Аннотация:The article deals with the relationship between industrialization and urbanization and their impact on the quality of life in cities. The growth of most modern cities was associated with the industrial stage in their development, however, the transition to the post-industrial phase of society’s development in the second half of the 20th century led to the de-industrialization of urban development. During this period, the problem of the influence of industrial enterprises on the state of the environment and the health of the population becomes urgent, one of the solutions is locating industry outside of large settlements. The implementation of a sustainable development program adopted by member states of the United Nations provides for solving problems of improving the environmental situation in modern cities in order to improve the health of their inhabitants and, as a result, reduce the burden on health systems. According to WHO, environmental pollution (air, water, soil) is a key factor of many diseases in urban environments due to the impact of industrial and economic facilities on it. The ecological situation in the Russian urban centers remains an important topic for researchers. Since the beginning of the 1990s, there has been a cardinal change in the environmental situation in Russian cities, which was caused by structural changes in the country's economy. At the same time, critical indicators of the index of anthropogenic impact remain in industrial cities, for example with mining. These data allow to consider the living conditions in industrial cities as dangerous for the health and lives of their residents; statistics of the structure of morbidity for such regions confirm it. The conclusion is made about the existence of spatial inequality in modern Russia, which can be reduced by the modernization of industrial enterprises located near major cities. This will avoid the deterioration of public health, while maintaining economic advantages in the form of jobs that can provide a stable income.