Air Pollution Crisis Escalates with Hotspots Surge

[snoop1130]

 

The Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA) reported detecting nearly 6,000 hotspots across neighboring countries on Sunday (Feb 11), with Cambodia accounting for the majority at over 4,000.

 

Satellite data from the Suomi NPP satellite identified a total of 5,823 hotspots, with Myanmar, Laos, and Vietnam also contributing to the count.

 

Within Thailand, 601 hotspots were observed, particularly in Kanchanaburi province, which had the highest number at 110.

 

By Goongnang Suksawat

 

Full story: The Pattaya News 2024-02-12

 

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[AlexRich]

I think Thailand is a great place, but this is the one aspect that puts me off staying here full time. 
 

I am not entirely sure what the impact is on a persons life, but my guess is that you shorten your lifespan living here. It’s like taking up smoking in your twilight years … not recommended.

[sidjameson]

If you put Thailand air in a tank and tried to bribe people in a normal environment to breath it, most would not consider it at any cost..

 

Yes, I left for 3 months last week. 

 

[hotchilli]

10 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

The Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA) reported detecting nearly 6,000 hotspots across neighboring countries on Sunday (Feb 11), with Cambodia accounting for the majority at over 4,000.

 

Satellite data from the Suomi NPP satellite identified a total of 5,823 hotspots, with Myanmar, Laos, and Vietnam also contributing to the count.

 

Within Thailand, 601 hotspots were observed, particularly in Kanchanaburi province, which had the highest number at 110

It's an Asian thing... burning is their go-to method.

[DPKANKAN]

8.00 this morning already!!

[Tropicalevo]

Pretty good here on Samui.

Blue skies with a bit of cloud.

What is the current air quality in Ko Samui?

Air pollution level	Air quality index	Main pollutant
Moderate	61 US AQI	PM2.5 (17µg/m³)

[motdaeng]

If you like your health, it's important to wear a n95 mask / using an air purifier.

the air quality has deteriorated in recent weeks, as it does every year this time around.

investing in a pm2.5 meter and you will see how bad the air is in your home ...

 

https://aqicn.org/country/thailand/

 

 

   

 

[Poilu]

In upper Nonthaburi province the PM2.5 meter is now reading 121 in my garden. There is acrid smoke in the air from surrounding rice fields.

[Tarteso]

Have sense, pay double Taxes for live in Thailand…The Paradise.

[spidermike007]

When you have a crisis that is not being addressed, by do nothing politicians like the current PM, this is what happens. Real problems need real solutions. I could come up with 10 of them but so far the people in charge have not come up with one, other than discouraging people from burning incense during Chinese New Year. 

[John Drake]

Today has another horrific cloud of pollutants. But nothing will ever be done until Chinese tourists start falling over dead in the streets.

[Amethyst]

An image lacking any identification of or weblink to its source has been removed for contravening the forum's Community Standards.

 

"In factual areas such as news forums and current affairs topics member content that is claimed or portrayed as a fact should be supported by a link to a relevant reputable source."

[rudi49jr]

4 hours ago, hotchilli said:

It's an Asian thing... burning is their go-to method.

Exactly. I truly believe that most Thai are pyromaniacs at heart, they just enjoy burning things. When I lived in CM, all my neighbors burned their waste, even when the air quality was already abysmal. One neighbor would rake the dead leaves and everything in his garden every day and then burn whatever he had raked together. And this was a professor at CMU. Either they don’t see the damage they’re doing, or they just don’t a give a damn. My money is on the latter.

[John Drake]

AQI of 169 in western suburbs of Bangkok at noon. 

[Gknrd]

16 hours ago, AlexRich said:

I think Thailand is a great place, but this is the one aspect that puts me off staying here full time. 
 

I am not entirely sure what the impact is on a persons life, but my guess is that you shorten your lifespan living here. It’s like taking up smoking in your twilight years … not recommended.

I tried living there, when I was younger it was barely tolerable. As I got older it turned into a major health issue for me. Luckily I had the fund to escape.  Miserable is an understatement.

[Dogmatix]

4 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

When you have a crisis that is not being addressed, by do nothing politicians like the current PM, this is what happens. Real problems need real solutions. I could come up with 10 of them but so far the people in charge have not come up with one, other than discouraging people from burning incense during Chinese New Year. 

The PM is busy trying to please his master by making great efforts to sell the unviable land bridge to foreigners (to get big consulting contracts) and get the digital wallet done, which will probably tie him up in legal knots and pave the way for the master's daughter to step in. 

[spidermike007]

2 hours ago, Gknrd said:

I tried living there, when I was younger it was barely tolerable. As I got older it turned into a major health issue for me. Luckily I had the fund to escape.  Miserable is an understatement.

Many of us really like it here. For a dozen good reasons. The The air is horrific. And nothing is being done about it. The regressive politics are annoying too, but these days I try not to think about politics much, as it tends to be a worldwide sewer.

 

Some of us have been fortunate enough to find an outstanding woman, who is delightful to be around, on a daily basis, always has our back, and is fun, smart, and lovely. For me, that likelihood of finding that back in the US, would be very low. So, that is a big factor for me. The second factor is just the quality of life. Sure, I miss alot of the culture back home. The theatre, independent film (which I can download here with no issues at all, and a super fast 1 gbps fiber optic connection, at under 700 baht per month!), stand up comedy, live jazz, etc. But I have a lovely home that I rent, for about 10% of what I would pay in California, I live very well on an income which is not huge, have access to great health care, at a tiny fraction of what it costs in the US, and do not have to put up with alot of the aggravation that I had to when I lived back there.

It is a very personal choice. I have friends who seem to be dropping like flies. I could be dead next year. You just don't know. I am not extravagant, but I live very, very well. A nice house, a new car every few years, new motorbikes for my gal and I every few years, a great art collection, plenty of good wine in the wine cooler, a new 77" OLED TV, a world class home theatre, plenty of international travel, etc. For me, it is a great lifestyle, that I could only dream of in the US. Well worth the expense and very easy to justify. Life is way too short. I have never been a person of extreme thrift. To each his own.

I used to have more issues than I do now. I worked on my attitude, which was getting in the way of appreciating Thailand for what it is, and was clouding my experience here. Used to stress over stupid stuff, as you can see from some of my past posts. Used to allow the politics to make me angry. Now it is not something I take seriously, just something I comment on, without anger or an emotional investment. Now, I just tend to laugh it off. Spent some real time back in the US recently, and it allowed some clarity and perspective, that I am very grateful for. Now, I just chuckle at most of the nonsense. Water off a duck's back, so to speak.
 

[Mr Derek]

Cambodia is the problem at the moment and the airstream is coming from that direction.

 

 

https://firms2.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov/map/#d:today;l:fires_all,street;@103.0,14.5,6.6z 

[Arindos]

It reminds me of the people who talk about living in the newly developed cities of Seoul, Beijing, Delhi etc... when the air quality in those cities is horrible.  But the solution is to not only build better public transport systems but also force people to use them. 

[sidjameson]

1 hour ago, spidermike007 said:

Many of us really like it here. For a dozen good reasons. The The air is horrific. And nothing is being done about it. The regressive politics are annoying too, but these days I try not to think about politics much, as it tends to be a worldwide sewer.

 

Some of us have been fortunate enough to find an outstanding woman, who is delightful to be around, on a daily basis, always has our back, and is fun, smart, and lovely. For me, that likelihood of finding that back in the US, would be very low. So, that is a big factor for me. The second factor is just the quality of life. Sure, I miss alot of the culture back home. The theatre, independent film (which I can download here with no issues at all, and a super fast 1 gbps fiber optic connection, at under 700 baht per month!), stand up comedy, live jazz, etc. But I have a lovely home that I rent, for about 10% of what I would pay in California, I live very well on an income which is not huge, have access to great health care, at a tiny fraction of what it costs in the US, and do not have to put up with alot of the aggravation that I had to when I lived back there.

It is a very personal choice. I have friends who seem to be dropping like flies. I could be dead next year. You just don't know. I am not extravagant, but I live very, very well. A nice house, a new car every few years, new motorbikes for my gal and I every few years, a great art collection, plenty of good wine in the wine cooler, a new 77" OLED TV, a world class home theatre, plenty of international travel, etc. For me, it is a great lifestyle, that I could only dream of in the US. Well worth the expense and very easy to justify. Life is way too short. I have never been a person of extreme thrift. To each his own.

I used to have more issues than I do now. I worked on my attitude, which was getting in the way of appreciating Thailand for what it is, and was clouding my experience here. Used to stress over stupid stuff, as you can see from some of my past posts. Used to allow the politics to make me angry. Now it is not something I take seriously, just something I comment on, without anger or an emotional investment. Now, I just tend to laugh it off. Spent some real time back in the US recently, and it allowed some clarity and perspective, that I am very grateful for. Now, I just chuckle at most of the nonsense. Water off a duck's back, so to speak.
 

Smart post. But a very simple question. If there was a law that you had to smoke 20 cigarette a day to stay in Thailand would you stay?

I fear the situation is actually worse than that.

[Gknrd]

3 hours ago, sidjameson said:

Smart post. But a very simple question. If there was a law that you had to smoke 20 cigarette a day to stay in Thailand would you stay?

I fear the situation is actually worse than that.

My thought exactly. I prefer to live the last few years of my life breathing good air, exercising . Good quality of life matters to me. Everyone makes their own choices in life.

[lordgrinz]

Here in Muang Thong Thani the air is filled with eye burning smoke, I haven't seen it this bad before, just a quick walk with the dog and my eyes and throat are burning and irritated. Stay safe, and don't go out if you don't have to.

[puck2]

4 hours ago, sidjameson said:

Smart post. But a very simple question. If there was a law that you had to smoke 20 cigarette a day to stay in Thailand would you stay?

I fear the situation is actually worse than that.

 

Not at all here in the Pang Mapha Valley. Nearly dustfree, that usually will change in the middle of March (for ~+1 month).

[sidjameson]

1 hour ago, puck2 said:

 

Not at all here in the Pang Mapha Valley. Nearly dustfree, that usually will change in the middle of March (for ~+1 month).

https://aqicn.org/city/thailand/pang-ma-pha-hospital/

 

It's the 2.5 that's killing you. Doesn't look that good to me.

 

8 months of the year is ok. But 4 months of the year you're a 24/7 smoker.

Edited February 13 by sidjameson

[mommysboy]

14 hours ago, Tropicalevo said:

Pretty good here on Samui.

Blue skies with a bit of cloud.

What is the current air quality in Ko Samui?

Air pollution level	Air quality index	Main pollutant
Moderate	61 US AQI	PM2.5 (17µg/m³)

 

Actually, air pollution isn't as bad this year- yet anyway.

 

Obviously some places are relatively free particularly in the south, but that hardly lessens the extent of the issue in other regions. 

[BKKKevin]

I'm confused!?... Didn't the Prime Minister say last week that this problem was solved?... 

[lordgrinz]

19 minutes ago, BKKKevin said:

I'm confused!?... Didn't the Prime Minister say last week that this problem was solved?... 

 

Well, he went and talked to Cambodia about this issue last week, that obviously went nowhere. But the Pot calling the Kettle black probably fell on deaf ears anyways.

[soi3eddie]

All of this is terrifying. Here in central Bangkok, it's so bad. No wonder so many are still wearing facemasks.

 

[DonniePeverley]

Absolutely disgusting today in Bangkok. You could actually see the misty pollution around you. 

[Simon1287]

If you must stay in Thailand for these few months of the year then move far south if it's at all possible for you. 

Anywhere south of about Chumphon is usually far better in the polluted months.