Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro is Brazil’s second-largest city, home to over 6.2 million people. In 2023, it became the first Latin American city to join Breathe Cities. Under the leadership of Mayor Eduardo Paes, Rio is placing clean air and climate action at the heart of its urban agenda. The city is working to address dangerous levels of air pollution, most of it driven by transport, while improving public health and building a healthier, thriving future for its residents.

Air pollution is a shared challenge that no city can tackle alone. By partnering with Breathe Cities, Rio is stepping up its fight against harmful emissions through introducing a Low Emission District, expanding more inclusive pedestrian and cycling infrastructure in the city centre and electrifying 20 per cent of our bus fleet by 2030. Together, these efforts will help build a cleaner, healthier and more equitable future for all Cariocas.

Eduardo Paes

Mayor of Rio de Janeiro

51% of harmful particles in Rio's air come from road transport

Air pollution in Rio

Air pollution is a major threat to health and wellbeing in Rio de Janeiro. In 2023, the average concentration of harmful particles (PM2.5) in the city’s air was three times higher than the limit recommended by the World Health Organisation. Road transport is the main source of this pollution, responsible for more than half (51%) of these particles. Urban buses contribute a significant share, responsible for 10% of carbon monoxide, 50% of nitrogen oxides and 17% of harmful particles from vehicles.

Pollution levels tend to be highest in the city’s northern and western regions, where many of the most densely populated areas and vulnerable communities are located.

Rio is taking action in a variety of ways, including by reimagining its public transport and urban spaces. If the city reaches the target of electrifying 20% of its bus fleet by 2030, the level of harmful particles in the air (PM2.5) could fall by 58%, nitrogen oxides by 41% and carbon dioxide by 19%. Over the next 30 years, these improvements could help prevent 587 heart and lung disease-related deaths, avoid 7,800 hospitalisations and reduce health-related costs by around R$123 million for hospitalisations and R$1.2 billion for prevented deaths.

What we're doing in Rio

Breathe Cities is supporting Rio de Janeiro to monitor and reduce air pollution as part of its broader vision for a healthier, thriving, and climate-resilient city.

We are helping the city expand its air quality monitoring network with 10 high-accuracy, low-cost sensors and supporting the development of an air quality dashboard to improve public access to data. This will help identify toxic air hotspots and the sources of pollution, especially in areas most affected by poor air quality, so city officials can take targeted action. We are also helping the city conduct an inventory of pollution of mobile sources and develop an energy efficiency plan with the industrial sector.

Through community engagement, Breathe Rio is raising public awareness about air pollution and supporting communities that are disproportionately affected. We are working with civil society organisations to design and deliver public campaigns, helping to boost public understanding and generate support for clean air action.

Breathe Rio is also working with the city government to scale action on air pollution through measures such as a Low Emission District, expanded walking and cycling infrastructure, and an accelerated shift to electric public transport. The goal is to support the implementation of fast, electrified transport to promote more sustainable options, alongside raising awareness of toxic air in communities that are disproportionately affected.

In Rio, we work with a range of local partners and community groups in our efforts to clean the city’s air, including Centro Brasil no Clima, Casa Fluminense, ITDP and JCTM/ACOEM, with additional support from the C40 Cities Finance Facility, the Zero Emission Bus Rapid-deployment Accelerator, the Transformative Urban Mobility Initiative and Laneshift.

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