City report · North West, South Africa
Rustenburg Air quality today
Air quality in Rustenburg currently reads AQI 77 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
AQI 77
Air quality right now
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 23.0
- tree cover
- 20.6%
- trees in this area
- 64.7K
- more trees needed
- 29.5K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Rustenburg, South Africa (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 10, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Rustenburg · AQI 77 (Moderate)
Rustenburg's tree count comes to 64,717 trees across 12.57 km², 9 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 29,531 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Rustenburg today: AQI 77, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 21:00 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · Ratanang, 21.8 km away · median of 6 stations
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
23.0
PM10
64.5
NO₂
88.7
O₃
—
SO₂
7.2
CO
—
Data: OpenAQ · South Africa, South African Air Quality Information System (SAAQIS)
- Outdoor exercise
- Fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier
- Windows
- Fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution
- Mask
- Not needed for most people
- Air purifier
- Worth running if you are sensitive
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Rustenburg's daily AQI at 56 on average, from 40 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 74 on Nov 11.
Where Rustenburg stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Rustenburg: Below target
20.6% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.57 km².
Trees in this area
64,717
Target trees
94,248
More trees needed
29,531
CO₂ if planted / yr
649.7 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Rustenburg lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Rustenburg has lost about 6 hectares of forest (about 8 football pitches): 2.3% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (85%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads.
2017: satellite photo from June 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 6 haabout 8 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 2.3%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 5 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2005, when about 3 hectares of forest were lost.
Hectares of forest lost each year
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Cleared for good | Can grow back | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2002 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2003 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2004 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2005 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2006 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2007 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2008 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2009 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2010 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2011 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2012 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2013 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2014 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2015 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2016 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2017 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2018 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2019 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2020 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2021 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2022 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2023 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2024 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2025 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Rustenburg?
- Towns and roadscleared for good80% · 5 ha
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good5.1% · under 1 ha
- Unknown causescause unknown15% · under 1 ha
Causes for 2025 are estimates, based on what caused forest loss in the same places up to 2024.
Forest gained and lost, 2000–2020
- Forest in 2000
- 1,930 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 1,900 ha
- Overall change
- −31 haless forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Rustenburg stayed about the same size, at about 1,900 hectares: new forest grew on about 37 hectares, and about 69 hectares were lost.
These 2000 and 2020 maps, from the University of Maryland, count any land with trees taller than 5 m as forest, including plantations and orchards. Forest that was cut or burned and had grown back by 2020 counts in both years, so the loss here is smaller than the yearly figures.
These figures cover everything within 10 km of the city center, a wider area than the report above, because forest is usually lost at a city's edges.
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. Forest gained and lost 2000–2020: Potapov et al. 2022, UMD GLAD Global Land Cover and Land Use Change, CC BY 4.0. Images: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data. How it's measured
In the same region
Measured cities near Rustenburg
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Brits54.1 km
South Africa
- Tree cover
- 30%
- Air quality
- 61
- Krugersdorp70.8 km
South Africa
- Tree cover
- 26%
- Air quality
- 84
- Randfontein73.6 km
South Africa
- Tree cover
- 14%
- Air quality
- 67
- Carletonville78.6 km
South Africa
- Tree cover
- 23%
- Air quality
- 47
- Westonaria83.1 km
South Africa
- Tree cover
- 9%
- Air quality
- 61
- Roodepoort83.7 km
South Africa
- Tree cover
- 21%
- Air quality
- 84
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Frequently asked
Questions about Rustenburg
What is the air quality (AQI) in Rustenburg right now?
The latest reading for Rustenburg shows an AQI of 77 (Moderate), measured Nov 11, 21:00 local time by 6 ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ (the median of their readings; the nearest is Ratanang, 21.8 km away). The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Rustenburg today?
At AQI 77 (Moderate): fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier. Windows: fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution. Masks: not needed for most people. The reading changes through the day, so check again before a long run or ride.
What has the air quality in Rustenburg been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Rustenburg's daily AQI at 56 on average, from 40 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 74 on Nov 11. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Rustenburg lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Rustenburg has lost about 6 hectares of forest (about 8 football pitches): 2.3% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (85%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Rustenburg stayed about the same size, at about 1,900 hectares: new forest grew on about 37 hectares, and about 69 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Rustenburg?
Rustenburg has an estimated 64,717 trees across the 12.57 km² measured — 20.6% tree cover, 9 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Rustenburg need?
Rustenburg needs roughly 29,531 more trees to close a 9-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 649.7 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Rustenburg's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Rustenburg, via OpenAQ; the 7-day trend is the Open-Meteo / CAMS model's estimate. Tree cover is measured from Sentinel-2 L2A (ESA Copernicus) via Earth Search satellite imagery at 10 m detail across a 2 km radius around Rustenburg; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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