Australia · Queensland · 7 cities
Air quality in Queensland today The AQI right now, city by city
Right now, Gold Coast has the cleanest air of the 7 cities we track in Queensland (AQI 24, Good), and Cairns the worst (AQI 55, Moderate). Logan City has the most tree cover, at 35.3% — #3 of 21 cities measured in Australia.
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 38
Average right now
Good
- cities tracked
- 7
- average tree cover
- 24.6%
- Australia: 26.4%
- worst air now: Cairns
- 55
- cleanest air now: Gold Coast
- 24
Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf, refreshed hourly.
Queensland · average AQI 38
Air quality today across Queensland, city by city
| Brisbane | 38Good | 20.0% | 26.8K | #14 of 21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold Coast | 24Good | 17.3% | 17.6K | #18 of 21 |
| Sunshine Coast | 28Good | 33.0% | — | #4 of 21 |
| Logan City | 33Good | 35.3% | — | #3 of 21 |
| Townsville | 48Good | 19.3% | 33.5K | #15 of 21 |
| Cairns | 55Moderate | 16.7% | 39.3K | #19 of 21 |
| Toowoomba | 37Good | 30.5% | — | #6 of 21 |
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 Australia.
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Queensland lost?
Since 2001, Queensland has lost about 843,000 hectares of forest (about 8,400 km²): 7.9% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it was lost to wildfires, so much of it can grow back. About 106,000 hectares (13%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 843,000 haabout 8,400 km²
- Share of its forest
- 7.9%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 106,000 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 | 3,580 ha | 8,610 ha | 12,200 ha |
| 2002 | 4,080 ha | 9,760 ha | 13,800 ha |
| 2003 | 6,780 ha | 12,000 ha | 18,800 ha |
| 2004 | 6,720 ha | 12,900 ha | 19,600 ha |
| 2005 | 6,000 ha | 12,400 ha | 18,400 ha |
| 2006 | 5,880 ha | 11,200 ha | 17,000 ha |
| 2007 | 6,530 ha | 14,100 ha | 20,600 ha |
| 2008 | 6,080 ha | 9,740 ha | 15,800 ha |
| 2009 | 3,790 ha | 10,500 ha | 14,200 ha |
| 2010 | 3,530 ha | 14,600 ha | 18,100 ha |
| 2011 | 4,380 ha | 21,700 ha | 26,000 ha |
| 2012 | 3,010 ha | 12,100 ha | 15,100 ha |
| 2013 | 3,500 ha | 30,200 ha | 33,700 ha |
| 2014 | 4,350 ha | 50,100 ha | 54,500 ha |
| 2015 | 4,140 ha | 28,200 ha | 32,400 ha |
| 2016 | 5,330 ha | 27,300 ha | 32,600 ha |
| 2017 | 5,370 ha | 42,500 ha | 47,900 ha |
| 2018 | 2,980 ha | 24,700 ha | 27,700 ha |
| 2019 | 3,330 ha | 175,000 ha | 179,000 ha |
| 2020 | 2,620 ha | 25,600 ha | 28,200 ha |
| 2021 | 2,960 ha | 44,500 ha | 47,400 ha |
| 2022 | 3,050 ha | 13,900 ha | 17,000 ha |
| 2023 | 2,810 ha | 46,300 ha | 49,100 ha |
| 2024 | 2,130 ha | 16,300 ha | 18,400 ha |
| 2025 | 2,710 ha | 63,200 ha | 65,900 ha |
Forest loss is slowing down: about 39,600 hectares a year in 2021–2025, down from 63,000 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2019, when about 179,000 hectares of forest were lost, mostly to wildfires.
What is causing deforestation in Queensland?
- Wildfirescan grow back63% · 527,000 ha
- Loggingcan grow back20% · 166,000 ha
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good6.9% · 58,500 ha
Also: towns and roads, mining and energy, storms, floods and other natural causes, shifting farming, 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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