Nigeria · Cross River State · 2 cities
Air quality in Cross River State today The AQI right now, city by city
Right now, Calabar has the cleanest air of the 2 cities we track in Cross River State (AQI 56, Moderate), and Ugep the worst (AQI 70, Moderate). Ugep has the most tree cover, at 22.0% — #22 of 94 cities measured in Nigeria.
Every city is measured the same way, over the same 2 km around its center: the air quality right now, from ground stations where there are any, and its tree cover.
- cities tracked
- 2
- average tree cover
- 15.0%
- Nigeria: 19.4%
- worst air now: Ugep
- 70
- cleanest air now: Calabar
- 56
Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf, refreshed hourly.
Cross River State
Air quality today across Cross River State, city by city
| Calabar | 56Moderate | 8.1% | 60.5K | #63 of 94 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ugep | 70Moderate | 22.0% | 25.1K | #22 of 94 |
Air quality is the US AQI from ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ where available, otherwise the Open-Meteo / CAMS model, refreshed hourly. Tree cover is measured within 2 km of each city center from Sentinel-2 imagery; the rank compares every city measured in Nigeria.
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Cross River State lost?
Since 2001, Cross River State has lost about 157,000 hectares of forest (about 220,000 football pitches): 12% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (81%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 157,000 haabout 220,000 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 12%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 127,000 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
Hectares of forest lost each year
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Cleared for good | Can grow back | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 2,430 ha | 519 ha | 2,940 ha |
| 2002 | 3,360 ha | 728 ha | 4,080 ha |
| 2003 | 1,520 ha | 215 ha | 1,740 ha |
| 2004 | 279 ha | 97 ha | 376 ha |
| 2005 | 616 ha | 154 ha | 770 ha |
| 2006 | 1,640 ha | 294 ha | 1,930 ha |
| 2007 | 754 ha | 100 ha | 854 ha |
| 2008 | 1,530 ha | 232 ha | 1,760 ha |
| 2009 | 1,170 ha | 216 ha | 1,390 ha |
| 2010 | 2,660 ha | 675 ha | 3,340 ha |
| 2011 | 1,660 ha | 314 ha | 1,980 ha |
| 2012 | 1,430 ha | 218 ha | 1,650 ha |
| 2013 | 3,920 ha | 751 ha | 4,670 ha |
| 2014 | 10,800 ha | 2,180 ha | 13,000 ha |
| 2015 | 4,470 ha | 383 ha | 4,860 ha |
| 2016 | 3,410 ha | 656 ha | 4,060 ha |
| 2017 | 13,400 ha | 2,730 ha | 16,200 ha |
| 2018 | 10,400 ha | 2,180 ha | 12,600 ha |
| 2019 | 9,590 ha | 1,540 ha | 11,100 ha |
| 2020 | 9,890 ha | 2,900 ha | 12,800 ha |
| 2021 | 9,560 ha | 2,230 ha | 11,800 ha |
| 2022 | 8,780 ha | 2,040 ha | 10,800 ha |
| 2023 | 8,420 ha | 2,050 ha | 10,500 ha |
| 2024 | 5,890 ha | 1,630 ha | 7,520 ha |
| 2025 | 9,040 ha | 4,900 ha | 13,900 ha |
Forest loss has stayed about the same: about 10,900 hectares a year in 2021–2025, against 11,300 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2017, when about 16,200 hectares of forest were lost.
What is causing deforestation in Cross River State?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good78% · 122,000 ha
- Shifting farmingcan grow back11% · 16,600 ha
- Loggingcan grow back7.5% · 11,700 ha
Also: towns and roads, mining and energy, storms, floods and other natural causes, wildfires, unknown causes.
Causes for 2025 are estimates, based on what caused forest loss in the same places up to 2024.
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. How it's measured
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