City report · New Jersey, United States
Paterson Air quality today
Air quality in Paterson currently reads AQI 29 (Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Air quality right now
AQI 29
Good
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 5.3
- tree cover
- 26.1%
- trees in this area
- 81.5K
- more trees needed
- 12.2K
Measured across a 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around Paterson, NJ, USA (4.9 sq mi), from a satellite image of Sep 11, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Paterson · AQI 29 (Good)
Paterson's tree count comes to 81,504 trees across 4.8 sq mi (12.49 km²) of land, 4 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 12,179 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Paterson today: AQI 29, Good
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 09:00 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · Paterson, 0.2 mi (400 m) away
Health signal
Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
PM2.5
5.3
PM10
—
NO₂
—
O₃
—
SO₂
—
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 Paterson's daily AQI at 47 on average, from 28 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 107 on Nov 6.
Where Paterson stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Paterson: Below target
26.1% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 4.8 sq mi (12.49 km²) of land.
Trees in this area
81,504
Target trees
93,683
More trees needed
12,179
CO₂ if planted / yr
267.9 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Paterson lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Paterson has lost about 529 acres (214 hectares) of forest (about 400 football fields): 1.8% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (85%) 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 northwest of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 529 acres (214 ha)about 400 football fields
- Share of its forest
- 1.8%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 450 acres (182 ha)deforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2002, when about 52 acres (21 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 | 4 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 5 acres (2 ha) |
| 2002 | 49 acres (20 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) | 52 acres (21 ha) |
| 2003 | 7 acres (3 ha) | under 1 ha | 8 acres (3 ha) |
| 2004 | 38 acres (15 ha) | 2 acres (1 ha) | 40 acres (16 ha) |
| 2005 | 17 acres (7 ha) | under 1 ha | 19 acres (8 ha) |
| 2006 | 13 acres (5 ha) | under 1 ha | 15 acres (6 ha) |
| 2007 | 14 acres (6 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) | 16 acres (7 ha) |
| 2008 | 4 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 6 acres (2 ha) |
| 2009 | 5 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 6 acres (2 ha) |
| 2010 | 3 acres (1 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) | 6 acres (3 ha) |
| 2011 | 5 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 6 acres (2 ha) |
| 2012 | 3 acres (1 ha) | under 1 ha | 4 acres (2 ha) |
| 2013 | 5 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 6 acres (3 ha) |
| 2014 | 21 acres (9 ha) | 6 acres (2 ha) | 27 acres (11 ha) |
| 2015 | 11 acres (5 ha) | under 1 ha | 12 acres (5 ha) |
| 2016 | 20 acres (8 ha) | under 1 ha | 20 acres (8 ha) |
| 2017 | 39 acres (16 ha) | under 1 ha | 39 acres (16 ha) |
| 2018 | 46 acres (19 ha) | under 1 ha | 47 acres (19 ha) |
| 2019 | 32 acres (13 ha) | under 1 ha | 33 acres (13 ha) |
| 2020 | 28 acres (11 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) | 31 acres (12 ha) |
| 2021 | 12 acres (5 ha) | under 1 ha | 14 acres (6 ha) |
| 2022 | 16 acres (7 ha) | 13 acres (5 ha) | 29 acres (12 ha) |
| 2023 | 22 acres (9 ha) | under 1 ha | 22 acres (9 ha) |
| 2024 | 16 acres (7 ha) | under 1 ha | 17 acres (7 ha) |
| 2025 | 20 acres (8 ha) | 29 acres (12 ha) | 49 acres (20 ha) |
What is causing deforestation around Paterson?
- Towns and roadscleared for good85% · 447 acres (181 ha)
- Loggingcan grow back3% · 16 acres (6 ha)
- Unknown causescause unknown12% · 62 acres (25 ha)
Also: farms, pasture and plantations.
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
- 50,400 acres (20,400 ha)
- Forest in 2020
- 50,200 acres (20,300 ha)
- Overall change
- −208 acres (84 ha)less forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Paterson stayed about the same size, at about 50,200 acres (20,300 hectares): new forest grew on about 489 acres (198 hectares), and about 699 acres (283 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 Paterson
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Newark20.1 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 11%
- Air quality
- 56
- Manhattan22.8 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 40%
- Air quality
- 33
- Yonkers23.1 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 46%
- Air quality
- 23
- New York26.6 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 15%
- Air quality
- 76
- The Bronx26.7 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 30%
- Air quality
- 26
- Elizabeth28.3 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 15%
- Air quality
- 31
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Frequently asked
Questions about Paterson
What is the air quality (AQI) in Paterson right now?
The latest reading for Paterson shows an AQI of 29 (Good), measured Nov 11, 09:00 local time by the Paterson ground monitoring station, 0.2 mi (400 m) away, via OpenAQ. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Paterson today?
At AQI 29 (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 Paterson been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Paterson's daily AQI at 47 on average, from 28 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 107 on Nov 6. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Paterson lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Paterson has lost about 529 acres (214 hectares) of forest (about 400 football fields): 1.8% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (85%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Paterson stayed about the same size, at about 50,200 acres (20,300 hectares): new forest grew on about 489 acres (198 hectares), and about 699 acres (283 hectares) were lost.
What is the tree count in Paterson?
Paterson has an estimated 81,504 trees across the 4.8 sq mi (12.49 km²) of land measured — 26.1% tree cover, 4 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Paterson need?
Paterson needs roughly 12,179 more trees to close a 4-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 267.9 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Paterson's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Paterson, 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 Paterson; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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