Cath & Robert en Thaïlande

Haze a menace in the North

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights does not include the right to breathe non-toxic air. That is because it is a fundamental requirement of life and therefore supposed to be taken for granted. But there is a flaw in that assumption and anyone living in, or visiting, the North at this time of year already knows what it is.

A tweet posted on Twitter sums up the situation well. The message is a warning to anyone visiting Chiang Mai and reads: « Smog is getting worse. Bad air everywhere. Bring sunglasses and face mask if you have to go there. » The writer was not exaggerating. Smoke from wildfires has created a critical situation in Chiang Mai and in provinces throughout the North.

It is so bad in Mae Hong Son that a state of disaster has been declared in every district. Over 12,000 people have sought help for respiratory distress and eye inflammation. The level of particulate matter (PM10) has soared above the safety level of 120 – reaching 518.5 microgrammes per cubic metre on Thursday, the highest ever recorded in the province. These tiny particles with a size of less than 10 micrometres can easily enter the lungs, prompting doctors to warn people to wear face masks when outdoors. Predictably, flights into the province have been suspended because of the poor visibility and there is no easy escape.

The cause of all this misery is acrid smoke generated by the annual practice of burning off fields, leaves, rice straw, garbage and grasses ahead of the next planting season. This has been making people sick for the past month and has been worsened by the high temperatures and a cold mass of air from China, which prevents the smoke from escaping into the upper atmosphere.

It is an intolerable situation for those living in or visiting the North and they cannot be expected to simply put up with it. Every year history repeats itself. Health and forestry officials promise a new campaign to convince landowners not to burn forests, rubbish or grass but this always fails because it involves changing a mindset and traditional way of life. It is time to get tough and slap heavy fines on those starting the fires and to stop making excuses for inaction.

An additional problem is that national borders get in the way, with officials pointing accusing fingers at man-made burn-offs taking place in Burma’s Shan State and in Laos. Some have questioned the severity of these cross-border fires but satellite images displayed on the Nasa Earth Observatory website confirm their existence and intensity.

Burma is particularly bad for hotspots but this is no excuse for what is happening on our side of the border. It does point to the need for the authorities of all three Asean countries to get together to sort the situation out. Playing the blame game will do nothing to improve air quality or reduce the greenhouse gases emitted by the wildfires. Public health must come first. Inhalation of these toxic gases and other airborne particles could lead to respiratory diseases, heart diseases and asthma. Many villagers in the North also burn garbage either because no organised collection exists, or to avoid collection fees where it is available.

The increase in cars clogging Chiang Mai’s streets and the lack of mass transit also contribute to the pollution. City dwellers are looking to the rainy season to bring some relief and give them a chance to see Doi Inthanon again. They put up with worse air quality than Bangkok and have suffered long enough.

While the excesses of Songkran next month may clear the air in the North, it will not provide a long-term solution. That must come from the government.

News from Bangkok Post – Published 20/03/2010 at 12:00 AM