Air quality in Cha-am

What is the air quality like in Cha-am?

Cha-am is a city located in the southern region of Phetchaburi province in Western Thailand. It finds itself lying approximately 173km south of the capital city, Bangkok, and has a strong economy based around tourism due to its natural beauty and a majority of its landmass lying on the coastline, facing the gulf of Thailand. However, in more recent times due to the rising of sea levels, much of the coast has been subject to erosion and thus its popularity has waned slightly. It still remains a big draw for tourists, and due to its proximity to Bangkok is a popular and easy to reach destination. This would be a factor that would play a part in rising pollution levels, as is common in many smaller towns, cities and provinces around Thailand and indeed the whole of South East Asia, with many sleepy towns or city being subject to a sudden flood of tourists.

Looking at the levels of pollution present in the beginning of 2021 for a reference point, Cha-am presented with some relatively high PM2.5 readings, more so than one would expect from a coastal town, which due to its geographical location is subject to stronger coastal winds that aid in the removal of pollution. It was observed as having readings as low as 29.2 μg/m³, and highs of 54.2 μg/m³, putting its higher readings into the upper echelons of the ‘unhealthy for sensitive groups’, a rating which requires a PM2.5 reading of anywhere between 35.5 and 55.4 μg/m³ to be classified as such. Also, as the name suggest, this air quality reading would have some risks for vulnerable portions of the population, with pregnant mothers, young children and the elderly being the most at risk, as well as those with preexisting medical conditions or compromised immune systems.

What are the main causes of pollution in Cha-am?

As with many cities found in Thailand, Cha-am is subject to many of the same pollutive issues that persist throughout the country, with a few variations depending on its location, such as more northern cities subject to very intense open burn fires and crops being set alight, whereas the southern portion of Thailand has to deal with trans-border smoke clouds blowing over from the Sumatran portion of Indonesia.

Cha-am finds itself closer to the southern region and Malay peninsula, and as such may be subject to smoke clouds from Indonesia in the months of September, but as of present since this data is not fully available, more localized forms of pollution will be discussed. Vehicles would be at the ever present top of the list for causes of pollution, with many personal vehicles such as cars and motorbikes making their daily commute in Cha-am, with a large amount of them running on heavily aged motors and engines, as well as using lower quality or diesel fuels. These can have a considerable impact on the level of pollution, which will be discussed in further detail soon.

Lastly, another significant cause of air pollution which was touched upon briefly earlier is that of local fires being started by farmers, both to clear swathes of land for them to use as well as burning crop remnants. Despite this being highly illegal, it still continues to occur year round, and presents a significant problem to the pollution levels, both in Cha-am and many other cities around Thailand.

What problems does vehicle use present to the air quality in Cha-am?

As touched on before, many of the vehicles in use in Cha-am would be utilizing worn down and aged motors. The main problem with this, along with the massive increase in vehicle use alone being an ever growing issue in the country, is that older vehicle engines can leak considerably more oil vapors, give out a lot more soot and black carbon, and far higher volumes of pollutants than a newer engine model would, particularly if they are running on internationally standardized fuel.

Some of these pollutants would include ones such as nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and sulfur dioxide (SO₂), with lower quality fuels containing higher amounts of sulfur, which can end up in the atmosphere and contribute to instances of acid rain, as well as causing damage to the respiratory tract and lungs. With a growing population and a nonstop supply of cars and motorbikes rising along with it, vehicles can assist in raising the year round pollution readings in Cha-am, causing further issues for sensitive groups of people, as well as those who suffer from excessive exposure, typically demographics that have to make daily commutes through areas with a high density of traffic.

What are some other pollutants found in the air in Cha-am?

With the main pollutants aside from vehicles being considered, many of them also arise from combustion sources, such as the open burning of fields and forest land, as well as the occasional burning of garbage or waste that can occur, which can contain synthetic materials such as rubber and plastic. The pollution released from the burning of both organic and synthetic materials would contain black carbon, one of the main components of soot, as well as volatile organic compounds (VOC's).

Some examples of VOC's include chemicals such as methylene chloride, tetrachloroethylene, xylene, toluene and benzene. Of note is that construction sites, road repairs and other similar areas all release pollutants as well, which can include finely ground silica and dust particles, with silica having carcinogenic properties when inhaled. Other pollutants released from burning include dioxins, furans, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons as well as toxic metals such as mercury, lead and cadmium.

What are some health issues that may arise from breathing polluted air in Cha-am?

With PM2.5 readings as high as 54.2 μg/m³ having been taken in the earlier months of the year, there would be a heightened risk of adverse health risks and complications occurring. Some of these would be short term ones such as irritation to the eyes, nose, mouth and throat, as well as allergies occurring in young children that can turn into lifelong burdens if over exposure to certain chemicals continues to take place. Other issues would be inflammation and rapid aging of the lung tissue, which can lead to both a decrease in full lung capacity, as well as making those suffering from such ailments more prone to further respiratory illnesses such as pneumonia, emphysema and bronchitis.