Thick air: this city wants to fight smog with dry ice

By Carola Frentzen

Bangkok - Large parts of Thailand and especially the capital Bangkok are suffering from heavy smog right at the start of the year.

Queues of cars can be seen on Sukhumvit Road in Bangkok. The heavy traffic in particular contributes to the severe air pollution in the capital.
Queues of cars can be seen on Sukhumvit Road in Bangkok. The heavy traffic in particular contributes to the severe air pollution in the capital.  © Carola Frentzen/dpa

For days, the air pollution index in the metropolis and other regions in the popular vacation destination has been in a highly unhealthy range.

The population has been advised to stay mainly indoors, wear masks outdoors and keep the windows closed. Meanwhile, the city administration wants to tackle the high levels of particulate matter with a new method - using dry ice.

The newspaper Khaosod spoke of a "new phase in the city's fight against PM2.5 air pollution". The minus 70 degree cold dry ice is to be distributed by airplanes and penetrate the heat film in the atmosphere.

This is intended to create ventilation channels for better distribution of the pollutants.

Test flights have shown that particulate matter levels have subsequently fallen significantly, said Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt.

Congested streets and factories in Bangkok

Skyscrapers in Bangkok are shrouded in smog in the atmosphere in the early evening.
Skyscrapers in Bangkok are shrouded in smog in the atmosphere in the early evening.  © Carola Frentzen/dpa

The Bangkok Industrial Gas Company donated around 300 tons of dry ice for the tests. According to the city administration, however, larger investments in airplanes and production facilities for dry ice are now necessary to reduce smog in the long term.

The main cause of the smog , which has been a recurring problem for years, is exhaust fumes from cars in the mostly congested streets and the continued use of fossil fuels. There are also tens of thousands of factories around Bangkok.

Vehicle owners have been urged to replace air filters and change engine oil. The authorities are also encouraging around 80,000 people to work from home so that they do not have to use their vehicles.

However, it is expected that the dangerous levels could increase and continue until at least February.