It's time to panic. For two consecutive years, Bangkok residents have had to cope with a serious air pollution problem, ultra-fine dust known widely known as PM2.5.
The dust, particulate matter which earns its name from its size, just 2.5 micrometres, can easily to lodge deep inside the lungs. It is blamed for fatal diseases like strokes, lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases as well as respiratory infections.
As the city with notoriously bad traffic, the air in Bangkok has not been good. But the PM2.5 problem plunges the city deeper into an air crisis. It has been sweeping through 20 districts of Bangkok this week. The Pollution Control Department measured levels of PM2.5 at between 65 and 103 microgrammes per cubic metre in its 24 dust measurement stations across the capital.
On Thursday, the department issued alerts, encouraging residents in PM2.5-hit areas to avoid outdoor activities and, if outside, to put on a mask. A special mask which is more expensive is needed to prevent the dust. People at severe risk include children, the elderly, pregnant women and people with congenital diseases. The agency urged Bangkok residents to follow the department's air quality update via the Air4Thai mobile application.
According to the City Hall, PM2.5 in Bangkok is caused by vehicle emissions, construction of mass transit systems, high-rise buildings and weather conditions, not bush fires as in the provinces.
However, just two days after the alerts, the Pollution Control Department -- obviously in a bid to discourage residents from panicking -- said the dust would disappear in "a few days''.
"The situation is expected to return to normal within two or three days," department chief PCD director-general Pralong Damrongthai.
He did not say how the pollutants would go away in such a short time. Even the most optimistic people question his statement.
Last year the dust which started blanketing the city at this time of the year continued to haunt residents until late March.
At the height of crisis in March, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha thought about artificial rain to wipe away the pollutants.
In past months, authorities have failed to put in place measures to tackle the pollutants. In other words, they just cope with the problem in a passive way while the causal factors of PM2.5 such as vehicle emissions remain the same.
The problem has intensified this month due to dry weather. The PCD described the current weather situation in Bangkok as "closed and stagnant", which has caused PM2.5 to accumulate in the air.
On Friday, Bangkok governor Aswin Kwanmuang admitted the city is in crisis. He sad on his FB page he "ordered the City Hall's Environment Department and 50 district offices to spray water to clean roads more frequently". Other measures include a ban on parking cars on main streets and impounding vehicles which emit black fumes.
The governor also encouraged city residents to switch to mass transit, reducing private cars in the city, one of the major factors that makes PM2.5 worse. The governor is right, but he has to put his words into practice.
Pol Gen Aswin should know that more than just environmental rhetoric is needed in combating PM 2.5. To encourage commuters to opt for mass transit, the governor should think of incentives: comfort, and friendly prices which commuters cannot find in the existing rail system.
It's known that the electric train service, offered by the BTS and MRT, is so expensive that many people cannot afford it and the services are not sufficient during rush hours.
The city bus service, provided by the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority, is not efficient while taxis are still a pain, with some drivers taking the liberty of rejecting passengers.
To reduce the car population in the city, Pol Gen Aswin must correct mass transit problems, and make the system more attractive.
The governor must do what he can to improve Bangkok Rapid Transit, the only mass transit system operated by the city. The system is not attractive, without an extended network. Worse, allowing private cars to share the designated lanes robs the system of priority, the key principle of a real and efficient mass transit system.
City administrators should take a look at how Beijing has coped with PM2.5 over the past years. The pollutant is still an issue for the Chinese capital but the authorities have managed to make improvements. They were able to think of proactive, short- and long-term measures to bring PM2.5 under control to improve the lives of city residents.
At least, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration should start by making the issue a top priority for the 20 districts that are hard-hit with the pollutant.
Each affected district must be instructed to map out a master plan, not just water spraying, with prevention as a goal. The city administration itself must panic, and get the work done.
