(ATR) Hold your breath! It may just save your life.
While intense scrutiny has been placed on the quality of Rio’s bodies of water in the lead up to the Games, it seems that the air quality has been mostly overlooked.
A report from Reuters has shown that the levels of particulate matter (PM), the most dangerous air pollutant, surpass what the World Health Organization (WHO) considers a recommended limit.
When Rio secured the Games back in 2009, they declared in its official bid that its air quality was within the WHO’s limits. However, Reuters’ studies have shown that this was not true seven years ago, nor is it true today. With the exception of Beijing 2008, the Rio Games are shaping up to be held in some of the worst air quality conditions in decades.
The cause of the pollutants is blamed mostly on the large number of vehicles on Rio’s crowded roads. According to Inea, Rio’s state environmental agency, there are 2.7 million vehicles in Rio causing upwards of 75 per cent of the air pollution. Inea did not respond to Reuters’ requests to see current PM data.
According to the country’s health profile published by the WHO, the number of deaths caused by both acute respiratory infections and chronic respiratory diseases has continued to steadily increase since the year 2000. Heart disease and cancers affecting the lungs and other organs are directly linked to the pollution, and have also continued to rise dramatically in recent years.
One of the legacies of the Rio Games is the improved transport network, with the inception of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) routes and extension of subway lines. Although designed to ease passenger travel for the Games and beyond, it was also hoped that the improved transport system would ease the ever-growing traffic. However it is reported that Rio's fleet of vehicles continues to grow by 100,000 a year.
Written by Alice Wheeler
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