BERLIN, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The average life expectancy of Berliners was 80.5 years in 2015, 8.6 years longer than in 1982, the German Insurance Association reported on Tuesday, citing the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research.

That made the German capital a leading state in an overall increase of life expectancy witnessed in recent years.

The increase was also pronounced in several eastern states. Brandenburg saw a surge of 8.5 years in the same period, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania 8.2 years, and Thuringia 7.7 years.

States with highest life expectancy are Baden-Wuerttemberg with an average life expectance of 81.8 years and Bavaria with 81.3 years.

Demographer Sebastian Kluesener was quoted by the German Press Agency as saying, not only medical care but also environmental factors played a role. "The decline in industrial emissions has noticeably improved air quality in many areas of eastern Germany."

However, due to uneven economic development in Germany, the gap between the eastern and western Germany in terms of life expectancy still exists.