City report · Maule Region, Chile
Talca Air quality today
Air quality in Talca currently reads AQI 38 (Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
AQI 38
Air quality right now
Good
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 7.6
- tree cover
- 11.3%
- trees in this area
- 35.5K
- more trees needed
- 58.7K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Talca, Maule, Chile (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Mar 8, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Talca · AQI 38 (Good)
Talca's tree count comes to 35,500 trees across 12.57 km², 19 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 58,748 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Talca today: AQI 38, Good
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 10, 22:00 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
7.6
PM10
8.1
NO₂
7.6
O₃
56.0
SO₂
1.8
CO
209.0
- 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 Talca's daily AQI at 38 on average, from 21 on Nov 6 to an hourly peak of 79 on Nov 9.
Where Talca stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Talca: Critically low
11.3% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.57 km².
Trees in this area
35,500
Target trees
94,248
More trees needed
58,748
CO₂ if planted / yr
1,292 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Talca lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Talca has lost about 443 hectares of forest (about 620 football pitches): 14% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (65%) 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 west of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 443 haabout 620 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 14%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 286 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2003, when about 44 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 | 13 ha | 9 ha | 21 ha |
| 2002 | 9 ha | under 1 ha | 9 ha |
| 2003 | 33 ha | 11 ha | 44 ha |
| 2004 | 8 ha | 5 ha | 13 ha |
| 2005 | 16 ha | 4 ha | 20 ha |
| 2006 | 12 ha | 3 ha | 15 ha |
| 2007 | 20 ha | 9 ha | 29 ha |
| 2008 | 28 ha | 5 ha | 33 ha |
| 2009 | 9 ha | 3 ha | 11 ha |
| 2010 | 11 ha | 2 ha | 13 ha |
| 2011 | 12 ha | 1 ha | 13 ha |
| 2012 | 15 ha | 4 ha | 18 ha |
| 2013 | 7 ha | 2 ha | 9 ha |
| 2014 | 5 ha | under 1 ha | 5 ha |
| 2015 | 15 ha | under 1 ha | 16 ha |
| 2016 | 10 ha | 6 ha | 16 ha |
| 2017 | 21 ha | 3 ha | 23 ha |
| 2018 | 3 ha | 4 ha | 7 ha |
| 2019 | under 1 ha | 6 ha | 6 ha |
| 2020 | 3 ha | 29 ha | 31 ha |
| 2021 | 9 ha | 23 ha | 32 ha |
| 2022 | 7 ha | 8 ha | 15 ha |
| 2023 | 12 ha | 14 ha | 26 ha |
| 2024 | 5 ha | 6 ha | 12 ha |
| 2025 | 4 ha | 2 ha | 6 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Talca?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good50% · 221 ha
- Loggingcan grow back31% · 137 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good14% · 64 ha
Also: wildfires, mining and energy, 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
- 1,280 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 2,850 ha
- Overall change
- +1,570 hamore forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Talca grew from about 1,280 hectares to 2,850 hectares, a net gain of about 1,570 hectares (+122%). New forest grew on about 1,770 hectares, while 206 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 Talca
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Curicó61.5 km
Chile
- Tree cover
- 13%
- Air quality
- 48
- Chillán137.8 km
Chile
- Tree cover
- 11%
- Air quality
- 55
- Rancagua162.3 km
Chile
- Tree cover
- 7%
- Air quality
- 39
- Talcahuano195.8 km
Chile
- Tree cover
- 19%
- Air quality
- 48
- Concepción200.4 km
Chile
- Tree cover
- 28%
- Air quality
- 48
- San Bernardo221.4 km
Chile
- Tree cover
- 7%
- Air quality
- 70
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Frequently asked
Questions about Talca
What is the air quality (AQI) in Talca right now?
The latest reading for Talca shows an AQI of 38 (Good), observed Nov 10, 22:00 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 Talca today?
At AQI 38 (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 Talca been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Talca's daily AQI at 38 on average, from 21 on Nov 6 to an hourly peak of 79 on Nov 9. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Talca lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Talca has lost about 443 hectares of forest (about 620 football pitches): 14% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (65%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Talca grew from about 1,280 hectares to 2,850 hectares, a net gain of about 1,570 hectares (+122%). New forest grew on about 1,770 hectares, while 206 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Talca?
Talca has an estimated 35,500 trees across the 12.57 km² measured — 11.3% tree cover, 19 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Talca need?
Talca needs roughly 58,748 more trees to close a 19-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 1,292 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Talca'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 Talca; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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