These pictures were taken yesterday evening and this morning close to Canal Road in Hangdong.

The houses in the foreground are a few hundreds meters away.

The string of flames is far behind, stretching a kilometer wide or two from the far left to the far right of the picture. It is a continuous, fast moving death curtain (although houses block the view in the middle).

Large trees do survive. But only trees. All other wildlife is eradicated, except maybe a few animals buried deep into the ground and some fast running ones if they didn’t suffocate from the smoke.

We are here on the edge (or maybe already inside?) the Doi Suthep National park.

We are a couple of km from the Phuphing Royal Palace. Also a couple km from the Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep.

- Thank to the (failed) Copenhagen summit, global warming is definitely in everyone’s mind as a critical problem to be addressed urgently.

- The United Nations declared 2010 to be the International Year of Biodiversity. A species is believed to be wiped out from the panet every 15 minute.

- “Today (Thailand) tropical forests support some 15.000 species of vascular plants, roughly 16.000 known species of animals and about 10.000 known species of micro-organisms. It is believed that more than 100.000 species of living organisms in the tropical forests of Thailand are undiscovered (…)” Visut Baimai (Director of The Biodiversity Research and Training Program – Mahidol University); Foreword to the book “The National Parks and other Wild Places of Thailand”.

- Here, the burning season is widely blamed for seriously affecting people’s health year after year.

I lived here for several years but it stays completely out of my understanding that such destructive acts keep totally unrepressed.

I’m tired of hearing authorities “expressing concern”, “committed to monitor”, creating another “board of experts”, “launching campaigns”…

Is the concept of results totally alien to them?

I count this thread #5 for the season. Nice one.

So what are you gonna do about it? I'm interested in your solution.

Some weeds and undergrowth are burning. It's the dry season. That's what happens in the dry season. Go live at the UN or something.

earning billions (USD) overtake the country and do it better ...

oh no .. thaksin try that already ..

no seriously ... a change in any of this or related matters will take generations (or civil war)

There have been many deaths in Australia just over 1 year ago in bush fires. I am not a supporter of getting rid of trees, however the burning of under growth like this has been happening here for as can be remembered and longer. When the rain comes it all grows back again and regenerates. That is how it works. Not burning results in a build up of fuel (combustible plant material) if this is allowed then much more serious fires such as the Australian situation. These kind of fires are far more destructive and the forest will take far longer to recover and result in a lot of

You say "It is a continuous, fast moving death curtain" but your second photo shows quite clearly the ground is burnt but the trees are fine. Do yourself a favour and go back a few months after the rain has started it will not look like that at all.

Perhaps I will get flamed (pun intended) but you really need to look further into things and have a better understanding before making posts like you have.