The new national haze forecast site becomes active

The new national haze forecast site becomes active

The service offers 3-day dust forecast

On Monday, the Pollution Control Department (PCD) unveiled a new website that provides three-day haze forecasts accessible to businesses and the public across Thailand.

Repair work has begun on an overpass across Prawet Intersection which will be closed until 13 December for maintenance. (Varuth Hirunyatheb)

The new “Mekong Air Quality Explorer” platform, named after the area initially designed for monitoring, was developed jointly by the PCD, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), which enabled the use of data from its GEOS-5 satellite, one of the most accurate parameters in the world for measuring atmospheric levels of PM 2.5 and other dust particles such as nitrous oxide and black carbon.

“From now on, anyone can access the website to check the PM2.5 situation in advance and the department will use the information to better implement measures to limit the impact of air pollution on people’s health and local environment “, Aekkapol Aekakkararungroj, head of the Servir-Mekong project who contributed to the development of the model. The website – aqatmekong-servir.adpc.net/en/ mapviewer / – was released on Monday.

He said the team tested the reliability of the predictions for the past eight months and found that the predictions were 70% accurate.

The collaboration began as part of ongoing efforts to capture the big picture in the Mekong region, an area particularly affected by both climate change and air pollution caused by fires.

However, despite its name, the Mekong Air Quality Explorer site will also provide in-depth air quality data nationwide down to the district level, he said.

The team is importing air quality and PM2.5 data collected from the PCD’s 47 air monitoring stations in Bangkok and surrounding areas, as well as from 19 stations in 14 other provinces in the country.

The department will also post a daily updated summary on its website.

Today, PM2.5 levels are expected to be generally moderate with a small increase expected tomorrow in the provinces of Bangkok, Samut Prakan, Nakhon Pathum, Samut Sakhon and Nonthaburi. People living in these areas should expect guidance from local authorities on the best steps to take to minimize their exposure, Aekkapol said.

USAID’s Steven G Olive added that the website also offers residents of other countries in the Mekong region accurate three-day forecasts.

Meanwhile, CPD Director General Attapol Charoenchansa said further developments are underway to allow for even more accurate estimates, down to sub-districts and individual highways.