Showing posts with label Pollution. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pollution. Show all posts

Monday 1 April 2019

15 lakes across #Indonesia in critical condition

Indonesia - Lake Toba, in North Sumatra 


Fifteen lakes in Indonesia are in critical condition, according to a government official.

National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) head Bambang Brodjonegoro said that currently lakes were facing issues concerning water volume and quality, which had decreased significantly as a result of environmental degradation, often caused by human activities such as pollution, logging and illegal fishing. Bambang sees polluting or dumping garbage into lakes as a dangerous habit that can worsen the condition of lakes.

“When [people] see water, whether a river or a lake, they see it as a garbage bin, not as something to protect,” Bambang said during a meeting at the Environment and Forestry Ministry in Jakarta on Tuesday as quoted by tempo.co.
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http://www.agoda.com?cid=1739471

Among the 15 lakes in critical condition as noted by Bappenas are Lake Rawa Pening in Central Java, Lake Rawa in Banten, Lake Batur in Bali, Lake Toba in North Sumatra, Lake Kerinci in Jambi, Lake Maninjau and Lake Singkarak in West Sumatra, Lake Poso in Central Sulawesi, Lake Cascade Mahakam-Semayang, Lake Melintang and Lake Tondano in North Sulawesi, Lake Tempe and Lake Matano in South Sulawesi, Lake Lomboto in Gorontalo, Lake Sentarum in West Kalimantan, Lake Jempang in East Kalimantan and Lake Sentani in Papua.

Source - TheNation


Friday 25 January 2019

#Bangkok - Health, pollution top social media discussion topics


Online channels being increasingly used for complaints about hospital services.

STROKES AND dust were the two most-discussed topics among Thai netizens last year, a recent survey has revealed. 

Conducted by the data company, Backyard Co Ltd, the survey found that Thais were particularly interested in the quality of private hospital services, strokes, chronic respiratory diseases (CRDs) and facilities for elderly care during their time online.

Net users often “talked” about hospitals in relation to their services (54.94 per cent), Backyard’s co-founder Kittipong Kitithawornkul said. This was followed by topics like complaints, scamming, lack of medical ethics and hype (22.75 per cent), hospitals’ environment (11.80 per cent), fees (7.30 per cent), location (1.72 per cent) and facilities (1.50 per cent). 
Interestingly, data also showed that people are turning to online channels to submit complaints about hospitals, up from 16 per cent in 2017 to 22 per cent last year, reflecting the growing importance of online comments, he said. 

Data also pointed to Thai people’s growing interest in certain diseases. Strokes, for example, ranked No 1, with people discussing the topic 111.42 per cent more than the year earlier, followed by CRDs (59.88 per cent) and chronic kidney disease (34.91 per cent). 
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Researchers believe the move to ban trans or unsaturated fat by the Thai food agency may have inspired more discussions about strokes. 

In terms of online conversations related to medical check-up packages, data showed that Thai netizens “talked” more about packages for chronic respiratory diseases, 233.33 per cent more from the year earlier, chronic kidney disease (163.76 per cent) and strokes (89.32 per cent). 

Interestingly, as Bangkok struggles to cope with smog and fine PM2.5 dust particles, conversations about smog-related diseases such as allergy, heart disease, asthma and lung cancer are also on the rise.

In addition, online conversations regarding the wellness industry grew 75 per cent compared to the year earlier, though real estate topped the list. 

Meanwhile, online conversations about elderly care facilities rose as much as 180 per cent from the year earlier. 

People seem to be less interested in yoga, with 58 per cent fewer conversations about the subject compared to the year earlier. Now people seem to be more interested in healthy diets, with 128 per cent more discussions compared to 2017. This has been attributed to the popularity of intermittent fasting and the keto diet. 

Thai netizens also talked less about low-fat and low-calorie diets, and showed more interest in gluten-free (179.02 per cent up from 2017) and vegan diets (166.05 per cent). Unsurprisingly, there was also more discussion about protein alternatives. 

In order to combat office syndrome, researchers found that people were most interested in manipulative and body-based methods, with acupuncture and cupping therapy at the top of the list. 

“Online data shows that the healthcare and wellness business is very attractive, especially because online conversations related to this business grew as much as 85 per cent from 2017 to 2018,” Kittipong said.

Sourse - TheNation
 
 

Friday 9 February 2018

What’s happening to Bangkok’s air?


In the past week, the air quality in Bangkok has hit “unhealthy” levels, according to the Air Pollution Index, and the problem has worsened to the point that smog can be seen with the naked eye in the morning. 

The Department of Pollution Control has issued a warning for people to wear face masks or simply “go to the doctor” if they experience abnormalities with their breathing or respiratory system. 

Today, the department reported PM2.5 dust in Bangkok at 8am. It was measured at 47-70 micrograms per m3, higher than the level considered safe for Thailand, which is set at 50 micrograms per m3. Meanwhile, the World Health Organization suggested that the level of PM2.5 dust should be under 25 micrograms per m3. 
So no, you’re not imagining it.

https://12go.asia/?z=581915

 According to the department, the dust in four areas of Bangkok exceeded safe standards today. Those areas were: Wangthonglang district, Thanon Intharaphithak (located near the riverside), Rama IV Road (which stretches across business areas including Silom, Lumpini, and Khlong Toei), and Lat Phrao Road. 

Trinuch Kraiwit, a resident of Wangthonglang, told Coconuts: “When I get out of the house in the morning, I can see a thick smog… The sky is gray.

“I’ve been feeling that my allergy has been triggered. I’ve been having a sore throat — so does my colleague. So I’ve bought face masks just in case I have to work outdoors.” 

In a statement, the Department of Pollution Control blamed the temperature drop of 2-4 degrees Celsius and humidity as causes for dust to accumulate in the air.

Prof. Dr. Wanida Jinsart, an expert on environmental science and air pollution from Chulalongkorn University, told Coconuts that the high number of vehicles on Bangkok roads is a main contributor to city smog, and the cool weather caused the problem to become more prominent. 

 
“It’s more noticeable in the winter, where inversions normally occur. This means a layer of air is trapped, causing the smog,” she said, explaining that the gray smog we see is composed primarily of dust and steam trapped in the atmosphere.

She explained we can see that the smog disappears around 10am as the temperature becomes higher, which means we can expect the smog to go away as warmer weather approaches. 

“We’ll have to follow the weather prediction from the Department of Meteorology, but I think we won’t experience the smog next week.”
She added that the smog can be dangerous to your health if it continues to happen over the long term, and that, for now, we should be OK if we protect ourselves by wearing a face mask.

Source - Coconuts.co
 

Monday 23 November 2015

Tradition vs Trash: Officials urge fewer plastic krathong


Almost 1 million krathong were collected from waterways in Bangkok last year. 

Celebrants of this week's Loy Krathong festival have been urged to opt for krathong made of natural materials instead of plastic foam.

 The Pollution Control Department expects a smaller number of the non-biodegradable foam-made items to be deployed during the historic festival this year, based on their gradual reduction over the past seven years.

In 2011, the department recorded around 58,000 foam-made krathong which accounted for 18 percent of the total floating items in Bangkok, said director-general Wichan Simchaya.

This declined to 14 percent in 2012, 12 percent in 2013, and 10 percent in 2014, he added.

Wichan urged the public to help protect the environment by using smaller krathong made of natural materials such as banana tree leaves and flowers, and also suggested sharing one krathong per family or group, reported Thai PBS and PPTV.

Thailand is currently one of five Asian countries responsible for the majority of plastic found in world's oceans as the nation's demand for safe, disposable products is outstripping its waste management capabilities, said a recent report by Ocean Conservancy.

Over half of the world's plastic garbage in the oceans comes from Thailand, China, Indonesia, Philippines, and Vietnam.

Last year almost one million krathong were floated by Bangkokians. The waste was sent to three different disposal units.


Source: Coconuts

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Friday 23 October 2015

South Thailand worst haze


Health of locals threatened as particulate matter far exceeds safe level; Flight to Trang and Krabi hit ; Indonesia apologetic.

 THE WORST haze crisis in 17 years hit Songkhla’s Hat Yai district hard yesterday, with the amount of PM10 particles far exceeding the safe level.

As of yesterday, the amount of particulate matter (PM) of up to 10 microns in size (PM10) reached 369.0 micrograms per cubic metre of air in Hat Yai, the economic hub of Thailand's South.

People are considered safe only when the PM10 does not rise above 120 micrograms.

In 1998, the PM10 in Songkhla skyrocketed to 459.5 micrograms per cubic metre of air. Locals had hoped that such a seriously hazy situation would never recur.


But yesterday, although the PM10 did not yet beat the previous record, air pollutants were clearly visible in Hat Yai, even to the naked eye. The problem is widely blamed on Indonesia's forest fires.

Officials in Songkhla province were busy handing out facial masks to help locals cope with the health impacts.

Government Spokesman Maj-General Sansern Kaewkamnerd said Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-ocha had already instructed family-medicine teams to visit affected people.

"People need to get proper healthcare," he said, "They also need to get advice. For example, they should avoid staying outdoors with the haze raging on. If they develop tightness in the chest or have difficulty breathing, they should immediately seek medical help".

According to Sansern, the prime minister is very concerned about the haze, which has blanketed Thailand's South. All relevant authorities are now ordered to closely monitor the situation and extend help to people.

"Local administrative bodies, on their part, can help ease the pollution by spraying water in the air," the government spokesman said.


Sansern said the government has already contacted Indonesia about the haze, and Indonesia said it was sorry about the pollution caused.

Yesterday, haze was also a major problem in at least five other southern provinces: Satun struggled with a PM10 of 276 micrograms; Pattani with PM10 211 micrograms; Surat Thani with PM10 of 187 micrograms; Yala with PM10 of 172 micrograms; and Narathiwat with PM10 of 123 micrograms.

As haze significantly reduced visibility, flight services to and from Thailand's South have been affected.

Executives of schools in Songkhla are now allowed to decide whether temporary closure is necessary should the PM10 rise above 350 micrograms.

So far, Songkhla has not been declared a disaster-hit zone as authorities are worried that such a declaration may affect local tourism.

Halem J Marigan, director of the Regional Environmental Office 16 (Songkhla), yesterday evening said there were signs of improvement.


"The average PM10 amount during the past 24 hours has finally reduced. It dropped from 369 to 365 micrograms per cubic metre of air if we concluded the measurement at 4pm Thursday," he said.

He believed stronger winds had benefited Thailand, as the haze was pushed away faster.

In Surat Thani, several flights to Samui Airport were delayed yesterday because of the haze.

"Many flights could not land in the morning. They had to wait until the afternoon," said Surat Thani Governor Wongsiri Promchana.

He said he had also advised locals to turn on the headlights of their vehicles when driving in hazy areas.

Wongsiri said all tourist attractions were still open as normal as of now.

Flight services in the southern provinces of Trang and Krabi are also affected.

In Trang, locals yesterday urged relevant authorities to help tackle the haze problem that had recurred every now and then.

"It has affected us adversely. I feel uncomfortable because the haze has made it hard for me to breathe," Areerat Boonprasert, 52, said. 

Source: The Nation

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