Environment News
Thailand environment news, climate change, sustainability, and natural disasters—stay updated on eco-initiatives, biodiversity conservation, and renewable energy efforts. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted source for environmental news in Thailand.
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Sponsored Long-term life in Thailand? 5 reasons private health insurance pays off in the long run
Thailand is a great place for expats and retirees, offering a warm climate, affordable living, and rich culture. However, healthcare can be tricky for foreigners since they aren’t eligible for public health coverage, and private care can be expensive. Private...
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Maya Bay closed for at least another two years
Maya Bay on Koh Phi Phi Ley, closed last June to allow coral restoration and beach recovery, will now remain closed to visitors for at least another two years. Dr Thon Thamrongnawasawat, assistant dean of the Faculty of Fisheries at Kasetsart University and a renowned marine specialist says, “The meeting yesterday concluded that Maya Bay is to be closed for…
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Garbage found inside a dead sea turtle on Kamala beach
PHOTO: Nijut Kamala / Newshawk Phuket Fishing equipment and other rubbish has been found inside a large dead sea turtle on Kamala beach yesterday. Staff from the Phuket Marine Biology Centre at Cape Panwa were notified from locals that the big sea turtle had been washed up on Kamala beach. The turtle was nearly a metre long and weighed about 90…
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Forest fires very close to a revered shrine in Mae Hong Son
Fires continue to rage in the northwestern province of Mae Hong Son over the weekend. One of them got very close to a revered Guan Yin shrine in Muang district last night (Sunday). A fire broke out in the forest behind the shrine on the Mae Hong Son bypass in Ban Mai Ngae village of Tambon Pang Moo at 7pm,…
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Baby dugong rescued in Krabi, taken back to its Trang home – VIDEO
PHOTOS/VIDEO: DMCR A baby dugong, found on a Krabi beach, has been taken back to its home. The Department of Marine and Coastal Resources is reporting that yesterday the dugong was taken back to its home in Trang. “The dugong is aged around two to three years old. It is 120 centimetres long. No wounds were found on the dugong.…
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Coral off Phuket suffering from bleaching
by Thai PBS Corals have started to bleach off the coast of Phuket. The problem is due to the warming of the sea, according to reports from the Phuket-based operations centre of the 2nd National Marine Park. Marine scientists at the centre conducted a survey of coral reefs off Nai Yang beach in the Sirinat national park last Thursday and…
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Mae Hong Son continues to be plagued with fires
Mae Hong Son province continues to be plagued by forest fires despite the ban and the raging haze and smoke problems. In recent months, Mae Hong Son has been struggling with haze most of the time with flights to its airport limited at the height of the crisis. Exposure to the serious air pollution has become a threat to the…
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Developer pulls the plug on 500 million baht retirement project in Chiang Mai
PHOTO: Sunshine International Retirement Residence & Serviced Apartment, Hua Hin Sunshine International, Thailand’s leading brand of retirement residences says that their project which was due to be constructed near Chiang Mai’s city centre has now been cancelled. Sunshine International, a retirement property that included around the clock medical facilities, on site doctors and nurses, and state of the art facilities,…
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New fires in the North likely to be arson – Army
by Nathawat Laping Some 1,000 combined professional and volunteer firefighters are battling a major forest fire in the mountainous area overlapping Chiang Mai’s Muang and Mae Chan districts.The fire started on Sunday night in the Doi Jorakhe area of Tambon Tha Sud in Muang before spreading to Tambon Pa Teung in Mae Chan, a densely populated area and home to…
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Fix the smoke haze problem in 7 days – PM
“Go and hit the fires with this spade!” The Thai PM in Chiang Mai today by Saksit Muttafa, Krissana Porjit PM Prayut Chan-o-cha says the government was ready to support the integration of related agencies’ work to tackle the north’s smoke and haze problem within seven days. Prayut, who visited Chiang Mai today, also said HM the King was concerned about…
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Alarmingly high PM2.5 levels found in Chiang Mai, INSIDE a safety zone building
A Chiang Mai air-pollution safe zone proved to be not that ‘safe’ according to a medical lecturer. The level of PM2.5 very fine particles was found to be very high INSIDE the designated area. But the problem was soon resolved later in the day. Dr Rungsrit Kanjanavanit, a lecturer in medicine at Chiang Mai University, posted a picture of him…
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Academics urging a State of Emergency for the North
by Pratch Rujivanarom An academic is calling on the government to declare a state of emergency as Chiang Mai and most Northern Provinces face ‘disastrous’ levels of PM2.5 smog and smoke haze.Citizen in the North are being advised to stay inside air conditioned buildings and avoid all outdoor activities, as some areas of Chiang Mai recorded PM2.5 levels reaching higher…
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Polystyrene containers ditched by Southern province
by Somchai Samart You would expect the Capital to lead the way. But this time it’s one of Thailand’s southern provinces showing the way forward with one of Thailand’s biggest disposable waste problems. Songkhla in Thailand’s south, is now well on the way to establishing itself as a foam container-free city as green trends continue to grow. During the past…
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Chiang Mai ‘s tourism holds up despite smoke and smog
by Siriarpa Kamjan, ttgasia.com Chiang Mai’s current poor air quality and smoke haze is raising concerns on the potential impact on tourism as Thailand’s Songkran water festival approaches. Smog has been a yearly occurrence in Northern Thailand, but this year the situation appears to be the worst with Chiang Mai topping the air pollution ranking and the media tracking daily…
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Hazardous: Chiang Mai again leads the world in air pollution
Chiang Mai is back on top of the world’s list of most air-polluted cities, according to the AirVisual.com website. AirVisual reports at 1.45pm that the air quality index (AQI) of Chiang Mai on Saturday stands at 471 (##!!??!!) , much higher than the 100 AQI safety standard (the WHO lists the safety limit as 50 on the AQI scale). It’s…
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Thailand’s north continues to choke under record smoke levels
PHOTO: Burn-off of plantation land and forest fires continue to blanket the north in smoke – Thailand Discovery For the fourth consecutive day Chiang Mai ranks as the world’s most air-polluted city, with an air quality index (AQI) score of 282 this morning on airvisual.com. Mae Hong Son meanwhile continued to battle multiple forest fires, and Lampang saw it Thammasat University…
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Haze and poor visibility grounds morning flights into Mae Hong Son
Poor visibility from local smoke haze and smog has forced Bangkok Airways to cancel flights between Chiang Mai and Mae Hong Son until at least this Saturday. Mae Hong Son in the far north-west of Thailand, on the Myanmar border. The airline says poor visibility is a result of forest fires. It has cancelled at least 10 flights because of…
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Shoppers said ‘no’ to 237 million plastic bags at 7-11 in three months
More than 237 million plastic bags have been left unused at Thailand’s 7-eleven stores in the past three months – valued at more than 47 million baht. But the media release from CP All, the local franchise owners of 7-eleven, doesn’t announce how many plastic bags were actually used during the same period. The sole operator of 7-Eleven convenience stores…
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Air quality for Thailand – March 7
Central Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution. Northern Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to…
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Air quality for Thailand – March 6
Central Thailand Members of sensitive groups may experience health effects. The general public is not likely to be affected. Northern Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution. Southern Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants…
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Thailand to ban import of plastic waste
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment is proposing to the Thai cabinet a total ban on the import of plastic waste into Thailand. The ban would start in 2020. Thai PBS reports that the Natural Resources and Environment Minister Gen Surasak Karnjanarat says, that as imports of plastic waste are to end next year, Thailand will increase recycling of…
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Air quality for Thailand – March 4
Central Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution. Northern Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive…
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Chiang Mai kids are demanding action on air pollution
PHOTOS: Facebook / Pharadon Phonamnua Children and their parents in Chiang Mai are sick of the poor air quality in the northern capital and have issued a new Facebook challenge with the hashtag #CleanAirAct. The Facebook page has their photos taken with an “anti-PM2.5 dust” flags, they want action and they want it NOW. Campaign organiser Pharadon Phonamnuai, pointing out that…
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Saying no to ‘Say No’ campaigns – Tackling Thailand’s plastic bag problem
Some timid but long overdue steps are now being taken towards reducing Thailand’s plastic waste. Baby steps to start with but there is no doubt that the issue has now entered the Thai national psyche. In reaction, so far, Thai businesses have, for the most part, made only cursory PR efforts at tackling the bigger problem but, again, it’s a…
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Day One of burning ban – Chiang Mai still choking on poor air quality
PHOTOS: The Nation Air pollution remains above the official safety limit in and around Chiang Mai today – the first day of a 50 day ban on all burning. Next door, in Mae Hong Son, the level of PM2.5 micron airborne particulates measured 93 micrograms per cubic metre of air, nearly double the safe limit of 50mcg. Chiang Mai measures…
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Air quality for Thailand – February 28
Central Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution. Northern Thailand Everyone may begin to experience health effects; members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects Southern Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants…
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Air quality for Thailand – February 27
Central Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution. Northern Thailand Members of sensitive groups may experience health effects. The general public is not likely to be affected. Southern Thailand It is a great day to be active…
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Air quality for Thailand – February 26
Central Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution. Northern Thailand Members of sensitive groups may experience health effects. The general public is not likely to be affected. Southern Thailand It is a great day to be active…
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Air quality for Thailand – February 25
Central Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution. Northern Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to…
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Air quality for Thailand – February 22
Central Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution. Northern Thailand Members of sensitive groups may experience health effects. The general public is not likely to be affected. Southern Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants…
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Air quality for Thailand – February 21
Central Thailand It is a great day to be active outside. Northern Thailand Members of sensitive groups may experience health effects. The general public is not likely to be affected. Southern Thailand It is a great day to be active outside.
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