Air quality and Climate Change Action

The air pollution in Thailand, particularly in Bangkok, has significantly improved during the past decade. Thailand has relatively been successful in implementing air pollution abatement programs and in setting up and utilizing systematic air quality monitoring equipment as manifested in air pollution trends.

The trends in the air pollution levels in Bangkok have either decreased substantially or have stabilized in globally-accepted levels as indicated in the charts above. The main pollutant of concern in Bangkok is PM10. Even though the latest figure for ambient concentrations of PM10 falls below the national standard, it still exceeds the WHO guideline value. On average, Bangkok PM10 levels are better than most other major cities in the region.

Source: Clean Air Initiative for Asian Cities (CAI-Asia) Center, 2008

The other pollutants have stabilized in levels which are within national standards and WHO guidelines. Total Suspended Particulates (TSP), Lead (Pb) and Carbon monoxide (CO) roadside and ambient pollution levels in Bangkok have decreased significantly from the late 1990s. Nitrogen dioxide (NO2), Ozone and Sulfur dioxide (SO2) have stabilized within acceptable levels since the late 1990s.

When benchmarked against other key cities in Asia, Bangkok’s air quality management capability was categorized as Excellent II – in the same level with Seoul and Shanghai and below more developed cities with Excellent I category of AQM capability – Hong Kong, Singapore, Taipei and Tokyo.

Source: Schwela, D. et.al. Urban Air Pollution in Asian Cities: Status, Challenges and Management. Earthscan, UK.