‘Big firm’ blamed for the North’s smog nightmare

[webfact]

‘Big firm’ blamed for the North’s smog nightmare

By Chularat Saengpassa, 
Sakaorat Sirima 
The Nation

 

Doi Lung Chiang Dao,Chiang Mai

 

Experts see little changing after Prayut’s visit, blame govt’s policy to push corn cultivation

 

THE PRESSING problem of Chiang Mai’s serious air pollution needs much more than just the attention of Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha, who will fly today to this northern province to follow up on anti-haze efforts. 

 

Eminent medical specialists based in Chiang Mai, the capital of the North, have warned that the health impacts from prolonged exposure to smog are real, and urgent tangible solutions are necessary.

 

“Will the prime minister engage a giant firm in addressing the problem?” Prof Dr Chaicharn Pothirat, a medical specialist in lung diseases at the CMU Faculty of Medicine, asked. 

 

According to him, corn plantations are now the major cause of air pollution. Many corn farmers have cleared unwanted weeds from their plantations using fire to ease the work of harvest.

 

“And a big firm buys corn from these farmers. This firm should show responsibility,” Chaicharn said. 

 

The medical lecturer lamented that Prayut’s visit to Chiang Mai would not really help ease the smog.

 

“He will spend just a few hours here. So, I think it’s more like a PR stunt,” he said. 

 

 

Chaicharn said the government policy to encourage farmers to grow corn after the rice season might have also contributed to the current serious smog crisis. 

 

At present, there are 7 million rai of corn plantations in the country. The North is the biggest grower, accounting for 4.5 million rai of corn fields.

 

Chaicharn’s colleague, Dr Rungsrit Kanjanavanit, who sits on the Chiang Mai working panel on fighting air pollution, said he had put forward four demands to the prime minister. 

 

Firstly, he said the Pollution Control Department (PCD) should stop releasing just the 24-hour mean average of small dust particles, which could disguise the fact that the PM2.5 levels were dangerously high during certain hours of the day. “The PCD should release real-time air-pollution levels and issue proper alerts,” he said.

 

He said the Disease Control Department (DCD) also should officially recognise the health impacts from dust and send a clear message across to the public. 

 

 

“Don’t just say you have not seen any health impacts from the dust yet. Health problems associated with air pollution will become visible in the long run, the same way smokers will feel the adverse impacts from their cigarettes,” Rungsrit said. Smog is associated with respiratory disorders, heart diseases, skin irritation and more. 

 

Chiang Mai has been struggling with heavy air pollution for a few months already. The amount of PM2.5 – particulate matter no more than 2.5 millimetres in diameter – in the province has been usually above safe limits. Despite loud complaints every day by people who know about the smog’s dangerous impact, an end to the problem is not yet in sight. 

 

At present, agricultural fires are identified as the main cause of smog. 

 

Rungsrit said the Chiang Mai governor should have made better preparations because he must have known from the very beginning that hotspots caused air pollution every year. 

 

“Last, but not least, I demand that no one politicise the smog issue,” he said. Lately, rumours have been spread that some people are deliberately setting fires in forests to worsen the air pollution in order to discredit the Prayut-led administration. 

 

Prayut, the sole PM candidate of the Phalang Pracharat Party, still has a chance of returning as the prime minister. 

 

The PM2.5 levels in some parts of Chiang Mai on Saturday almost to 800 micrograms per cubic metre of air, a far cry from the safe limit of 50 micrograms.

 

“My utmost demand is that efforts to solve the air pollution be systematic and there be a clear-cut timeline,” Chaicharn said. “Don’t just talk, otherwise the problem will recur.” 

 

Chiang Mai is not the only northern province suffering under the smog crisis. Neighbouring provinces are also facing the same predicament.

 

Calls for the Upper North to be declared a smog disaster zone are growing louder now, and the region’s smog-generating forest fires soared to 3,088 hotspots.

 

Deputy National Police commissioner Pol General Srivara Ransibrahmanakul said police had already arrested 230 suspects for setting fires in forests.

Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai and Mae Hong Son yesterday continued their calls for urgent donations of N95-grade face masks for public distribution. 

 

As Chiang Mai academics urged people to refrain from all outdoor activities and to wear N95 masks during this period, private schools such as Montfort College and Prince Royal’s College installed air-purifiers in their classrooms and advised students to wear N95 masks . 

 

Chiang Rai’s Mae Fah Luang University, meanwhile, suspended classes and all outdoor activities yesterday and today, while spraying water around the campus. It opened two conference halls at the E4 multipurpose building, which were equipped with air purifiers for students and personnel to seek refuge.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30366953

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2019-04-02

 

[lemonjelly]

Still no farmers/land owners arrested for burning from what I see 

[brommers]

Why should I donate a mask to this gang of charlatans when I have had to spend tens of thousands of baht to make my home a safe zone from this poison. Halt the purchase of a submarine and use those funds to not only buy masks but to establish comprehensive teams of fire spotters and firefighters that are equipped with a full set of resources instead of these slapped together old water tankers p*ssing tiny amounts of water onto roads or 2 metres into the air. Deal with the source of the problem you jerks.

 

Right now the US AQI is climbing and has reached 240, with the pm2,5 level at 8 times the WHO safety limit. I do not accept the sloppy Thai government use of calculation trickery to smooth out the real time AQI or the ridiculous pm2,5 safety level that allows double the filth that the WHO has set as a safe maximum. These local "games" are nothing but literal smoke & mirrors to attempt to fool a population that knows the reality of their mendacity thanks to many internet sources of the truth.

[cmsally]

Quote

At present, there are 7 million rai of corn plantations in the country. The North is the biggest grower, accounting for 4.5 million rai of corn fields.

In addition there are large amounts of corn grown in Myanmar (mostly Shan State) and northern Laos. Again mostly same company!

[YetAnother]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

Rungsrit said the Chiang Mai governor should have made better preparations because he must have known from the very beginning that hotspots caused air pollution every year. 

why do people assume that thai officials are competent and care ?

[gunderhill]

8 minutes ago, cmsally said:

Again mostly same company!

Which of  course  cannot  be  named, what a screwed up  country.

[Thailand]

I am sure p will resolve the problem and by Thursday we will be breathing air on a par with that in snowy Swiss mountains.

[dinsdale]

I see lots of ill fitting masks on those kids. Teacher's wearing N95 but not sure about the kiddies.

[hansnl]

4 hours ago, lemonjelly said:

Still no farmers/land owners arrested for burning from what I see 

Rather stupid to blame the buyer of the crops, while the farmers burn the remains of former crops without any care for the people.

Why don't they just plow the remains under, seems to be better for the land also.

[klauskunkel]

6 minutes ago, hansnl said:

Why don't they just plow the remains under, seems to be better for the land also.

work

fire = no work

[robblok]

1 hour ago, cmsally said:

In addition there are large amounts of corn grown in Myanmar (mostly Shan State) and northern Laos. Again mostly same company!

So its the corn company that is to blame even though the farmers do the burning. Strange logic. I could understand if the corn company owned the land. But not if the farmers did and sold to the company.

 

The only ones to blame are the farmers and the government for not policing the farmers.

[justin case]

people who start the fire do it for money.... no morals in this fake society

[toenail]

The government ( or “unnamed” corporation) needs to provide machines ( harvester/ tractors) for removing the old corn stalks as the farmers use  in more advance countries. 

[metempsychotic]

10 minutes ago, justin case said:

people who start the fire do it for money.... no morals in this fake society

What does the term fake society even mean? 

[Vacuum]

Who owns the forests which were blamed for causing the smoke/smog a couple of days ago?

[Liverpudlian]

Money is king ! folks are dispensable .

[Zack61]

29 minutes ago, robblok said:

So its the corn company that is to blame even though the farmers do the burning. Strange logic. I could understand if the corn company owned the land. But not if the farmers did and sold to the company.

 

The only ones to blame are the farmers and the government for not policing the farmers.

The company could however take an ethical stance and buy only from farmers who did not burn. They do have a responsibility in this sense to source their product from a responsible, sustainable source. Corporations cannot abdicate their responsibilities as easy as you suggest. 

[cmsally]

38 minutes ago, robblok said:

So its the corn company that is to blame even though the farmers do the burning. Strange logic. I could understand if the corn company owned the land. But not if the farmers did and sold to the company.

 

The only ones to blame are the farmers and the government for not policing the farmers.

 

 

Quote

U Ba Gyi said, “Only about 5 percent of farmers can afford machinery, despite the government’s efforts to mechanise agriculture. Only rich people can buy those machines”, he said.

Source: Myanmar Times

 

The production has been driven to Myanmar and Laos basically to get the cheapest production costs and therefore make the most profit.

[robblok]

9 minutes ago, cmsally said:

 

 

Source: Myanmar Times

 

The production has been driven to Myanmar and Laos basically to get the cheapest production costs and therefore make the most profit.

That still does not change my view, its the farmers who burn not that company. Does the company tell them to burn ?. Its always easy to try to stick it to a big company seems popular but its the farmers who own the land and do the burning.

 

The company could be ethical and help, but the problem starts with the farmers. Just my opinion. 

[Oww]

DHANIN CHEARAVANONT!!! (CP is the company)

(The scourge of Thailand in so many ways!)

Now you know what to do Thailand-BOYCOT 7-11!!!

There I've said it....so sue a cheap Charlie farang for defamation, your welcome to my 15yr old pickup truck and sneaker collection...

Btw Dhanin's estimated worth;

OVER 1,000 BILLION BAHT.

Lol...

cough cough...

 

 

[cmsally]

The farmers buy the seed , fertilisers, pesticide from the company. They then sell the harvest back to the company. Often you have middlemen handling any loans too.

The company would be well aware that there is no budget for machinery or labour intensive clearing.

If they cared for the environment why would they concentrate on driving production to areas with the cheapest costs and no regulation. The only concern is what goes in their pockets at the end of the day.

[Borzandy]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

‘Big firm’ blamed for the North’s smog nightmare

BUT Big firm is untouchable.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

1 hour ago, dinsdale said:

I see lots of ill fitting masks on those kids. Teacher's wearing N95 but not sure about the kiddies.

 Most or all of the little kids in the article's photo appear to be wearing the standard paper drug store type masks, which do little to nothing for PM2.5, in part because they don't create an air tight seal around the edges where the mask comes in contact with the face. And the mask material itself is not made for or capable of filtering out PM2.5.

 

 

[sammieuk1]

Sure BJ will make a crackdown on ecig sellers and vapours statement to combat the wheezing problem????

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

I'm not a CM local, so forgive me, but this latest article focusing on corn production is making me a bit confused.

 

In following this issue over time, I've generally seen the north burning debacle discussed as being general crop clearing AND forest burning as part of the mushroom growing/harvesting process. But now today's article suddenly is talking like it's all about corn growing -- and no mention of forests and mushrooms at all.

 

What gives???

 

 

 

[les Dennis]

I personally would like to see someone produce face masks with beer logos on to highlight how messed up the Thai law and its priorities are

[Oww]

10 minutes ago, sammieuk1 said:

Sure BJ will make a crackdown on ecig sellers and vapours statement to combat the wheezing problem

Where do people buy cigarettes...

Another clue as to why vaping is illegal.

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

 

The other thing about children, especially young children, is because their faces are SMALLER, regular ADULT sized masks often won't fit properly and provide an effective seal.

 

3M and some other brands make "S" type smaller sized masks designed to fit smaller faces vs their regular adult sized masks.  But whether any of those are available to schools in the CM area is an open question. Some of the masks in the photo above look way to big for the kids' faces.

 

Edited April 2, 2019 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[lemonjelly]

I remember when farmers were allowed to burn straw stubble in the UK, but they aren’t allowed now and don’t because the police actually get off their derierres

[Vacuum]

57 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 Most or all of the little kids in the article's photo appear to be wearing the standard paper drug store type masks, which do little to nothing for PM2.5, in part because they don't create an air tight seal around the edges where the mask comes in contact with the face. And the mask material itself is not made for or capable of filtering out PM2.5.

 

 

Probably just a photo op.