| 2017 | 176 ha | 1 ha | 177 ha |
| 2018 | 184 ha | 2 ha | 186 ha |
| 2019 | 306 ha | 49 ha | 355 ha |
| 2020 | 180 ha | 10 ha | 190 ha |
| 2021 | 223 ha | 14 ha | 237 ha |
| 2022 | 168 ha | 5 ha | 173 ha |
| 2023 | 249 ha | 15 ha | 264 ha |
| 2024 | 409 ha | 231 ha | 640 ha |
| 2025 | 140 ha | 8 ha | 148 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Pasir Puteh?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good78% · 3,660 ha
- Wildfirescan grow back14% · 649 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good6% · 282 ha
Also: mining and energy, logging, shifting farming, 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
- 14,200 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 13,400 ha
- Overall change
- −716 haless forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Pasir Puteh shrank from about 14,200 hectares to 13,400 hectares, a net loss of about 716 hectares (−5.1%). New forest grew on about 884 hectares, but 1,600 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 Pasir Puteh
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Kota Bharu36.6 km
Malaysia
- Tree cover
- 20%
- Air quality
- 48
- Pasir Mas37.5 km
Malaysia
- Tree cover
- 38%
- Air quality
- 48
- Kuala Krai40.3 km
Malaysia
- Tree cover
- 69%
- Air quality
- 23
- Kuala Terengganu99.3 km
Malaysia
- Tree cover
- 19%
- Air quality
- 53
- Bercham192.5 km
Malaysia
- Tree cover
- 23%
- Air quality
- 89
- Ipoh201.4 km
Malaysia
- Tree cover
- 22%
- Air quality
- 73
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Frequently asked
Questions about Pasir Puteh
What is the air quality (AQI) in Pasir Puteh right now?
The latest reading for Pasir Puteh shows an AQI of 52 (Moderate), measured Nov 11, 23:00 local time by the Besut, Terengganu, Malaysia ground monitoring station, 15.9 km away, via OpenAQ. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Pasir Puteh today?
At AQI 52 (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 Pasir Puteh been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Pasir Puteh's daily AQI at 22 on average, from 17 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 44 on Nov 6. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Is Pasir Puteh's AQI the same as Malaysia's API (IPU)?
No. Airleaf shows the US EPA Air Quality Index (AQI), the scale used by IQAir and most air-quality apps. Malaysia's Department of Environment (Jabatan Alam Sekitar) publishes its own Air Pollutant Index, the API or Indeks Pencemar Udara (IPU), every hour for each of its monitoring stations on APIMS (apims.doe.gov.my). Both scales call 0–50 good and 51–100 moderate; above that the IPU runs 101–200 unhealthy, 201–300 very unhealthy and over 300 hazardous. The two use different breakpoints and averaging times, so the numbers for the same hour often differ. For the official IPU reading, check the nearest station on APIMS.
How much forest has the area around Pasir Puteh lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Pasir Puteh has lost about 4,710 hectares of forest (about 6,600 football pitches): 33% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (85%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations. Forest loss has stayed about the same: about 292 hectares a year in 2021–2025, against 267 hectares a year in 2016–2020. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Pasir Puteh shrank from about 14,200 hectares to 13,400 hectares, a net loss of about 716 hectares (−5.1%). New forest grew on about 884 hectares, but 1,600 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Pasir Puteh?
Pasir Puteh has an estimated 139,487 trees across the 12.57 km² measured — 44.4% tree cover, already past the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Pasir Puteh need?
Pasir Puteh has already reached its tree-cover target, so no additional trees are needed to close the gap.
How are Pasir Puteh's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Pasir Puteh, 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 2 km radius around Pasir Puteh; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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