Breathing in Nevada is Injurious to Health.

Air pollution threatens the health of 3.2 million people across 17 districts in Nevada. The average PM2.5 level is 5.2 µg/m³—1.0× higher than the WHO guideline.

Brought to you by Amrit Sharma

Air Pollution in Nevada

Nevada faces significant air pollution challenges. 65% of districts exceed the WHO guideline for clean air. This is putting 3.2 million across 17 districts at risk.

The average PM2.5 over 2023 was 5.2µg/m³. That's 1.0 times the WHO guideline for clean air of 5µg/m³.

This is equivalent of everybody, including children, smoking about 86 cigarettes in a year.

Air Quality Trend

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

Life Expectancy Impact

If Nevada met the WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³, the average person would live 0.04 years longer.

That's 129K years of life stolen from 3.2 million people. Years of watching children grow up. Years of building a career. Years of quiet mornings and celebrations.

Lives cut short. Breathing kills.

Districts with Highest Pollution

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

  • 1.Washoe
    0.2 years lost
  • 2.Lyon
    0.2 years lost
  • 3.Nye
    0.1 years lost
  • 4.Storey
    0.1 years lost
  • 5.Mineral
    0.1 years lost
  • 6.Douglas
    0.1 years lost
  • 7.Carson City
    0.1 years lost
  • 8.Churchill
    0.1 years lost
  • 9.Esmeralda
    0 years lost
  • 10.Pershing
    0 years lost

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
75.6%
2.4M
5-10 µg/m³
24.4%
789K
10-15 µg/m³
0%
0
15-25 µg/m³
0%
0
25-35 µg/m³
0%
0
> 35 µg/m³
0%
0

All 17 Districts in Nevada

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

DistrictPopulationPM2.5 µg/m³Years Lost
Clark2.4M
4.8
0.0 years
Washoe510K
6.7
0.2 years
Carson City64K
6.0
0.1 years
Lyon58K
6.7
0.2 years
Elko53K
4.3
0.0 years
Nye53K
6.4
0.1 years
Douglas50K
6.1
0.1 years
Churchill25K
5.8
0.1 years
Humboldt18K
4.8
0.0 years
Storey13K
6.3
0.1 years
White Pine9K
4.2
0.0 years
Pershing6K
5.1
0.0 years
Lander6K
4.6
0.0 years
Mineral5K
6.3
0.1 years
Lincoln4K
5.0
0.0 years
Eureka4K
4.2
0.0 years
Esmeralda620
5.3
0.0 years

Showing 17 districts, sorted by population (largest first). PM2.5 values are for 2023. Years lost calculated against WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³.