Brasilia, Brazil’s modernist capital, found its iconic buildings enveloped in smoky air the last two days. Smoke from fires in the Amazon rainforest, Cerrado savannah, Pantanal wetland, and the state of Sao Paulo affected the central part of the country.
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva visited Brazil’s national fire monitoring center in Brasilia on Sunday afternoon in response to the smog crisis. He stated that no fires caused by lightning were detected, indicating that people are intentionally setting fires in the Amazon, Pantanal, and specifically in the state of Sao Paulo. His government promised to intensify firefighting efforts and investigations to pinpoint the responsible individuals.
In southeastern Sao Paulo state, there have been nearly 3,500 fire alerts so far this month—the highest recorded in any month since data collection began in 1998. More than half of these fires occurred on Aug. 23, leading to suspicions of a coordinated attack. Fortunately, a cold front on Monday brought lower temperatures and rain, extinguishing all fires, according to the state government.
The air quality index in Brasilia reached a very unhealthy level on Sunday night, as reported by Brasilia’s environment institute. This marked the first-ever smog alert issued by the state agency since its establishment in 2007. Public events were canceled, and the airport in the nearby city of Goiania briefly shut down.
Smoke from wildfires has been affecting Amazon cities such as Manaus, Porto Velho, and Rio Branco for several weeks but has received minimal official and media attention because it is an annual event.
Altino Machado, a journalist based in Rio Branco, commented that it took the smoke and soot from the Amazon and Cerrado invading the halls of the presidential palace for the federal government to take action, according to The Associated Press.
In Sao Paulo state, two employees at an industrial plant lost their lives on Friday while battling a fire. Additionally, a total of 59,000 hectares (146,000 acres) of sugar cane plantations were destroyed by fires, as reported by a producers association. In the Amazon, a federal brigade firefighter also tragically passed away while working in the Capoto Jarina Indigenous Territory on Monday.
A researcher, Karla Longo, revealed that the smog covering Sao Paulo state and Brasilia primarily originated from the Amazon, Pantanal, and Cerrado due to climatic conditions. During the driest months of August and September, the smog typically spreads over 5 million square kilometers (1.9 million square miles), traveling from east to west and eventually south after hitting the Andean Cordillera.
The cold front displaced the smog towards Sao Paulo state, which was already battling an unusually high number of fires, and then towards the Brasilia region, Longo explained.
While the number of wildfires in Brazil this year is not abnormal, the burned areas are significantly larger than average. Official data shows that from January to July, an area the size of Italy burned down, marking a 64% increase compared to the same period last year. Fires are often used as a method for deforestation and pasture management.
Almost half of Brazil’s carbon emissions result from deforestation. The country stands as the world’s fifth-largest emitter of greenhouse gases, accounting for nearly 3% of global emissions, according to Climate Watch, an online platform managed by the World Resources Institute.
AP writer David Biller in Rio de Janeiro contributed to this report.
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