As Russia grapples with a deepening pollution crisis, residents are finding themselves in a peculiar predicament. While the nation's air quality has been a persistent concern, especially in regions like Ulan-Ude, the current situation is more complex. The problem is not just about smog and soot; it's about the interplay of economic, political, and social factors that have shifted the public's priorities. In this article, I'll delve into the multifaceted nature of Russia's pollution problem, its historical context, and the surprising ways in which it has become intertwined with other pressing issues. I'll also offer my own insights and commentary on what this means for the future of the country's environment and its people.
The Air We Breathe: A Persistent Issue
For many in Ulan-Ude, the capital of Russia's republic of Buryatia, the summer months offer a brief respite from the air pollution that plagues them for most of the year. Surrounded by mountains and situated on a low plain, the city is vulnerable to the smog from coal-fired power stations and the stoves used to heat its many single-family homes. A local resident, speaking on condition of anonymity, described the situation: "Problems with air pollution have existed here for a long time. Things are fine in spring and summer, but in winter, it is impossible to breathe at times."
This is not an isolated issue. Siberia's cities and towns consistently rank among the worst in Russia for air pollution, a result of their heavy reliance on coal, emissions from heavy industry, and increasingly severe wildfire seasons. According to a report by consumer safety watchdog Rospotrebnadzor, roughly 57% of Russia's population is now affected by this everyday reality.
The Shift in Priorities
What's surprising is how environmental concerns have slipped down the list of priorities for some Russians. With more urgent problems like fuel shortages and rising grocery prices taking center stage, the topic of air or water quality hasn't come up in recent years. A native of Chelyabinsk, a major industrial hub in the Ural Mountains, noted, "Surprisingly, the topic of air or water quality hasn't come up in recent years, although we used to talk about it a lot back in the day."
This shift in priorities is not unique to Chelyabinsk. Thousands of kilometers to the east in the Siberian highlands, people describe a similar outlook. "The air in winter is terrible here. Soot from the coal is everywhere," said a man from the republic of Tyva. "A friend once came to visit me and was shocked when he blew black snot out of his nose, but we have gotten used to things like that. If our snot is that black, can you imagine the state of our lungs?"
The Data and the Reversal
Rospotrebnadzor's data suggests that 83.6 million Russians were exposed to aggregate chemical pollution in water, air, and soil in 2025, compared to 79.1 million in 2024 and 75.4 million in 2023. This increase reverses years of declining pollution exposure that followed the 2016 launch of Russia's Clean Air Federal Project, which aimed to reduce emissions in dozens of industrial cities.
The reversal coincided with the government's decision to cut funding for several flagship state environmental programs, including Clean Air, in 2023. This reduction in funding, nearly halving Clean Air's budget for 2024, has been linked to the increasing environmental pollution. An environmental analyst told The Moscow Times that Western sanctions, the reorientation of exports toward Asia, and the economy's placement on a war footing since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine are key factors behind this trend.
The Impact on Business and Industry
The departure of many foreign investors and business partners after the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine in 2022 has also contributed to this shift. Before the war, businesses and corporations were seeking to implement more environmentally sustainable practices, following the lead of Western investors and markets that often demand sustainability compliance as a prerequisite for entry. However, the reorientation of exports and the focus on the military-industrial complex have put an end to this trend.
"They are no longer oriented toward Western markets. They are oriented toward the Russian [military-industrial] complex," the analyst said. "No one asks Russian companies for their ESG ratings anymore, or whether they even have such reporting. Chinese companies or other new buyers don’t care about that stuff."
The Coal Crisis and Its Implications
Europe's embargo on Russian coal has further exacerbated the situation. With exports falling sharply while production remains relatively high, the coal-reliant regions of Siberia and the Far East have become an increasingly important domestic market for Russia's collapsing coal sector, an industry that feeds hundreds of thousands of people. This has prompted business owners and governors to team up in attempts to defend their regions against renewable energy sources.
"We have open-pit coal mining here, so there is a lot of soot in the winter. That's probably why so many people here have lung problems," said a resident of a coal-mining district in the Siberian republic of Khakassia. "Our houses here often shake due to explosions at mining facilities. When you wash your car, a lot of black dust accumulates after about four hours, even if the car was parked the entire time — it's also from the coal."
The Real Scale of the Problem
The real scale of Russia's pollution problem may be even greater than the Rospotrebnadzor data suggests. Many of Russia's most polluted cities, including Norilsk and Krasnoyarsk, still lack continuous air-quality monitoring systems capable of measuring highly hazardous PM2.5 and PM10 particulate matter. "Enterprises [in Russia] have been massively sabotaging the implementation of continuous monitoring systems," the analyst said. "This means that environmental agencies and bodies like Rospotrebnadzor can't have clear and accurate data on the emissions and concentrations of harmful and hazardous substances."
The Missing Link: Contaminated Drinking Water
The lack of comprehensive monitoring may help explain why Rospotrebnadzor identified contaminated drinking water as the country's leading environmental health risk in 2025, linking 12,400 deaths to contaminated water compared with 6,100 linked to air pollution. This conclusion "completely contradicts the results of studies conducted in the late 1990s and 2000s, when air pollution accounted for 50 to 80% of health risks," the expert said.
That is not to say that widespread environmental deregulation did not affect the quality of drinking water in Russian towns and cities, especially the country's industrial hubs. Residents of several towns and cities across Siberia and the Urals said they routinely boil tap water before using it for drinking or cooking, while others rely exclusively on bottled water after seeing discolored water flow from their taps.
The Way Forward: A Complex Puzzle
As Russia grapples with this complex pollution problem, it's clear that the solution will require a multifaceted approach. While the government has made efforts to address air pollution through initiatives like the Clean Air Federal Project, the reversal in progress and the impact of external factors like sanctions and the war in Ukraine have set the country back. The lack of comprehensive monitoring and the continued reliance on coal in regions like Siberia and the Far East further complicate the situation.
In my opinion, the real challenge lies in balancing economic, political, and environmental priorities. The departure of foreign investors and the reorientation of exports have created a vacuum that needs to be filled with sustainable practices and innovative solutions. The government must also address the lack of comprehensive monitoring and the impact of deregulation on drinking water quality. Only through a holistic approach can Russia hope to address its pollution problem and ensure a healthier future for its people.
