The cabinet approved Bt620 million from the Central Fund today for the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry. It is to be used to deal with wildfires and air pollution.
During the cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra instructed the five ministries concerned to deal more decisively with violators who light fires in forests or who burn farm waste and crops, which are blamed for the increasing air pollution and for threatening the health of people, especially in Bangkok.
Several ministers briefed the prime minister on the actions their respective ministries have been and will be taking to address airborne pollution, especially PM2.5.
Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Chalermchai Srion said that a portion of the 620 million baht will be used to hire villagers to look after forests and prevent wildfires.
The minister is due to visit Lamphun and Chiang Mai provinces end of this month, to meet with local officials and make them appreciate the need to preserve the environment and prevent burning on farms.
The Ministry of Agriculture has imposed a measure under which farmers caught burning will be deprived of the right to receive subsidies from the government. The ministry also plans to undertake cloud seeding.
The Foreign Ministry has been coordinating technical cooperation with Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia to address transboundary smoke.
