PM2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO Interim in Australia
Australia: PM2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO Interim was 9.2% in 2017. ▼ Falling
PM2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO Interim in Australia, 1990–2017
Source: Global Burden of Disease Study 2017 (GBD 2017), Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME). Measured in % of total.
Analysis
In 2017, pm2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who interim in Australia stood at 9.2%. That is the lowest value across all 12 years on record.
The figure is down 49.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, pm2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who interim in Australia peaked at 20.3% in 2011 and was at its lowest, 9.2%, in 2017.
That places Australia 153rd out of 194 countries with data for 2017, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 12 years of available data.
PM2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO Interim in Australia, year by year
| Year | % of total | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 18.9% | — |
| 1995 | 18.8% | -0.5% |
| 2000 | 19.4% | +3.3% |
| 2005 | 18.2% | -6.0% |
| 2010 | 18.9% | +3.8% |
| 2011 | 20.3% | +7.3% |
| 2012 | 18.2% | -10.2% |
| 2013 | 16.8% | -7.7% |
| 2014 | 14.3% | -15.1% |
| 2015 | 13.6% | -4.8% |
| 2016 | 9.2% | -32.3% |
| 2017 | 9.2% | -0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 18.8% | 18.8% | 18.9% | 2 |
| 2000s | 18.8% | 18.2% | 19.4% | 2 |
| 2010s | 15.1% | 9.2% | 20.3% | 8 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More environment data for Australia
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -4.75 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -5.98 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.345 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.4 °C (2025)
- Other paper and paperboard — Import quantity, annual growth rate 12.75 % change on previous year (2024)
- Other paper and paperboard — Import quantity, per capita 0.0178 t per person (2024)
- Other paper and paperboard — Import value, annual growth rate -4.62 % change on previous year (2024)
- Other paper and paperboard — Import value, per capita 0.0216 1000 USD per person (2024)
- Other paper and paperboard, not elsewhere specified — Import -1.48 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is pm2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who interim in Australia?
- Pm2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who interim in Australia was 9.2% in 2017, according to Global Burden of Disease Study 2017 (GBD 2017), Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME).
- What is the highest pm2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who interim recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 20.3% in 2011.
- What is the lowest pm2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who interim recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.2% in 2017.
- How does Australia rank for pm2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who interim?
- Australia ranks 153rd out of 194 countries with data for 2017.
- Is pm2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding who interim rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 49.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from Global Burden of Disease Study 2017 (GBD 2017), Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), published as part of PM2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO Interim Target-3 value (% of total). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Percent of population exposed to ambient concentrations of PM2.5 that exceed the World Health Organization (WHO) Interim Target 3 (IT-3) is defined as the portion of a country’s population living in places where mean annual concentrations of PM2.5 are greater than 15 micrograms per cubic meter. The Air Quality Guideline (AQG) of 10 micrograms per cubic meter is recommended by the WHO as the lower end of the range of concentrations over which adverse health effects due to PM2.5 exposure have been observed.