Air Quality In Mae Sai Hits Dangerous Levels: Thailand

[webfact]

HAZE

Air quality in Mae Sai hits dangerous levels

THE NATION

CHIANG RAI: -- Smog in Chiang Rai's Mae Sai district worsened yesterday, with small dust particles jumping to 305.6 micrograms per cubic metre of air - the highest in the country.

Chiang Rai Governor Thanin Supasean, who is studying the situation, handed out masks yesterday.

For people to remain in sound health, each cubic metre of air should contain no more than 120 micrograms of small dust particles, which are PM10 in size.

Once the amount of dust particles goes beyond 200 micrograms, people are usually advised to stay indoors. However, the situation in Mae Sai was clearly worse.

An informed source said yesterday that the smog in Chiang Rai was getting serious because farmers in a neighbouring country had started burning up forests to clear land for the upcoming farming season.

Residents in Chiang Rai's Muang district were also at risk as the amount of PM10 particles hovered around 219.3 micrograms per cubic metre of air.

Meanwhile, Apicha Trasin, chairman of the Chiang Rai Tourism Association, warned that if this situation continues for any longer, it could harm people's health and scare away tourists. In Chiang Mai, each cubic metre of air was found to contain 200.72 micrograms of small dust particles and the problem was found to be persisting despite the rain-making operations.

Chiang Mai Tour Guide Association chairman Somrit Haikham has called on all relevant parties to join hands in extinguishing forest fires, strictly controlling dust from construction sites and preventing people from setting fires for land-clearing purposes.

Mae Hong Son had about 168.88 micrograms of small dust particles per cubic metre of air.

Pai Tourism Club chairwoman Walaiporn Ruangnitikul said the smog was worse this year compared to last year. Pai is a popular tourist destination in Mae Hong Son.

"Smog hits us between mid-February and mid-March every year, but this year it is more severe," she said, adding that tourists were only expected to return once the rainy season begins.

The air quality in some other northern provinces was also worrying, with its amount reaching 243.13 micrograms per cubic metre of air in Phayao, 206.67 micrograms in Lampang, 202 micrograms in Phrae, 165.25 micrograms in Nan and 136.04 micrograms in Lamphun.

-- The Nation 2012-03-02

[JeremyBowskill]

Hahahahaha Nothing to do with us its Laos and Burmas fault!! much easier to shift the blame than actually do something about it.

[Reasonableman]

Is anyone seriously trying to determine specifically who, the individual, is responsible for any of the fires? Or is it just more mai pen rai, it's normal, everything passes in time... Just wait... ?

[Jessi]

As usual the Thais are blaming some one else for their problem...........Nothing new here

[wolfmuc]

Hahahahaha Nothing to do with us its Laos and Burmas fault!! much easier to shift the blame than actually do something about it.

You're quite right. But have an additional look here: http://firefly.geog....=5&i=er&l=ad,ct - , (it seems to be a reversal of the flooding 2011).

Is anyone seriously trying to determine specifically who, the individual, is responsible for any of the fires? Or is it just more mai pen rai, it's normal, everything passes in time... Just wait... ?

I fear it is normal. So just wait. Or go. Or what? - Thanks for your first sentence.

BTW thanks to all thaivisa members for interesting links.

[belg]

thailand, the hub for smog / trash burning

<deleted> also in our moo bahn just burn stuff that ungulfs the whole area and police is doing... ah yes, nothign

[puck2]

OP

…..Once the amount of dust particles goes beyond 200 micrograms, people are usually advised to stay indoors. However, the situation in Mae Sai was clearly worse.

…….

Mae Hong Son had about 168.88 micrograms of small dust particles per cubic metre of air. ……………

Here

or here

or here in a hilltribe scholl

or maybe here

Edited March 2, 2012 by puck2

[blazes]

Doi Suthep was belching smoke last night. I asked my gf <deleted> is going on....hill tribes, she answered.

Visibility in Chiang Mai (now 12 pm, Friday) is about one kilometre.

The situation is dire.

[puck2]

By my own knowledge, in our village the fires are made by hill tribes and by the local Thais, people with a special vitamin …

[rijit]

Doi Suthep was belching smoke last night. I asked my gf <deleted> is going on....hill tribes, she answered.

Visibility in Chiang Mai (now 12 pm, Friday) is about one kilometre.

The situation is dire.

Wow , my mother used to tell me stories of the london smogs of the 1950's where it was so thick you held out your hand in front of you and you couldnt see your fingers!!! Ive read articles that have said that year 54?? there were approaching 10,000 extra deaths directly down to that polution and unofficaailly there are suggestions it could be as much as double that, and who knows the effects on long term health.

It's very dificult to tell the farmers what to do when their lively hood depends on it.

[blazes]

Doi Suthep was belching smoke last night. I asked my gf <deleted> is going on....hill tribes, she answered.

Visibility in Chiang Mai (now 12 pm, Friday) is about one kilometre.

The situation is dire.

Wow , my mother used to tell me stories of the london smogs of the 1950's where it was so thick you held out your hand in front of you and you couldnt see your fingers!!! Ive read articles that have said that year 54?? there were approaching 10,000 extra deaths directly down to that polution and unofficaailly there are suggestions it could be as much as double that, and who knows the effects on long term health.

It's very dificult to tell the farmers what to do when their lively hood depends on it.

Yes, I remember smogs in Manchester up to (?) 1961. You could just about see your hand held in front of you. Then magically it all disappeared the next year. The Clean Air Act banned the burning of coal in cities...only smokeless fuel allowed.

But ....that was in a country where compliance with the law was enforceable.

I don't think hill tribes livelihoods depend on burning. The Government of Thailand could educate and finance a change, but......

Edited March 2, 2012 by blazes

[LingLek]

Almost insuperable problem. Thai farmers need quick returns; they can't afford to sit around watching rice husks mulch. 'The government should' formula for this might be: provide a tractor for each village and subsidize benzine for padi-plowing, penalizing those who continue to slash-and-burn... But of course the farmers will likely spend the funds on a 52 inch flat screen TV, and continue to burn the land. Does Singapore still have a haze problem? If not, how was the situation sorted?

[jambodave]

head man on the loud speaker as I type can"t see the speaker for all the fires in the moo bahn

[johnopolo]

If you would like to see EXACTLY where all the major fires are burning, in almost real time, just go here:

( seems one can't post links here so just figure this out - map dot geog dot umd dot edu/firms/kml dot htm )

Of course you have to have Google Earth installed.