Colombia · Valle del Cauca Department · 6 cities
Air quality in Valle del Cauca Department today The AQI right now, city by city
Right now, Buenaventura has the cleanest air of the 6 cities we track in Valle del Cauca Department (AQI 18, Good), and Cali the worst (AQI 78, Moderate). Buenaventura has the most tree cover, at 49.9% — #3 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.
AQI 37
Average right now
Good
- cities tracked
- 6
- average tree cover
- 25.1%
- Colombia: 24.8%
- worst air now: Cali
- 78
- cleanest air now: Buenaventura
- 18
Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf, refreshed hourly.
Valle del Cauca Department · average AQI 37
Air quality today across Valle del Cauca Department, city by city
| Cali | 78Moderate | 6.5% | 73.8K | #45 of 48 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buenaventura | 18Good | 49.9% | — | #3 of 48 |
| Palmira | 33Good | 19.0% | 34.6K | #33 of 48 |
| Tuluá | 27Good | 17.6% | 39.0K | #35 of 48 |
| Cartago | 43Good | 29.5% | 1.6K | #16 of 48 |
| Guadalajara de Buga | 23Good | 27.8% | 6.9K | #19 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 Valle del Cauca Department lost?
Since 2001, Valle del Cauca Department has lost about 57,900 hectares of forest (about 81,000 football pitches): 3.8% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (69%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 57,900 haabout 81,000 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 3.8%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 40,200 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 | 4,330 ha | 761 ha | 5,090 ha |
| 2002 | 1,790 ha | 661 ha | 2,450 ha |
| 2003 | 697 ha | 312 ha | 1,010 ha |
| 2004 | 2,690 ha | 890 ha | 3,580 ha |
| 2005 | 1,970 ha | 936 ha | 2,900 ha |
| 2006 | 3,070 ha | 1,190 ha | 4,260 ha |
| 2007 | 1,070 ha | 443 ha | 1,510 ha |
| 2008 | 1,870 ha | 1,040 ha | 2,920 ha |
| 2009 | 2,550 ha | 1,090 ha | 3,640 ha |
| 2010 | 2,470 ha | 1,100 ha | 3,560 ha |
| 2011 | 2,950 ha | 1,050 ha | 4,000 ha |
| 2012 | 2,980 ha | 1,160 ha | 4,140 ha |
| 2013 | 777 ha | 797 ha | 1,570 ha |
| 2014 | 1,270 ha | 764 ha | 2,030 ha |
| 2015 | 370 ha | 513 ha | 883 ha |
| 2016 | 1,170 ha | 715 ha | 1,890 ha |
| 2017 | 1,910 ha | 866 ha | 2,780 ha |
| 2018 | 732 ha | 545 ha | 1,280 ha |
| 2019 | 1,080 ha | 430 ha | 1,510 ha |
| 2020 | 689 ha | 735 ha | 1,420 ha |
| 2021 | 639 ha | 355 ha | 994 ha |
| 2022 | 519 ha | 201 ha | 720 ha |
| 2023 | 939 ha | 293 ha | 1,230 ha |
| 2024 | 1,010 ha | 354 ha | 1,360 ha |
| 2025 | 683 ha | 462 ha | 1,150 ha |
Forest loss is slowing down: about 1,090 hectares a year in 2021–2025, down from 1,770 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2001, when about 5,090 hectares of forest were lost.
What is causing deforestation in Valle del Cauca Department?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good68% · 39,300 ha
- Loggingcan grow back24% · 14,000 ha
- Shifting farmingcan grow back2.8% · 1,630 ha
Also: storms, floods and other natural causes, towns and roads, mining and energy, 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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