Public Sector Responses to Sustainable Haze Management in Upper Northern Thailand

• Main Author: Yongyut Tiyapairat
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Thai Society of Higher Eduction Institutes on Environment 2012-06-01
• Series: EnvironmentAsia
• Subjects: public sector response; sustainable haze management; Upper Northern Thailand
• Online Access: http://www.tshe.org/ea/pdf/vol5%20no2%20p1-10.pdf

This research focuses on urban haze in Upper Northern Thailand (UNT), where smoke haze often produce impacts on human health, tourism, and transportation. The objective was to better understand how the public sector responded to the haze impacts in policy review interviews and analyses of compiled haze-related data during 2007-2011. Moreover, integration of haze adaptation policy and coherency was also explored. The results revealed that Thailand has mainly implemented three National Haze Action Plans since 1997, together with laws and regulations for haze management. Further examination of haze policy at all levels of governance disclosed only vertical integration, whereas cross-boundary integration was reported only with the data and budget. Practically, manpower and function have not yet brought satisfactory outcomes. Moreover, the extent of state responses has been centralized –not decentralized from their centralized political structure. Low participation of people living in both urban and rural areas and cooperative efforts were identified as the main factors contributing to failures in combating smoke haze. Therefore, individuals are of utmost importance for effective solutions. There is a continuous need for prevention campaigns to enhance local people's understanding and participation as well as local communities' networking for solutions to the haze problem.