Air pollution threatens the health of 22.4 million people across 67 districts in Florida. The average PM2.5 level is 6.9 µg/m³—1.4× higher than the WHO guideline.
Brought to you by Amrit Sharma
Florida faces significant air pollution challenges. 97% of districts exceed the WHO guideline for clean air. This is putting 22.4 million across 67 districts at risk.
The average PM2.5 over 2023 was 6.9µg/m³. That's 1.4 times the WHO guideline for clean air of 5µg/m³.
This is equivalent of everybody, including children, smoking about 114 cigarettes in a year.
If Florida met the WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³, the average person would live 0.19 years longer.
That's 4.3M years of life stolen from 22.4 million people. Years of watching children grow up. Years of building a career. Years of quiet mornings and celebrations.
Lives cut short. Breathing kills.
The top 10 most polluted districts in Florida. 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 Florida, sorted by population.
| District | Population | PM2.5 µg/m³ | Years Lost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miami-Dade | 2.8M | 6.4 | 0.1 years |
| Broward | 2.0M | 6.0 | 0.1 years |
| Orange | 1.6M | 8.0 | 0.3 years |
| Hillsborough | 1.6M | 7.9 | 0.3 years |
| Palm Beach | 1.5M | 6.3 | 0.1 years |
| Duval | 1.1M | 7.7 | 0.3 years |
| Pinellas | 982K | 7.6 | 0.3 years |
| Lee | 802K | 7.5 | 0.2 years |
| Polk | 768K | 7.0 | 0.2 years |
| Brevard | 609K | 5.8 | 0.1 years |
| Volusia | 557K | 6.4 | 0.1 years |
| Pasco | 537K | 7.0 | 0.2 years |
| Seminole | 495K | 7.3 | 0.2 years |
| Sarasota | 472K | 7.3 | 0.2 years |
| Manatee | 403K | 8.0 | 0.3 years |
| Collier | 401K | 6.4 | 0.1 years |
| Marion | 398K | 6.2 | 0.1 years |
| Osceola | 388K | 7.1 | 0.2 years |
| Lake | 381K | 6.6 | 0.2 years |
| Escambia | 342K | 8.8 | 0.4 years |
| Leon | 326K | 8.1 | 0.3 years |
| Saint Lucie | 325K | 6.2 | 0.1 years |
| Alachua | 311K | 6.5 | 0.1 years |
| Saint Johns | 274K | 6.7 | 0.2 years |
| Okaloosa | 218K | 8.6 | 0.4 years |
| Clay | 207K | 7.1 | 0.2 years |
| Hernando | 195K | 6.5 | 0.2 years |
| Charlotte | 193K | 7.1 | 0.2 years |
| Bay | 182K | 8.3 | 0.3 years |
| Santa Rosa | 173K | 8.3 | 0.3 years |
| Martin | 171K | 5.8 | 0.1 years |
| Indian River | 164K | 5.4 | 0.0 years |
| Citrus | 161K | 6.4 | 0.1 years |
| Sumter | 147K | 6.6 | 0.2 years |
| Flagler | 112K | 6.0 | 0.1 years |
| Highlands | 107K | 5.7 | 0.1 years |
| Nassau | 87K | 7.3 | 0.2 years |
| Walton | 77K | 8.5 | 0.3 years |
| Putnam | 74K | 6.2 | 0.1 years |
| Columbia | 73K | 6.7 | 0.2 years |
| Monroe | 72K | 4.5 | 0.0 years |
| Jackson | 49K | 7.3 | 0.2 years |
| Gadsden | 44K | 7.8 | 0.3 years |
| Suwannee | 43K | 6.5 | 0.2 years |
| Hendry | 41K | 5.4 | 0.0 years |
| Levy | 40K | 5.7 | 0.1 years |
| Okeechobee | 40K | 4.9 | 0.0 years |
| Desoto | 34K | 5.0 | 0.0 years |
| Wakulla | 30K | 7.6 | 0.3 years |
| Baker | 28K | 6.7 | 0.2 years |
| Bradford | 27K | 6.5 | 0.1 years |
| Hardee | 26K | 5.3 | 0.0 years |
| Washington | 25K | 7.4 | 0.2 years |
| Taylor | 22K | 6.9 | 0.2 years |
| Holmes | 19K | 7.6 | 0.3 years |
| Madison | 18K | 6.8 | 0.2 years |
| Union | 18K | 6.4 | 0.1 years |
| Gilchrist | 17K | 6.1 | 0.1 years |
| Dixie | 16K | 6.5 | 0.1 years |
| Gulf | 14K | 7.4 | 0.2 years |
| Hamilton | 14K | 7.2 | 0.2 years |
| Calhoun | 13K | 7.3 | 0.2 years |
| Jefferson | 13K | 7.2 | 0.2 years |
| Glades | 12K | 5.1 | 0.0 years |
| Franklin | 11K | 7.9 | 0.3 years |
| Liberty | 8K | 7.6 | 0.3 years |
| Lafayette | 8K | 7.0 | 0.2 years |
Showing 67 districts, sorted by population (largest first). PM2.5 values are for 2023. Years lost calculated against WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³.