Authorities urge curbs on burning incense sticks, golden paper offerings for Year of the Pig

[wvavin]

They have absolutely no clue on how to start with!

[HalfLight]

2 hours ago, 4MyEgo said:

Maybe Bangkokeans might consider following the paths of these 8 least polluted cities in the world, but that would mean, "thinking" and I personally know a lot of Thai's are not capable of "thinking", especially when it comes to their narrow minds IMO, they are all similar to the Buffalo species who follow one another:

 

 

1 Reykjavik, Iceland.

2 Whitehorse, Canada.

3 Helsinki, Finland.

4 Mysore, India.

5 Zurich, Switzerland.

6 Vienna, Austria.

7 Calgary, Canada.

8 Kollam, Kerala, India.

Yes, I saw something like this when the seawater rises were being investigated by Thais. Some suggested responses are below:

 

1 Reykjavik, Iceland. Not relevant - too far away.

2 Whitehorse, Canada. Not relevant - too far away.

3 Helsinki, Finland. Not relevant - too far away.

4 Mysore, India. Not the same, too hot.

5 Zurich, Switzerland. Not the same, too many mountains.

6 Vienna, Austria. Not the same, too many old buildings, and waaay too much zither music.

7 Calgary, Canada. Not relevant - too far away.

8 Kollam, Kerala, India. Not the same. Too hot. Where's India?

 

[overherebc]

11 minutes ago, HalfLight said:

Foxtrot Alpha eh? That's what my intuituion said too but I haven't had any training.

 

Oh. Hold on a second...

 

 

My answer is on spraying water in the air, not cloud seeding.

????????

[lvr181]

Typical response - just address the peripheal issues NOT the main causes.

 

Authorities incl. Govt seem not to have the balls or the intelligence (or both) to deal with real issues in the Kingdom.

 

TIT!

[joecoolfrog]

They will simply not do anything that might impact on vested interests , sad and pathetic.

[marcusarelus]

3 minutes ago, joecoolfrog said:

They will simply not do anything that might impact on vested interests , sad and pathetic.

Rich people have cars that don't pollute.  Poor people have old trucks that pollute.  Rich people are not subsistence farmers who burn cane and rice fields.  

 

Suggest change your text to read, "they will simply not do anything."

[Humpy]

Are the girls in some of the 'special show' bars aware of this order ?

[Benmart]

I just drove from Tak to Maesot today. Dozens of fires going, one even obscuring the highway. The technical and agriculture college down the road from one large fire, was certainly affected by the smoke and stink.

[DrTuner]

Useless, the ancestors demand a frigging 5m pile of stuff or they'll come back as hungry ghosts.

 

Aren't superstitions grand. Enjoy your cough.

Edited January 30, 2019 by DrTuner

[nausea]

Like the cigarette butt thing, fiddling while Rome burns.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

12 hours ago, webfact said:

He also pointed out that the Pollution Control Department (PCD) had previously proposed that provincial authorities take action if PM2.5 particles in the air went beyond 75 micrograms per cubic metre of air.

 

“But nothing has been done,” he lamented.

 

 

Guess what??? No surprise about that.  This is Thailand, after all, the hub of doing nothing.

 

[stanleycoin]

I just wish the Chinese would stop Gobbing all over the place

Dirty Gits. 

 

Edited January 30, 2019 by stanleycoin

[BTB1977]

If burning incense sticks or gold paper make sure to have a spray bottle of water to spray into the air. Spray should reach one to two meters into the air to work. 

[madmen]

If burning incense sticks or gold paper make sure to have a spray bottle of water to spray into the air. Spray should reach one to two meters into the air to work. 

Better still bring Songkran forward. It's a win win with high tourism and smog killer all in one package

[Sydebolle]

April Fools Day already? Don't tell me that the authorities seriously consider incense sticks an influential element in past and present smogs.

Bangkok is clearly an automotive and industral issue, Chiang Mai might address its concern to the CP Group and their cornfield optimization. 

[HalfLight]

18 minutes ago, Sydebolle said:

April Fools Day already? Don't tell me that the authorities seriously consider incense sticks an influential element in past and present smogs.

Bangkok is clearly an automotive and industral issue, Chiang Mai might address its concern to the CP Group and their cornfield optimization. 

 

The authorities seriously don't have the first clue, which nobody should be surprised at, I have passed right through the incredulity stage and emerged into the bright light of realisation that they collectively really are as thick as two short planks, just like people say.

 

I'm surprised they haven't tried do blame smokers for the pollution.

 

Yet.

 

 

Edited January 30, 2019 by HalfLight

[manhood]

There are many other things have to be stopped instead! Burning trash and garbage everywhere. Nobody cares in this country!!!!!!!!!!! A same for the thai people!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Unify]

11 hours ago, edwinchester said:

It's not widely known but burning just one incense stick releases more 2.5 particulate than torching 2.4 Rai of sugar cane.

What if the field is also full of incense?

[LetsCleanUpTHAILAND]

11 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

First a group of experts is blaming Cambodia, for the excessive pollution within Thailand right now. Next, they are banning incense. My guess is that 1,000 people burning incense, creates as much particulate matter as one diesel pickup truck, driving in an urban area for less than an hour.

 

If the authorities really cared, they would come up with some sane policy. Like doing something about the sugar cane burning, which is a massive problem, and creates a huge health issue. Second, you stop selling diesel vehicles. When many countries around the world are tightening emission standards, and making it harder and harder for diesel vehicles to be sold, Thailand is selling them by the millions. They are a huge part of the problem, and are unnecessary. Also, you enforce maintenance on the diesel vehicles that are being used. Clean oil alone greatly reduced PM2.5 and PM10 emissions. How about a 10,000 baht ticket for every diesel owner who has oil more than 5,000 km old? You must be required to carry proof of your last oil change, or you are cited on the spot. Third, the government can begin offering incentives for the conversion to LPG, which is super clean fuel and economical. 

 

There are countless things that could be done to alleviate the suffering, the lung disease, and the deaths that are taking place right now, from the epidemic of foul air, plaguing most of the nation. How much is actually being done? Next to zero. Just another reason why the goons need to be voted out. ASAP. 

Are we allowed to mobilize people to make change here or only complain? I've been working on air pollution issues in Thailand since 2013. From what I have found is that most air pollution comes from people burning their trash in their back yard. The burning is a toxic soup of chemicals that could go toe-to-toe, so to speak, with nuclear waste because plastics are made from toxic chemicals and oil. You ever hear about BPA? Yeah, that's in your plastic straw. So guess what happens when organic waste (food and leaves) is burned with plastics made with Chlorine/Bleach, oil and other unmentionable ingredients? You were absolutely correct about the incense. Recent academic studies have linked them to causing cancer. But I wanted to briefly touch on smoke. You know how you can smell cigarette smoke from one person a hundred meters away? Well, imagine a pile of trash. If a couple of people do that, you have and entire neighborhood in a smog of carinogenic smoke. It kinda makes it silly to have "No Smoking" signs around town when something far worse is done despite it being against Thai law.

 

Many many things result in PM2.5, but the good news is that air pollution is the most preventable pandemic of the 21st century according to popular sources.

The solution?

(1) Establish and cultivate advanced composting facilities. 60% of Thailand's waste is organic.

(2) Ban plastic straws, plastic utensils and plastic bags. Several Thai companies are making these from natural products. In the USA, we are switching to paper straws because American's are responsible for polluting the earth with over 500 million plastic straws a year!

(3) Make a city-by-city waste management plan. I'm qualified to do this. It must be made in cooperation with village and community leaders.

(4) Educate all Thai teachers to teach about pollution and why we shoudn't burn trash or use single use plastics every month.

(5) Implement Rama 9's sustainable economy plan into Thailand 4.0.

(6) Buses should be required to have smog filters installed and to stay on fixed routes in all cities, towns and villages.

 

What do you think?

[chama]

15 hours ago, Prissana Pescud said:

Even "Chuckles the clown" would be astounded by this report. Burning incense sticks is the cause of pollution in Thailand??

Not a mention of aged polluting vehicles. Nor burning dry rice paddies, sugar cane fields and burning all dead plant life.

Not a mention of city gridlock where stationary vehicles going nowhere churn out the smog.

Not a mention that low heat non complete combustion of the fields does more harm than a very dry high heat combustion.

Not a mention that this warning offers no solution to the pollution problem. Just makes Thailand a laughing stock. Well no surprise there really. 

Individuals burning incense is the least of the problem but it is the only one with an easy fix so that is the route the government has taken. Fixing the rest is way to hard so they sit and wait with a few ineffective policies and a big dumb smile hoping the cloud of dust blows away.

[HalfLight]

21 minutes ago, chama said:

Individuals burning incense is the least of the problem but it is the only one with an easy fix so that is the route the government has taken. Fixing the rest is way to hard so they sit and wait with a few ineffective policies and a big dumb smile hoping the cloud of dust blows away.

And it's the best way of avoiding blaming any part of the community that might be thinking of voting.

 

 

 

[ocddave]

From what I can tell, here in Muang Thong Thani the levels are low, but I can definitely feel the difference. My eyes feel drowsy and my energy level is low, just an overall "this feels bad" feeling, and just came in from walking the dog, the air outside is thick! Man do i miss the clean air of my small hometown in Western Massachusetts, where you look up at night and see the Milky Way with your naked eyes, this country boy truly hates big city life.

[Prissana Pescud]

Just as an aside. I go with my wife to the small village wat every 4-5 weeks. Mostly to let my wife have a bit of a gossip afterwards.

I enjoy the tonal chants too.

It is one of the few times I see incense burnt. Most of the poor people can't afford this in their own homes.

But a few hundred sticks are burned every time I have been there.

The sticks are tightly placed in a bucket of soil.

And every time, the mass of burning sticks reaches a critical mass moment when the whole lot breaks out into a fiercely raging fire.

It is always a hoot for me, it happens every time. 

But truly, I doubt that it makes one iota of the pollution problem in Thailand.

Especially as I walk home through the burning rice paddies, cane fields and piles of dry corn stalks. 

[fullcave]

22 hours ago, Bill Miller said:

The black smoke from diesel exhaust is often due to dirty injectors.  Simple maintainance.

Oh! Forgot where I am.

Black smoke looks cool and is a sign of manhood. 

[spidermike007]

14 hours ago, LetsCleanUpTHAILAND said:

Are we allowed to mobilize people to make change here or only complain? I've been working on air pollution issues in Thailand since 2013. From what I have found is that most air pollution comes from people burning their trash in their back yard. The burning is a toxic soup of chemicals that could go toe-to-toe, so to speak, with nuclear waste because plastics are made from toxic chemicals and oil. You ever hear about BPA? Yeah, that's in your plastic straw. So guess what happens when organic waste (food and leaves) is burned with plastics made with Chlorine/Bleach, oil and other unmentionable ingredients? You were absolutely correct about the incense. Recent academic studies have linked them to causing cancer. But I wanted to briefly touch on smoke. You know how you can smell cigarette smoke from one person a hundred meters away? Well, imagine a pile of trash. If a couple of people do that, you have and entire neighborhood in a smog of carinogenic smoke. It kinda makes it silly to have "No Smoking" signs around town when something far worse is done despite it being against Thai law.

 

Many many things result in PM2.5, but the good news is that air pollution is the most preventable pandemic of the 21st century according to popular sources.

The solution?

(1) Establish and cultivate advanced composting facilities. 60% of Thailand's waste is organic.

(2) Ban plastic straws, plastic utensils and plastic bags. Several Thai companies are making these from natural products. In the USA, we are switching to paper straws because American's are responsible for polluting the earth with over 500 million plastic straws a year!

(3) Make a city-by-city waste management plan. I'm qualified to do this. It must be made in cooperation with village and community leaders.

(4) Educate all Thai teachers to teach about pollution and why we shoudn't burn trash or use single use plastics every month.

(5) Implement Rama 9's sustainable economy plan into Thailand 4.0.

(6) Buses should be required to have smog filters installed and to stay on fixed routes in all cities, towns and villages.

 

What do you think?

 

I love it. All excellent suggestions. And absolutely possible. Why do people burn trash? In the rural areas, they burn and dump trash, due to the difficulties of disposing of it properly. If the authorities would use the massive funds they have, to implement people friendly policies, none of this would have to happen. It is always amusing to hear a Thai person profess how much they love their country, then watch them dump a load of trash beside the road. Really? Is that all you got? Where is the respect for your land? Your nation? 

 

Plastic is a monster. How do I feel about plastic? 

 

A change in consciousness must start at the most basic level. Most Thais think plastic is the best thing ever invented, and the percentage of Thais that even consider the negative ramifications of plastic is incredibly small. This requires some education. I always try to do two things to avoid the consumption of plastic.

 

1. I bring re-usable bags with me every time I go shopping. I use the larger shopping bags I buy in the US, which are made of recycled materials. Most of the clerks have to be dealt with. Even when they see my bag, they still start putting the stuff in plastic. I always mai sai toom. No plastic! Then they start loading up my bag. Most look at me like I am from Mars. Do I care? Not one iota. About 1% thank me, and get it. Not many do. My Thai wife does not like bringing the bags to the store. I force her to. By now, she expects it, and sometimes even asks if I have any bags in the car, or on the motorbike. Same with the water bottles. It used to embarrass her. Now, it is second nature, as I have been doing this for so long, she expects it. So, if a Thai can be conditioned to follow these simple principals, then anyone can. 

 

2. I bring a bottle of water with me, every time I go to a restaurant. I refill my plastic bottles from the 20 liter bottles at home. It is easy. I never buy bottled water at a restaurant. This saves 300-600 bottles a year. I use a plastic bottle dozens of times. I never get any flack from the restaurants. Only once did someone say something to me. She said you cannot bring you own water. My response was if you serve the water in a glass bottle, and I do not have to consume a plastic bottle, I am happy to pay for that. She was lost. I told her to leave and get me my food. She went away. 

 

We simply cannot say we are concerned about the environment, and then do nothing about it. Action demonstrates commitment. Lack of action demonstrates nothing but lethargy, indifference, and neglect. Or worse, the sense that whatever we do personally is not going to make a difference. Wrong. 

 

Lastly, restaurants can demonstrate their commitment, by serving drinking water from the 20 liter bottles. It saves alot of plastic. They lose a small amount of revenue, by not selling thousands of bottles of water. But, their operation is still profitable, and they are making a real difference. There really is not need to be consuming water in plastic bottles. At least not often. There are alternatives. Those damn bottles are a real culprit, when it comes to fouling the environment. What can we do, if we say we care? You can easily buy plastic without BPA, or metal bottles, for use everywhere you go. BPA, and other toxic chemicals that leach from the plastic, if the bottle sits in the sun, or has been sitting for too long, or is re-used a few times, is the primary culprit, in re-using normal bottles. This can easily be avoided by purchasing these bottles shown here. They are on ebay, and shipping to Thailand is either free or less than $1. The bottles are one liter, and a half liter. Only $2-3 each. Worth it. I use them daily. 

 

 

[dcnx]

On 1/30/2019 at 5:12 AM, kannot said:

needs  more officers

And a super committee to oversee it all.

[dcnx]

4 hours ago, fullcave said:

Black smoke looks cool and is a sign of manhood. 

???? 

[poohy]

15 minutes ago, dcnx said:

???? 

Driving m/c yesterday pick up turned onto road in front of me and accelerated away leaving a wall of black smoke behind ....

I had to stop, could not see let alone breath, a car following me slowed to crawl as presumably his aircon sucked it in plus he would not have able to see either

[DrTuner]

16 hours ago, LetsCleanUpTHAILAND said:

The solution?

(1) Establish and cultivate advanced composting facilities. 60% of Thailand's waste is organic.

(2) Ban plastic straws, plastic utensils and plastic bags. Several Thai companies are making these from natural products. In the USA, we are switching to paper straws because American's are responsible for polluting the earth with over 500 million plastic straws a year!

(3) Make a city-by-city waste management plan. I'm qualified to do this. It must be made in cooperation with village and community leaders.

(4) Educate all Thai teachers to teach about pollution and why we shoudn't burn trash or use single use plastics every month.

(5) Implement Rama 9's sustainable economy plan into Thailand 4.0.

(6) Buses should be required to have smog filters installed and to stay on fixed routes in all cities, towns and villages.

 

What do you think?

Other than 5, as it also has the favorable effect of keeping peasants poor and subservient, none of those very good suggestions will ever get implemented. That's what I think.

[ocddave]

2 hours ago, dcnx said:

And a super committee to oversee it all.

...and about 50 research studies, paid for with taxpayer dollars, then maybe 20-30 years into the future some small change that placates the masses.