Work-from-home order issued as Thailand’s Chiang Mai chokes on pollution

CHIANG MAI, Thailand – The authorities on Friday urged people in the northern Thai city of Chiang Mai to stay indoors and work from home as air pollution spiked to hazardous levels.

Smoke from forest fires and farmers burning crop stubble has blanketed the popular tourist destination in recent weeks.

On Friday morning, air monitoring website IQAir ranked Chiang Mai as the most polluted major city in the world, ahead of regular hot spots such as Delhi and Lahore.

Levels of the most dangerous PM2.5 particles – so tiny they can enter the bloodstream – were more than 66 times the World Health Organisation’s annual guideline, according to IQAir.

Chiang Mai provincial governor Nirat Pongsittitavorn issued a statement urging people to stay indoors and work from home to “protect themselves and reduce the health impact” from PM2.5 particles.

Thailand has been

choking on a spike in air pollution

since the start of the year, caused in part by seasonal agricultural burning.

Nearly two million people have needed hospital treatment for respiratory conditions caused by air pollution so far in 2023, according to the Public Health Ministry.

Forest fires have contributed to the problem. The latest, in Chiang Rai province, north-east of Chiang Mai, began on Thursday and has affected 96ha of forest. 

Home to nearly 130,000 people, Chiang Mai is a gateway to Thailand’s hilly north, visited pre-pandemic by millions of tourists for its historic centre and laid-back atmosphere. 

But Mr Wittaya Pongsiri, vice-president of the Chiang Mai Tourism Business Association, said the pollution was putting visitors off. 

“The number of tourists has dropped by 20 per cent,” he said. 

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha held video talks with the leaders of neighbouring Myanmar and Laos to discuss the problem, which affects large areas of South-east Asia every year.

After his talks with his Laotian counterpart Sonexay Siphandone and Myanmar junta leader Min Aung Hlaing, Mr Prayut’s office said he would push for discussion of cross-border pollution at the next summit of regional bloc Asean. 

The three leaders discussed the need to find ways to curb emissions from agriculture and industry, but did not agree on any concrete steps for action.

In February, officials warned Bangkok residents to

stay indoors and work from home

as the capital was covered in harmful haze. AFP