Clean Air

The past two winters have brought a phenomenon dubbed the "White Fog"; a horrible and toxic mix of fog and pollution which has drifted in from China and the rural northeast, and settled over Bangkok and Chiang Mai (the winter pollution in Chiang Mai is particularly nasty, earning it the dubious title of the world's most polluted cities).

https://michaeldesrosiers.blogspot.com/2020/01/white-fog.html

It hasn't been nearly as bad this year! Perhaps that is due to the COVID restrictions forcing everyone to stay home, or perhaps due to the government's anti-pollution countermeasures (which include such industrious actions as molasses-spraying drones). Maybe it's a mix of both.

Whatever the reason, things this year are looking much, much better (fingers crossed 🤞). The sky is blue, the air is clear, and everything feels remarkably clean and fresh. Hopefully, it will hold!

One of the recent countermeasures that has popped up in my neighborhood is a massive industrial air purifier supplied by Major Development, who are building a brand-new condominium building on my road.

The machine just showed up one day, and had been running day and night. I'm not sure exactly how it purifies the air, but it seems to be a large, industrial version of the air filters that most people keep in their homes and condos here in Bangkok.

Does it work? I certainly hope so! If the sky is still looking crisp and blue by February, we might know for sure!