News Forum - Chon Buri villagers complain of air pollution from burning crops

[Thaiger]

Residents of a Chon Buri housing estate complained to local authorities that crop burning at nearby plantations has been causing not only air pollution, but ash has been falling on their cars, houses, and clothes. They say sugar cane plantations in particular were creating the ash in the air through illegal burning, causing poor air quality for the people living in the 100 houses of the estate. But, apparently, the problem is nothing new. Residents say the neighbouring plantations burn their crops every year during this time, and they have complained several times. Crop burning is a sensitive issue in […]

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[CamPat]

This is an unfortunate event that repeats every year with no solution in sight. Here is the current situation live

https://www.iqair.com/thailand

You can see that Chonburi is doing better than many other areas in Thailand. As long as there are no Alternatives to crop burning this will go on forever and cause health issues for the entire population. Not all is home made because all neighboring countries and even those beyond contribute in the same negative way.

[palooka]

 For years, Thailand’s government has vowed to tackle problems with air pollution, both in Thailand and Southeast Asia. Covid-19, however, has shifted the government’s priorities and derailed its plans to do so.

For years prior to Covid they did bugga all but talk about the problem. 

How is it suddenly a problem they cannot fix because of Covid. Or is Covid going to be the Thai Govt fall back line for all their incompetency,     "Covid was/is the problem."

Shifted the governments priorities to new submarines and fighter aircraft.  Really see the prority for those.

derailed its plans.  What plans?

[Cathat]

People from all walks of life from many locations in thailand have been complaining about this for decades and nothing has ever been done about it.

It's simply an annual event now.

No reason to believe anything will happen this year about it.

Until people are dropping dead en masse in the streets  nothing will get done.

[Vince]

11 hours ago, CamPat said:

This is an unfortunate event that repeats every year with no solution in sight. Here is the current situation live

https://www.iqair.com/thailand

You can see that Chonburi is doing better than many other areas in Thailand. As long as there are no Alternatives to crop burning this will go on forever and cause health issues for the entire population. Not all is home made because all neighboring countries and even those beyond contribute in the same negative way.

Even if neighbors do it, reducing local fires will help.

If this is all sugar production, what about alternative crops? 

Is the burning method the only disposal method? Are there alternative burning methods? 

Would burning it over longer periods of time or at different times of day make a difference? 

 

[Skip]

The really sad part in all this is that the health and economy problems connected to the burning is far more devastating in the long run than covid is or will be... 

[Vince]

30 minutes ago, Skip said:

The really sad part in all this is that the health and economy problems connected to the burning is far more devastating in the long run than covid is or will be... 

True. The media doesn't print a drum beat of statistics on respiratory infections, copd deaths, cardiovascular deaths, or pollution related illness every day (like COVID).

Maybe it should. Mentioning high pm2 days is a move in the right direction. 

 

 

[Loong]

Quote

Officials often side with farmers as farmers have little or no other method of getting rid of crops.

The article talks about sugar cane and the farmers certainly do not want to get rid of their crops as the cane, once cut will regrow for the next harvest and is only replanted after a few years.

The reason that they burn sugar cane is because it apparently makes it easier (cheaper) to cut. Purely to save money and no other reason.

[Vince]

5 minutes ago, Loong said:

The article talks about sugar cane and the farmers certainly do not want to get rid of their crops as the cane, once cut will regrow for the next harvest and is only replanted after a few years.

The reason that they burn sugar cane is because it apparently makes it easier (cheaper) to cut. Purely to save money and no other reason.

People grow what is profitable. If cheap Chinese sugar floods the market and no one buys Chon Buri sugar, they'll grow something else. 

 

[Vince]

12 hours ago, palooka said:

 For years, Thailand’s government has vowed to tackle problems with air pollution, both in Thailand and Southeast Asia. Covid-19, however, has shifted the government’s priorities and derailed its plans to do so.

For years prior to Covid they did bugga all but talk about the problem. 

How is it suddenly a problem they cannot fix because of Covid. Or is Covid going to be the Thai Govt fall back line for all their incompetency,     "Covid was/is the problem."

Shifted the governments priorities to new submarines and fighter aircraft.  Really see the prority for those.

derailed its plans.  What plans?

Here's one 

https://openjicareport.jica.go.jp/pdf/246451.pdf

246451.pdf

[Mantadive]

I worked on a cane farm in Australia in the 70's & 80's. We did the same, burning off the thrash, it wasnt until the 90's that green harvesting became normal with the thash being baled and sold as mulch or plowed back into the ground. It is a bitch to manually cut green sugar cane. 

[Vince]

5 minutes ago, Mantadive said:

I worked on a cane farm in Australia in the 70's & 80's. We did the same, burning off the thrash, it wasnt until the 90's that green harvesting became normal with the thash being baled and sold as mulch or plowed back into the ground. It is a bitch to manually cut green sugar cane. 

Green harvesting :-) 

that sounds like what is needed

[palooka]

2 hours ago, Vince said:

Here's one 

https://openjicareport.jica.go.jp/pdf/246451.pdf

246451.pdf 2.12 MB · 2 downloads

 

(1) Overall Goal of the project is to take concrete actions on air pollution by VOC

15+ years have since passed I seriously doubt anything concrete has been done, unless you count the fire department spraying water in the air to reduce pollution. and a few other retarded ideas they have thrown around as solutions.

[Vince]

1 minute ago, palooka said:

(1) Overall Goal of the project is to take concrete actions on air pollution by VOC

15+ years have since passed I seriously doubt anything concrete has been done, unless you count the fire department spraying water in the air to reduce pollution. and a few other retarded ideas they have thrown around as solutions.

You asked if there was a master plan, not if it was a success ;-) 

It's possible there are other plans.

The Japanese website this report is on might have a status on particulars. 

I know an old timer Bangkok visitor who tells me Bangkok's air is a lot cleaner than it used to be (his emphasis). 

 

[Smithydog]

The problem is challenging for sure. Dealing with the issue at the source will likely deliver the best results, but at what additional cost.

A previous poster mentioned harvesting the cane when green. Certainly will reduce the fires to a substantially lower level, especially if residual trash is used in the way suggested. But with the farms in Thailand being made up of thousands of small areas, the likelihood of a farm producing sufficient tonnage to afford one is small. Farmers would need to invest together in a co-op to be in a position to afford one.

Using harvesters may deliver an alternative economic impact to deal with. Many people currently supplying labour may see they no longer have a job, just pushing the impact into other areas. Additionally the green harvesting may produce better yields of concentration of cane sugar than burnt cane, but equally will create logistical problems in the number of mills available to extract the sugar.  Trucks carrying the harvested cane cane be sitting waiting for unloading as mill capacity is reached. Hence, the sugar concentration will wane again producing less yield.

Government stimulus to build co-ops to reduce the cost burden maybe the way to introduce more green harvesting progressively, reducing crop fires and allowing mills to plan and adjust to the changing needs.

 

[palooka]

1 hour ago, Vince said:

I know an old timer Bangkok visitor who tells me Bangkok's air is a lot cleaner than it used to be (his emphasis). 

I came to thailand over 50 years ago and it was dirty then but Bangkok was a heck of a lot smaller too. There were rice paddies between Bangkok and Don Mueang airport. 

The pollution was only a Bangkok problem, even then usually morning and evening peak hours were the worst.  

 

[palooka]

1 hour ago, Smithydog said:

Using harvesters may deliver an alternative economic impact to deal with. Many people currently supplying labour may see they no longer have a job, just pushing the impact into other areas.

Our way the only ones who will cut are Cambodians, do have a few thais but emphasis is on few and they are selective in that they will only cut for replanting. More money for that job.

 

1 hour ago, Smithydog said:

Trucks carrying the harvested cane can be sitting waiting for unloading as mill capacity is reached. Hence, the sugar concentration will wane again producing less yield.

Told they use a numbering system for the mill delivery and they only cut the day or evening before to reduce time on truck.  Trucks seem to go and return in 8 hours at the moment.

A big problem for the small grower is that the  people who own the harvesters want 50% to cut and truck to mill.  Not financially viable for the small guy so he burns and gets the Cambodians in to cut.

[Smithydog]

47 minutes ago, palooka said:

A big problem for the small grower is that the  people who own the harvesters want 50% to cut and truck to mill.  Not financially viable for the small guy so he burns and gets the Cambodians in to cut.

Yes. That is the economic cost and unless the Government subsidises groups of growers to co-operatively buy harvesters and use them for their farms, thereby reducing costs, personally just can't see much changing for the farms.

Manually cutting green to me is simply not a realistic option in my opinion and hence the fires will continue to remove the excess foliage etc so the cutters can get to the stalks themselves.

Challenging situation for all in my opinion.

 

[palooka]

2 hours ago, Smithydog said:

Challenging situation for all in my opinion.

Very challenging when the govt prioritize subs, jet fighters, and millions of baht for singers in Phuket.

[Poolie]

6 minutes ago, palooka said:

Very challenging when the govt prioritize subs, jet fighters, and millions of baht for singers in Phuket.

Subs are off the table now, aircraft at least four years hence and Bocelli has been and gone. Singular. Looks like clear blue skies from hereon in!