Breathing in South Dakota is Injurious to Health.

Air pollution threatens the health of 927 thousand people across 66 districts in South Dakota. The average PM2.5 level is 7.7 µg/m³—1.5× higher than the WHO guideline.

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Brought to you by Amrit Sharma

Overview

Air Pollution in South Dakota

South Dakota faces significant air pollution challenges. 100% of districts exceed the WHO guideline for clean air. This is putting 927 thousand across 66 districts at risk.

The average PM2.5 over 2023 was 7.7µg/m³. That's 1.5 times the WHO guideline for clean air of 5µg/m³.

This is equivalent of everybody, including children, smoking about 128 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 South Dakota met the WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³, the average person would live 0.26 years longer.

That's 241K years of life stolen from 927 thousand 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 South Dakota. These areas face the greatest health burden from air pollution.

  • 1.Day
    0.3 years lost
  • 2.Minnehaha
    0.3 years lost
  • 3.Grant
    0.3 years lost
  • 4.Pennington
    0.3 years lost
  • 5.Roberts
    0.3 years lost
  • 6.Union
    0.3 years lost
  • 7.Lincoln
    0.3 years lost
  • 8.Deuel
    0.3 years lost
  • 9.Codington
    0.3 years lost
  • 10.Marshall
    0.3 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
0%
0
5-10 µg/m³
100%
927K
10-15 µg/m³
0%
0
15-25 µg/m³
0%
0
25-35 µg/m³
0%
0
> 35 µg/m³
0%
0
Districts

All 66 Districts in South Dakota

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

DistrictPopulationPM2.5 µg/m³Years Lost
Minnehaha226K
8.3
0.3 years
Pennington121K
8.1
0.3 years
Lincoln64K
7.9
0.3 years
Brown41K
7.7
0.3 years
Brookings38K
7.6
0.3 years
Codington31K
7.8
0.3 years
Meade28K
7.4
0.2 years
Lawrence27K
7.2
0.2 years
Yankton26K
7.5
0.2 years
Davison22K
7.6
0.3 years
Hughes20K
7.1
0.2 years
Beadle19K
7.7
0.3 years
Union18K
7.9
0.3 years
Clay17K
7.5
0.2 years
Shannon14K
6.8
0.2 years
Lake11K
7.2
0.2 years
Roberts10K
8.0
0.3 years
Butte10K
6.8
0.2 years
Todd10K
6.3
0.1 years
Charles Mix9K
6.8
0.2 years
Custer8K
6.8
0.2 years
Grant7K
8.1
0.3 years
Turner7K
7.1
0.2 years
Fall River7K
6.5
0.1 years
Hutchinson7K
7.1
0.2 years
Bon Homme6K
7.2
0.2 years
Spink6K
7.5
0.2 years
Hamlin6K
7.6
0.3 years
Dewey6K
6.8
0.2 years
Moody6K
7.2
0.2 years
Brule5K
7.0
0.2 years
Tripp5K
6.5
0.1 years
Walworth5K
7.2
0.2 years
Day5K
8.3
0.3 years
McCook5K
7.1
0.2 years
Kingsbury5K
7.4
0.2 years
Deuel4K
7.9
0.3 years
Marshall4K
7.8
0.3 years
Lyman4K
7.1
0.2 years
Corson4K
6.8
0.2 years
Bennett4K
6.4
0.1 years
Edmunds4K
7.3
0.2 years
Gregory3K
6.3
0.1 years
Clark3K
7.6
0.3 years
Hand3K
7.2
0.2 years
Stanley3K
7.2
0.2 years
Hanson3K
7.4
0.2 years
Jackson3K
6.6
0.2 years
Douglas2K
7.0
0.2 years
Potter2K
7.1
0.2 years
Aurora2K
7.0
0.2 years
McPherson2K
7.2
0.2 years
Perkins2K
6.4
0.1 years
Sanborn2K
7.3
0.2 years
Jerauld2K
7.2
0.2 years
Miner2K
7.2
0.2 years
Ziebach2K
6.6
0.2 years
Faulk2K
7.4
0.2 years
Mellette2K
6.5
0.2 years
Buffalo2K
7.5
0.2 years
Haakon2K
6.4
0.1 years
Sully2K
6.8
0.2 years
Campbell1K
7.0
0.2 years
Hyde1K
7.3
0.2 years
Harding903
6.4
0.1 years
Jones782
6.5
0.1 years

Showing 66 districts, sorted by population (largest first). PM2.5 values are for 2023. Years lost calculated against WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³.