Pollution is a major problem around the globe. Air pollution can increase people’s risk of developing heart disease, lung cancer and respiratory problems.
While many British expats choose to move abroad for a new career opportunity or better quality of life, clean air is a major plus.
According to data from the team at SmartAir, Zurich in Switzerland has the world’s cleanest air.
The Swiss city sits on the shores of Lake Zurich in the north of the country and is Switzerland’s largest metropolis.
Zurich doesn’t just have clean air, it also has some of the world’s cleanest drinking water and there are fountains all over the city.
Many expats who live in Zurich work in the banking or finance sectors. Salaries are generally high although expats will find the cost of living in Switzerland is much higher than in the UK.
Residents in the Swiss city also enjoy relatively long life expectancy and it scores well on the happiness scale.
Perth, western Australia’s main city, had the second cleanest air in the world while Richards Bay in South Africa took third place.
Australia was the only country to have two cities in the top five with Hobart also grabbing a top spot. The world’s safest country, Iceland, also saw its capital Reykjavik make the top five.
At the other end of the scale, Damman in Saudi Arabia, Lahore in Pakistan and Dhaka in Bangladesh were the world’s most polluted cities.
Several Indian cities were also ranked among the most polluted, including New Delhi and Ghaziabad.
