Most polluted cities in the world

Laying claim to the unwanted accolade of being the most polluted country in the world is central African country, Chad. With a world-highest PM2.5 concentration of 89.7μg/m³, Chad’s air quality in 2022 was almost 18 times more than the WHO annual air quality guidelines value – an increase of 18 per cent from its 2021 levels. Unsurprisingly, Chad also ranks rock bottom in our guide to the worst countries to live in as the climate crisis rages on . Among the factors fuelling the country’s meteoric pollution levels and poor climate-resilience are unregulated waste burning, dirty fuel, and a lack of adequate public transport exacerbating vehicle emissions. The actions of Chad’s populace aren’t the sole reason for its pollution problems, though. Dust storms originating from the Bodele Depression (Chad’s lowest geographic point; and, perhaps, its figurative one, too) account for around half of the 40 million tonnes of dust swept across the Atlantic each year – and play their role in Chad’s world-worst quality of air. To begin curtailing this, Chad has committed – with international aid – to scale back its total greenhouse gas emissions by 19.3 per cent by 2030 . 2. Iraq With an overall PM2.5 concentration of 80.1μg/m³ in 2022 – a steep increase from its 2021 level of 49.7μg/m³ – Iraq is the planet’s second-most polluted country. The Middle Eastern country’s emissions are a shocking 16 times beyond the WHO’s recommended levels. Vehicular emissions, fires from oil and gas refiners and a heavy reliance on generator usage – borne from Iraq’s poor electrical infrastructure – all contribute to their pollution levels. The government’s increasing focus on oil production – without the accompanying safety protocols – has also being doing its bit to pump pollutants into Iraq’s atmosphere. In 2021, Iraq’s oil production (around four million barrels per day ) was nearly double 2010 levels. That said, it’s not just the oil production itself that accounts for the pollution – but how Iraq is going about it. ‘Flaring’ – a controversial practice that involves burning off excess natural gas during oil extraction, and that’s been linked to asthma and cancer – is rife. And today, Iraq is the world’s second-worst culprit for flaring-associated greenhouse gas emissions. Iraq’s plan to tackle pollution involves ambitious targets to lower its greenhouse gas emissions by 15 per cent below business-as-usual levels by 2035 . 3. Pakistan As the fifth-most populated country in the world, it’s no huge shock that Pakistan is among the worst countries when it comes to pollution. With an air quality exceeding WHO-recommended levels 14-fold, Pakistan’s sprawling megacities – particularly the vehicles that traverse them and the steel mills fuelling their growth – account for most of its emissions. The practice of unregulated straw stubble and waste-burning is rife, particularly in the colder months – as are the brick kilns so integral to the daily lives of Pakistani people. Fortunately for them, their government has plans to curtail emissions: with a cumulative, conditional target of a 50 per cent projected-emissions reduction by 2030 . 4. India Globally, there may be three countries that are more polluted than India – but when you break it down to city level, things don’t look good for Asia’s second-most-populated country. A staggering 14 of the 20 most polluted cities of IQAir’s research belong to India: Bhiwadi (third), Delhi (fourth), Darbhanga (sixth), Asopur (seventh), New Delhi (ninth), Patna (10th), Ghaziabad (11th), Dharuhera (12th), Chapra (14th), Muzaffarnagar (15th), Greater Noida (17th), Bahadurgarh (18th), Faridabad (19th) and Muzaffarpur (20th). Expand this focus out to the top 50 cities and 39 of them are Indian. That means 78 per cent of the 50 most polluted cities on the planet are located there – making it both a literal and metaphorical hot bed when it comes to the climate crisis. So where is India’s shocking pollution problem coming from? Well, over half ( 51 per cent ) of it comes from industrial pollution, including dust from construction. Fuelling this are exhaust fumes from vehicles (27 per cent), crop burning (17 per cent) as well as waste burning and domestic cooking. The result? More than 140 million Indian people breathing air ten times – or more – than the safe limit the WHO sets. But as we’ve seen, India’s pollution woes aren’t just an issue for the health of its own people – but for the planet at large. Fortunately, the country’s government has pledged to do something about it, with the target being to reduce India’s total projected carbon emissions by a billion metric tons from 2022 through to 2030 . India has also promised to reduce its economy’s carbon intensity by at least 45 per cent by 2030 and hit net-zero emissions by 2070. 5. Bahrain Despite having less than one-hundredth (0.63 per cent) of Pakistan’s population, Bahrain’s air pollution levels are at a similarly toxic level – with a PM2.5 concentration level of 66.6μg/m³ that’s more than 13 times higher than the WHO’s recommended benchmark. Sandstorms, private vehicle emissions and the fertiliser manufacturing industry all contribute to Bahrain’s struggles for clean air, while – from a marine pollution standpoint – the country’s oil industry, population growth and increased marine litter have contributed to the decline of the local coral reefs, sea turtles and dugongs . To combat this and pave the way for a more sustainable future, Bahrain committed, in 2021, to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2060 . 6. Bangladesh Sandwiched between India, Bhutan, and Myanmar, Bangladesh’s large population, low-lying terrain, and hot temperatures leave it uniquely vulnerable to climate change – as do its close to world-leading levels of pollution. Bangladesh’s 2022 PM2.5 concentration levels of 65.8μg/m³ is less than previous years, but still high. Its capital, Dhaka, ranks 49th amongst the planet’s most polluted cities, with emissions from outdated buses, motorbikes, cars, and trucks among the top emission sources. Like Pakistan, the Bangladeshi people rely on fossil fuel-burning brick kiln stoves for cooking, while – on an industrial level – the country’s clothing, food, and shipbuilding industries contribute to its greenhouse gas emitting endeavours. Bangladesh is hoping to reduce these, however, with plans to cut emissions 21.8 per cent by 2023 . 7. Kuwait After a sharp increase from the year prior, Kuwait’s 2022 PM2.5 concentration levels (55.8μg/m³, almost double that of 2021’s 29.7μg/m³) are better than only six other countries in the world. Its most polluted city, the capital Kuwait City, registers PM2.5 concentrations of a staggering 152μg/m³ alone – while even its least polluted city, As Salimiyah, still posts a dangerously high level of 94μg/m³. Despite having the strongest currency in the world – due to Kuwait’s rich glut of natural oil reserves – this wealth comes at a cost. And its high levels of air pollution are linked strongly to the extraction and exportation of this oil, as well as its processing and preparation for internal use. Vehicular emissions – particularly from heavy-duty transport carriers – play a role, too. Kuwait’s environmental sustainability efforts aren’t quite as ambitious as some of the other pollution strugglers on this list, but they exist, and the goal is to reduce carbon emissions by 7.4 per cent by 2035 . 8. Burkina Faso West African country Burkina Faso’s 2022 PM2.5 concentration levels of 63μg/m³ place it eighth on the list of the world’s most polluted countries. Among the culprits are old vehicles, biomass burning, and combustion processes , with citizens of the capital, Ouagadougou – the 55th most polluted city in the world – breathing some of the the planet’s most unsafe air. Wood burning and dusty dirty roads also play a role (as they do in the plight of all African countries grappling with severe air pollution). In a country with limited access to healthcare and poor sanitation practices, pollution has even more serious consequences – and, in Burkina Faso, indoor air pollution accounts for 8.5 per cent of its population’s general morbidity . Burkina Faso is, however, joining many of its international counterparts in committing to change. In 2021, the country set an emissions target – its first ever – of cutting emissions by just under 30 per cent by 2030 . 9. Egypt Placing ninth in our list of the most polluted countries in the world, with an average PM2.5 concentration level of 46.5μg/m³, is Egypt. Like its fellow African countries Chad and Burkina Faso, Egypt’s topography impacts the country’s air pollution. Egypt’s dryness and the desert regions that surround it mean the country faces a steady influx of dust – without the natural cleansing effects of rainfall. That said, industrial and vehicular emissions – as well as the open burning of waste material – also play their part. However, Egypt does have plans to do something about it. The ‘Egypt Vision 2030’ project aims to reduce the country’s air pollution by 50 per cent by 2030. 10. China With eight countries in the top 50 of IQAir’s live rankings (Beijing (second), Chengdu (ninth), Wuhan (14th), Shenyang (19th), Chongqing (26th), Guangzhou (28th), Shenzhen (30th), and Hangzhou (46th)), China’s cities are heavily overrepresented on the global stage when it comes to pollution. Its cities Hotan and Kashgar were also two of the world’s most polluted, on average, in 2022 – placing second and 30th with PM2.5 concentration levels of 94.3μg/m³ and 73.4μg/m³, respectively. Fuelling China’s air pollution are the emissions created by its rapid, and ongoing, economic and industrial growth – as well as the country’s power plants and coal-producing sectors. Also implicated are vehicular emissions, and the burning of fossil fuels in domestic settings for heating and cooking purposes. It’s not just China’s air that’s suffering, either – but its water. The chemical fertilisers, raw sewage, and industrial waste that end up in China’s rivers and lakes accounts for around half of the $69 billion (£54.6 billion) its economy loses to pollution annually. China’s pollution levels are, however, something the country is attempting to do something about. Plans are in place to decrease its carbon intensity by around two thirds (65 per cent) compared to its 2005 levels; to achieve more than 1,200GW of wind and solar power; and to observe a 25 per cent non-fossil fuel share in primary energy consumption by 2030. 11. United Arab Emirates With a 2022 average PM2.5 concentration level of 45.9μg/m³, the UAE is one of the world’s most polluted countries.  The most recent data supports this, too – with September 2023’s live IQAir rankings identifying the UAE’s largest city, Dubai, as the 10th-most polluted city in the world; its current PM2.5 concentration of 55μg/m³ constituting bad news for Dubai’s 3.3 million citizens. Factors at play in the UAE’s pollution situation – as with most other countries that share the Middle Eastern country’s hot, dusty climate – include a mixture of both human and natural causations. The UAE’s high humidity levels and extreme heat trap pollutants in the atmosphere. In the UAE, they’re from vehicular emissions (Dubai, in particular, is known as a place that demands private transport to get around), and from fuel combustion for water, energy, and other industrial activities, such as the country’s desalination plants. What’s more, costly conservation efforts to turn around 130,000 square metres of land in Dubai into a giant tree nursery failed when the initiative interfered with plans to create the world’s largest shopping mall. The trees – which could’ve played a vital role in offsetting some of the UAE’s robust carbon dioxide emissions – perished, en masse . The UAE’s climate goals, however, are transparent and ambitious. And, if the country achieves its target of net-zero emissions by 2050 , it will be the first Middle East and North Africa (MENA) country to do so. 12. Tajikistan Flanked by China to the East, Afghanistan to the South, and Uzbekistan to the West, Tajikistan rounds out this list of the top 12 most polluted countries in the world. Though its current PM2.5 concentration levels have improved since the year prior (46μg/m³ in 2022, down from 59.4μg/m³ in 2021), Tajikistan still has a fair way to go to improve its air quality. A country that was under the rule of the Soviet Union before its collapse in 1991, Tajikistan’s current pollution woes are, unfortunately, ongoing effects from the unethical practices and policies the Soviet government imposed. Among these? The widespread use of agricultural chemicals and mineral fertilisers – including herbicides, defoliants, and an insecticide called DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane). Banned for agricultural uses worldwide by the 2001 Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, DDT has continued to circulate illegally in Tajikistan for decades. So much so that a WHO report stated that, in Tajikistan, the mean concentration of DDT in human breakfast milk is four times higher than the permissible level. Exposure to high doses can cause tremors, vomiting, shakiness, and seizures – and the chemical is considered a possible carcinogen for humans, too. Other contributing factors to Tajikistan’s pollution include industry – namely, non ferrous metal production. The Talco aluminium plant at Tursunzoda (Tajikistan’s primary economic asset) generates huge amounts of toxic waste gases that’ve been linked to a spike in the number of birth defects among local people.  To help combat its polluted air and protect its populace, Tajikistan has committed to a 40 to 50 percent emissions reduction by 2030 compared to 1990 levels (albeit conditional on international support; without that, the goal is a 30 to 40 per cent reduction).