Germany · North Rhine-Westphalia · 23 cities
Air quality in North Rhine-Westphalia today The AQI right now, city by city
Right now, Siegen has the cleanest air of the 23 cities we track in North Rhine-Westphalia (AQI 46, Good), and Bielefeld the worst (AQI 123, Unhealthy for sensitive groups). Bergisch Gladbach has the most tree cover, at 59.9% — #1 of 71 cities measured in Germany.
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.
AQI 67
Average right now
Moderate
- cities tracked
- 23
- average tree cover
- 41.3%
- Germany: 38.4%
- worst air now: Bielefeld
- 123
- cleanest air now: Siegen
- 46
Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf, refreshed hourly.
North Rhine-Westphalia · average AQI 67
Air quality today across North Rhine-Westphalia, city by city
| Köln | 47Good | 27.1% | 8.3K | #64 of 71 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Düsseldorf | 71Moderate | 23.5% | 18.5K | #67 of 71 |
| Essen | 66Moderate | 34.6% | — | #44 of 71 |
| Dortmund | 75Moderate | 34.6% | — | #43 of 71 |
| Duisburg | 80Moderate | 29.2% | 2.3K | #61 of 71 |
| Bochum | 97Moderate | 48.2% | — | #15 of 71 |
| Wuppertal | 49Good | 51.6% | — | #8 of 71 |
| Bielefeld | 123Unhealthy for sensitive groups | 40.8% | — | #28 of 71 |
| Bonn | 61Moderate | 39.8% | — | #31 of 71 |
| Münster | 74Moderate | 43.6% | — | #19 of 71 |
| Aachen | 52Moderate | 41.5% | — | #25 of 71 |
| Mönchengladbach | 54Moderate | 34.3% | — | #45 of 71 |
| Krefeld | 69Moderate | 43.0% | — | #21 of 71 |
| Oberhausen | 78Moderate | 39.9% | — | #30 of 71 |
| Hagen | 71Moderate | 51.2% | — | #10 of 71 |
| Hamm | 62Moderate | 33.3% | — | #50 of 71 |
| Solingen | 53Moderate | 52.8% | — | #7 of 71 |
| Leverkusen | 51Moderate | 32.9% | — | #54 of 71 |
| Paderborn | 76Moderate | 43.6% | — | #20 of 71 |
| Recklinghausen | 71Moderate | 48.7% | — | #12 of 71 |
| Siegen | 46Good | 57.9% | — | #2 of 71 |
| Bergisch Gladbach | 51Moderate | 59.9% | — | #1 of 71 |
| Moers | 73Moderate | 38.8% | — | #32 of 71 |
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 Germany.
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has North Rhine-Westphalia lost?
Since 2001, North Rhine-Westphalia has lost about 277,000 hectares of forest (about 2,800 km²): 24% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it was lost to logging, so much of it can grow back. About 4,080 hectares (1.5%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 277,000 haabout 2,800 km²
- Share of its forest
- 24%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 4,080 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 | 108 ha | 1,090 ha | 1,200 ha |
| 2002 | 67 ha | 1,020 ha | 1,090 ha |
| 2003 | 54 ha | 840 ha | 894 ha |
| 2004 | 213 ha | 3,370 ha | 3,590 ha |
| 2005 | 240 ha | 1,990 ha | 2,230 ha |
| 2006 | 213 ha | 2,770 ha | 2,980 ha |
| 2007 | 269 ha | 28,000 ha | 28,300 ha |
| 2008 | 411 ha | 14,700 ha | 15,100 ha |
| 2009 | 145 ha | 2,800 ha | 2,940 ha |
| 2010 | 340 ha | 17,800 ha | 18,100 ha |
| 2011 | 118 ha | 2,510 ha | 2,630 ha |
| 2012 | 235 ha | 3,360 ha | 3,600 ha |
| 2013 | 72 ha | 1,650 ha | 1,720 ha |
| 2014 | 104 ha | 1,780 ha | 1,880 ha |
| 2015 | 88 ha | 1,370 ha | 1,460 ha |
| 2016 | 167 ha | 1,760 ha | 1,930 ha |
| 2017 | 166 ha | 2,290 ha | 2,460 ha |
| 2018 | 127 ha | 5,120 ha | 5,250 ha |
| 2019 | 202 ha | 16,700 ha | 16,900 ha |
| 2020 | 155 ha | 47,700 ha | 47,900 ha |
| 2021 | 217 ha | 70,400 ha | 70,700 ha |
| 2022 | 106 ha | 20,900 ha | 21,000 ha |
| 2023 | 114 ha | 17,200 ha | 17,300 ha |
| 2024 | 82 ha | 3,980 ha | 4,070 ha |
| 2025 | 68 ha | 1,540 ha | 1,610 ha |
Forest loss is speeding up: about 22,900 hectares a year in 2021–2025, up from 14,900 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2021, when about 70,700 hectares of forest were lost.
What is causing deforestation in North Rhine-Westphalia?
- Loggingcan grow back98% · 271,000 ha
Also: towns and roads, mining and energy, farms, pasture and plantations, 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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