The air pollution monitoring website aqicn.org yesterday revealed a surge in particulate matter with a diameter less than 2.5 microns – PM2.5 – to risky levels in many provinces in the North. However, the Pollution Control Department (PCD) reported that only Tak and Lampang suffered from air pollution higher than the safe limit from the seasonal haze season.

Meanwhile, Greenpeace cautioned that PM2.5 statistics were not shown in the official pollution monitoring system, even though PM2.5 is the major cause of illnesses in respiratory systems and is associated with heart disease and cancer.

Climate and Energy Campaigner for Greenpeace Southeast Asia Chariya Senpong said the increase in the PM2.5 level in the North had gone unnoticed by a majority of people because figures on the air pollution indicator were simply not included in the Air Quality Index.

“The absence of the PM2.5 figure in the official air pollution indicators keeps the public away from the accurate air pollution situation and puts the health of the general public at risk because they do not know how serious the air pollution is,” Chariya said.

“This causes the misconception that the haze problem or the air pollution is not so severe, but indeed the level of PM2.5 has risen dangerously in many provinces of the North, as well as many major cities and industrial areas.”

According to the international air quality monitoring website aqicn.org, many provinces in the North suffered from extremely high PM2.5 levels. For example, the PM2.5 level in Chiang Mai was 156 micrograms, Chiang Rai was at 151 micrograms, and Lamphun had 153 micrograms as of yesterday, compared to the World Health Organisation’s safe limit at 25 micrograms. However on the PCD’s Air Quality Index, all these three provinces had an average official air-quality level that was not considered hazardous.

The department calculates the official Air Quality Index from PM10, the ozone level, carbon monoxide level, nitrogen dioxide level, and sulphur dioxide level.

Chariya said Greenpeace had been working with the PCD in recent years to include PM2.5 data in the Air Quality Index calculation and publicly disclose the PM2.5 level. However, their efforts have been unsuccessful.

“The PCD has an ability to measure PM2.5 now. They even have PM2.5 measuring devices installed in many provinces, but they still do not use this data, so we still carry on our campaign to encourage the department to disclose this information to the public.”

She also stressed that PM2.5 was not only a problem for the North during burning season, but people in big cities and industrial zones such as Bangkok and Rayong also suffered from PM2.5 without noticing it, because PM2.5 can also be generated by industry, energy, and transport sector sources.

Meanwhile, the head of Chiang Mai’s Provincial Public Health Office, Capt Phuriwat Chokkerd, said there was still no warning for people in the provinces about health hazards from smog, as the air pollution level in Chiang Mai still did not exceed the safe limit. “We are keeping close contact with the PCD on the haze situation and will warn people right away if air pollution is high. But as of now the PM10 level in the province is still below the safe limit and people can still do outdoor activities without harm,” Phuriwat said.

POLITICAL expert and independent scholar Thirayuth Boonmee yesterday criticised the post-coup regime for what he viewed as its failure to undertake national reforms, warning of a possible decline in public faith in the government.

He also urged the government to stick to its promised “road map” for a return to |democracy.

Thirayuth, however, expressed support over the use of absolute power under Article 44 of the interim charter, saying that it was in tune with the nature of Thais who are prone to accept authoritarianism.

So the government should exploit it to its best use, but not abuse it, the critic said in a rare press briefing at the Government Complex in Bangkok’s Chaeng Wattana area.

He had conducted similar media events during the tenure of previous governments, making academic observations to criticise people in power.

The scholar, who appeared in a business suit, said the direction of politics currently leaned towards conservatism and there was little hope of reforming the power structure.

He said the present powers were civil servants who would lose power once the reform was implemented. Although a Superboard committee has been set up, it was full of military officers and had not delivered any accomplishments yet in carrying out reform, Thirayuth said.

The scholar said he did not think the long-lasting conflict would resurface. It was not easy to provoke people, he said, adding that he believed reconciliation could be achieved when it was clear who won or lost.

If the conflict continued, Thirayuth said both sides would suffer more losses and would eventually resort to dialogue. But it could take time, he said, urging the government to set out the right policy to foster reform and prevent more conflicts.

The government should not lay the blame solely on politicians regarding the crisis and so weaken them, the scholar said. They had shown signs to reform themselves after past failures, he said. So, the government should work to include civil society as well as the people in the power structure to create a balance in politics, he proposed.

The scholar said members of the so-called five ‘rivers’ of power were mostly conservative and supported Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha in the hope that they would remain in power if the PM did.

“They seem to have some accomplishments, but still there is no hope in the reform,” Thirayuth said. “Moreover, they show the intention to support [General Prayut] to stay in power so they can, too. But things will get more difficult and the whole thing may collapse if they stay in power longer than [they promised] in the road map.”

Thirayuth said the public’s confidence in the government had been shaken. Hence, it must do the right thing and keep its vow to hold an election as well as be prepared for issues to come after the poll by focusing on reform of the power structure and fighting graft. He urged the government to use Article 44 to resolve immediate concerns such as inequity, corruption and the poor education system. If taken seriously, these issues could be overcome in six months, Thirayuth said.

EC chairman Supachai Somcharoen and election commissioner Pravich Rattanapian are to fly from South Korea on Friday night, and commissioner Somchai Srisutthiyakorn on Saturday.

Election commissioner Theerawat Theerarojwit is to head back from Japan on Saturday.

However, election commissioner Boonsong Noisophon is going to fly back on Sunday, in accordance with the original schedule.

They all are to meet on Monday, with the overseas trips likely to be in the agenda.

The commissioners are accompanying participants to an EC high-level executive training course to observe election procedures in Japan and South Korea. According to the EC’s acting secretary-general Jarungwit Phumma, the Japan team observed the campaigning system while the Korea team studied development of voting machines and civic education.

The trips were held amid a question among the public as to whether such overseas journeys were necessary at a time when the Kingdom has no schedules for any election.

The high-level course, active since 2009, receives annually allocated budget of Bt10.5 million from the EC fund for improvement of political parties. The organic law on political parties prohibits the use of this fund for overseas trips in the future.

In 2015, the government ordered all bureaucratic agencies to refrain from making overseas field trips. The order, however, was effective only in that fiscal year.

Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha also said that he would let the Office of Auditor General to inspect the EC’s trips. “I always say that any field trip needs to be reported to me,” Prayut said.

In a phone call from South Korea, Jarungwit admitted that the EC did not inform the premier ahead of the trips. “But he said the trips can be done when it is necessary and as long as it is economical – an advice that we follow,” he said.

Jarungwit said both trips were economically organised and did not cost more than Bt5 million. “The commissioners also needed to travel along, in order to honour the hosts in the hope that we got good hospitality in return,” he said.