Dust particles in Thai North reach critical levels

CHIANG MAI, March 16 (TNA) - Dust particles in several areas in the Thai North, caused mainly by forest fires, have exceeded the safety standard level. Adisorn Kamnerdsiri, Deputy Governor of Chiang Mai Province, told reporters on Saturday that southwestern winds have blown in smog to his province, while local forest fires and dry grass burnings, as well as a cold mass have aggravated the problem, with dust particles now exceeding the safety standard level. In areas near Yupparaj Wittayalai School in Chiang Mai, dust particles were measured at 138 microns, while of 111 microns were measured at the province's City Hall. The highest dust particle level remained in Mae Hong Son at over 200 microns, followed closely by 168 microns in Lamphun , 167 microns in Lampang , 161 microns in Phrae , 140 microns in Payao , while dust particle levels in Chiang Rai and Nan are still within the standard limit, but they are exceeding 100 microns. The current situation has caused a temporary suspension of all flights to Mae Hong Son, while the visibility in Lamphun has been lowered to less than 200 metres. Meanwhile, the drought situation in the northwestern Tak Province is severely affecting locals of Thailand and Myanmar living along the Thai-Myanmar border, as the main Moei River in the province is receding rapidly, causing people in the areas to face a water shortage. In Uttaradit Province in the Lower Thai North, water levels in the Sirikit Dam has now dropped to only 20 per cent level of its total capacity, or around 1.34 billion cubic metres is left in the dam, which is the lowest level in 36 years, prompting local authorities to ask local residents to postpone their new round of planting, as water released from the dam appears not to be enough for people's consumption if used to water crops. (TNA)