Koh Samui air quality

[khunPer]

10 hours ago, wilcopops said:

One needs to identify the haze, though. If it was just moisture in the atmosphere...

–That – moisture – is what its normal said to be when the weather is slightly unclear here...????

[SamuiGeezer]

On 3/17/2019 at 2:32 PM, khunPer said:

You can follow the haze situation here at "Regional Haze Situation".
 

Back in October 2015 we had haze-problems a few days on Samui due to oil-plantagen forest fires on Sumatra in Indonesia, cause by wind direction; the visibility from my point was about 2.5 kilometer over sea (Maenam Bay)...

 

–and this is how it looked a few days later...

 

Normally we don't have any serious haze problems here, unclear weather is mainly due to moist.

I agree there may have been a couple of days in the past 10 years.

 

17 hours ago, wilcopops said:

One needs to identify the haze, though. If it was just moisture in the atmosphere, then no problem and washed out by rain.....however more sinister industrial or burning pollution would just be washed into the ground which is not good.

Burning particulates etc. are trapped by cloud and still air and can get concentrated into unhealthy smog.

"One' does not need to identify the haze if it is so infrequent, I refer you to above. 

 

[Scott]

Troll post removed.

 

[wilcopops]

Let me be clear, Haze on Samui is increasing in frequency and although minor in most cases, it us VITAL to know what each of these hazes comprise of, whether it is industrial, agricultural natural disaster or simply a symptom of the whether....to ignore this and take a head in the sand attitude would be to ignore effects on health and the tourism on which the island depends.

[Tropicalevo]

10 minutes ago, wilcopops said:

Let me be clear, Haze on Samui is increasing in frequency and although minor in most cases, it us VITAL to know what each of these hazes comprise of, whether it is industrial, agricultural natural disaster or simply a symptom of the whether....to ignore this and take a head in the sand attitude would be to ignore effects on health and the tourism on which the island depends.

As it is so VITAL for you to know what the haze comprises of, I look forward to reading your findings when you publish them.

[ShortTimed]

normally perfect. But if bad luck, neighbour burning coconuts all day all night

I am new to coconut climates. Can you explain the benefit of burning coconuts? Is it to make oil?

Thanks

[ShortTimed]

OK. I am thinking about this burning coconuts. Is it to make smoke to keep insects away?

The Indigenous groups in Canada have long standing similar practices.

Better than getting eaten alive in my book...Lol


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

[wilcopops]

4 hours ago, Tropicalevo said:

As it is so VITAL for you to know what the haze comprises of, I look forward to reading your findings when you publish them.

You might also consider your healthcare bills after inhaling particulates that you are currently unaware of.

As pointed out earlier there are already websites publishing haze and AQI for you to read. 

As industry grows around the Gulf of Siam it is inevitable the Samui will be subject to I creasing pollution by land sea and air, I for one would like to be properly informed.

 

[wilcopops]

10 hours ago, ShortTimed said:

 

I am new to coconut climates. Can you explain the benefit of burning coconuts? Is it to make oil?

Thanks

 

Don't underestimate the effect coconuts can have on air quality.

Coconuts are next to tourism the second biggest industry on Koh Samui….you'll see bananas and rubber too. They can be used to produce electricity, heat, fiberboards, organic fertilizer, animal feeds, fuel additives for cleaner emissions, health drinks, etc.

 

Unlike just about every other part of the palm, the shell is basically a waste product  which is open burned all year round on Samui. Open burning contributes significantly to CO2 and methane emissions.  

The  shell is also used for making charcoal.This involves smouldering shells under soil or in pits again releasing CO2 etc.

In fact the smoke from this is not only a nuisance but also a health hazard.

The island was also infected with damaging coconut palm pests in the form of a beetle and grub...I believe they came from South Africa. This may also account for some of the burning to protect the crops.

 

Whatever the reasons, large amounts of unrestricted burning are not good for the overall air quality on the island as we are talking millions of coconuts here.

As codicil, with the ever increasing population on Samui and the almost complete collapse of effective garbage disposal the authorities, the illegal and private burning of trash is also likely to get worse before it gets better

[ShortTimed]

Don't ignore the effect coconuts can have on air quality.

Coconuts are next to tourism the second biggest industry on Koh Samui….you'll see bananas and rubber too. They can be used to produce electricity, heat, fiberboard and matting, organic fertilizer, animal feeds, fuel additives for cleaner emissions, health drinks, etc.

 

Unlike just about every other part f the palm, the shell is basically a waste product  which is open burned all year round on Samui. Open burning contributes significantly to CO2 and methane emissions.  

The  shell is also used for making charcoal.This involves smouldering shells under soil or in pits again releasing CO2 etc.

In fact the smoke  from this is not only a nuisance but also a health hazard.

The island was also infected with damaging pests in the form of a beetle and grub...I believe they came from South Africa. This may also account for some of the burning.

 

Whatever the reasons, large amounts of unrestricted burning are not good for the overall air quality on the island as we are talking millions of coconuts here.

As codicil, with the ever increasing population on Samui and the almost complete collapse of effective garbage disposal the authorities, the illegal and private burning of trash is also likely to get worse before it gets better....  

 

 

This article explains the various methods used (wet & dry) for producing coconut oil.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coconut_oil

 

 

 

 

 Thanks for this response. I didn’t realize they burned the coconut shells. I suppose I thought they were ground up and utilized for something profitable but the transport costs from Samui are probably high.

 

They just burn them in the open air?

 

I am familiar with the methods to make charcoal in a general sense which sounds like it applies to coconut shells as well.

 

Thanks again for the details. I took a short holiday to Chaweng Beach at Christmas. That beach was full of trash that looked like it had been washed down a local waterway and also various debris from nearshore fishing fleet including many lightbulbs both fluorescent and sodium.

 

No desire to go back even before your description.

 

 

[SamuiGeezer]

Double and triple posting, these people have an agenda. I don't see anything sensible, exclusive or appropriate to Samui in them.

 

Please can someone sort this out or close the topic... Samui may have its issues but it certainly is one of the best places in the world to live. 

[ShortTimed]

Double and triple posting, these people have an agenda. I don't see anything sensible, exclusive or appropriate to Samui in them.   Please can someone sort this out or close the topic... Samui may have its issues but it certainly is one of the best places in the world to live.    

 

 

 Eh? Did I miss something here? Since you are having a go at me for just asking about coconuts then I will give my full impression of Samui. 

Take an early morning stroll down Chaweng Beach as the sun is just rising to see all the garbage about...and whats that stench of jet fuel or heating oil around that big bar, whats it called, the Ark Bar? Definitely a fuel leak of some sort before I was there.

 

I am not saying Samui may not be a beautiful place to live away from the tourist areas but all I had a chance to see as a tourist on short holiday was massively overbuilt properties with no public park spaces or green spaces with trees and no thought given at all to traffic control.

 

It just looked like another island or beach resort that grew at a very unsustainable pace in order to attract the tourist dollar with little thought given to quality of life issues or sustainability or re-investment in infrastructure. Such as Patong Beach, Hua Hin or Pattaya (only other places I have been...Lol).

 

When was the sewer and wastewater treatment plant built or do they just pipe most effluent out to sea?

 

Maybe you can tell me if there is any truth to what a guy told me that Samui has the highest incidence of motorbike fatalities in Thailand?

 

I am loving Thailand but pristine beaches is not in the equation, eh.

 

 

 

 

 

[Tropicalevo]

4 hours ago, ShortTimed said:

 Eh? Did I miss something here? Since you are having a go at me for just asking about coconuts then I will give my full impression of Samui. 

Take an early morning stroll down Chaweng Beach as the sun is just rising to see all the garbage about...and whats that stench of jet fuel or heating oil around that big bar, whats it called, the Ark Bar? Definitely a fuel leak of some sort before I was there.

Personally, I think that Chaweng is a dump and I cannot remember the last time that I visited the beach there. Probably when I was recovering a stolen kayak 16 years ago!

 

4 hours ago, ShortTimed said:

I am not saying Samui may not be a beautiful place to live away from the tourist areas but all I had a chance to see as a tourist on short holiday was massively overbuilt properties with no public park spaces or green spaces with trees and no thought given at all to traffic control.

 

It just looked like another island or beach resort that grew at a very unsustainable pace in order to attract the tourist dollar with little thought given to quality of life issues or sustainability or re-investment in infrastructure. Such as Patong Beach, Hua Hin or Pattaya (only other places I have been...Lol).

 

When was the sewer and wastewater treatment plant built or do they just pipe most effluent out to sea?

Not sure - probably 10 - 15 years ago

 

4 hours ago, ShortTimed said:

 

Maybe you can tell me if there is any truth to what a guy told me that Samui has the highest incidence of motorbike fatalities in Thailand?

I read in one of the Thai newspapers (last year) that Samui has the highest incidence of motorbike fatalities in the world. Not just Thailand. More than 500 per year and that number only covers those that died at the road side. I think that the newspaper source was The Nation but it may have been the other one.

 

4 hours ago, ShortTimed said:

 

I am loving Thailand but pristine beaches is not in the equation, eh.

 

There are some pristine beaches on Samui (I walk on one most mornings) and lots more if you take the whole of Thailand into the game. However, pollution is now a world wide problem and beaches especially, suffer heavily after a storm. Again, the better ones are usually away from tourist areas.

The age old dilemma. You find somewhere beautiful - you tell your friends. They then tell their friends, who again, tell their friends. Suddenly you have tourism and that wrecks the place.

 

Another example - The Beach. Now they have had to close it to try and re-invigorate the reef and the fish stocks.

 

[Tropicalevo]

Back onto the subject of air quality, here is a very personal view.

 

Unlike some who post here, I am not a scientist or a specialist. However, I have 67 years worth of life skills and have lived in many places all over Europe and SE Asia. I happen to suffer from chronic bronchitis. Having lived in Bangkok, Hong Kong, Sydney, and some industrial towns, I have a personal measurement of air quality. ie can I breath OK?

 

Samui beats most places hands down. I walk most mornings (as the sun rises) and most evenings (just before the sun sets). The morning walk is at a strong pace and I can breath easy! I am sure that the Tibetan slopes have cleaner air, but I do not want to live there.

 

Yes, we have had burn-off haze once in the 19 years that I have lived here. I can live with that. I do not need an in-depth analysis of the air particles to tell me that LIFE IS GOOD.

[wilcopops]

10 minutes ago, Tropicalevo said:

Back onto the subject of air quality, here is a very personal view.

 

Unlike some who post here, I am not a scientist or a specialist. However, I have 67 years worth of life skills and have lived in many places all over Europe and SE Asia. I happen to suffer from chronic bronchitis. Having lived in Bangkok, Hong Kong, Sydney, and some industrial towns, I have a personal measurement of air quality. ie can I breath OK?

 

Samui beats most places hands down. I walk most mornings (as the sun rises) and most evenings (just before the sun sets). The morning walk is at a strong pace and I can breath easy! I am sure that the Tibetan slopes have cleaner air, but I do not want to live there.

 

Yes, we have had burn-off haze once in the 19 years that I have lived here. I can live with that. I do not need an in-depth analysis of the air particles to tell me that LIFE IS GOOD.

..and for it to continue to be good one needs to be vigilant and properly monitor the air quality. This is especially important in light of the various established and identified threats and sources that surround the island.

[Rimmer]

An argumentative/baiting post  post has been removed

[ShortTimed]

Back onto the subject of air quality, here is a very personal view.

 

Unlike some who post here, I am not a scientist or a specialist. However, I have 67 years worth of life skills and have lived in many places all over Europe and SE Asia. I happen to suffer from chronic bronchitis. Having lived in Bangkok, Hong Kong, Sydney, and some industrial towns, I have a personal measurement of air quality. ie can I breath OK?

 

Samui beats most places hands down. I walk most mornings (as the sun rises) and most evenings (just before the sun sets). The morning walk is at a strong pace and I can breath easy! I am sure that the Tibetan slopes have cleaner air, but I do not want to live there.

 

Yes, we have had burn-off haze once in the 19 years that I have lived here. I can live with that. I do not need an in-depth analysis of the air particles to tell me that LIFE IS GOOD.

 

Thank you for your last post assuring me Chaweng is not like the rest of the island.

 

Now this post where you discuss your experience about air quality makes sense to me because it is an island very far from forest and rice burning and traffic smog and surrounded by ocean breezes so it seems to me that it should have less particulate matter in the air.

 

I know there are not big waves like Hawaiian Islands but maybe its location as an island is similar in that Hawaii gets much O3 from waves and this gives the air more freshness also.

 

On the days I was there on the beach I did not notice air quality issues.

 

Now this is very different from my recent motorcycle tour is CM & CR.

 

Cough, cough. Eyes burning red and crying.

[PoorSucker]

7 minutes ago, ShortTimed said:

 

Now this is very different from my recent motorcycle tour is CM & CR.

Cough, cough. Eyes burning red and crying.

 

Happens here also when passing a restaurant that is frying dried chilli. ????

[evadgib]

12 hours ago, SamuiGeezer said:

Double and triple posting, these people have an agenda. I don't see anything sensible, exclusive or appropriate to Samui in them.

 

Please can someone sort this out or close the topic... Samui may have its issues but it certainly is one of the best places in the world to live. 

I rarely bother with local issues these days because of this.

 

Back on topic; I exercise regularly & had an interesting encounter with a snake a few days ago which did wonders for my pace & heart rate! ???? 

 

(1 m long & quite fat. I think it was a harmless rat snake)

[evadgib]

7 hours ago, ShortTimed said:

I am loving Thailand but pristine beaches is not in the equation, eh.

How could you not have found one on an island no bigger than the IoW surrounded by them?

[ShortTimed]

How could you not have found one on an island no bigger than the IoW surrounded by them?

 

Shoot, if you are having some humor then clue me in please.

 

Ah, OK now I think I got it:

 

IoW: Isle of Wight?

 

But on the topic, are there pristine beaches left in Thailand that have not been exploited for tourist dollars?

 

Answer by PM so we don’t tip off the Full Moon crowd and the jetski gangs.

 

;-)

 

[SamuiGeezer]

14 hours ago, Tropicalevo said:

Personally, I think that Chaweng is a dump and I cannot remember the last time that I visited the beach there. Probably when I was recovering a stolen kayak 16 years ago!

Not sure - probably 10 - 15 years ago

16 years ago ..... It would seem that you are not qualified to post about Chaweng/Chaweng beach then . I think it is fine just a little too rowdy for my liking.

 

I have removed your comments about road deaths as this is a topic on air quality not a topic on 'how bad Samui is' and why you shouldn't go there.

 

 

 

[wilcopops]

Very hazy around Nam Mueang this morning ....a lot of burning going on and smoke particles hanging in the air........ 

[wilcopops]

19 hours ago, ShortTimed said:

 

But on the topic, are there pristine beaches left in Thailand that have not been exploited for tourist dollars?

The short answer is no.....this is largely because pristine has a precise definition but is incorrectly used to describe beaches that really don't come near the mark.

 

Thailand has done little to anticipate or regulate development and the results can be seen in the problems facing Samui at present.

The "best" beaches on Samui were built up years ago by companies attracted by the quality of the sea, sand and water quality.... what is left may not be crowded but pristine? No, and the quality is lower.

 

[Birdman]

Of all beaches Chaweng has the brightest and smoothest sand, like powder. And it is like that also in the sea, no stones. The clearest sea water is from middle Chaweng to South Chaweng. It is by far the best place regarding Sea and beach. That's a fact. 

[ShortTimed]

Of all beaches Chaweng has the brightest and smoothest sand, like powder. And it is like that also in the sea, no stones. The clearest sea water is from middle Chaweng to South Chaweng. It is by far the best place regarding Sea and beach. That's a fact. 

 

Good to know since its the only beach I was on but there was a strong rip current about 3/4 of the way south that had me a bit worried. It took me a good 10-15 minutes to swim parallel and out of it.

[Tropicalevo]

8 hours ago, SamuiGeezer said:

16 years ago ..... It would seem that you are not qualified to post about Chaweng/Chaweng beach then . I think it is fine just a little too rowdy for my liking.

 

I have removed your comments about road deaths as this is a topic on air quality not a topic on 'how bad Samui is' and why you shouldn't go there.

 

 

 

I apologise if my explanation was not clear. I think that Chaweng is a dump - I go there pretty much every month. The major shops/services are based there.

 

I did not comment on Chaweng beach as it is so long since I have actually seen it!

 

My comment re motorcycle deaths was in response to the question asked by the poster - no other reason.

 

" Maybe you can tell me if there is any truth to what a guy told me that Samui has the highest incidence of motorbike fatalities in Thailand?  "

[Happystance]

On 1/25/2019 at 7:18 PM, islandguy said:

 Mostly good air on Samui except for trash fires

Ya, give em a spot with some clean air and they will find some plastic to burn...

[khunPer]

6 hours ago, Tropicalevo said:

I apologise if my explanation was not clear. I think that Chaweng is a dump - I go there pretty much every month. The major shops/services are based there.

 

I did not comment on Chaweng beach as it is so long since I have actually seen it!

 

My comment re motorcycle deaths was in response to the question asked by the poster - no other reason.

 

" Maybe you can tell me if there is any truth to what a guy told me that Samui has the highest incidence of motorbike fatalities in Thailand?  "

Its subjective which beaches are liked, some like Chaweng, others not. Even the beach is wide (depending of tide) and has fine white sand, and mainly clear water, its has often waves and underwater currents, which makes part of the beach dangerous (accidents almost every year, some fatal). Furthermore its crowded, and with many jet ski renters, and noisy, and numerous folks selling stuff you often don't want. However, if you're young. like jet ski, beach vendors of all kind, parties and loud techno music, Chaweng Beach is just it...????

 

Other beaches are more quiet, but the sand could be little yellow and more rough than Chaweng; however the "privacy" is preferred by some, like found in both Maenam and Bo Phut, or some of the many southern beaches, of which some has low tide and are not good for swimming.

 

Silver Beach in northern Lamai is by many considered as the best beach on the island, but its also quite crowded, whilst perhaps similar nice beaches, but less crowded, can be found at northern tip of Plai Laem (Bis Buddha peninsula) and Bang Por area. 

 

However, it's worth taking a look at Koh Phangang, if nice uncrowded Bounty-.style coconut-palm-tree paradise-beaches are it...????

[KC 71]

Where does the effluent go ?


Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect