The air hanging over Thailand’s far north has become so polluted that Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha yesterday went to see in person what has been called a severe health crisis.
Prayuth arrived by helicopter at an army base in Chiang Mai, a city that is a popular tourist destination, where seasonal haze has been unusually bad and prolonged this year.
Usually the pollution has been blamed on the burning of forests in neighboring Myanmar.
Adding to the problem this year are wildfires caused by a drier-than-usual dry season, as well as Thai farmers and hunters clearing land.
Prayuth handed out firefighting supplies like hoes, and told local military personnel and firefighters that he traveled to Chiang Mai because he wanted to show his support.
He was to meet with local officials to discuss budgets and other issues related to combating the smog.
Standard measurements of Chiang Mai’s air quality have soared way into the danger zone and remained there for many weeks.
One such measurement is PM2.5 — airborne fine particulates 2.5 microns or less in diameter that are small enough to be sucked deep into the lungs and enter the bloodstream.
High PM2.5 levels indicate pollution that is severe enough to cause respiratory problems and that over time might raise risks of cardiovascular disease and cancers.
Thailand’s official safety limit is 50 micrograms of PM2.5 per cubic meter of air, higher than that suggested by the UN.
In the past few weeks in the north, the levels have regularly been reaching four to six times the Thai safety limit, and in one case peaked at 700 micrograms per cubic meter.
Local news reports have described efforts to distribute masks to Chiang Mai residents that filter out PM2.5.
A school posted photographs of air cleaners installed in the building.
Broadcaster Thai PBS on Monday reported that officials expect foreign tourists to continue traveling there, but worry that domestic tourists might avoid the north during Thailand’s new year holiday in the middle of this month.
Khuanchai Supparatpinyo, director of the Research Institute of Health Sciences at Chiang Mai University, told reporters that Chiang Mai Province has for more than a decade endured an annual phenomenon its locals call “dust season.”
The city, popular with tourists, is especially vulnerable because it is surrounded by mountains that trap the pollution.
The smog that usually hits from February to March accumulates due to Chiang Mai city’s vehicular traffic, agricultural burning and forest fires.
In the past few years, “dust season” could last up to five months due to worsening conditions, such as drier air and industrial farming, Khuanchai said.
In January, more than 400 schools in the capital, Bangkok, were shut for a week when the PM2.5 level was about 70 to 120 micrograms per cubic meter.
The Bangkok governor responded by declaring the city a “pollution control zone,” allowing measures such as road closures and limits on diesel exhaust, outdoor burning and construction activities.
Air quality in Bangkok, Thailand’s largest city, has been mostly measured at moderate levels since then, a concern mainly for people with sensitivities such as existing lung conditions.
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