City report · Washington, United States
Tri-Cities Air quality today
Air quality in Tri-Cities currently reads AQI 37 (Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Air quality right now
AQI 37
Good
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 6.7
- tree cover
- 22.1%
- trees in this area
- 53.9K
- more trees needed
- 19.3K
Measured across a 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around Pasco, WA 99301, USA (4.9 sq mi), from a satellite image of Aug 31, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Tri-Cities · AQI 37 (Good)
Tri-Cities's tree count comes to 53,946 trees across 3.8 sq mi (9.77 km²) of land, 8 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 19,284 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Tri-Cities today: AQI 37, Good
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 05:00 local time via World Air Quality Index Project ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · Metaline, Kennewick, Washington, USA, 1.9 mi (3 km) away
Health signal
Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
PM2.5
6.7
PM10
13.0
NO₂
—
O₃
—
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: World Air Quality Index Project, Washington State Department of Ecology, Air Now - US EPA
- 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 Tri-Cities's daily AQI at 52 on average, from 39 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 72 on Nov 6.
Where Tri-Cities stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Tri-Cities: Below target
22.1% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 3.8 sq mi (9.77 km²) of land.
Trees in this area
53,946
Target trees
73,230
More trees needed
19,284
CO₂ if planted / yr
424.2 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Tri-Cities lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Tri-Cities has lost about 885 acres (358 hectares) of forest (about 670 football fields): 23% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (97%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads.
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 6 km southwest of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 885 acres (358 ha)about 670 football fields
- Share of its forest
- 23%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 858 acres (347 ha)deforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2002, when about 99 acres (40 hectares) of forest were lost.
Acres of forest lost each year
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Cleared for good | Can grow back | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 90 acres (37 ha) | 2 acres (1 ha) | 93 acres (38 ha) |
| 2002 | 97 acres (39 ha) | under 1 ha | 99 acres (40 ha) |
| 2003 | 62 acres (25 ha) | under 1 ha | 64 acres (26 ha) |
| 2004 | 23 acres (9 ha) | 7 acres (3 ha) | 30 acres (12 ha) |
| 2005 | 17 acres (7 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) | 20 acres (8 ha) |
| 2006 | 81 acres (33 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) | 84 acres (34 ha) |
| 2007 | 33 acres (13 ha) | under 1 ha | 34 acres (14 ha) |
| 2008 | 16 acres (7 ha) | under 1 ha | 17 acres (7 ha) |
| 2009 | 18 acres (7 ha) | under 1 ha | 19 acres (8 ha) |
| 2010 | 39 acres (16 ha) | under 1 ha | 39 acres (16 ha) |
| 2011 | 26 acres (11 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) | 29 acres (12 ha) |
| 2012 | 2 acres (1 ha) | under 1 ha | 3 acres (1 ha) |
| 2013 | 11 acres (4 ha) | under 1 ha | 11 acres (4 ha) |
| 2014 | 5 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 6 acres (2 ha) |
| 2015 | 16 acres (6 ha) | under 1 ha | 16 acres (6 ha) |
| 2016 | 24 acres (10 ha) | under 1 ha | 25 acres (10 ha) |
| 2017 | 31 acres (13 ha) | under 1 ha | 31 acres (13 ha) |
| 2018 | 46 acres (19 ha) | under 1 ha | 46 acres (19 ha) |
| 2019 | 83 acres (33 ha) | under 1 ha | 83 acres (34 ha) |
| 2020 | 80 acres (33 ha) | under 1 ha | 81 acres (33 ha) |
| 2021 | 13 acres (5 ha) | under 1 ha | 13 acres (5 ha) |
| 2022 | 29 acres (12 ha) | under 1 ha | 29 acres (12 ha) |
| 2023 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2024 | 5 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 5 acres (2 ha) |
| 2025 | 9 acres (4 ha) | under 1 ha | 9 acres (4 ha) |
What is causing deforestation around Tri-Cities?
- Towns and roadscleared for good61% · 536 acres (217 ha)
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good37% · 324 acres (131 ha)
- Unknown causescause unknown2.9% · 26 acres (11 ha)
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
- 5,360 acres (2,170 ha)
- Forest in 2020
- 6,560 acres (2,650 ha)
- Overall change
- +1,200 acres (485 ha)more forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Tri-Cities grew from about 5,360 acres (2,170 hectares) to 6,560 acres (2,650 hectares), a net gain of about 1,200 acres (485 hectares) (+22%). New forest grew on about 1,380 acres (557 hectares), while 177 acres (72 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 Tri-Cities
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Spokane206.7 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 27%
- Air quality
- 90
- Kent263.4 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 36%
- Air quality
- 25
- Gresham263.9 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 48%
- Air quality
- 9
- Renton267.7 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 32%
- Air quality
- 30
- Tacoma271.6 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 19%
- Air quality
- 33
- Bellevue274.0 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 49%
- Air quality
- 33
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Frequently asked
Questions about Tri-Cities
What is the air quality (AQI) in Tri-Cities right now?
The latest reading for Tri-Cities shows an AQI of 37 (Good), measured Nov 11, 05:00 local time by the Metaline, Kennewick, Washington, USA ground monitoring station, 1.9 mi (3 km) away, via OpenAQ. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Tri-Cities today?
At AQI 37 (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 Tri-Cities been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Tri-Cities's daily AQI at 52 on average, from 39 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 72 on Nov 6. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Tri-Cities lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Tri-Cities has lost about 885 acres (358 hectares) of forest (about 670 football fields): 23% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (97%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Tri-Cities grew from about 5,360 acres (2,170 hectares) to 6,560 acres (2,650 hectares), a net gain of about 1,200 acres (485 hectares) (+22%). New forest grew on about 1,380 acres (557 hectares), while 177 acres (72 hectares) were lost.
What is the tree count in Tri-Cities?
Tri-Cities has an estimated 53,946 trees across the 3.8 sq mi (9.77 km²) of land measured — 22.1% tree cover, 8 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Tri-Cities need?
Tri-Cities needs roughly 19,284 more trees to close a 8-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 424.2 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Tri-Cities's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Pasco, 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 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around Pasco; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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