Brazil · Rio Grande do Norte · 4 cities
Air quality in Rio Grande do Norte today The AQI right now, city by city
Right now, Mossoró has the cleanest air of the 4 cities we track in Rio Grande do Norte (AQI 23, Good), and Parnamirim the worst (AQI 52, Moderate). São Gonçalo do Amarante has the most tree cover, at 47.3% — #32 of 304 cities measured in Brazil.
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.
Average right now
AQI 42
Good
- cities tracked
- 4
- average tree cover
- 23.1%
- Brazil: 25.9%
- worst air now: Parnamirim
- 52
- cleanest air now: Mossoró
- 23
Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf, refreshed hourly.
Rio Grande do Norte · average AQI 42
Air quality today across Rio Grande do Norte, city by city
| Natal | 52Moderate | 17.0% | 38.0K | #207 of 304 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parnamirim | 52Moderate | 13.6% | 51.5K | #255 of 304 |
| Mossoró | 23Good | 14.4% | 49.0K | #244 of 304 |
| São Gonçalo do Amarante | 42Good | 47.3% | — | #32 of 304 |
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 Brazil.
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Rio Grande do Norte lost?
Since 2001, Rio Grande do Norte has lost about 120,000 hectares of forest (about 170,000 football pitches): 13% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (98%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 120,000 haabout 170,000 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 13%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 119,000 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 | 8,940 ha | 215 ha | 9,160 ha |
| 2002 | 5,190 ha | 129 ha | 5,320 ha |
| 2003 | 3,410 ha | 75 ha | 3,490 ha |
| 2004 | 6,210 ha | 58 ha | 6,270 ha |
| 2005 | 10,600 ha | 102 ha | 10,700 ha |
| 2006 | 9,540 ha | 71 ha | 9,610 ha |
| 2007 | 8,730 ha | 115 ha | 8,840 ha |
| 2008 | 6,770 ha | 88 ha | 6,860 ha |
| 2009 | 5,070 ha | 122 ha | 5,190 ha |
| 2010 | 9,980 ha | 108 ha | 10,100 ha |
| 2011 | 4,040 ha | 50 ha | 4,090 ha |
| 2012 | 10,900 ha | 129 ha | 11,000 ha |
| 2013 | 2,740 ha | 113 ha | 2,850 ha |
| 2014 | 3,600 ha | 130 ha | 3,730 ha |
| 2015 | 2,100 ha | 21 ha | 2,130 ha |
| 2016 | 3,480 ha | 32 ha | 3,510 ha |
| 2017 | 2,720 ha | 32 ha | 2,750 ha |
| 2018 | 1,500 ha | 20 ha | 1,520 ha |
| 2019 | 1,230 ha | 27 ha | 1,250 ha |
| 2020 | 1,350 ha | 16 ha | 1,360 ha |
| 2021 | 2,930 ha | 10 ha | 2,940 ha |
| 2022 | 1,670 ha | 19 ha | 1,690 ha |
| 2023 | 2,070 ha | 6 ha | 2,070 ha |
| 2024 | 2,000 ha | 11 ha | 2,010 ha |
| 2025 | 1,860 ha | 134 ha | 2,000 ha |
Forest loss has stayed about the same: about 2,140 hectares a year in 2021–2025, against 2,080 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2012, when about 11,000 hectares of forest were lost.
What is causing deforestation in Rio Grande do Norte?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good95% · 115,000 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good1.7% · 2,070 ha
- Mining and energycleared for good1.3% · 1,600 ha
Also: wildfires, storms, floods and other natural causes, logging, 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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