City report · England, United Kingdom
Wigan Air quality today
Air quality in Wigan currently reads AQI 13 (Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Air quality right now
AQI 13
Good
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 2.4
- tree cover
- 31.4%
- trees in this area
- 95.4K
- more trees needed
- 0
Measured across a 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around Wigan, UK (4.9 sq mi), from a satellite image of Aug 24, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Wigan · AQI 13 (Good)
Wigan's tree count comes to 95,391 trees across 4.7 sq mi (12.16 km²) of land, already at or above the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Wigan today: AQI 13, Good
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 15:00 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · Golborne Dale Cottage, 5.7 mi (9.2 km) away
Health signal
Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
PM2.5
2.4
PM10
—
NO₂
—
O₃
—
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: OpenAQ · AirGradient, Dan Cunliffe
- 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 Wigan's daily AQI at 61 on average, from 24 on Nov 4 to an hourly peak of 98 on Nov 8.
This is the US EPA AQI. How it differs from the UK's Daily Air Quality Index
Where Wigan stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Wigan: Healthy tree cover
31.4% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 4.7 sq mi (12.16 km²) of land.
Trees in this area
95,391
Target trees
95,391
More trees needed
0
CO₂ if planted / yr
0 kg
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Wigan lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Wigan has lost about 27 hectares of forest (about 38 football pitches): under 1% of the forest it had in 2000. The biggest cause was logging (27%), after which forest can grow back. About 4 hectares (14%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns.
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 27 haabout 38 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- under 1%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 4 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2004, when about 4 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 | under 1 ha | 3 ha | 3 ha |
| 2002 | under 1 ha | 3 ha | 3 ha |
| 2003 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2004 | under 1 ha | 3 ha | 4 ha |
| 2005 | 2 ha | 2 ha | 3 ha |
| 2006 | under 1 ha | 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2007 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2008 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2009 | under 1 ha | 3 ha | 3 ha |
| 2010 | under 1 ha | 3 ha | 3 ha |
| 2011 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2012 | under 1 ha | 2 ha | 2 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 | 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2022 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2023 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2024 | under 1 ha | 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2025 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Wigan?
- Loggingcan grow back27% · 7 ha
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good8.5% · 2 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good6.3% · 2 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
- 2,390 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 2,940 ha
- Overall change
- +555 hamore forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Wigan grew from about 2,390 hectares to 2,940 hectares, a net gain of about 555 hectares (+23%). New forest grew on about 592 hectares, while 36 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 Wigan
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- St Helens12.1 km
United Kingdom
- Tree cover
- 31%
- Air quality
- 13
- Bolton14.2 km
United Kingdom
- Tree cover
- 28%
- Air quality
- 38
- Warrington17.2 km
United Kingdom
- Tree cover
- 25%
- Air quality
- 13
- Preston24.8 km
United Kingdom
- Tree cover
- 27%
- Air quality
- 52
- Blackburn25.2 km
United Kingdom
- Tree cover
- 29%
- Air quality
- 66
- Liverpool26.9 km
United Kingdom
- Tree cover
- 13%
- Air quality
- 33
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Frequently asked
Questions about Wigan
What is the air quality (AQI) in Wigan right now?
The latest reading for Wigan shows an AQI of 13 (Good), measured Nov 11, 15:00 local time by the Golborne Dale Cottage ground monitoring station, 5.7 mi (9.2 km) away, via OpenAQ. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Wigan today?
At AQI 13 (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 Wigan been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Wigan's daily AQI at 61 on average, from 24 on Nov 4 to an hourly peak of 98 on Nov 8. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Is Wigan's AQI the same as the UK's Daily Air Quality Index?
No. Airleaf shows the US EPA Air Quality Index (AQI), the scale used by IQAir and most air-quality apps. The UK's Daily Air Quality Index (DAQI), published by Defra, runs from 1 to 10: 1–3 low, 4–6 moderate, 7–9 high and 10 very high. It is a different scale altogether, so a US AQI figure can't be read on it directly; both, though, are built from the same main pollutants, with fine particles (PM2.5) usually the one that decides the reading.
How much forest has the area around Wigan lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Wigan has lost about 27 hectares of forest (about 38 football pitches): under 1% of the forest it had in 2000. The biggest cause was logging (27%), after which forest can grow back. About 4 hectares (14%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Wigan grew from about 2,390 hectares to 2,940 hectares, a net gain of about 555 hectares (+23%). New forest grew on about 592 hectares, while 36 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Wigan?
Wigan has an estimated 95,391 trees across the 4.7 sq mi (12.16 km²) of land measured — 31.4% tree cover, already past the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Wigan need?
Wigan has already reached its tree-cover target, so no additional trees are needed to close the gap.
How are Wigan's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Wigan, 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 Wigan; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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