The Chiang Mai burning season & the Bangkok smokey season, 2024 | Judge makes air quality order.



The burning season in Chiang Mai, Thailand (usually February, March, April) is a major issue. It is also called the Chiang Mai …

27 Comments

  1. There is a very practical solution: biochar. Look into it!
    The crop residue can be converted into charcoal in a clean way and that charcoal acts like fertilizer, making soil more productive and sequestering carbon. The small investment in simple machines to make the biochar should be paid for with carbon taxes levied on fossil fuel.

  2. Very very interesting. I have not heard anything positive on this for a long time. I keep thinking that in the future I will retire in Chiang Mai but leave for burning season every year. Please do more videos like this when the opportunity arises. It makes me feel more connected to the land of smiles while I’m not there 😊

  3. I'm pretty sure in Australia we dig the stubble back into the soil. The waste from sugar cane is called bagasse which has other uses. I think the mechanical harvesters & ploughers could allow the farmers to stop burning but with surrounding countries involved might take some convincing. Maybe Uncle Sam could do a contra deal supplying John Deere equip for the cultivation of Mary Jane Thai stick?😊

  4. Hi Randy,good video and good of you to offer some solutions.. some of which I don't agree with..🤔
    As you said it's a regional problem.. and because of that the Thai court's ruling is not going to solve it. The other countries,like Myanmar,Laos, Cambodia are much poorer and unlikely to change their customs . Currently the problem is focussed on the central region and Bangkok where the pollution is added to from Cambodia . How much is added to is also depending on wind directions .
    But since you and I are in Chiang mai and the Court sat in Chiang mai,lets focus on this region .
    The problem in Chiang Mai isn't just the slash and burn but its geographical location . It lies in a valley surrounded by mountains in a horsehoe shape which traps the pollution . So it sits there and depending on winds or lack of them , remains .
    It coincides with lack of rainfalls which would be helpful to cleanse this dust. So if you can't stop slash and burn outside your borders we're talking about mitigation .
    Two ways I'm thinking of, one is cloud seeding which at times was used by the government in past times and maybe wind farms to move air direction dissipating the volume of PM2.5
    They could be placed in strategic locations to blow this stuff out from the valley.
    At the same time these wind farms could generate electricity ..
    Think of giant concentration of fans..
    The other thing you mentioned, substitution crop of marijuana.
    This idea I'm opposed to on grounds of this weed which ,while supposedly used for medicinal purposes, would be open to abuse for recreational purposes as growers would supply it on the black market .
    Ofher crop substitutions without this risk would be better offered .
    The pollution in Chiang Mai is somewhat similar to Los Angeles due to geography. American environmental experts could be consulted on how to mitigate this problem .
    Generally speaking pollution in SEAsia ,the Far East and the Sub Continent is a huge problem and the disposal of rubbish by burning is widespread too .
    It's a multifaceted problem due to overpopulation and density . Then we enter into the greater problem of climate change , don't get me going!. I think the problem needs to be tackled by experts but your video is good to highlight the issue and what brainstorming is needed to tackle it . Well done!

  5. This seems like an extremely difficult problem to address, for all the reasons you stated including that it is a regional problem and that it is driven by economics. The countervailing economic issue – loss of tourism dollars – may be the ultimate motivation to take effective action. On a personal note, what do you and Joy do during burning season? Do you relocate to another spot in Thailand, visit other countries or decamp back to San Diego for a few months? Thanks!

  6. Corn feeds cows which Thailand encourages.

    In America wheat farmers ban together in coops to lease combines to harvest the wheat.
    The farmers are the low man in the process of get the crop from farm to the store. Everyone in the process should contribute to alternatives to burning.

  7. Excellent video EXCEPT: Rama 9 spent a great deal of time and money getting northern farmers to convert their crops from poppies to tea, coffee, corn, vegetables and fruits. He was worried about rural hunger …and getting enough food to his people. So asking them to reverse that to marijuana might take a cultural mind shift.

  8. What I don't understand: Nobody in Europe is burning the crop waste, although farmers grow similar crops here and there. Straw can be used in various ways: as bedding for the livestock, as starting material for the biogas production, or even to produce biofuel ….
    Thai farmers should learn to value this "waste" material and try to look at it as a natural resource out of which you can generate some income.

  9. It's a good video on an important subject for all of us living in Thailand.  

    You have seen the burning map. The problem is less Thailand and more the surrounding countries. The government has failed the Thai people. First enforce the law in Thailand. Second negotiate with the surrounding countries to stop burning. It's pointless if those countries do not participate. Once farmers and customers realize the change is coming, they will find the best solution. It's common for customers to support suppliers with equipment loans and such. Prices will find the proper equilibrium based on the supply that will be available by enforcing the law. Let suppliers and customers work that out. Lastly, make the issue known in western countries and possibly obtain ban s of imports from burnt fields.

  10. You are correct. Having the ability to till the biomass back into the soil does just as much for feetilizing as burning does, and with modern farm equipment amd methods they can grow more food on the same amount of ground. Clean air, more efficient growing. Win, win.

  11. Great videos with many points to consider. Another technology which may help in this situation is an Anaerobic Digester, which is fed with the waste organic material, and produces soil improver, liquid fertiliser and biogas. Indeed, pairing this with a hot compost pile and using the heat in the anaerobic digester speeds up the process. The biogas can be used as multipurpose fuel, such as for cooking, or running a vehicle. No chemical pesticides can be used in this system tho.

  12. Very interesting and an extremely important topic with regard to the population, including visitors, in Thailand. Some solution must be implemented to protect the health and well being of the people in Thailand. This is also an important topic for anyone considering vacationing in Thailand – a serious health concern. In my estimation, the best solution would be to provide farming equipment to allow farmers to chop down what is left after harvesting the crops, thus preventing a serious health epidemic after the burnings.

  13. You may remember that I mention it my stay in CM last year. I rented an apartment for a few months. I want to know if I can live in CM.. there are two reasons why I wouldn’t live in Thailand . 1. Air quality 2. Foreigners can’t own property more the 49% ..

  14. Large fans…. asking border countries to stop burning "biomass" is useless. Massive ecological impact will also occur when china starts change the flow of rivers into vietnam, cambodia and Thailand

  15. People burn crops (and anything else they don't want) from the east coast of India to western Indonesia. This is an issue for, and caused by, approximately 3 billion people from several nations. Every year there is an outcry and some political headline similar to the one you are covering. And this outrage occurs in other countries as well. Then nothing happens. I hope this court ruling makes a difference. But I do not expect it will.

  16. Excellent and informative video. You're right, not your typical, run-of-the-mill travel video but extremely important none the less. We must remember: someone else always lives downstream, sometimes it's us, sometimes it's a stranger, but we all deserve a healthy life! I'm afraid I don't have anything new to add to your suggestions right now but I'll keep looking.

  17. You are right. Very simple ? you introduce n tax and hospital insurance as Thai government for tourists and expats and you buy good agricultural mashines from my country….The Netherlands…everyone happy? IF…we end… that visa war for ordinary tourists.

  18. I have a couple of suggestions. Like you said, get them tractors so they till the corn stocks under. That will fertilize the ground and protect the soil from blowing away. The second is to let the buffalo eat the stocks, they will also poop to fertilize the ground and till the remainder under. Farmers in America have been doing that for decades.

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