admin Posted March 5, 2012 Report Share Posted March 5, 2012 (edited) A researcher warned residents in the North yesterday to brace for worse air pollution, saying the smog problem was set to deteriorate. "Local farmers will light more fires to clear land in forest zones for their upcoming farming season. There's lot of stuff to burn this year because the forestland last year was too damp for them to light fires," Chiang Mai University lecturer Dr Suthinee Dontree said. Suthinee has conducted research on how to prevent forest fires in Chiang Mai under a project jointly supported by the university's Public Policy Studies Institute and the Thai Health Promotion Foundation. "I believe the smog situation this year will be as severe as that seen in 2007 and 2010," she said. In those years, the amount of tiny dust particles known as PM10 was three times higher than what was considered safe. According to the Pollution Control Department (PCD), each cubic metre of air should contain no more than 120 micrograms of PM10 particles for safety reasons. Suthinee said 40 per cent of land in Chiang Mai's nine districts was cleared by fire in those years. The districts were Mae Chaem, Hot, Chiang Dao, Om Koi, Chom Thong, Doi Tao, Fang, Mae Ai and Chai Prakan. She said relevant authorities should tackle the smog problem by designating certain hours of the day for fires in each area to stop locals lighting fires at the same time and seriously worsening air quality. "However, in the long run, locals should receive help to find other work. If they find something that can give |them more income than mobile farms, they will stop lighting fires in forest zones." More... Edited March 6, 2012 by FarangFarang Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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