This year marks first time Thailand is affected by forest fire smog after Songkran

[webfact]

This year marks first time country is affected by forest fire smog after Songkran

BANGKOK, 26 April 2016 (NNT) - The Pollution Control Department (PCD) has acknowledged that this year is the first time the country has been affected by forest fire smog in the period after Songkran. The haze and smog is due to severe drought and higher temperatures.

PCD Director-General Wijarn Simachaya, revealed that air quality monitoring in nine northern provinces showed medium to good air quality for the second consecutive day after the occurrence of rain in many areas. He confirmed that the PCD will continue to monitor the area for forest fires and unauthorized crop burning until the end of April as the drought has persisted for a long period while temperatures remain very high.

Mr Wijarn also revealed that the smog is mainly due to burning in neighboring countries such as Laos, and Myanmar as well as unauthorized burning in protected forest areas of Thailand. In a given day, 300 to 500 hot-spots can be identified while the PCD has acknowledged the importance of adjusting its plan to manage burn-offs in order to more effectively prevent burning in trespassed areas. As for forest encroachment, the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment will prepare a summary of all outstanding problems in early May.


-- NNT 2016-04-26

[streetsweeper]

"He confirmed that the PCD will continue to monitor the area for forest fires and unauthorized crop burning until the end of April"

My goodness!

When do they actually plan to take action and enforce the rules?

It isn't rocket science in determining who is lighting these fires!

It is incompetence, lack of leadership and a sense of public duty which accounts for decades of these infractions ( and the need to conduct an endless amount of monitoring and summaries)

Reminds me of the people in my condo who sweep the grit and floor junk out of their rooms and into the hallways!

[Somtamnication]

Only the beginning.

[Thailand]

Monitoring the fires is useless unless they actually do anything about it, and as mentioned, it's not exactly difficult to see the fires in the majority of cases.

And huge swathes of blackened areas could also be a clue to those monitoring if they miss the plumes of smoke rising in the first instance.

[dcnx]

Uhhh, no it's not.

[NongKhaiKid]

In a given day 300-500 hot spots can be identified.

Job done then !

[marko kok prong]

Blaming Myanmar and Laos,of course Kon Thai never do anything wrong do they.

[jaltsc]

"The Pollution Control Department (PCD) has acknowledged that this year is the first time the country has been affected by forest fire smog in the period after Songkran."

Well, then they should return the money they received in salaries for the past 5 or 6 years. Obviously they weren't doing their jobs. Anyone who lives in the Maehongson province has been experiencing smoke well into June over the past few years. One only has to look towards the mountains at night to see the fires still burning.

Even without all the fancy scientific equipment available to the PCD, one only had to try and inhale in order to realize that it was almost impossible to breathe without coughing.

[klauskunkel]

This year marks first time Thailand is affected by forest fire smog after Songkran

That's great. Another tourist attraction. Let's make it year 'round.

How about this:

Come to Thailand and start your own forest fire, nothing will ever happen to you (if you are Thai), many attractive selfie spots available for immediate posting to your friends.

Edited April 26, 2016 by klauskunkel

[trainman34014]

Not due to drought and higher temperatures.........due to deliberate misuse of boxes of matches !

[arithai12]

The haze and smog is due to severe drought and higher temperatures.

Yeah, sure.

[canopy]

This news story is confirmation that the air in northern Thailand would be filth perpetually if not for rain. It is now clear that burning takes place year round which dispels the myth perhaps made up by the government that it lasts "only" a few weeks. If we look back the north has been plagued with air pollution to one extent or another since October of last year because the rains stopped then and the forecast is bad air will continue into May only because rain is expected then, otherwise burning would just go on and on along with the associated air quality problems.

In summary the rains in dry years mean just 4 months out of the year with decent visibility. It is unimaginable why anyone would want to live there or plan to visit it during the other 8 months if they knew the truth about how deep and long the problem has become.