Russia is a country of contrast. There are a lot of beautiful natural places, interesting historic attractions with some of the most gorgeous cathedrals and architecture in the world.

On the other hand, Russia is very industrial and there are a lot of heavy industrial towns throughout the country. These places are famous for being very polluted because of the large enterprises that are located in these cities.

Here, in this post, I would like to show you the 20 most polluted cities in Russia in no specific order.

Norilsk

Location: Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: “Nornickel” nickel and copper plants.

Population: 178,018.

Norilsk has a bad reputation of being not only one of the most polluted cities in Russia but in the entire world “thanks” to the “Nornickel” plants around the city. “Nornickel” is the leading producer of nickel and palladium in the world.

Things are actually being a little better since “Nornickel” closed their most polluting plant in Norilsk in 2016. Despite that, emissions of sulfur dioxide, SO2, HS, phenol, formaldehyde, and dust in the air are still extremely high.

The “Nornickel” spends a lot of money (according to them) on environmental activities which helps a little bit but the overall environmental situation in Norilsk is still dangerous and it is surely the #1 most polluted city in Russia.

According to locals, such anomalies like smog, acid rain, black or red snow are experienced here on a regular basis. Also, after being in Norilsk just for a few hours a person can experience an itchy throat with a sudden cough from the polluted air. Now, imagine what it’s like for those that work and live there for many years…

Nikel

Location: Murmansk Oblast, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: “Nornickel’s”’ plant Kola MMC.

Population: 11,437.

Nikel is a small town which is located by the Norwegian border (under 5 miles away).

Nikel is not as well-known as Norilsk but the level of air pollution there must be pretty close to its “bigger brother”. In fact, some operations from the closed nickel factory in Norilsk were transferred to Nikel. You know what it means, right?! “Nornickel” simply moved their most polluted productions to a smaller less-known place.

Cherepovets

Location: Vologda Oblast, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: “Severstal” plant.

Population: 318,856.

Cherepovets is located in northwestern Russia between Moscow and St. Petersburg.

Cherepovets is mostly known for the metal production at the “Severstal” – the largest steel manufacturing plant in the country. “Severstal” exports to more than 50 countries all over the world iron and flat steel products – sheet and plate which are used in cars, ships, white goods, and pipes.

On top of the metallurgy industry, there are also chemical productions in Cherepovets. “PhosAgro” is the largest in Europe producer of phosphate-based fertilizers and phosphoric and sulfuric acids; the largest in Russia producer of ammonia and ammonium nitrate.

It’s not a surprise that Cherepovets is considered as one of the most polluted Russian cities.

Novokuznetsk

Location: Kemerovo Oblast, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: “West-Siberian Metal Plant”, “Novokuznetsk Iron & Steel Plant”.

Population: 547,904.

Novokuznetsk is located in southwestern Siberia and it is a heavily industrial city. Novokuznetsk is one of the largest metallurgical and coal production centers in Russia.

The two giant factories are “West-Siberian Metal Plant” (abbreviated to “ZSMK”) and “Novokuznetsk Iron & Steel Plant” (“NKMK”) which are both owned and operated by Evraz Group. “ZSMK” is the 5th largest metallurgical plant in Russia. “NKMK” is producing steel which is intended for construction, infrastructure, and railways.

Because of the metallurgy productions, the worst pollutant in the air of Novokuznetsk is sulfur dioxide. According to the recent medical reports, a number of asthma and other respiratory illnesses among the population has grown significantly within the past 20 years.

Bratsk

Location: Irkutsk Oblast, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: Bratsk Aluminium Smelter (BrAZ), Bratsk Ferroalloy Plant, Ilim Bratsk Plywood Mill.

Population: 246,319.

Bratsk is one of a few Russian cities (along with Norilsk, Dzerzhinsk, Magnitogorsk, and Chita) that were mentioned by the Blacksmith Institute (link) in the list of the 30 most polluted cities in the world.

The most harmful to the environment is Bratsk Aluminium Smelter which is owned by a Rusal company. It is the largest capacity smelter in the world – an annual capacity of the plant exceeds 1 million tonnes of saleable aluminum. The waste gases from the plant consist of a very toxic acid hydrogen fluoride.

Ilim Plywood Mill is the second large plant in Bratsk, it is a major producer of larch sawn timber in Russia. Industrial waste from the plant (includes formaldehyde, phenols, and hydrogen sulfide) being dumped to the Vikhorevka river which is the most polluted river in Irkutsk Oblast.

Nizhny Tagil

Location: Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: “Nizhny Tagil Iron and Steel Works” (“NTMK”), “Uralvagonzavod”, “Uralhimplast”.

Population: 361,811.

Nizhny Tagil is a large industrial city with over 600 manufacturing companies operating in town. These well-developed industries include ferrous metallurgy, engineering, chemistry, and metalworking among others.

Because of the toxic smoke and horrible air quality, Nizhniy Tagil has one of the highest rates of stomach and lung cancer in Russia. Among children, the rate of respiratory problems in Tagil is 50% higher than the national average.

“NTMK” is the biggest and the “dirtiest” plant in Nizhny Tagil. It’s owned and operated by Evraz Group like the two metallurgical plants in Novokuznetsk. “NTMK” specializes in manufacturing rolling stock, train wheels, and train rails.

“Uralvagonzavod” is a machine-building plant, it is the largest battle tank manufacturer in the world. Have you heard about the newest Russian tank T-14 Armata? They build them at the “Uralvagonzavod” in Nizhny Tagil.

Karabash

Location: Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: “KarabashMed” – copper smelting plant.

Population: 13,152.

Karabash is well-known not only in Russia but in the whole world as a very polluted place. In fact, the area around the copper plant looks like a post-apocalyptic landscape with no wildlife around and an orange-colored Sak-Elga river. In 1996 it was declared as an environmental disaster zone by the Russian ministry. Sadly, not much changed since then – Karabash is still extremely polluted and dangerous to live in.

The “KarabashMed” plant is owned by the Russian Copper Company (RMK) and it produces up to 130,000 tonnes of crude copper a year. It creates a lot of toxic gases containing heavy metals (lead, arsenic, sulfur, mercury, copper). As a matter of fact, the concentration of lead in the San-Elga river is 300 times the permitted level, arsenic 279 times, copper – 600 times! Medical conditions such as chronic pharyngitis and bronchial asthma are very common among the inhabitants of Karabash.

Mednogorsk

Location: Orenburg Oblast, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: “Mednogorsk Copper-Sulfur Plant”.

Population: 25,610.

The city of Mednogorsk is often covered in a thick layer of smog coming from the “Mednogorsk copper-sulfur plant”. This factory was built over 80 years and some technologies used here are outdated.

The most dangerous comes from emissions of sulfur dioxide which can cause acid rain. Unless they’ll modernize their technology and production, Mednogorsk might soon become an ecological disaster zone.

Omsk

Location: Omsk Oblast, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: power plant “TGK-11”, “Gazprom Neft” oil-refining complex.

Population: 1,154,116.

Overall, Omsk is one of the least polluted cities mentioned in this list but it is one of the most polluted Russian cities with the population over 1 million.

According to the government, the level of emissions from the plants in Omsk is going down from year to year. And keep in mind, that Gazprom’s oil-refining complex in Omsk is the largest one in Russia but they seemed to be taking better care of the environment than most other companies.

Dzerzhinsk

Location: Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: because of the chemical wastes that were dumped in the city between 1930 and 1998; there are many toxic waste burial grounds around Dzerzhinsk.

Population: 231,797.

Dzerzhinsk is heavily polluted with phenol, arsenic, dioxins, heavy metals, and other toxins. Back in the USSR days, the city served as a manufacturing center of chemical weapons like Sarin and VX nerve gas. An interesting fact, until recently Dzerzhinsk was closed to visit for foreigners.

Today, Dzerzhinsk is still is a big player in the chemicals production industry. The biggest and the most polluting factory in town is a “Sverdlov Plant”; some other large chemical enterprises are “SIBUR-Neftekhim”, “Dzerzhinskhimmash”, “Orgsteklo”, and “Aviabor”.

Chita

Location: Zabaykalsky Krai, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: coal-fired power plants.

Population: 349,005.

Chita is not exactly an industrial town as there are no large enterprises besides power plants. The environmental problems in Chita come from the old-school coal-fired power plants. Emissions from the biggest in town power plant “Tets-1” include sulfur dioxide, mercury, nitrogen oxide, and carbon dioxide.

This along with the growing automobile emissions and geographical location between the hills makes Chita’s air one of the 10 most polluted in Russia.

Magnitogorsk

Location: Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: “Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works”(“MMK”).

Population: 407, 775.

Magnitogorsk is home to the 3rd largest iron and steel plant in the country – “MMK”. More than 30000 of 400000 residents of Magnitogorsk work for the enterprise. One workshop of the plant is more than a mile long – all under one roof; they produce over 400 different types of steel.

Metallurgy is a dirty business and pollutants from the “Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works” include benzopyrene, lead, sulfur dioxide, and heavy metals. Ecological situation in the city improved a lot within the past 10 years as there was a significant upgrade in the equipment that is being used for steel production; emissions from the plant have been reduced which is a good sign for the environment and health of the citizens of Magnitogorsk.

Lipetsk

Location: Lipetsk Oblast, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: “Novolipetsk Steel”.

Population: 508,887.

Lipetsk is yet another heavy industrial metallurgy center. The “Novolipetsk Steel” has about 48,000 employers and it is the largest metallurgical plant in Europe.

A few other enterprises that affect the environment in Lipetsk are the metallurgical plant “Svobodny Sokol”, solvent- extraction plant “Liboil” and a tractor factory LTZ.

The level of pollution in the city is at times higher than required by regulations but it’s not at dangerous levels. Since 2007, emissions into the atmosphere in Lipetsk decreased by 40%. In general, Lipetsk is lesser polluted than Magnitogorsk or Novokuznetsk.

Chelyabinsk

Location: Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: “Chelyabinsk Metallurgical Combinate”, “Chelyabinsk Tractor Plant” and “Chelyabinsk Zinc Plant”.

Population: 1,130,132.

Chelyabinsk is a major metallurgy and military machinery production center of Russia located on the border of Urals and Siberia.

The biggest factory in Chelyabinsk is the Metallurgical Combinate which is owned by “Mechel” company; “Mechel” also has the 2nd plant in the city – “Mechel-Coke”.

The air pollution here is that bad that over 30,000 people in Chelyabinsk signed a petition to the Russian President Vladimir Putin saying that they have “nothing to breathe because of emissions and smog”.

Rudnaya Pristan & Dalnegorsk

Location: Primorsky Krai, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: lead smelting plants “Dalpolimetal”; chemical plant “Bor” in Dalnegorsk.

Population: 34,694 – Dalnegorsk; 2107 – Rudnaya Pristan.

Rudnaya Pristan and Dalnegorsk are the two small towns located nearby each other in the Russian Far East on the Pacific coast. They are remotely located away from civilization – the closest big city is Vladivostok (500 km away).

The environmental problems in the region are connected to the lead production at the “Dalpolimetal” factories (which are very old) and unsafe transport of lead concentrate from the mining site. In fact, “Dalpolimetal” produces 58% of Russia’s lead – it happens at an enormous cost to the health of the residents and the nature as the territory around is dangerously polluted with lead-related by-products.

Residents of Rudnaya Pristan and Dalnegorsk suffer from serious lead poisoning which causes an inordinately high rate of cancer and other health issues.

Krasnoyarsk

Location: Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: coal-fired power plants “Tets-1” and “Tets-2”, “Krasnoyarsk Metallurgical Plant”.

Population: 1,090,811.

Krasnoyarsk is one of the world’s most dangerously polluted cities with a population of over 1 million.

“Krasnoyarsk Metallurgical Plant”, owned by “RUSAL” company, is the second-largest aluminum plant in the world which produces 1 million tons of aluminum a year. This production is extremely energy-consuming (that’s where power plants have their negative affect) and highly polluting as a result.

The residents of Krasnoyarsk are regularly complaining about the horrible air quality, chemical smell, and “black sky mode” in the city. A few years ago, a group of activists in Krasnoyarsk started monitoring air quality in real-time on the website “Krasnoyarsk Sky”.

Officials are keep saying that the concentration of harmful elements rarely exceeds the norm and the environmental situation in the city is under control. Does it really?!

Angarsk

Location: Irkutsk Oblast, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: “Angarsk Petrochemical Company”, “Angarsk Polymer Plan”, “Angarsk Electrolysis Chemical complex”, “Angarsk Azot Fertilizer Plant”, “Angarsk Cement Plant”, power plants.

Population: 226,374.

Angarsk is located 51 km (32 miles) from Irkutsk not so far away from the world’s deepest Lake Baikal which is getting polluted as well.

Angarsk is a large oil refining, chemical, and nuclear industrial center. In fact, it has the largest in Asia industrial zone which goes along the Angara river for 30 km. To put it into perspective, over 6000 factories and commercial organizations are registered in Angarsk.

The level of emissions in Angarsk was at extreme levels at the end of the 20th century. These days, the ecological situation got better but all the oil refining, chemical, and power plants in Angarsk still damaging the environment. As of 2010, Angarsk was the 6th most polluted city in Russia.

Asbest

Location: Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: chrysotile (asbestos) mining, “Reftinskaya” power plant.

Population: 64,666.

Asbest is located 70 kilometers (43 miles) northeast of Yekaterinburg. It has the largest in the world open-pit asbestos mine “Bazhenovskoye” which is owned by “Uralasbest” enterprise. Currently, the mine is 7 km long and 350-400 meters (1150-1310 ft.) deep.

Asbestos, bricks, porcelain, ferroconcrete, and a few other things are being produced in Asbest. Asbestos production is very toxic and, in general, the environmental situation in Asbest could be comparable to Karabash.

Another significant pollutant in Asbest is “Reftinskaya” power plant which is located 15 km away from the city. “Reftinskaya” is the biggest in Russia coal-fired power plant – its flue-gas stack is 330 meters (over 1000 ft) tall. The “Raftinskaya” power plant is emitting approximately 250,000 tons of pollution early which include benzopyrene, nitric oxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, arsenic, and cadmium.

Novocherkassk

Location: Rostov Oblast, Russia.

Why is it so polluted: “Novocherkasskaya GRES” power station.

Population: 168,766.

Novocherkassk is a large industrial center in southern Russia. The two biggest enterprises are “ENERGOPROM-Novocherkassk electrode plant” which is the largest in Russia manufacturer of carbon and graphite; and “Novocherkassk Electric Locomotive Plant” – manufactures electric freight and passenger locomotives.

The main source of the stationary air pollution in Novocherkassk (80-90%) is the coal-fired “Novocherkasskaya GRES” power station which consists of eight 264-MW coal-fired units. The power station is owned by Gazprom.

Moscow

Why is it so polluted: vehicle emissions;

Population: 12,506,468.

The Russian capital is also made the list of the 20 most polluted cities in Russia. The Moscow region leads the country in vehicle emissions. But it doesn’t mean that air pollution in Moscow is extremely dangerous – air quality here is actually better than in pretty much all cities that were mentioned earlier.

Moscow’s biggest environmental concern is vehicle emissions (almost 90% of air pollution). Moscow is a huge city with almost 6 million registered vehicles and over 2.6 million cars driving in the city daily. The local government does a pretty good job to help the situation: in 2012 they introduced paid-parking in the city center, they heavily promote public transport (Moscow’s Metro system is super convenient), support car sharing, bike sharing, and recently opened electric kick-scooter rental service.

Speaking of the stationary air pollutants in Moscow, the biggest one is Gazprom’s oil refinery located in the southeast of the city along with the most other industrial facilities.