City report · Tamil Nadu, India
Tirunelveli Air quality today
Air quality in Tirunelveli currently reads AQI 114 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups): Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity.
AQI 114
Air quality right now
Unhealthy for sensitive groups
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 36.7
- tree cover
- 24.3%
- trees in this area
- 73.7K
- more trees needed
- 32.4K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Nellai Nagaram, Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu, India (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 29, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Tirunelveli · AQI 114 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups)
Tirunelveli's tree count comes to 73,669 trees across 12.13 km² of land, 11 points below the 35% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 32,439 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Tirunelveli today: AQI 114, Unhealthy for sensitive groups
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 12:30 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Model estimate · no ground station nearby
Health signal
Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity.
PM2.5
36.7
PM10
41.1
NO₂
1.4
O₃
157.0
SO₂
13.1
CO
291.0
- Outdoor exercise
- Children, older adults and people with asthma or heart disease should cut down long or hard exercise
- Windows
- Close them to keep the outside air out
- Mask
- Sensitive groups: an N95 outdoors
- Air purifier
- Run one, especially in bedrooms
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Tirunelveli's daily AQI at 61 on average, from 32 on Nov 6 to an hourly peak of 119 on Nov 10.
This is the US EPA AQI. How it differs from India's AQI (CPCB) · The full guide
Where Tirunelveli stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Tirunelveli: Below target
24.3% tree cover against a 35% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.13 km² of land.
Trees in this area
73,669
Target trees
106,108
More trees needed
32,439
CO₂ if planted / yr
713.7 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Tirunelveli lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Tirunelveli has lost about 128 hectares of forest (about 180 football pitches): 6.2% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (84%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
2017: satellite photo from April 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 128 haabout 180 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 6.2%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 108 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2012, when about 41 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 | 5 ha | 2 ha | 6 ha |
| 2002 | 6 ha | under 1 ha | 6 ha |
| 2003 | 25 ha | 7 ha | 32 ha |
| 2004 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2005 | 16 ha | under 1 ha | 17 ha |
| 2006 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2007 | 4 ha | 1 ha | 5 ha |
| 2008 | 14 ha | under 1 ha | 15 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 | 35 ha | 6 ha | 41 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 | 2 ha | 3 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 Tirunelveli?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good81% · 104 ha
- Loggingcan grow back6.7% · 9 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good3.1% · 4 ha
Also: 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
- 921 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 989 ha
- Overall change
- +68 hamore forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Tirunelveli grew from about 921 hectares to 989 hectares, a net gain of about 68 hectares (+7.4%). New forest grew on about 165 hectares, while 97 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 Tirunelveli
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Thoothukudi49.7 km
India
- Tree cover
- 13%
- Air quality
- 103
- Nāgercoil67.0 km
India
- Tree cover
- 41%
- Air quality
- 83
- Sivakasi81.3 km
India
- Tree cover
- 20%
- Air quality
- 114
- Rajapalayam81.9 km
India
- Tree cover
- 22%
- Air quality
- 152
- Thiruvananthapuram85.1 km
India
- Tree cover
- 34%
- Air quality
- 82
- Kollam122.0 km
India
- Tree cover
- 39%
- Air quality
- 66
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Frequently asked
Questions about Tirunelveli
What is the air quality (AQI) in Tirunelveli right now?
The latest reading for Tirunelveli shows an AQI of 114 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups), observed Nov 11, 12:30 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Tirunelveli today?
At AQI 114 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups): children, older adults and people with asthma or heart disease should cut down long or hard exercise. Windows: close them to keep the outside air out. Masks: sensitive groups: an N95 outdoors. The reading changes through the day, so check again before a long run or ride.
What has the air quality in Tirunelveli been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Tirunelveli's daily AQI at 61 on average, from 32 on Nov 6 to an hourly peak of 119 on Nov 10. On 1 of those days the average was above 100, unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Is Tirunelveli's AQI the same as India's AQI (CPCB)?
No. Airleaf shows the US EPA Air Quality Index (AQI), the scale used by IQAir and most air-quality apps. India's Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) publishes the National Air Quality Index on its own scale: 0–50 good, 51–100 satisfactory, 101–200 moderate, 201–300 poor, 301–400 very poor and 401–500 severe. The two scales don't line up. At moderate fine-particle levels the US scale reads higher: 55 µg/m³ of PM2.5 is 149 on the US AQI but about 92, "satisfactory", on India's. In heavy smog India's reads higher: 100 µg/m³ is 182 on the US AQI and about 232, "poor", on India's. CPCB also averages particles over 24 hours, so its figure moves more slowly than an hourly reading.
How much forest has the area around Tirunelveli lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Tirunelveli has lost about 128 hectares of forest (about 180 football pitches): 6.2% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (84%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Tirunelveli grew from about 921 hectares to 989 hectares, a net gain of about 68 hectares (+7.4%). New forest grew on about 165 hectares, while 97 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Tirunelveli?
Tirunelveli has an estimated 73,669 trees across the 12.13 km² of land measured — 24.3% tree cover, 11 percentage points short of the 35% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Tirunelveli need?
Tirunelveli needs roughly 32,439 more trees to close a 11-point shortfall against its 35% tree-cover target — about 713.7 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Tirunelveli'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 Nellai Nagaram; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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