In this article, we look at the 30 most air polluted cities in the world. You can skip our detailed analysis on companies that are taking measures to combat pollution and head over directly to the10 Most Air Polluted Cities In The World.
A report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) in March 2023 highlighted that global carbon emissions reached an all-time high of 36.8 Gt in 2022 – having increased 0.9% compared to the previous year. Vehicle emissions, smoke from manufacturing in factories, chemical production, coal power plants, and the use of natural gas to provide heating at homes are the primary sources of pollution and trigger global warming, according to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
A study by Climate Central in September last year found that 98% of the world’s population was exposed to global warming and experienced hotter temperatures between June and September 2023 due to carbon dioxide pollution.
Several notable corporations have committed themselves to tackling air pollutants over the last few years. JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) has been scaling investments in carbon removal technologies (CDR). In May last year, the company announced that it had signed two separate agreements worth over $200 million with Climeworks and CO280 Solutions, Inc. to purchase CDRs, which JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) expects to remove and store 800,000 metric tons of carbon from the atmosphere.
The investment is part of the company’s sustainable development targets announced in 2021, which includes spending up to $2.5 trillion by 2030 to address climate change, and $1 trillion for green initiatives. These measures have received acclaim from JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM)’s investors. ClearBridge Sustainability Leaders Strategy made the following comment in its Q3 2023 investor letter:
In addition to business models that support biodiversity, it is also important to provide financing for efforts to improve biodiversity. Large financial firms such as ClearBridge holding JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) have a key role here through green bond underwritings that support natural capital protection. In 2021 JPM announced a target to finance and facilitate $1 trillion toward green initiatives by 2030 as part of its broader $2.5 trillion sustainable development target. The green initiatives include biodiversity-linked areas such as water management, circular economy and waste management, in addition to conservation and biodiversity, which focuses on improving terrestrial and aquatic biodiversity ecosystems or forests.
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) has also announced investments in direct air capture (DAC) technology to clean the atmosphere from emissions. In September 2023, the company said it was going to purchase 250,000 tonnes of removal credits from 1PointFive over a period of 10 years, which is about the same amount of carbon that is stored across at least 290,000 acres of forest land across the United States. The move is part of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)’s goal of net zero emissions by 2040. According to a report in Reuters, carbon removal credits per metric tonne can cost in the range of mid-to-high-triple digits.
In addition to this, Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is also making an investment in CarbonCapture, another prominent climate technology company that is known for its DAC systems. The financial aspects of the deal are not known. In return, CarbonCapture will be providing Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) 100,000 tonnes of removal credits, which the company plans on making available for its partner, customers, and suppliers as well along with its own business units.
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) also announced in 2020 to purchase sustainable aviation fuel credits from SkyNRG and supply them to Alaska Airlines to operate flights between Seattle – 15 miles from Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)’s head office in Redmond – and San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Jose. The reasoning behind the company’s decision is the hope that this would help in reducing pollution caused by commercial flights taken by its employees. A year earlier, the company’s fact sheet showed that travel made up 3% of all carbon emissions made by Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) in 2019.
30 Most Air Polluted Cities In The World
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Methodology
The 30 most air polluted cities in the world are ranked in ascending order of their Air Quality Index (AQI) scores based on live-time data being updated on IQAir. The list was created on January 29, 2024 at 20:00 GMT.
AQI scores come in six categories – 0-50 (Good), 51-100 (Moderate), 101-150 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups), 151-200 (Unhealthy), 201-300 (Very unhealthy), and 301+ (Hazardous).
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Let’s now head over to the list of the most polluted cities in the world for air quality.
30. Incheon, South Korea
AQI US: 117
Incheon is one of the most polluted cities in the world in terms of air quality, with a PM2.5 concentration of 43 µg/m³ – 8.6 times higher than WHO guidelines.
29. Shenzhen, China
AQI US: 117
The air quality in Shenzhen is unhealthy for sensitive groups, according to IQAir. Health experts advise people in the city to reduce outdoor activities or wear a mask when outside.
28. Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR
AQI US: 118
Hong Kong is among the most air polluted cities in the world, with a high concentration of air pollutants in the atmosphere. Its PM2.5 concentration is 40.8µg/m³ with a PM10 of 51.4µg/m³.
27. Guangzhou, China
AQI US: 119
Guangzhou had an AQI of 149 around the end of 2020. Over the last few years, the city has taken strides in improving air quality, but still much needs to be done. Guangzhou is home to over 25 million with large economic activity which triggers pollution.
26. Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
AQI US: 129
Cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina are plagued with air pollution due to the country’s dependency on coal for internal heating and electricity generation. Its capital, Sarajevo, is one of the most air polluted cities in the world.
25. Hanoi, Vietnam
AQI US: 133
Hanoi’s air quality fluctuates between 101-200 on a regular basis, from being unhealthy for sensitive groups to unhealthy for everyone. According to IQAir, 500 tonnes of charcoal and 700 tonnes of waste are burnt every day in the Vietnamese capital which is a primary source of the pollution there.
24. Kraków, Poland
AQI US: 135
Kraków is among the most polluted cities in Europe. The Polish government has been actively working to improve air quality by delivering financial assistance to citizens to change their home heating systems, but a lot of more work still needs to be done.
23. Karachi, Pakistan
AQI US: 137
Transport and industrial emissions are the major causes of pollution in Pakistan’s largest city, Karachi. On December 4, it was ranked as the most polluted city in the world by IQAir with the AQI recorded at 244.
22. Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
AQI US: 145
Ulaanbaatar is among the most air polluted cities in the world, with a PM2.5 concentration of 55.9µg/m³. According to IQAir, air quality in this Mongolian city has been hovering around the same dangerous levels since 2018.
21. Bangkok, Thailand
AQI US: 153
The air quality in Bangkok is deemed unhealthy for all people present there, due an AQI score in excess of 150. The city has a PM2.5 concentration of 53.5µg/m³ – which is more than 10 times higher than WHO’s guidelines.
20. Kaohsiung, Taiwan
AQI US: 153
Kaohsiung is one of the most polluted cities in the worldfor air quality. To combat the challenge, Taiwan’s government in 2019 announced to replace all coal power plants at the Hsinta Power Plant in Kaohsiung with natural gas-powered units by 2025.
19. Belgrade, Serbia
AQI US: 155
Belgrade in Serbia is home to five of the fifteen most polluted districts in Europe, according to a report in The Guardian. Coal plants and emissions from old vehicles are the primary sources of air pollution in the city.
18. Kathmandu, Nepal
AQI US: 155
The air quality in Nepal’s capital Kathmandu is unhealthy for all residents living in the city, with an AQI score of 155 and a PM2.5 concentration of 71.2µg/m³ – 14 times higher than WHO’s standards.
17. Chongqing, China
AQI US: 156
Chongqing, located in southwestern China, is among the most air-polluted cities in the world, with a PM2.5 concentration of 65µg/m³ and PM10 concentration of 102µg/m³ according to IQAir.
16. Beijing, China
AQI US: 157
Next on the list is China’s capital, Beijing, where air pollution is primarily caused by the use of coal to produce electricity, and emissions from manufacturing at factories and old vehicles.
15. Baghdad, Iraq
AQI US: 159
Military conflicts in Iraq are one of the reasons for air pollution in Baghdad. With wars destroying much of the country’s energy infrastructure, 30% of its electricity now comes from private diesel generators.
14. Chengdu, China
AQI US: 161
The air pollution levels in Chengdu are unhealthy for people of all age groups, according to IQAir. PM2.5 is the main air pollutant in this Chinese city and its concentration is 19 times higher than WHO’s air quality guidelines.
13. Wuhan, China
AQI US: 163
Another Chinese city on the list is Wuhan, where air pollution is continuously deteriorating, despite government measures to control carbon emissions. The city has a PM2.5 concentration of 75µg/m³ and PM10 concentration of 86µg/m³.
12. Hangzhou, China
AQI US: 163
Hangzhou is one of the most air polluted cities in the world due to a large population of over 10.6 million people who commute daily for work, resulting in increased carbon emissions.
11. Kabul, Afghanistan
AQI US: 166
Kabul’s air quality is unhealthy, according to IQAir. The primary reasons behind air pollution in Afghanistan’s capital is poor fuel quality, old cars, burning of trash in public, industrial brick kilns, and no check on carbon emissions from factories.
