Socio-hygienic aspects of mortality of the working-age population of an industrial city in Eastern Siberia (on the example of Usolye-Sibirskoye, Irkutsk region)
Authors: Bukhtiyarov Igor V. , Bryleva Maria S. , Betts Kristina V. , Tikhonova Galina I. , Salagay Oleg O. 
Published: November 2023

Introduction. For more than 80 years of its operation, JSC Usolekhimprom (Usolye-Sibirskoye, Irkutsk region) has released a significant amount of pollutants into the environment, such as mercury, lead, manganese, nickel, formaldehyde, phenols, etc. Despite the measures taken to rehabilitate the territory affected by the plant's activities, environmental pollution in Usolye-Sibirskoye remains a large-scale environmental problem and poses a threat to the city's population. Earlier it was found that the mortality rate of the population in the city exceeds similar indicators in comparison with the Irkutsk region and Russia in all age groups (child population, working age, older than working age). Scientists have established the maximum excess of the mortality rate among the working-age population.
The study aims to assess the hygienic and socio–economic situation in the territory of Usolye-Sibirskoye and determine its impact on the causes and mortality rates of the working-age population.
Materials and methods. Based on the official yearbooks of Roshydromet and reports of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Ecology of the Irkutsk region, the authors studied the state of the environment in Usolye-Sibirsky for 2010–2019. The scientists analyzed information on the main indicators of socio-economic development according to analytical reports on the socio-economic situation in the municipality "Usolye-Sibirskoye" for 2010–2019, as well as based on information from the database of indicators of municipalities of the Irkutsk region (Irkutskstat).The authors studied the mortality rate of the working-age population according to forms C-51 "Number of deaths by sex, age and individual causes of death" and 2RN "Population by sex and age" for 2010–2019. Based on the data obtained, they calculated age-standardized mortality rates from the main classes of causes in accordance with the indicators averaged over 10 years. As a standard, the researchers adopted the age structure of the Russian population for 2010 in accordance with the census data. Standardization was carried out by the direct method.
Results. There is a severe environmental situation in Usolye-Sibirskoye is experiencing associated with man-made pollution of all components of the biosphere, including carcinogenic substances. When comparing mortality rates in Usolye-Sibirsky with regional and average Russian values, experts revealed an excess of mortality rates from all studied classes of causes among both men and women. There is an extremely unfavorable situation in terms of mortality from infectious diseases (5 times and 7.3 times higher compared to Russia for men and women, respectively), including from HIV infection and tuberculosis, as well as causes of death related to alcohol, the prevalence of which is associated with the socio-economic instability of the city. It is possible to note high mortality rates from causes that have an etiological connection with the consequences of the production activities of the Usolekhimprom enterprise (from diseases of the nervous system, malignant neoplasms, liver diseases).
Conclusion. Sanitary and hygienic living conditions of the population of Usolye-Sibirskoye can be characterized by an extremely high level of contamination of all components of the biosphere with substances of hazard classes 1–2 and carcinogens. The unfavorable socio-economic situation due to the closure of the largest enterprise exacerbates the existing risks of premature mortality and leads to an increase in mortality from socially significant diseases. The working-age population is most vulnerable to these factors, since it is on it that the entire demographic burden falls.