Air pollution threatens the health of 593 thousand people across 11 districts in Karachay-Cherkess. The average PM2.5 level is 10.8 µg/m³—2.2× higher than the WHO guideline.
Brought to you by Amrit Sharma
Karachay-Cherkess faces significant air pollution challenges. 100% of districts exceed the WHO guideline for clean air. This is putting 593 thousand across 11 districts at risk.
The average PM2.5 over 2023 was 10.8µg/m³. That's 2.2 times the WHO guideline for clean air of 5µg/m³.
This is equivalent of everybody, including children, smoking about 179 cigarettes in a year.
If Karachay-Cherkess met the WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³, the average person would live 0.57 years longer.
That's 338K years of life stolen from 593 thousand people. Years of watching children grow up. Years of building a career. Years of quiet mornings and celebrations.
Lives cut short. Breathing kills.
The top 10 most polluted districts in Karachay-Cherkess. These areas face the greatest health burden from air pollution.
Distribution of population across different PM2.5 pollution levels. The WHO guideline is 5 µg/m³—only populations below this threshold are breathing safe air.
Complete air quality data for every district in Karachay-Cherkess, sorted by population.
| District | Population | PM2.5 µg/m³ | Years Lost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Khabezskiy rayon | 102K | 10.7 | 0.6 years |
| Kislovodsk | 96K | 10.3 | 0.5 years |
| Adyge-Khabl'skiy rayon | 85K | 10.5 | 0.5 years |
| Malokarachayevskiy rayon | 76K | 10.0 | 0.5 years |
| Zelenchukskiy rayon | 70K | 11.3 | 0.6 years |
| Karachayevskiy rayon | 53K | 12.7 | 0.8 years |
| Cherkessk | 42K | 10.7 | 0.6 years |
| Prikubanskiy rayon | 31K | 10.2 | 0.5 years |
| Urupskiy rayon | 20K | 11.7 | 0.7 years |
| Ust'-Dzhegutinskiy rayon | 17K | 9.6 | 0.5 years |
| Karachayevsk | 3 | 10.1 | 0.5 years |
Showing 11 districts, sorted by population (largest first). PM2.5 values are for 2023. Years lost calculated against WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³.