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Prime Minister flies north for smog crisis talks

Chiang Mai (TNA)
Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont will fly to Chiang Mai today to see for himself the smoke and haze now described as Thailand's worst airborne environmental disaster.

He is to escort royal supplies to be distributed to victims of the haze which is choking the northern provinces.

Chiang Rai Governor Amornpan Nimanant declared natural disaster areas in 16 districts and two subdistricts because of the smog.

He did not immediately say what his plans were. But declaring a disaster means he can dispense aid on an emergency basis, with little paperwork or involvement by the central government.

There is widespread criticism of the cabinet decision on Tuesday to give the smog problem another week to clear up before the government takes any action.

Dust particles caused by forest fires in this northern province have risen to their highest concentration in two weeks, measured Wednesday at nearly 400 microgrammes per cubic metre.

The highest level was measured at 383 microgrammes per cubic metre at Yupparatch Wittayalai in the provincial seat, compared to the health standard of a maximum of 120 microgrammes per cubic metre.

The regional environmental office reported the figure to the government, but solutions were not necessarily in sight.

The mayor of Chiang Mai municipality said the city is urging residents to spray water into the air by hoses to reduce dust particles and to increase moisture in the atmosphere.

The municipality is turning on fountains around the city, at historic moats and at other sites.

The province has banned all outdoor fires and has accelerated the activities of forest fire response teams, including using fire engines to spray water throughout residential areas to reduce the effects of the concentrated pollution.

Akkhanee Moonmek of the Love Chiang Mai Group said that the government's response was too slow to deal with the problem. "It ignored the problem and adopted a wait-and-see policy," he said
critically, suggesting the response was too little, too late.

He said the government should ban fires and declare an environmental emergency. It should also warn local residents of the health hazards posed by the dust.

The numbers of patients suffering from respiratory diseases has increased markedly throughout the region.

Dr. Pisit Sriprasert at Nan's provincial hospital said about 160 patients per day are visiting his hospital.

Nan forest fire control chief Muangman Kerdnana said the seasonal fires were expected to be critical due to severe drought. His firefighters are prepared to work around the clock, but are short
of necessary equipment for the numbers of workers needed.

Mai Sai district hospital director Dr. Sura Khunkongkhapan in Chiang Rai said many villagers are suffering from smoke-related respiratory diseases.

Patients from Thailand and Myanmar crossing the nearby border are coming to the hospital by as many as 100-200 people daily. Most of the patients are the elderly and children.

Northern region weather chief Thatsanee Chaichiengpin said a southwesterly wind is expected to move into the northern provinces and will increase humidity, coupled with artificial rain-making to help wash out the haze.

Royal rain-making operations centre director Somchai Ruangsutthinaruepab said that two more aircraft will fly Thursday, joining Royal Thai Air Force planes already in use to coax the rain daily since Friday March 9, he added.

The rain-making operations have not yet succeeded, he said, because smoke from the forest fires are rising as high as 10,000 feet.

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Haze proves too much for some
KULTIDA SAMABUDDHI & ONNUCHA HUTASINGH

Wundee Suntiwutimetee, editor of a Chiang Mai-based magazine, has decided to leave the city of Chiang Mai, saying the haze has become unbearable. ''It's like being trapped in a big oven. I have got sore eyes and throat, coughing, and breathing difficulties. Visibility is very poor and the weather is terribly hot during daytime,'' said Ms Wundee, a Bangkok native who moved to Chiang Mai five years ago.

''I went to a local pharmacy to buy a face-mask to protect myself from the polluted air, but the shopkeeper said the masks were all sold out,'' she said.

After more than two weeks of smoke-filled air, she decided it was time to bring her 18-month-old adopted son to take temporary refuge in Bangkok. Her son is suffering from eye irritation and breathing problems, she added.

''We will return to Chiang Mai only after the thick haze is gone,'' she said.

Nattaporn Wiwan, an office worker, said she has had chronic headaches for two weeks now.

Her health condition got worse on Tuesday.

''I woke up and found I was bleeding from the nose. It was my first nose-bleed in more than 10 years,'' she said.

Ms Nattaporn said she tried to keep to her office and apartment unit to avoid exposure to the haze.

Her family is in neighbouring Chiang Rai, which is also badly hit by the haze.

Her mother now has allergy problems triggered by the bad air quality in Wiang Pa Pao district, about 80km from Chiang Mai, added Ms Nattaporn.

Nikhom Phutta, a resident of Chiang Mai's Chiang Dao district, said the situation in the outlying districts was much better than in the inner city, which had to put up with toxic gas emissions from motor vehicles and garbage incinerators.

''We smell whiffs of smoke from forest fires and burning farmland all the time, but they have not caused any health impact so far. My children, 10 and 7 years old, are still doing fine,'' said Mr Nikhom, a coordinator at the Wildlife Fund Thailand's Chiang Mai office.

Speaking about the causes of what he described as the worst air pollution in Chiang Mai's history, he said forest fires and slash-and-burn farming practices were only part of the problem.

Early ending of the rainy season in November last year and the absence of off-season rain, which usually comes at this time of the year, has worsened the haze pollution, he said.

Mr Nikhom also believes that the excessive use of water resources during the three-month Royal Floral Expo, which ended on Jan 31, also led to unusual dry conditions in the forest, thus increasing the severity of bush fires.

More than three million people visited Chiang Mai during the expo. Hotels were fully booked and water was pumped up to serve hotel guests, he said.

Thousands of tourist buses roamed the city and more than 1.5 million kilogrammes of garbage were generated, forcing the local incinerators to work longer hours, he said.

''There is no doubt these activities are partly to blame for the [current] haze in the North,'' he said.

In Mae Hong Son's Muang district, most people opted to stay in their homes with all doors and windows closed.

''It's really hot in here, but it's better than inhaling the smoke outside,'' said Saengthong Kayandee.

Another Mae Hong Son resident living in a remote district of Pang Ma Pha said the thick haze posed a serious obstacle to travelling, especially in mountainous areas.

Poor visibility posed a grave hazard for motorists in the province now, he added.