Exactly How _Is_ The Air Quality In Chiang Mai ?

[WinnieTheKhwai]

indeed we're in a spike today:

Or the edge of a "plateau"?

Possibly; you never know until you get there. It does seem to be clearing up this evening, just visually looking at things further away.

Local burning in particular areas may add to it in some places; I walked out of the office and in that spot it was really bad; but I could see the mountain so I knew it had to be something local.

Anyway, spikes and plateaus will increase in intensity and duration over the next 5-6 weeks; no escaping that. (Well, short of going to Pattaya. There's worse things than that. )

[CobraSnakeNecktie]

WTK has it right.. We don't know until it happens.

Last year at this time it started to rain and rain consistently. It was a great surprise and kept the air clean. I had decided to stay and loved it.

If it doesn't rain for the next 8 or so weeks then it's going to be hell.

I am flying out in one week but will still pray for rain.... Maybe the good luck of last year will hold.

[mcgriffith]

I live on the 11th floor of an apt bldg almost at the end of Huay Kaew Road. About 1 km from the main gate to CMU.

Wed morning I woke up, looked out...and could barely make out Wat Doi Suthep, which is almost always clearly visible.

Looking to the north towards Mae Rim....I could see about 2 nautical miles, to use aviation terms. Absolutely hazed out, could barely make out tall buildings at that distance. Mountains to the north of course completely invisible.

Tonight, there was a rather large brushfire on the mountain to the north and west of the Royal Thai Naval Station. Burned from about dusk- was a rather large fireline with a huge plume of smoke. As the wind here was blowing from the NNE, all the smoke from this fire was billowing over the area around the soccer field near the entrance of CMU. It almost looked as though a few shophouses were on fire in the area, if one didn't know and see where the smoke was coming from on the mountain.

If one lives downtown, at ground level, and your whole frame of reference is the tree across the street, or perhaps in a moo baan blessed with prevailing winds that blow a certain way....probably you might think this is all nonsense, this smoke thing.

It was really bad today, worst I've seen since the year the sun went dark midday a few years ago.

And to see this happening, this early in mid-Feb, doesn't portend well for the next month or so until May rain starts.

It's logical that with all the rain we had last rainy season, there is a lot more vegetation...and a lot more vegetation to be burned off.

[Tywais]

It was really bad today, worst I've seen since the year the sun went dark midday a few years ago.

Definitely the worse this year today. Out near Hang Dong this morning the haze was thick and my eyes are still burning and the smell of smoke permeating my house.

[jonwilly]

I have lived in CM for 11 years now.

From my condo 8th floor, there where some years when I could look down and see the blanket of 'Smog' over CM town.

I was never really affected by the Pollution until the winter the Royal Flower show opened.

That year the massive number of Tour Buses seemed to me, to increase the ground level pollution and I have been susceptible since.

For last two years I have gone away to the seaside, Cha Am.

Plans are advanced for a quick move now.

john

[Thailand]

Doi Suthep has disappeared usually a fairly good indicator that the burning season is in full swing.

Played golf at Hang Dong this morning smoke and stink all around. Guess the pollution police can't see the fires burning for the smog!

Er indoors coughing well!

Stay way unless you really need to come here.

Edited February 16, 2012 by Thailand

[chiang mai]

From where I live on the eigth floor in Watkate (Good View/Riverside area) I can normally see Doi Suthep in much detail, today I can just see RAM, not good.

[Tywais]

Satellite fire map. Since this is a linked map so when it updates on the remote site it will automatically update in this topic. May need to reload page to get the changes.

[Tywais]

Since there are 3 ongoing topics I felt it would be better to centralize the information into a single topic shown below.

http://www.thaivisa....012-chiang-mai/

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