Breathing in Caldas is Injurious to Health.

Air pollution threatens the health of 967 thousand people across 27 districts in Caldas. The average PM2.5 level is 17.6 µg/m³—3.5× higher than the WHO guideline.

AboutMake Air Quality Great AgainAQLI Data

Brought to you by Amrit Sharma

Overview

Air Pollution in Caldas

Caldas faces significant air pollution challenges. 100% of districts exceed the WHO guideline for clean air. This is putting 967 thousand across 27 districts at risk.

The average PM2.5 over 2023 was 17.6µg/m³. That's 3.5 times the WHO guideline for clean air of 5µg/m³.

This is equivalent of everybody, including children, smoking about 292 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 Caldas met the WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³, the average person would live 1.22 years longer.

That's 1.2M years of life stolen from 967 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 Caldas. These areas face the greatest health burden from air pollution.

  • 1.Marulanda
    1.4 years lost
  • 2.Aguadas
    1.4 years lost
  • 3.Pácora
    1.4 years lost
  • 4.Marmato
    1.4 years lost
  • 5.Salamina
    1.3 years lost
  • 6.La Dorada
    1.3 years lost
  • 7.Samaná
    1.3 years lost
  • 8.La Merced
    1.3 years lost
  • 9.Norcasia
    1.3 years lost
  • 10.Pensilvania
    1.3 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
0%
0
10-15 µg/m³
6.3%
61K
15-25 µg/m³
93.7%
906K
25-35 µg/m³
0%
0
> 35 µg/m³
0%
0
Districts

All 27 Districts in Caldas

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

DistrictPopulationPM2.5 µg/m³Years Lost
Manizales391K
17.6
1.2 years
La Dorada77K
18.6
1.3 years
Riosucio63K
18.0
1.3 years
Villamaría60K
18.0
1.3 years
Chinchiná49K
14.8
1.0 years
Neira31K
17.6
1.2 years
Anserma30K
17.1
1.2 years
Supía27K
18.2
1.3 years
Pensilvania25K
18.3
1.3 years
Samaná25K
18.4
1.3 years
Manzanares22K
17.8
1.3 years
Aguadas20K
18.9
1.4 years
Palestina17K
15.0
1.0 years
Salamina15K
18.8
1.3 years
Marquetalia15K
17.9
1.3 years
Viterbo12K
15.0
1.0 years
Risaralda11K
15.7
1.0 years
Aranzazú11K
18.2
1.3 years
Pácora10K
18.9
1.4 years
Belalcázar10K
15.1
1.0 years
Filadelfia10K
17.8
1.3 years
Marmato9K
18.8
1.4 years
Victoria8K
18.2
1.3 years
San José7K
15.4
1.0 years
Norcasia6K
18.4
1.3 years
La Merced5K
18.4
1.3 years
Marulanda3K
19.0
1.4 years

Showing 27 districts, sorted by population (largest first). PM2.5 values are for 2023. Years lost calculated against WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³.