The southern city of Kursk has the best environmental situation among Russia’s 70 most prominent cities, a new study showed.

      The capital Moscow has been ranked the second cleanest city, according to the study based on methodology developed by Ernst & Young. Kaluga, a modern industrial hub 160 kilometers southwest from the capital, rounded up the top three, while Saransk and Izhevsk, both in the Volga federal district, closed the top five.

      The city Tomsk in western Siberia was at the bottom of the list, with Tver in central Russia and Stavropol, a southern regional capital, also making the top three of Russian cities with the worst environment.

      The list comprised 85 entries, but the bottom fifteen cities failed to provide sufficient information to determine their place in the ranking, so they were not included in it.

      The rating was first published in 2011, when it was topped by another southern city, Volgograd, followed by St. Petersburg and Saransk. Kursk was fifth, Moscow sixth.

      The study is based on the quality of the cities' air and water, recycling and energy saving effort, land use, traffic situation and environmental management.