Manaus air quality reaches ‘very bad’ levels due to regional wildfire smoke

Manaus is experiencing a significant decline in air quality due to smoke plumes transported from multiple regions. According to the Municipal Civil Defense, the smoke originates from wildfires in southern Amazonas, northern Mato Grosso, and Rondônia.

A cold front moving through south-central Brazil has temporarily altered atmospheric circulation and wind patterns, carrying these particles toward the capital. This shift explains why Manaus is seeing heavy smoke despite having fewer active fire outbreaks than neighboring municipalities.

Monitoring stations have recorded fine particulate matter (MP2.5) levels at 87.6 µg/m³, classified as ‘very bad’. Some sensors from the Electronic Environmental Surveillance System (Selva) reported concentrations exceeding 100 µg/m³, a level considered ‘worse’ by that system.