Dangerous levels of PM2.5 pollution in Chiang Mai, Thailand are affecting people’s health, economy, and tourism.
For several weeks, the city was at the top of air quality information platform IQAir’s global chart on poor air quality, ahead of Lahore and New Delhi, reported Reuters.
According to the Thai Hotel Association Northern Chapter, hotel bookings in Chiang Mai have dropped to 45% occupancy.
“It’s impacted my business … people aren’t coming (they) can’t see the view,” said Sunat Insao, 53, who sells orange juice.
Recently, authorities have urged people to work from home, avoid outdoor activities, and wear marks.
However, there are still no sustainable solutions that seem to tackle the problem as more numbers of patients (mostly elderly and children) were hospitalized after having trouble breathing, eye allergies, and some of them had rashes on their skin.
Besides Chiang Mai that was reported to have approximately eighty-three hotspots, other Northern provinces of Thailand including Mae Hong Son, Lumphun, and Chiang Rai have been struggling with similar issues as well.
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