City report · East Kalimantan, Indonesia
Samarinda Air quality today
Air quality in Samarinda currently reads AQI 67 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
AQI 67
Air quality right now
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 17.8
- tree cover
- 12.5%
- trees in this area
- 35.3K
- more trees needed
- 49.4K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Samarinda, Samarinda City, East Kalimantan, Indonesia (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Aug 29, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Samarinda · AQI 67 (Moderate)
Samarinda's tree count comes to 35,264 trees across 11.29 km² of land, 18 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 49,370 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Samarinda today: AQI 67, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 22:00 local time via World Air Quality Index Project ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · Samarinda, Indonesia, 1.6 km away
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
17.8
PM10
—
NO₂
—
O₃
—
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: World Air Quality Index Project, BMKG | Badan Meteorologi, Klimatologi dan Geofisika
- 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 Samarinda's daily AQI at 61 on average, from 45 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 122 on Nov 5.
This is the US EPA AQI. How it differs from Indonesia's ISPU
Where Samarinda stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Samarinda: Critically low
12.5% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 11.29 km² of land.
Trees in this area
35,264
Target trees
84,634
More trees needed
49,370
CO₂ if planted / yr
1,086 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Samarinda lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Samarinda has lost about 6,320 hectares of forest (about 8,800 football pitches): 41% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (over 99%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for mining and energy.
2019: satellite photo from September 2019 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km northwest of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 6,320 haabout 8,800 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 41%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 6,310 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
Forest loss is slowing down: about 172 hectares a year in 2021–2025, down from 302 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2012, when about 1,290 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 | 26 ha | under 1 ha | 26 ha |
| 2002 | 84 ha | under 1 ha | 84 ha |
| 2003 | 52 ha | under 1 ha | 52 ha |
| 2004 | 130 ha | under 1 ha | 130 ha |
| 2005 | 213 ha | under 1 ha | 213 ha |
| 2006 | 103 ha | under 1 ha | 103 ha |
| 2007 | 327 ha | 1 ha | 328 ha |
| 2008 | 265 ha | under 1 ha | 265 ha |
| 2009 | 646 ha | 1 ha | 647 ha |
| 2010 | 45 ha | under 1 ha | 45 ha |
| 2011 | 83 ha | under 1 ha | 83 ha |
| 2012 | 1,290 ha | under 1 ha | 1,290 ha |
| 2013 | 213 ha | under 1 ha | 213 ha |
| 2014 | 212 ha | under 1 ha | 212 ha |
| 2015 | 261 ha | under 1 ha | 261 ha |
| 2016 | 459 ha | under 1 ha | 459 ha |
| 2017 | 317 ha | under 1 ha | 317 ha |
| 2018 | 394 ha | under 1 ha | 394 ha |
| 2019 | 206 ha | under 1 ha | 206 ha |
| 2020 | 135 ha | under 1 ha | 135 ha |
| 2021 | 136 ha | 1 ha | 137 ha |
| 2022 | 75 ha | under 1 ha | 75 ha |
| 2023 | 293 ha | 1 ha | 294 ha |
| 2024 | 221 ha | 3 ha | 224 ha |
| 2025 | 130 ha | 1 ha | 131 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Samarinda?
- Mining and energycleared for good39% · 2,460 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good36% · 2,300 ha
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good25% · 1,550 ha
Also: shifting farming, unknown causes.
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
- 12,400 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 7,830 ha
- Overall change
- −4,600 haless forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Samarinda shrank from about 12,400 hectares to 7,830 hectares, a net loss of about 4,600 hectares (−37%). New forest grew on about 369 hectares, but 4,970 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 Samarinda
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Nusantara72.3 km
Indonesia
- Tree cover
- 48%
- Air quality
- 38
- Bontang79.0 km
Indonesia
- Tree cover
- 28%
- Air quality
- 53
- Balikpapan93.2 km
Indonesia
- Tree cover
- 30%
- Air quality
- 55
- Palu306.5 km
Indonesia
- Tree cover
- 12%
- Air quality
- 49
- Palangkaraya406.5 km
Indonesia
- Tree cover
- 10%
- Air quality
- 65
- Banjarbaru416.4 km
Indonesia
- Tree cover
- 28%
- Air quality
- 114
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Frequently asked
Questions about Samarinda
What is the air quality (AQI) in Samarinda right now?
The latest reading for Samarinda shows an AQI of 67 (Moderate), measured Nov 11, 22:00 local time by the Samarinda, Indonesia ground monitoring station, 1.6 km away, via OpenAQ. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Samarinda today?
At AQI 67 (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 Samarinda been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Samarinda's daily AQI at 61 on average, from 45 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 122 on Nov 5. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Is Samarinda's AQI the same as Indonesia's ISPU?
No. Airleaf shows the US EPA Air Quality Index (AQI), the scale used by IQAir and most air-quality apps. Indonesia's official index is the ISPU (Indeks Standar Pencemar Udara), published by the environment ministry from its own monitoring stations. Its bands are 0–50 Baik (good), 51–100 Sedang (moderate), 101–200 Tidak Sehat (unhealthy), 201–300 Sangat Tidak Sehat (very unhealthy) and over 300 Berbahaya (hazardous). The two indexes use different breakpoints and averaging times, so the same air can score differently on each.
How much forest has the area around Samarinda lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Samarinda has lost about 6,320 hectares of forest (about 8,800 football pitches): 41% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (over 99%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for mining and energy. Forest loss is slowing down: about 172 hectares a year in 2021–2025, down from 302 hectares a year in 2016–2020. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Samarinda shrank from about 12,400 hectares to 7,830 hectares, a net loss of about 4,600 hectares (−37%). New forest grew on about 369 hectares, but 4,970 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Samarinda?
Samarinda has an estimated 35,264 trees across the 11.29 km² of land measured — 12.5% tree cover, 18 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Samarinda need?
Samarinda needs roughly 49,370 more trees to close a 18-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 1,086 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Samarinda's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Samarinda, 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 Samarinda; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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