The dirtiest cities in the world: a list

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:43

Metallurgical and chemical production, as well as coal mining plants and other industrial facilities, often create a terrible environmental situation in many cities. In 2007, the Blacksmith Institute, a North American non-profit scientific and research company, created an initial version of the list of the dirtiest cities in the world. Gradually, the list of settlements in the list was subject to change, but at the moment there are about sixty cities where the environmental situation is simply unbearable for the local population. This article will present its own version of the top 10 dirtiest cities in the world, based on data from reputable environmental organizations.

10. Antananarivo, Madagascar island

The island of Madagascar, which is known for its unique fauna and flora, is often given the title of the most environmentally polluted city in the world. Unfortunately, the negative effects of industrial production and human waste are also affecting Antananarivo.

Relatively clean here onlyin some areas for tourists, in other areas of the city, garbage is scattered everywhere, which rots and stinks, on which, as if nothing had happened, local citizens walk and even sometimes tourists who have to visit administrative offices.

9. Krasnoyarsk, Russian Federation

In terms of air pollution, Krasnoyarsk is the dirtiest city in the world, according to research portal AirVisua. The Siberian city was included in this list because of the incredibly polluted air. He even outperformed such traditionally polluted cities as Delhi and Ulaanbaatar. However, the organization evaluates only the level of toxicity of air masses, without affecting other parameters. Thus, Krasnoyarsk is the dirtiest city in the world in terms of only one environmental parameter.

8. Norilsk, Russian Federation

This city, which is included in the top of the dirtiest cities in the world, is located beyond the Arctic Circle. About two hundred thousand people live here. Previously, Norilsk was a colony-camp for prisoners. One of the largest metallurgy plants on the planet was built here by the forces of the prisoners.

Its pipes emit more than three million tons of toxic chemical compounds with a high content of hazardous metals into the atmosphere every year. In Norilsk, it often smells of sulfur, black snow falls. It is very surprising that the city, which produces a third of the world's volumes of such a precious metal as platinum, over 35% of palladium and about 25% of nickel, is unwilling to provide the necessary finance,to stop poisoning their townspeople. And, sadly, they die 5 times more often from respiratory diseases than in other regions of the Russian Federation. The average life expectancy of the workers of the Norilsk metallurgy plant is 9 years less than the average for the entire Russian Federation. For foreigners, entry to this polar city is closed.

7. Kabwe, Zambia

Near the second most populated city of the Republic of Zambia, which is located at a distance of one hundred and fifty kilometers from the country's capital, by a tragic coincidence for the native inhabitants, colossal deposits of lead were found.

For about a hundred years, mining and processing of this metal has been going on at a tremendous pace, and industrial waste is increasingly polluting the soil, rivers and air. Less than nine kilometers from the city, one should not only drink the local water, but even simply live there and breathe the local air. The concentration of this metal in the body of city residents is eleven times higher than the permissible norm.

6. Pripyat, Ukraine

After the tragically famous explosion of a unit at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, which happened in the eighty-sixth year, a dangerous radiation cloud covered an area of over one hundred thousand square kilometers. A closed exclusion zone was formed in the nuclear disaster zone, all residents were taken out, they were given the official status of victims. Pripyat, in just a few weeks, has become a ghost town, in which the townspeople have not been here for more than thirty years. In the ordinary sense, this town is relatively cleanplace. There are no people and, accordingly, toxic production here.

Trees grow everywhere, the air is quite fresh. However, the measuring instruments showed huge levels of radiation. With a long stay in Pripyat, people can get radiation sickness, which leads to death.

5. Sumgayit, Azerbaijan

This city of almost three hundred thousand people has to suffer from the socialist past of its eastern Caucasian country. Previously, it was a large center of chemical production, which was created by a decree of Joseph Stalin himself. Toxic compounds were released into the air, including mercury-based substances, oil industry waste, and organic fertilizer waste.

At the moment, the vast majority of factories are closed, but no one is going to clean up local rivers and restore the soil. The surroundings of this large Azerbaijani city resemble some kind of dirty desert from the films about the Apocalypse. However, according to Green Peace activists, over the past few years, the environmental situation in Sumgayit has become much better thanks to the activities of volunteer organizations.

4. Dhaka, Bangladesh

Another one of the dirtiest cities in the world is Dhaka. This capital has an impartial status. The Hazaribag area is famous for its colossal number of leather factories, as well as a record amount of garbage.

That's why it's herethe largest number of garbage collectors and sorters work. The population of Dhaka is approximately fifteen million people. Another problem of the city is that there is a severe shortage of purified drinking water in Dhaka. The water that citizens drink contains a huge amount of bacteria and harmful microorganisms. All the streets of the capital of Bangladesh are simply littered with waste products, and people can go to the toilet right on the street road. The quality of the air that residents of the capital breathe is also terrible. Due to large traffic jams, the level of air pollution many times exceeded all conceivable standards. Also, do not forget about the colossal population of Bangladesh, which affects the ecological situation.

3. Tianying, China

It is known that in China there are a huge number of environmentally polluted places. A terrible environmental disaster has overtaken this city, which is one of the largest industrial centers in China. The Chinese authorities do not pay attention to the lead completely soaked in the soil.

Lead oxides irrevocably affect the vessels of the brain, making city dwellers sleepy and irritable. Of course, residents suffer from a huge number of diseases. Also there is a large number of children who suffer from dementia - this is another of the side effects of exposure to a dangerous metal, which is observed when ingested. However, the Chinese government is still chasing economic performance, forgetting about the environmental situation of its industries.cities. The main thing for them is financial growth and economic prosperity.

2. Sukinda, India

Speaking of the most environmentally polluted cities in the world, it's hard not to mention this actively developing country. However, economic and industrial development will come at a heavy price. The city of Sukinda is the largest chromium mining site on the planet. In the same region, there are also factories that process this dangerous metal. It is well known that hexavalent chromium is a very toxic substance and must be handled with care. But in the case of Sukinda, we see an almost complete disregard for any environmental regulations in the extraction and processing of chromium, so this region is a deplorable sight in reality.

More than eighty percent of all deaths in the city and its outskirts are somehow related to diseases caused by disgusting ecology. It is known that almost all processing waste is poured into water, they often contain almost 2 times more chromium than world standards allow. The approximate number of potentially affected residents of the city is estimated at three million people. In reality, we are facing a real environmental disaster.

1. Linfen, China

Which city is the dirtiest in the world? It is located in China. This is Linfen, with a population of more than 4 million, which is located on the banks of the Fen River, in the Chinese province of Shanxi. Since the late seventies, Linfen has been the center of China's coal industry, where the air is filled with soot and dust from coal mines. He has been named one of the mostdirty cities in the world. Residents suffer from bronchitis, pneumonia, lung cancer and are even often victims of lead poisoning as a result of high levels of industrial pollution. In the ranking of the dirtiest cities in the world, the honorable first place, according to experts, is occupied by this particular Chinese settlement.

In addition to the huge factories that are engaged in coal processing, there are a number of factories on its territory that produce and manufacture food products. The result of the development of Chinese industry in this city is an increased content of carbon in the air, a metal such as lead, and chemical compounds of harmful organic origin.

Ecological situation in the world

However, only 12% of these people live in sustainable cities that meet World He alth Organization (WHO) guidelines. These cities are in Canada and Iceland. It is worth noting that half of the world's megacities and their inhabitants are exposed to air pollution, and in many cities the situation is worsening rather than improving. Over the past century and a half, carbon dioxide emissions have increased, and there is evidence that more than 200 million people are directly affected by air pollution.

In 2012 alone, 3.7 million people died prematurely from this cause. In Europe, North America, Africa or Asia, air pollution can have many devastating effects, from acid rain to heart disease. In an attempt tofight these problems by raising awareness WHO studied over 10,000 cities between 2009 and 2013 to compile a list of the world's dirtiest cities. More than a billion inhabitants of the dirtiest communities are suffering from the consequences of the development of industry and production on a once green and clean Earth. Acid rain, mutation of existing flora and fauna, extinction of biological creatures - all this, unfortunately, has become a reality.

What is the dirtiest city in the world? It is difficult to answer this question, because the ratings are made by different organizations. However, all of these cities simply amaze with the level of environmental pollution. There is also a question: why the authorities of these countries do not fight for the purity of ecology and the environment.