CM forum does not have that many people actually participating on the forum. Mostly the usual suspects.

Nonetheless,  anyone like to give a serious answer to my question:   Who among you  1. definitely plan to sell up and move   2. Seriously thinking about it   3.  Its crossed my mind, but don't have any plans at all

4.  A lot depends on how next year at this time is (pollution wise)  NOTE:  question pertains to anyone in North of Thailand who is affected by the air.

I hesitate to start a new topic,  as I am sure this will give the holed up trolls plenty of fodder.  Some honest responses mixed in would be nice

no plans to move

Definitely not moving.

We have pollution proofed our house and bought a shipload of masks. There is not going to be any improvement in the situation in northern Thailand next year or probably in my lifetime but I see no reason to leave what for me is a very enjoyable city.

 

Wherever you go to there will be problems. Air pollution is but one, and a very common one in most cities on the planet. So I prefer to respond positively to the circumstances rather than scuttling away to somewhere else, only to discover that there are just as many issues there.

No plans to move as even with the pollution, where I’m staying is 10 times more pleasant than Bkk in the evenings. If next year’s pollution is as bad, I will just take extended holidays down south


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Moving from CM has crossed my mind, but I don't know where to go.  I really don't like having to leave or stay inside for 2-3 months every year.

1 hour ago, Kelsall said:

Moving from CM has crossed my mind, but I don't know where to go.  I really don't like having to leave or stay inside for 2-3 months every year.

Took Dtong !  or in english...  I feel the same way !

No plans to move, but won't be here for majority of this 5hit show next year. 

No plans to move, but definitely holidaying somewhere else next March.

5 minutes ago, banagan said:

No plans to move, but won't be here for majority of this 5hit show next year. 

Of course those of us with property and/or families here would have a much tougher time deciding to move.

Not like we can just go to Payao or Lampang either.  Love the north and have been here a long time, but this extended period of pollution is a first for me.  

I stayed for 3 years (moved in below when it was new before the pool) till the coughing got to me and I moved to Pattaya.  Liked the people and air a lot better. 

Out the country in less than a week thank Dog. Back later in the year and will be gone from CM permanently shortly after. Not putting up with this again.

No plans to move. For the few weeks that the air is really bad, I'll wear a mask. The rest of the year I find Chiang Mai to be the perfect place for us.

I love Chiang Mai.

Thinking about moving, but nothing planned because for now from next year on I will go away as before, with the exception of this year.

It depends also on whether this years high AQI values were an exception or the new normal.

 

But having your purifiers and masks for the time you have to stay here is only a temporary solution. Someday you might have to go to hospital, so if that is during burning season which is likely as it is 3 months long, it is not pleasant. Also depending on your age you might not want to travel so much and stay more time at home, being in your "cage" at home for 3 months is not everyones thing.

 

During this years smoky season I stayed because of an embassy visit and immigration stuff. Talking to people there I needed to take my mask off, otherwise nobody can understand me and I make just a fool of myself because people are not aware of the effects of air pollution.

 

Like you said, I do not know where else to go which is why I stay. I love the city and Thailand.

 

But I am flexible, if I ever have to move away (e.g. changes in immigration or much worse pollution) I could perhaps go to Pattaya, Da Nang or Cebu. I do not own much here - could pack up quickly and move if required. No desire to have more assets here, that is not against Thailand, just a general thing to make my life easy and flexible.

 

I have also realized that it will not change. So we either live with it / travel during that time or move away. The corruption means nothing will be done about the burning but it also means visas for younger people in Chiang Mai will stay easy, so it has a good and bad side.

1 hour ago, sharktooth said:

Out the country in less than a week thank Dog. Back later in the year and will be gone from CM permanently shortly after. Not putting up with this again.

Where will you move and how did you chose your new place?

1 hour ago, FolkGuitar said:

No plans to move. For the few weeks that the air is really bad, I'll wear a mask. The rest of the year I find Chiang Mai to be the perfect place for us.

Few weeks was never a problem for me.  This year going on at least 2 months.  That is a little hard to swallow .   The few times there was a flood I knew it was no big deal,  and not something that happens often.   I hope like I'm sure you all do that this is not going to be repeated every year, and I never was concerned before.   I am now.

44 minutes ago, cerox said:

Also depending on your age you might not want to travel so much and stay more time at home, being in your "cage" at home for 3 months is not everyones thing.

I am quite content to stay at home.   But not IN THE HOME.  Looking out at five rai of land from the window is definitely not my thing.  No bike rides, no gardening, no deep breaths, not fun.

Been in CM eight years smog every year for eight, I did wear a mask this year. No not moving a few months of crap doesn't over rule the rest of the year

The cry was No Surrender

I’m living in north Chiang Mai for 7 years. Having a land and finishing to build a house. North is a nice place but....

Every years, in smog season I must leave CM renting a house in the east or south’ s beaches from febraury to april. My G/F works online, so no problem and I just retired so we feel good to changue the scenary, and enjoy the sea until end of Sonkrang...

And My dog agree to run on the sand until fall exausted each day.

3 minutes ago, Tarteso said:

I’m living in north Chiang Mai for 7 years. Having a land and finishing to build a house. North is a nice place but....

Every years, in smog season I must leave CM renting a house in the east or south’ s beaches from febraury to april. My G/F works online, so no problem and I just retired so we feel good to changue the scenary, and enjoy the sea until end of Sonkrang...

And My dog agree to run on the sand until fall exausted each day.

That is the perfect solution, only stay in CM when it is smog free. I’d still like to stay in the north but realise I need to also spend around 5 months somewhere else.

1 hour ago, rumak said:

Few weeks was never a problem for me.  This year going on at least 2 months.  That is a little hard to swallow .   The few times there was a flood I knew it was no big deal,  and not something that happens often.   I hope like I'm sure you all do that this is not going to be repeated every year, and I never was concerned before.   I am now.

 

I don't put on the mask when the air starts going bad. I put it on when I can't see 500m. So for me, that's just a few weeks.  I did far more harm to myself as a 30-a-day cigarette smoker for 43 years. At worst, they say this is like smoking 7 a day. And I'm quite sure that this WILL go on for several more years... Unfortunately. Things like this don't change that quickly here. Government made the Ban. No one enforces it effectively.  TIT. 

Yes 100% by the end of the year 10 smokers is enough????

3 hours ago, cerox said:

Where will you move and how did you chose your new place?

Anywhere south of here in this country mate. 

1 hour ago, FolkGuitar said:

 

I don't put on the mask when the air starts going bad. I put it on when I can't see 500m. So for me, that's just a few weeks.  I did far more harm to myself as a 30-a-day cigarette smoker for 43 years. At worst, they say this is like smoking 7 a day. And I'm quite sure that this WILL go on for several more years... Unfortunately. Things like this don't change that quickly here. Government made the Ban. No one enforces it effectively.  TIT. 

i was a smoker, and a doper, and a bit of a groper, not to mention a joker.  not much of a folker but I did

like Dylan.  Now i'm starting to be a moper and certainly a hoper....that something blows this bloody air awayyyy

There is so much misinformation, some of it driven by vested interests whose businesses depend on newbies continuing to flow into Chiang Mai.

The most dangerous pollution, particulate matter of 2.5 micrometers or smaller, bears surprisingly little connection to the pollution you can see. Some of the most dangerous days actually have reasonable visibility. Previous years that some say were "fine" were, in fact, highly dangerous.

The comparison with smoking is also misleading. These particles are far smaller than anything in cigarettes. Saying that it doesn't matter because you smoked for year makes no sense - even limited exposure to 2.5 micrometer particulates will damage your body more than decades of smoking. It is a completely different form of damage, getting deep into your lungs and bloodstream.

No-one with options should stay in Chiang Mai during any part of January, February, March or April. The situation is not going to improve during our lifetimes. No matter what they say, no Thai government will have the power to fix this, and the cross-border problem is increasing each decade, not diminishing.

For me, Chiang Mai will continue to be a pleasant place to spend around half the year, but I won't buy property there. If I had children, I would live elsewhere - the impact of air pollution at this level on growing bodies is horrific.

I also won't retire there when I am no longer able to keep moving around. The impact of even moderate air pollution on cardiac and neurological health is well-documented, but no-one really knows how much worse exposure to these unprecedented levels may be. We do not know how painful and expensive the consequences will be, but we know they won't be good.

1 hour ago, donnacha said:

There is so much misinformation, some of it driven by vested interests whose businesses depend on newbies continuing to flow into Chiang Mai.

The most dangerous pollution, particulate matter of 2.5 micrometers or smaller, bears surprisingly little connection to the pollution you can see. Some of the most dangerous days actually have reasonable visibility. Previous years that some say were "fine" were, in fact, highly dangerous.

The comparison with smoking is also misleading. These particles are far smaller than anything in cigarettes. Saying that it doesn't matter because you smoked for year makes no sense - even limited exposure to 2.5 micrometer particulates will damage your body more than decades of smoking. It is a completely different form of damage, getting deep into your lungs and bloodstream.

No-one with options should stay in Chiang Mai during any part of January, February, March or April. The situation is not going to improve during our lifetimes. No matter what they say, no Thai government will have the power to fix this, and the cross-border problem is increasing each decade, not diminishing.

For me, Chiang Mai will continue to be a pleasant place to spend around half the year, but I won't buy property there. If I had children, I would live elsewhere - the impact of air pollution at this level on growing bodies is horrific.

I also won't retire there when I am no longer able to keep moving around. The impact of even moderate air pollution on cardiac and neurological health is well-documented, but no-one really knows how much worse exposure to these unprecedented levels may be. We do not know how painful and expensive the consequences will be, but we know they won't be good.

Agree, except January is really not bad, even this year, until mid February it wasn't really dangerous.

When you look at particulate pollutant and the content of that pollutant, take into account what the first responders encountered during 9/11 - and the aftermath to their health. Short term oh-well to long term oh-sh*t.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Normally arrive in October and leave April, probably cut my yearly stay and leave in March.

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One advantage to being old... I'm no longer worried about 'long term' effects.

I am intrigued, though, by the effect my decision to stay has on some people. They actually seem angry that I choose not to get more upset by the air quality. It's as if they take my decision personally.

This year the smog really got to me, so we decided to escape to Bangkok, until it is gone. 

 

I will stay and then leave for 2-3 months every year. Luckily we have the option to do that. If I was forced to stay during the smoke season, I would have left already.

 

I really feel sorry for the city and people of CM. Especially for the people who can not escape. And I feel sorry for the tourists who unknowingly come and get their health damaged.

 

Shame on the government for letting their citizens and tourists suffer this.