Govt urged to increase budget to tackle severe air pollution, drought

[webfact]

Govt urged to increase budget to tackle severe air pollution, drought

By The Nation

 

Asst Prof Dr Anusorn Tamajai

 

The Economic and Business Research Centre of Rangsit University’s Institute of Economics urged the government to raise the budget and accelerate allocation to resolve the impact of PM2.5 dust particles and the drought.

 

The director of the centre, Asst Prof Dr Anusorn Tamajai, said on Sunday (January 12) that Bangkok – including its surrounding areas – is currently ranked among the cities with the highest air pollution in the world. Therefore, the government should allocate more money to mitigate the impact as soon as possible.

 

“The Barcelona Institute for Global Health’s latest research stated that aside from causing respiratory, lung and heart diseases, air pollution affects the eyes and can also lead to mental diseases, osteoporosis, and foetal development,” he said.

 

“The government should issue the clean air act and establish a fund for the environment and quality of life to launch measures to reduce the impact on citizens, especially people with low incomes and those who are vulnerable to air pollution.”

 

Anusorn said the latest study by the Journal of Environmental Economics and Management stated that the severity of air pollution also leads to a rise in crime rates, especially physical assaults, when the level of PM2.5 dust particles increase by 10 microgrammes per cubic metre.

 

“Physical assaults increase by around 1.4 per cent in areas with air pollution. If the ozone toxicity increases by 0.01 parts per million, these crimes will increase by 0.97 per cent. Assaults which are not overly violent will also increase by 1.15 per cent,” Anusorn said.

 

“This case requires further research – whether these findings in the US, reported by BBC, exist in Thailand.”

 

He said a team of economists, environmental scientists and statisticians from Colorado State University found that reducing PM2.5 pollution by 10 per cent per day will save money of up to $1.1 million (Bt33 million) per year for handling criminal cases.

 

“Although this study cannot clearly explain how an increase in air pollution can affect people’s emotions and behaviour, it also requires further research to understand the mechanisms, especially in the case of Thai society,” he said.

 

“However, raising the budget for air pollution management is needed, because it will help to reduce expense on health services and crime management.”

Anusorn also said the impact of the drought on the economy, agriculture and industrial sectors in the Eastern Economic Corridor will lead to negative gross domestic product growth in the second quarter when compared to the first.

 

“The growth of GDP in the second quarter will be the same as the previous year. Last year, GDP expanded only 2.3 per cent, so this year it may expand lower than 2 per cent if the authorities do not prepare to tackle the impact from the drought,” he warned.

 

“This impact will cause off-season rice production to drop 50-60 per cent to 3.5 million tonnes, resulting in higher prices, and some farmers will lack income during summer. 

 

“Moreover, the price of food, pork, palm oil, drinking water, vegetables and fruit will also rise. Therefore, the government should increase the budget and accelerate disbursement for investment in water management to cope with the effects of the drought,” Anusorn advised.

 

He added that if the disbursement is delayed, the government should use quasi-fiscal measures through government banks in the form of low-interest loans and compensation.

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30380480

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2020-01-13

Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking Thailand news and visa info

[CGW]

Time to form a committee? or just continue ignoring that the country is deteriorating rapidly!

The two most important basic human needs, clean air  and water seem to be disappearing rather rapidly!

[zydeco]

Increase the budget. That'll do the trick. 

[zydeco]

21 minutes ago, webfact said:

“However, raising the budget for air pollution management is needed, because it will help to reduce expense on health services and crime management.”

Increasing the budget = reducing expenses???  And reducing crime to boot.

[Surelynot]

In Phetchabun. Can't see the 'mountains'. Drove up from Nong Bua Daeng. Smokey haze all the way. This has got to be stopped for the sake of the kids.

[RichardColeman]

15 hours ago, webfact said:

if the authorities do not prepare to tackle the impact from the drought

Think that's a given, mate

[RotBenz8888]

16 hours ago, webfact said:

Bangkok – including its surrounding areas – is currently ranked among the cities with the highest air pollution in the world.

What? The biggest effort ever in Thai history, the plastic bag ban, has lasted for 2 damn weeks, shouldn't there be any improvement by now????

[Assurancetourix]

15 hours ago, zydeco said:

Increase the budget. That'll do the trick. 

 

As usual blabla ..
increase the budget to do what?
buy more masks

or force factories to acquire equipment (expensive but essential) to reduce pollution?
or send the police to the countryside to impose substantial fines on farmers who burn their fields?

sending the police to the countryside would already be a fantastic thing; 14 years that I live there, in the countryside, never seen a cop in the village and even less on a dirt road ...

[Curt1591]

16 hours ago, webfact said:

The Economic and Business Research Centre of Rangsit University’s Institute of Economics urged the government to raise the budget and accelerate allocation

My guess is that Rangsit has a large facility waiting to research the problem.  

[SoilSpoil]

Lets start by closing down factories that accept burnt sugar cane. No budget needed.

[Tops]

17 hours ago, webfact said:

Bangkok – including its surrounding areas – is currently ranked among the cities with the highest air pollution in the world.

That's why I renamed the city to Bangsmok.

[RotBenz8888]

2 minutes ago, Tops said:

That's why I renamed the city to Bangsmok.

Either that or Smogkok.

[Jimbo2014]

The important thing is that you cant buy submarines with clean air.  There are no kickbacks.  I dont think this government will see the point to it.  LOS (Land of Smog)

[rwill]

Why not just start fining people for burning.  That would reduce the pollution and increase the budget.

[tomauasia]

Give me 100 handpicked soldiers well paid hit squad loyal.

I will remove the fake PM and police chief. Reform the RTP many get a amnesty some jailed in New prisons. The pollution crisis is due to no.pollicung and a weak leader who's feathering his needs.

[CGW]

1 hour ago, tomauasia said:

a weak leader who's feathering his needs.

& doing what he is told to do! 

[DrTuner]

It's cheaper to send the army to the fields. Shoot the farmers burning their fields on sight. After a few months they'll get the message.

[DLock]

“The government should issue the clean air act and establish a fund for the environment and quality of life to launch measures to reduce the impact on citizens, especially people with low incomes and those who are vulnerable to air pollution.”

 

Ok, so you have the Objective statement.

 

Now what you retards?

[sup3r1or]

Wait a second so he said that budget needs to increase to mitigate the effects of air pollution, wait. How about use it to solve the action pollution problem in the first place? Symptomatic treatment doesn't cure the desease 

[Sonhia]

Or more money in under table envelopes??

 

Enviroment! What enviroment? Does such a thing exsist?

 

From what I witness, plus the negative attitudes, it does not seem to exsist in the land of Paradise! 

 

Life is not important.

[overherebc]

From the first day monkeys/apes, whatever, stood up, the planet was doomed.

[Grossman]

More budget to tackle severe air pollution? An excellent idea.. but submarines.