Chiang Mai Fire Season Starts 4th January 2552 – สถานการณ์หมอกควัน 18 กุมภาพันธ์ 2552
February 18th update
View over Irrigation Canal - Chiang Mai
Every year a large grassy tract of government land along the Irrigation Canal opposite the Golf course is torched.
This year on the day before government offices reopen after the new year break it was ablaze again.
On December 16th last the Governor of Chiang Mai issued strict instructions to set an example to the public and allow no open burning.
Who will be made to answer for this open defiance of his order?
Nation’s most polluted air is in the North
By The Nation
Published on January 29, 2009
Residents of the North are facing a greater risk of lung cancer when compared with locals in other regions, according to statistics.
Currently, more than 40 new lungcancer patients are being diagnosed per 100,000 people in the North each year. In other regions, on average only 10 such patients were identified among 100,000 locals.
“This means the risk for northern residents is about four times higher,” Dr Phongtape Wiwatanadate said yesterday.
Besides teaching at the Chiang Mai University’s Faculty of Medicine, Phongtape conducts research on air quality in the Chiang Mai – Lamphun basin.
His research in 2007 checked people’s health to determine whether they had symptom that could indicate respiratory problems. The findings showed more than 20 out of 25 people had the symptoms.
Phongtape believed small particulate particles were a problem to Chiang Mai’s air quality.
“Their presence affects people’s health because many people report having difficulty breathing and coughing,” he said.
So far, the amount of particulate particles smaller than 10 microns in Chiang Mai has not exceeded Thai authorities’ safety standards from last year.
According to Thai authorities, these dust particles will pose health risks only if their amount is over 120 micrograms per cubic metre of air.
“But in Europe, the safe level means there should be fewer than 50 micrograms per cubic metre of air,” Pongthep said.
It’s time we cleared the air
EDITORIAL By The Nation
Published on January 29, 2009
At this time of the year, Chiang Mai’s air pollution usually climbs to a dangerous level due to slash-and-burn farming practices in the countryside around the northern capital. Towards the end of the dry season, from February to April, the city’s pollution is also exacerbated by the phenomenon called temperature inversion, in which air in the upper layers of the atmosphere prevents the dissipation of smoke in the lower layers. Located in a natural basin, Chiang Mai is thus likely to suffer more from lingering smoke and haze.
The problem has also been compounded by the boom in rubber demand, prompting some farmers to burn land in preparation for rubber plantations.*
Two years ago in March, Chiang Mai suffered very severe air pollution and smog, leaving many people with respiratory illnesses. But in spite of the publicity about pollution in Chiang Mai, nothing concrete has been done so far to solve the problem. When the situation gets worse, most of the relief measures are only temporary, such as campaigns to encourage people not to light bonfires or burn rubbish. Most Chiang Mai people do not have access to environmentally friendly waste treatment systems, and so they tend to burn a lot of waste products.
The problem of air pollution in Chiang Mai should receive more attention from both the government and the general public. After all, Chiang Mai is one of the top-earning provinces for tourism, generating a high amount of foreign exchange for the country.
The government should establish clear measures to tackle the air pollution problem in the province in a sustainable manner, while members of the public should be made aware that they worsen the situation through careless burning activities.
If nothing is done, we will be talking about this problem in Chiang Mai during this period every year. Even worse, if the situation is not dealt with properly, we may see severe air pollution in the province all year round.
* Comment from Ricky: We may agree with the sentiments of this Editorial, but what about the facts?
Rubber prices have slumped in the last quarter and ASEAN governments have put the breaks on plantation expansion but what are the facts here as opposed to speculation?
Chiang Mai smoke on the World News again.
In 2007 a.d. (2549 b.e.) Chiang Mai smoke problems hit the international news with reoprts by international news providers such as CNN & DWTV.
Today 13th February 2009 CNN again showed pictures of smoky Chiang Mai and satellite picutres of current fires – a number in the North and many more in Shan state and Laos.
The pity is that the ASEAN signatories to the treaty on limiting cross border haze are not to meet in Chiang Mai as planned last year but far from the smoke in Hua Hin.
Hi everybody
a little checking came up with this:
“In London, the United States and the European Union as a whole it is considered a serious pollution ‘episode’ if the PM-10 level exceeds 50 – see the London Air Quality Network website. For some reason, the Thai Pollution Control Department has set the ‘safe level’ to be anything less than a PM-10 of 120. Just to illustrate how high the levels can get to in Chiang Mai, on 14th March 2007 PM-10 levels reached 303.9 – catastrophically high by any standards. ”
http://www.earthoria.com/air-pollution-levels-in-chiang-mai-rising.html
Right now, (15th February 2009) the PM-10 for Chiang Mai is about 70, and has been up and down the 50 point for 2 weeks:
http://www.pcd.go.th/AirQuality/Regional/QueryAir.cfm?task=findsite
I am having trouble breathing all the time.
There must be more we can do to deal with this!
yours
Marty
สถานการณ์หมอกควันเพิ่มขึ้นอย่างรวดเร็ว ผู้ว่าราชการจังหวัดเชียงใหม่
เรียกประชุมหน่วยงาน/นายอำเภอ วันที่ 18 กุมภาพันธ์ 2552
แจ้งนายอำเภอที่มีสถิติไฟป่า และHotspot สูงให้ประชุมกำนัน ผู้ใหญ่บ้าน ควบคุมการเผาให้เร็วที่สุด
ประกาศให้ตั้งแต่วันที่ 15 กุมภาพันธ์ – เมษายน เป็นช่วงที่เฝ้าระวังอย่างใกล้ชิด
จัดกิจกรรมทำความสะอาด ล้างถนน ดูดฝ่น รดน้ำต้นไม้ ตั้งแต่วันที่ 19/02/2009 จนถึงสงกรานต์
แจ้งกำนัน ผู้ใหญ่บ้านให้ประกาศเสียงตามสาย งดเผาทุชนิด
“สัญญา ทุมตะขบ” 19/02/2009
For English readers: Last week the Governor of Chiang Mai Province
reinforced his instructions to subordinates to inform the public that open burning
is now PROHIBITED.
This Sunday evening around 5:30 pm, as some of the northern hills appeared after
days hidden by smoke, two columns of smoke were visible north of the city.
Right now 15th Feb, the PM-10 for Chiang Mai is about 70, and has been up and down the 50 point for 2 weeks:
http://www.pcd.go.th/AirQuality/Regional/QueryAir.cfm?task=findsite
I am having trouble breathing all the time.
There must be more we can do to deal with this!
yours
Marty (Ricky & Sunya)