PM2.5 stands for particulate matter 2.5 microns or smaller. These particles are 30 times thinner than a human hair and come from car exhaust, power plants, wildfires, and burning fuel. They are small enough to bypass your body's natural defenses and enter your bloodstream.

How does air pollution affect the body?

Air pollution affects virtually every organ in the body. PM2.5 particles enter your lungs, pass into your bloodstream, and travel to your heart, brain, kidneys, liver, and other organs. This causes chronic inflammation, increasing risks of heart disease, stroke, lung cancer, dementia, and many other conditions.

How many people are affected by air pollution?

99% of the global population breathes air that exceeds WHO safety guidelines. Air pollution kills approximately 8 million people every year—more than AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis combined.

Russia's Tula Air Pollution Report

Overview

Air Pollution in Tula

Tula faces significant air pollution challenges. 97% of districts exceed the WHO guideline for clean air. This is putting 1.4 million across 30 districts at risk.

The average PM2.5 over 2023 was 9.9µg/m³. That's 2.0 times the WHO guideline for clean air of 5µg/m³.

This is equivalent of everybody, including children, smoking about 164 cigarettes in a year.

Trends

Air Quality Trend

Annual PM2.5 levels from 2014 to 2023. The WHO guideline for safe air is 5 µg/m³.

Health Impact

Life Expectancy Impact

If Tula met the WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³, the average person would live 0.46 years longer.

That's 665K years of life stolen from 1.4 million people. Years of watching children grow up. Years of building a career. Years of quiet mornings and celebrations.

Lives cut short. Breathing kills.

Most Polluted

Districts with Highest Pollution

The top 10 most polluted districts in Tula. These areas face the greatest health burden from air pollution.

1.Dubenskiy rayon
0.6 years lost
2.Suvorovskiy rayon
0.5 years lost
3.Odoevskiy rayon
0.5 years lost
4.Tula
0.5 years lost
5.Aleksinskiy rayon
0.5 years lost
6.Aleksin
0.5 years lost
7.Leninskiy rayon
0.5 years lost
8.Belevskiy rayon
0.5 years lost
9.Yasnogorskiy rayon
0.5 years lost
10.Zaokskiy rayon
0.5 years lost

Exposure

Population Exposure by Pollution Level

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.

< 5 µg/m³

5-10 µg/m³

49.6%

718K

10-15 µg/m³

50.4%

728K

15-25 µg/m³

25-35 µg/m³

> 35 µg/m³

Districts

All 30 Districts in Tula

Complete air quality data for every district in Tula, sorted by population.

District	Population	PM2.5 µg/m³	Years Lost
Tula	374K	10.3	0.5 years
Leninskiy rayon	160K	10.3	0.5 years
Uzlovskiy rayon	137K	9.4	0.4 years
Novomoskovskiy rayon	133K	9.5	0.4 years
Shchekinskiy rayon	101K	10.0	0.5 years
Aleksinskiy rayon	69K	10.3	0.5 years
Kireevskiy rayon	68K	9.7	0.5 years
Efremovskiy rayon	59K	8.8	0.4 years
Bogoroditskiy rayon	47K	9.2	0.4 years
Venevskiy rayon	35K	9.5	0.4 years
Suvorovskiy rayon	34K	10.6	0.5 years
Kimovskiy rayon	32K	9.2	0.4 years
Yasnogorskiy rayon	28K	10.1	0.5 years
Plavskiy rayon	26K	9.4	0.4 years
Chernskiy rayon	19K	9.4	0.4 years
Belevskiy rayon	19K	10.2	0.5 years
Zaokskiy rayon	19K	10.1	0.5 years
Dubenskiy rayon	14K	10.7	0.6 years
Volovskiy rayon	13K	9.1	0.4 years
Odoevskiy rayon	12K	10.5	0.5 years
Teplo-Ogarevskiy rayon	12K	9.1	0.4 years
Arsen'evskiy rayon	12K	9.9	0.5 years
Kurkinskiy rayon	10K	8.8	0.4 years
Kamenskiy rayon	9K	8.9	0.4 years
Uzlovaya	2K	9.6	0.5 years
Donskoy	1K	9.3	0.4 years
Novomoskovsk	730	9.8	0.5 years
Kimovsk	227	9.3	0.4 years
Aleksin	6	10.3	0.5 years
Efremov	0	0.0	0.0 years

Showing 30 districts, sorted by population (largest first). PM2.5 values are for 2023. Years lost calculated against WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³.

Breathing in Tula is Injurious to Health.