City report · United States
Providence Air quality today
Air quality in Providence currently reads AQI 31 (Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Air quality right now
AQI 31
Good
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 5.5
- tree cover
- 24.7%
- trees in this area
- 73.3K
- more trees needed
- 15.7K
Measured across a 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around Downtown Providence, Providence, RI, 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.
Providence · AQI 31 (Good)
Providence's tree count comes to 73,329 trees across 4.6 sq mi (11.88 km²) of land, 5 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 15,735 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Providence today: AQI 31, 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 · Near Road, 3.7 mi (5.9 km) away · median of 3 stations
Health signal
Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
PM2.5
5.5
PM10
—
NO₂
15.0
O₃
47.1
SO₂
0.5
CO
343.7
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 Providence's daily AQI at 27 on average, from 18 on Nov 6 to an hourly peak of 58 on Nov 4.
Where Providence stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Providence: Below target
24.7% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 4.6 sq mi (11.88 km²) of land.
Trees in this area
73,329
Target trees
89,064
More trees needed
15,735
CO₂ if planted / yr
346.2 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Providence lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Providence has lost about 1,190 acres (480 hectares) of forest (about 900 football fields): 4.9% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (97%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads.
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km west of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 1,190 acres (480 ha)about 900 football fields
- Share of its forest
- 4.9%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 1,150 acres (464 ha)deforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2022, when about 135 acres (55 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 | 14 acres (6 ha) | under 1 ha | 14 acres (6 ha) |
| 2002 | 26 acres (11 ha) | under 1 ha | 27 acres (11 ha) |
| 2003 | 48 acres (19 ha) | under 1 ha | 49 acres (20 ha) |
| 2004 | 54 acres (22 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) | 57 acres (23 ha) |
| 2005 | 44 acres (18 ha) | under 1 ha | 46 acres (19 ha) |
| 2006 | 80 acres (32 ha) | 4 acres (2 ha) | 84 acres (34 ha) |
| 2007 | 33 acres (14 ha) | under 1 ha | 36 acres (14 ha) |
| 2008 | 46 acres (19 ha) | under 1 ha | 48 acres (20 ha) |
| 2009 | 59 acres (24 ha) | under 1 ha | 60 acres (24 ha) |
| 2010 | 55 acres (22 ha) | under 1 ha | 57 acres (23 ha) |
| 2011 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2012 | 20 acres (8 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) | 23 acres (9 ha) |
| 2013 | 22 acres (9 ha) | under 1 ha | 22 acres (9 ha) |
| 2014 | 20 acres (8 ha) | under 1 ha | 21 acres (9 ha) |
| 2015 | 20 acres (8 ha) | under 1 ha | 21 acres (8 ha) |
| 2016 | 89 acres (36 ha) | under 1 ha | 90 acres (36 ha) |
| 2017 | 118 acres (48 ha) | under 1 ha | 120 acres (49 ha) |
| 2018 | 39 acres (16 ha) | under 1 ha | 41 acres (17 ha) |
| 2019 | 27 acres (11 ha) | under 1 ha | 27 acres (11 ha) |
| 2020 | 37 acres (15 ha) | under 1 ha | 38 acres (16 ha) |
| 2021 | 64 acres (26 ha) | under 1 ha | 64 acres (26 ha) |
| 2022 | 134 acres (54 ha) | under 1 ha | 135 acres (55 ha) |
| 2023 | 30 acres (12 ha) | under 1 ha | 30 acres (12 ha) |
| 2024 | 41 acres (16 ha) | under 1 ha | 41 acres (16 ha) |
| 2025 | 27 acres (11 ha) | 7 acres (3 ha) | 34 acres (14 ha) |
What is causing deforestation around Providence?
- Towns and roadscleared for good97% · 1,150 acres (464 ha)
- Unknown causescause unknown3.3% · 39 acres (16 ha)
Also: logging.
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
- 36,100 acres (14,600 ha)
- Forest in 2020
- 36,200 acres (14,700 ha)
- Overall change
- +87 acres (35 ha)more forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Providence stayed about the same size, at about 36,200 acres (14,700 hectares): new forest grew on about 912 acres (369 hectares), and about 823 acres (333 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 Providence
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- New Bedford45.4 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 19%
- Air quality
- 24
- Worcester58.4 km
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- Tree cover
- 27%
- Air quality
- 21
- Boston66.2 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 12%
- Air quality
- 18
- Lowell90.4 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 31%
- Air quality
- 19
- Springfield102.1 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 31%
- Air quality
- 12
- Hartford105.7 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 30%
- Air quality
- 19
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Frequently asked
Questions about Providence
What is the air quality (AQI) in Providence right now?
The latest reading for Providence shows an AQI of 31 (Good), measured Nov 11, 09:00 local time by 3 ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ (the median of their readings; the nearest is Near Road, 3.7 mi (5.9 km) away). The main pollutant is PM2.5. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Providence today?
At AQI 31 (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 Providence been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Providence's daily AQI at 27 on average, from 18 on Nov 6 to an hourly peak of 58 on Nov 4. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Providence lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Providence has lost about 1,190 acres (480 hectares) of forest (about 900 football fields): 4.9% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (97%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Providence stayed about the same size, at about 36,200 acres (14,700 hectares): new forest grew on about 912 acres (369 hectares), and about 823 acres (333 hectares) were lost.
What is the tree count in Providence?
Providence has an estimated 73,329 trees across the 4.6 sq mi (11.88 km²) of land measured — 24.7% tree cover, 5 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Providence need?
Providence needs roughly 15,735 more trees to close a 5-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 346.2 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Providence's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Downtown Providence, 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 Downtown Providence; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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