Venezuela · Zulia · 7 cities
Air quality in Zulia today The AQI right now, city by city
Right now, Machiques has the cleanest air of the 7 cities we track in Zulia (AQI 38, Good), and Ciudad Ojeda the worst (AQI 64, Moderate). Machiques has the most tree cover, at 43.7% — #5 of 57 cities measured in Venezuela.
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 55
Moderate
- cities tracked
- 7
- average tree cover
- 22.9%
- Venezuela: 27.3%
- worst air now: Ciudad Ojeda
- 64
- cleanest air now: Machiques
- 38
Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf, refreshed hourly.
Zulia · average AQI 55
Air quality today across Zulia, city by city
| Maracaibo | 64Moderate | 8.2% | 49.5K | #56 of 57 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cabimas | 55Moderate | 14.6% | 48.3K | #47 of 57 |
| Ciudad Ojeda | 64Moderate | 11.9% | 55.4K | #54 of 57 |
| Machiques | 38Good | 43.7% | — | #5 of 57 |
| San Carlos del Zulia | 56Moderate | 31.9% | — | #21 of 57 |
| La Concepción | 51Moderate | 20.7% | 29.2K | #36 of 57 |
| Los Puertos de Altagracia | 55Moderate | 29.3% | 1.4K | #25 of 57 |
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 Venezuela.
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Zulia lost?
Since 2001, Zulia has lost about 265,000 hectares of forest (about 2,700 km²): 14% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (81%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 265,000 haabout 2,700 km²
- Share of its forest
- 14%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 214,000 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 | 16,000 ha | 608 ha | 16,600 ha |
| 2002 | 9,260 ha | 461 ha | 9,720 ha |
| 2003 | 15,500 ha | 1,180 ha | 16,700 ha |
| 2004 | 6,430 ha | 522 ha | 6,950 ha |
| 2005 | 9,440 ha | 711 ha | 10,100 ha |
| 2006 | 7,370 ha | 487 ha | 7,850 ha |
| 2007 | 14,500 ha | 707 ha | 15,200 ha |
| 2008 | 8,140 ha | 655 ha | 8,790 ha |
| 2009 | 10,900 ha | 532 ha | 11,500 ha |
| 2010 | 10,600 ha | 770 ha | 11,400 ha |
| 2011 | 4,620 ha | 536 ha | 5,160 ha |
| 2012 | 8,540 ha | 503 ha | 9,040 ha |
| 2013 | 3,290 ha | 122 ha | 3,410 ha |
| 2014 | 6,800 ha | 371 ha | 7,170 ha |
| 2015 | 4,280 ha | 612 ha | 4,890 ha |
| 2016 | 16,700 ha | 30,600 ha | 47,300 ha |
| 2017 | 20,000 ha | 6,060 ha | 26,000 ha |
| 2018 | 8,450 ha | 869 ha | 9,320 ha |
| 2019 | 4,850 ha | 247 ha | 5,100 ha |
| 2020 | 7,740 ha | 3,210 ha | 11,000 ha |
| 2021 | 4,490 ha | 512 ha | 5,000 ha |
| 2022 | 3,540 ha | 285 ha | 3,830 ha |
| 2023 | 4,750 ha | 194 ha | 4,940 ha |
| 2024 | 4,280 ha | 226 ha | 4,500 ha |
| 2025 | 3,450 ha | 216 ha | 3,670 ha |
Forest loss is slowing down: about 4,390 hectares a year in 2021–2025, down from 19,700 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2016, when about 47,300 hectares of forest were lost, mostly to wildfires.
What is causing deforestation in Zulia?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good80% · 212,000 ha
- Wildfirescan grow back15% · 40,600 ha
- Storms, floods and other natural causescan grow back2.1% · 5,480 ha
Also: shifting farming, mining and energy, logging, towns and roads, 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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