City report · Colombia
Santa Marta Air quality today
Air quality in Santa Marta currently reads AQI 44 (Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Air quality right now
AQI 44
Good
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 7.7
- tree cover
- 19.8%
- trees in this area
- 62.2K
- more trees needed
- 32.0K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Comuna 4, Santa Marta, Magdalena, Colombia (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 19, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Santa Marta · AQI 44 (Good)
Santa Marta's tree count comes to 62,204 trees across 12.57 km², 10 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 32,044 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Santa Marta today: AQI 44, Good
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 10, 17:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Model estimate · no ground station nearby
Health signal
Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
PM2.5
7.7
PM10
8.4
NO₂
4.5
O₃
89.0
SO₂
1.6
CO
333.0
- Outdoor exercise
- A good day to be active outside
- Windows
- Open them to air the house
- Mask
- Not needed
- Air purifier
- Not needed
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Santa Marta's daily AQI at 38 on average, from 18 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 59 on Nov 5.
Where Santa Marta stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Santa Marta: Below target
19.8% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.57 km².
Trees in this area
62,204
Target trees
94,248
More trees needed
32,044
CO₂ if planted / yr
705.0 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Santa Marta lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Santa Marta has lost about 1,370 hectares of forest (about 1,900 football pitches): 13% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (95%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
2017: satellite photo from February 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km southeast of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 1,370 haabout 1,900 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 13%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 1,300 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2001, when about 551 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 | 536 ha | 15 ha | 551 ha |
| 2002 | 26 ha | 3 ha | 29 ha |
| 2003 | 21 ha | 2 ha | 23 ha |
| 2004 | 26 ha | 2 ha | 28 ha |
| 2005 | 12 ha | under 1 ha | 12 ha |
| 2006 | 12 ha | under 1 ha | 12 ha |
| 2007 | 37 ha | 3 ha | 40 ha |
| 2008 | 91 ha | 3 ha | 94 ha |
| 2009 | 142 ha | 2 ha | 144 ha |
| 2010 | 8 ha | under 1 ha | 8 ha |
| 2011 | 36 ha | under 1 ha | 36 ha |
| 2012 | 27 ha | under 1 ha | 27 ha |
| 2013 | 81 ha | 6 ha | 87 ha |
| 2014 | 126 ha | 22 ha | 148 ha |
| 2015 | 5 ha | under 1 ha | 5 ha |
| 2016 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2017 | 7 ha | under 1 ha | 7 ha |
| 2018 | 4 ha | under 1 ha | 4 ha |
| 2019 | 8 ha | under 1 ha | 9 ha |
| 2020 | 32 ha | 6 ha | 38 ha |
| 2021 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2022 | 6 ha | 2 ha | 7 ha |
| 2023 | 9 ha | under 1 ha | 9 ha |
| 2024 | 29 ha | under 1 ha | 29 ha |
| 2025 | 12 ha | under 1 ha | 12 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Santa Marta?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good77% · 1,050 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good17% · 228 ha
- Shifting farmingcan grow back4.4% · 60 ha
Also: mining and energy, storms, floods and other natural causes, 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
- 9,780 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 9,190 ha
- Overall change
- −592 haless forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Santa Marta shrank from about 9,780 hectares to 9,190 hectares, a net loss of about 592 hectares (−6.1%). New forest grew on about 95 hectares, but 687 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 Santa Marta
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Malambo76.0 km
Colombia
- Tree cover
- 42%
- Air quality
- 51
- Sabanalarga104.3 km
Colombia
- Tree cover
- 48%
- Air quality
- 55
- Valledupar134.0 km
Colombia
- Tree cover
- 20%
- Air quality
- 22
- Riohacha144.4 km
Colombia
- Tree cover
- 21%
- Air quality
- 53
- Cartagena169.9 km
Colombia
- Tree cover
- 16%
- Air quality
- 52
Build your own
Compare Santa Marta with anywhere
This place
Santa Marta
Use this data
Put Santa Marta's numbers on your site
Free to embed. Updates itself as the measurement refreshes.
Frequently asked
Questions about Santa Marta
What is the air quality (AQI) in Santa Marta right now?
The latest reading for Santa Marta shows an AQI of 44 (Good), observed Nov 10, 17:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Santa Marta today?
At AQI 44 (Good): a good day to be active outside. Windows: open them to air the house. Masks: not needed. The reading changes through the day, so check again before a long run or ride.
What has the air quality in Santa Marta been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Santa Marta's daily AQI at 38 on average, from 18 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 59 on Nov 5. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Santa Marta lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Santa Marta has lost about 1,370 hectares of forest (about 1,900 football pitches): 13% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (95%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Santa Marta shrank from about 9,780 hectares to 9,190 hectares, a net loss of about 592 hectares (−6.1%). New forest grew on about 95 hectares, but 687 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Santa Marta?
Santa Marta has an estimated 62,204 trees across the 12.57 km² measured — 19.8% tree cover, 10 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Santa Marta need?
Santa Marta needs roughly 32,044 more trees to close a 10-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 705.0 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Santa Marta's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality comes from ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ where one reports nearby, and otherwise, as here, from the Open-Meteo / CAMS model, which may differ from street-level monitors. 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 Comuna 4; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
See your own area
What does your neighborhood look like?
Pick any point and radius to get the same air-quality and tree-cover breakdown.
Check my address