Colombia · Santander Department · 4 cities
Air quality in Santander Department today The AQI right now, city by city
Right now, Barrancabermeja has the cleanest air of the 4 cities we track in Santander Department (AQI 41, Good), and Piedecuesta the worst (AQI 58, Moderate). Piedecuesta has the most tree cover, at 52.5% — #1 of 48 cities measured in Colombia.
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 49
Good
- cities tracked
- 4
- average tree cover
- 37.5%
- Colombia: 24.8%
- worst air now: Piedecuesta
- 58
- cleanest air now: Barrancabermeja
- 41
Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf, refreshed hourly.
Santander Department · average AQI 49
Air quality today across Santander Department, city by city
| Bucaramanga | 48Good | 21.1% | 28.0K | #24 of 48 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barrancabermeja | 41Good | 32.4% | — | #14 of 48 |
| Piedecuesta | 58Moderate | 52.5% | — | #1 of 48 |
| Girón | 47Good | 43.9% | — | #6 of 48 |
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 Colombia.
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Santander Department lost?
Since 2001, Santander Department has lost about 248,000 hectares of forest (about 2,500 km²): 12% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (97%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 248,000 haabout 2,500 km²
- Share of its forest
- 12%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 242,000 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 | 13,500 ha | 288 ha | 13,700 ha |
| 2002 | 10,100 ha | 237 ha | 10,400 ha |
| 2003 | 9,250 ha | 319 ha | 9,570 ha |
| 2004 | 16,000 ha | 377 ha | 16,400 ha |
| 2005 | 12,300 ha | 277 ha | 12,600 ha |
| 2006 | 15,100 ha | 209 ha | 15,300 ha |
| 2007 | 17,800 ha | 280 ha | 18,100 ha |
| 2008 | 10,000 ha | 256 ha | 10,300 ha |
| 2009 | 15,600 ha | 261 ha | 15,900 ha |
| 2010 | 11,000 ha | 216 ha | 11,200 ha |
| 2011 | 6,960 ha | 272 ha | 7,230 ha |
| 2012 | 11,700 ha | 419 ha | 12,100 ha |
| 2013 | 4,450 ha | 204 ha | 4,650 ha |
| 2014 | 7,560 ha | 265 ha | 7,820 ha |
| 2015 | 4,850 ha | 209 ha | 5,060 ha |
| 2016 | 7,050 ha | 298 ha | 7,350 ha |
| 2017 | 14,800 ha | 671 ha | 15,400 ha |
| 2018 | 8,610 ha | 175 ha | 8,790 ha |
| 2019 | 6,450 ha | 158 ha | 6,600 ha |
| 2020 | 6,340 ha | 144 ha | 6,490 ha |
| 2021 | 7,060 ha | 164 ha | 7,220 ha |
| 2022 | 5,510 ha | 111 ha | 5,620 ha |
| 2023 | 6,870 ha | 150 ha | 7,020 ha |
| 2024 | 6,500 ha | 177 ha | 6,680 ha |
| 2025 | 6,280 ha | 283 ha | 6,560 ha |
Forest loss is slowing down: about 6,620 hectares a year in 2021–2025, down from 8,930 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2007, when about 18,100 hectares of forest were lost.
What is causing deforestation in Santander Department?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good96% · 239,000 ha
- Storms, floods and other natural causescan grow back1.2% · 3,080 ha
Also: mining and energy, shifting farming, towns and roads, logging, 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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