Health Status and Quality of Life in the Population near Zhezkazgan Copper Smelter, Kazakhstan

BACKGROUND: The industrial city of Zhezkazgan is one of the most important cities in the industrial sector and the most polluted city in the Republic of Kazakhstan. There is placed Kazakhstan's largest copper smelter. The entire technological process (extraction, crushing, grinding, purification, and smelting of pure ingots) of the production of the copper smelter releases into the environment mainly various kinds of solid particles, sulfur oxides (SOx), and various carcinogenic elements. Emissions from the industrial facilities extend to a significant area around the city, combined with other sources of environmental pollution (motor transport, thermal power plant, individual heating systems, and others). OBJECTIVE: This study assessed the health status of residents of villages near Zhezkazgan by screening, quality of life studies, and official medical statistics. METHODS: This study assessed the health status and quality of life of residents near Zhezkazgan city. The cohort included residents from Talap village (main group) and Malshybai village (comparison group) from the Ulytau district in the Karaganda region. The sampling for the health check and quality of life survey covered 260 adult residents of Talap village and 146 adult residents of Malshybai village. Univariate analysis was used to calculate the odds ratio (OR) with a 95% confidence interval (95% CI). RESULTS: In the city district of Zhezkazgan, the overall mortality rate and mortality from diseases of the circulatory system, neoplasms, and respiratory diseases were much higher than in the Karaganda region and the Republic of Kazakhstan from 2015–2020. Residents of the Talap settlement had higher rates of coronary heart disease (CHD) (OR 1.30; 95% CI: 0.70–2.39; and p < 0.05), arterial hypertension (AH) (OR 1.84; 95% CI: 1.11–3.03; and p < 0.05), decreased hemoglobin (OR 1.89; 95% CI: 1.17–3.07; and p < 0.05), and endocrine diseases (diabetes mellitus, obesity, and thyrotoxicosis) (OR 1.76; 95% CI: 1.12–2.79; and p < 0.05) at registration than residents of the Malshybai settlement. Residents of both settlements expressed dissatisfaction with the quality of drinking water and the presence of the area where launch vehicles fell. CONCLUSION: Indicators of pollution in the city, statistics of official mortality, and differences in morbidity indicated the negative impact of hazardous emissions from industrial facilities of the copper smelter on public health.