City report · Argentina
Santiago del Estero Air quality today
Air quality in Santiago del Estero currently reads AQI 61 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Air quality right now
AQI 61
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 14.7
- tree cover
- 10.0%
- trees in this area
- 31.4K
- more trees needed
- 62.8K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Santiago del Estero, Santiago del Estero Province, Argentina (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 28, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Santiago del Estero · AQI 61 (Moderate)
Santiago del Estero's tree count comes to 31,416 trees across 12.57 km², 20 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 62,832 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Santiago del Estero today: AQI 61, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 13:10 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · NW_30, 1.8 km away
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
14.7
PM10
16.6
NO₂
—
O₃
—
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: OpenAQ · Breathe2Change, Breathe2Change - LEA (INQUINOA-CONICET-UNT)
- 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 Santiago del Estero's daily AQI at 20 on average, from 7 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 60 on Nov 4.
Where Santiago del Estero stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Santiago del Estero: Critically low
10.0% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.57 km².
Trees in this area
31,416
Target trees
94,248
More trees needed
62,832
CO₂ if planted / yr
1,382 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Santiago del Estero lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Santiago del Estero has lost about 3,650 hectares of forest (about 5,100 football pitches): 40% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (96%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
2017: satellite photo from October 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km east of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 3,650 haabout 5,100 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 40%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 3,500 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
Forest loss is slowing down: about 63 hectares a year in 2021–2025, down from 103 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2005, when about 565 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 | 58 ha | 5 ha | 63 ha |
| 2002 | 29 ha | under 1 ha | 29 ha |
| 2003 | 82 ha | under 1 ha | 82 ha |
| 2004 | 291 ha | 8 ha | 299 ha |
| 2005 | 560 ha | 5 ha | 565 ha |
| 2006 | 184 ha | under 1 ha | 184 ha |
| 2007 | 395 ha | 4 ha | 399 ha |
| 2008 | 216 ha | 1 ha | 217 ha |
| 2009 | 58 ha | under 1 ha | 58 ha |
| 2010 | 199 ha | 1 ha | 200 ha |
| 2011 | 93 ha | 55 ha | 148 ha |
| 2012 | 74 ha | 2 ha | 76 ha |
| 2013 | 106 ha | under 1 ha | 106 ha |
| 2014 | 161 ha | 4 ha | 165 ha |
| 2015 | 199 ha | 31 ha | 230 ha |
| 2016 | 113 ha | 12 ha | 125 ha |
| 2017 | 152 ha | 11 ha | 163 ha |
| 2018 | 36 ha | 6 ha | 42 ha |
| 2019 | 62 ha | under 1 ha | 62 ha |
| 2020 | 120 ha | 1 ha | 121 ha |
| 2021 | 57 ha | 1 ha | 58 ha |
| 2022 | 37 ha | under 1 ha | 38 ha |
| 2023 | 55 ha | under 1 ha | 55 ha |
| 2024 | 31 ha | under 1 ha | 31 ha |
| 2025 | 134 ha | 1 ha | 135 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Santiago del Estero?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good62% · 2,270 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good34% · 1,230 ha
- Wildfirescan grow back3.6% · 133 ha
Also: logging, 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
- 5,490 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 2,770 ha
- Overall change
- −2,710 haless forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Santiago del Estero shrank from about 5,490 hectares to 2,770 hectares, a net loss of about 2,710 hectares (−49%). New forest grew on about 170 hectares, but 2,880 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 Santiago del Estero
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Catamarca166.8 km
Argentina
- Tree cover
- 12%
- Air quality
- 29
- La Rioja310.2 km
Argentina
- Tree cover
- 11%
- Air quality
- 3
- Salta352.3 km
Argentina
- Tree cover
- 7%
- Air quality
- 53
- Córdoba401.0 km
Argentina
- Tree cover
- 8%
- Air quality
- 29
- San Salvador de Jujuy414.2 km
Argentina
- Tree cover
- 12%
- Air quality
- 112
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Frequently asked
Questions about Santiago del Estero
What is the air quality (AQI) in Santiago del Estero right now?
The latest reading for Santiago del Estero shows an AQI of 61 (Moderate), measured Nov 11, 13:10 local time by the NW_30 ground monitoring station, 1.8 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 Santiago del Estero today?
At AQI 61 (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 Santiago del Estero been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Santiago del Estero's daily AQI at 20 on average, from 7 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 60 on Nov 4. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Santiago del Estero lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Santiago del Estero has lost about 3,650 hectares of forest (about 5,100 football pitches): 40% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (96%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations. Forest loss is slowing down: about 63 hectares a year in 2021–2025, down from 103 hectares a year in 2016–2020. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Santiago del Estero shrank from about 5,490 hectares to 2,770 hectares, a net loss of about 2,710 hectares (−49%). New forest grew on about 170 hectares, but 2,880 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Santiago del Estero?
Santiago del Estero has an estimated 31,416 trees across the 12.57 km² measured — 10.0% tree cover, 20 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Santiago del Estero need?
Santiago del Estero needs roughly 62,832 more trees to close a 20-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 1,382 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Santiago del Estero's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Santiago del Estero, 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 Santiago del Estero; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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