On Earth Day 2026, the American Lung Association released its annual State of the Air report showing that Mississippi children breathe “some of the dirtiest air” in the country.
More than 65,000 kids across 10 reporting counties are exposed to unhealthy pollution levels, the report found through official federal air quality monitoring data from 2022 to 2024. Per the report, Mississippi stands out with major areas facing significant exposure to both ozone smog and particle pollutions – when industrial emissions, car exhausts, dusts, and other pollutants interact with sunlight to worsen air quality.
Children are highlighted in the report is due to unhealthy levels of ozone and particle pollution being linked to premature death and serious health impacts such as asthma attacks and cognitive impairment. In total, 65,296 kids across Bolivar, DeSoto, Forrest, Hancock, Harrison, Hinds, Jackson, Lauderdale, Lee, and Yalobusha counties are breathing unhealthy air, the report found.
“Clean air is essential to the health and wellbeing of families across Mississippi. Children deserve to breathe air that won’t make them sick,” said Calandra Davis, director of advocacy for the American Lung Association.
Notably, several areas of north Mississippi received some of the worst air-quality grades in the nation.
In the Memphis, Tenn., area, which includes Mississippi’s DeSoto and Lee counties, the region ranked 27th worst in the nation for ozone pollution, receiving an F grade. The area also received a failing grade for year-round particle pollution, driven largely by conditions in Desoto County, and ranked 49th worst nationally in that category. The report warned that data centers, such as those in Memphis and a recently announced one in DeSoto County, are increasingly contributing to air pollution.
The Greater Jackson area saw air quality slightly worsen since the 2025 report. Jackson-Vicksburg-Brookhaven ranked as the 143rd most-polluted area in the nation for ozone pollution, receiving a B grade, while also posting a B grade for short-term particle pollution. Hinds County was identified as the most-polluted county in the area.
The Mississippi Gulf Coast showed mixed but elevated pollution levels. The Gulfport-Biloxi area ranked 110th worst nationally for ozone pollution, receiving a B grade, while year-round particle pollution remained below federal standards, ranking 103rd worst nationally.
Lauderdale County was the only Mississippi county to receive an A grade in the number of high ozone days, while Hancock and Jackson counties received A grades in particle pollution.
How did the rest of the country fare?
Almost half of U.S. residents are breathing “unhealthy” air, according to the American Lung Association’s 2026 State of the Air Report.
The report, now in its 27th year, shows air breathed by about 152 million people – compared to the national population of over 342 million – contains ozone or particle pollution.
The report found more than 129 million people living in counties with failing grades for handling ozone pollution, more than 133 million kids living where at least one major pollutant is present, and people of color more likely living in areas that fail all major pollution measures.
Areas deemed the most-polluted, based on year-round particle pollution, were Bakersfield-Delano, Calif.; Brownsville-Harlingen-Raymondville, Texas; Eugene-Springfield, Ore.; Fresno-Hanford-Corcoran, Calif.; and San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, Calif. (tied with Visalia, Calif.).
Areas deemed the cleanest, based on year-round particle pollution, were Bozeman, Mont.; Casper, Wyo.; Kahului-Wailuku, Hawaii; Urban Honolulu, Hawaii; and Burlington-South Burlington-Barre, Vt.
What’s the solution?
For regular citizens, the American Lung Association suggests less time outside on air quality alert days and wearing air quality masks for extra protection.
For policymakers, the association is calling on those on both the federal and state levels to make air quality a priority. The report cites policies by President Donald Trump’s administration, including its recent decision to deregulate emissions and the Environmental Protection Agency’s repeal of a landmark finding that linked greenhouse gases to human health problems, as part of the reason air quality is worsening.
“Historically, EPA has played an essential role in protecting people’s health from air pollution,” noted a press release issued alongside the report. “The current EPA has retreated from its public health foundation by rolling back clean air protections. This EPA has also taken the recent step of eliminating health-related information from its economic analyses, meaning that the costs of pollution to kids, families, and communities will not be counted as policies are undone. EPA must not devalue kids’ health.”
In Mississippi, Davis called on state policymakers “to take action to improve air quality” and for the state Department of Environmental Quality to “reject any permit requests that do not assess climate and health impacts first.”
