City report · Virginia, United States
Virginia Beach Air quality today
Air quality in Virginia Beach currently reads AQI 16 (Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Air quality right now
AQI 16
Good
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 2.9
- tree cover
- 29.5%
- trees in this area
- 53.5K
- more trees needed
- 906
Measured across a 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around North Virginia Beach, Virginia Beach, VA, USA (4.9 sq mi), from a satellite image of Jul 10, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Virginia Beach · AQI 16 (Good)
Virginia Beach's tree count comes to 53,475 trees across 2.8 sq mi (7.25 km²) of land, 1 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 906 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Virginia Beach today: AQI 16, Good
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 10, 19:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 3 ground-station cities within 45 km, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Estimate · model corrected with 3 station cities within 28.0 mi (45 km), e.g. Norfolk and Hampton
Health signal
Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
PM2.5
2.9
PM10
3.5
NO₂
8.9
O₃
70.0
SO₂
1.3
CO
215.0
- 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 Virginia Beach's daily AQI at 29 on average, from 15 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 54 on Nov 7.
Where Virginia Beach stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Virginia Beach: Below target
29.5% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 2.8 sq mi (7.25 km²) of land.
Trees in this area
53,475
Target trees
54,381
More trees needed
906
CO₂ if planted / yr
19.9 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Virginia Beach lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Virginia Beach has lost about 584 acres (237 hectares) of forest (about 440 football fields): 4.3% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (93%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads.
2017: satellite photo from August 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km southwest of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 584 acres (237 ha)about 440 football fields
- Share of its forest
- 4.3%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 544 acres (220 ha)deforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2005, when about 77 acres (31 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 | 24 acres (10 ha) | under 1 ha | 24 acres (10 ha) |
| 2002 | 8 acres (3 ha) | under 1 ha | 9 acres (4 ha) |
| 2003 | 17 acres (7 ha) | under 1 ha | 17 acres (7 ha) |
| 2004 | 27 acres (11 ha) | under 1 ha | 29 acres (12 ha) |
| 2005 | 69 acres (28 ha) | 9 acres (4 ha) | 77 acres (31 ha) |
| 2006 | 13 acres (5 ha) | under 1 ha | 13 acres (5 ha) |
| 2007 | 24 acres (10 ha) | under 1 ha | 25 acres (10 ha) |
| 2008 | 42 acres (17 ha) | under 1 ha | 42 acres (17 ha) |
| 2009 | 27 acres (11 ha) | under 1 ha | 28 acres (11 ha) |
| 2010 | 8 acres (3 ha) | 8 acres (3 ha) | 16 acres (7 ha) |
| 2011 | 9 acres (4 ha) | under 1 ha | 9 acres (4 ha) |
| 2012 | 37 acres (15 ha) | 9 acres (4 ha) | 47 acres (19 ha) |
| 2013 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | 3 acres (1 ha) |
| 2014 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2015 | 20 acres (8 ha) | under 1 ha | 22 acres (9 ha) |
| 2016 | 12 acres (5 ha) | under 1 ha | 13 acres (5 ha) |
| 2017 | 27 acres (11 ha) | under 1 ha | 28 acres (11 ha) |
| 2018 | 26 acres (11 ha) | 3 acres (1 ha) | 29 acres (12 ha) |
| 2019 | 11 acres (5 ha) | under 1 ha | 11 acres (5 ha) |
| 2020 | 13 acres (5 ha) | under 1 ha | 13 acres (5 ha) |
| 2021 | 7 acres (3 ha) | under 1 ha | 7 acres (3 ha) |
| 2022 | 30 acres (12 ha) | under 1 ha | 30 acres (12 ha) |
| 2023 | 22 acres (9 ha) | under 1 ha | 22 acres (9 ha) |
| 2024 | 44 acres (18 ha) | under 1 ha | 44 acres (18 ha) |
| 2025 | 23 acres (9 ha) | under 1 ha | 25 acres (10 ha) |
What is causing deforestation around Virginia Beach?
- Towns and roadscleared for good93% · 541 acres (219 ha)
- Storms, floods and other natural causescan grow back3.7% · 22 acres (9 ha)
- Unknown causescause unknown2.5% · 15 acres (6 ha)
Also: farms, pasture and plantations, logging.
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
- 19,900 acres (8,070 ha)
- Forest in 2020
- 20,700 acres (8,380 ha)
- Overall change
- +778 acres (315 ha)more forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Virginia Beach grew from about 19,900 acres (8,070 hectares) to 20,700 acres (8,380 hectares), a net gain of about 778 acres (315 hectares) (+3.9%). New forest grew on about 1,030 acres (415 hectares), while 247 acres (100 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 Virginia Beach
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Norfolk27.3 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 20%
- Air quality
- 53
- East Hampton37.5 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 50%
- Air quality
- 28
- Newport News42.6 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 16%
- Air quality
- 32
- Richmond152.7 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 23%
- Air quality
- 66
- Alexandria236.5 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 30%
- Air quality
- 64
- Washington245.3 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 19%
- Air quality
- 75
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Frequently asked
Questions about Virginia Beach
What is the air quality (AQI) in Virginia Beach right now?
The latest reading for Virginia Beach shows an AQI of 16 (Good), observed Nov 10, 19:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 3 ground-station cities within 45 km, US EPA index. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Virginia Beach today?
At AQI 16 (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 Virginia Beach been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Virginia Beach's daily AQI at 29 on average, from 15 on Nov 9 to an hourly peak of 54 on Nov 7. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Virginia Beach lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Virginia Beach has lost about 584 acres (237 hectares) of forest (about 440 football fields): 4.3% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (93%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Virginia Beach grew from about 19,900 acres (8,070 hectares) to 20,700 acres (8,380 hectares), a net gain of about 778 acres (315 hectares) (+3.9%). New forest grew on about 1,030 acres (415 hectares), while 247 acres (100 hectares) were lost.
What is the tree count in Virginia Beach?
Virginia Beach has an estimated 53,475 trees across the 2.8 sq mi (7.25 km²) of land measured — 29.5% tree cover, 1 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Virginia Beach need?
Virginia Beach needs roughly 906 more trees to close a 1-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 19.9 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Virginia Beach'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 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around North Virginia Beach; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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