Regularly, this period of time every year is when Thai people have to frown because of the strength of summer that brings the heat to the country. Which is getting more and more intense every day, until many people refuse to come outside for lunch. But this year, Thai people have been waiting anxiously for the hot season due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus. When the Meteorological Department announced that Thailand officially entered the summer at the beginning of the month we all smiled. With scholars confirming before that with this radical heat can prevent the outbreak of the virus …

But the coin always has two sides and does not change the fact that the burning temperature is an aftereffect of global warming. The heat level that has reached a critical intensity, the dry season therefore strengthened more directly with the intensity of forest fires in the country as well, which are easier to happen but more difficult to control than before. As can be seen from the forest fire in Loei Province And most recently at Doi Inthanon, Chiang Mai Province.

First of all, there is an explanation that forest fires are a natural phenomenon, but almost 90% of the world is caused by human hands, from burning land to prepare the topsoil, weed removal, hunting, shifting cultivation, and carelessness. The environmental impact of forest fires is covering the large area. The most obvious and we all encounter every year is the smog, the pollution that covers the surrounding area. Often a forest fire consume a large area, they can float to bash their neighbors because of the wind current that interconnected around the world, like the tides, for example, the forest fires on Sumatra, Indonesia that sprayed into Singapore, Malaysia, and Southern Thailand.

As the world used to be, it had not yet experienced the air pollution of this size, the combustion dust would be washed away with rain. But as the world heats up while the burning of the forest remains combined with combustion from automobiles, industries and households. Air pollution therefore increases beyond the systems of the world to manage in a timely manner. We have once again become the major news around the world. When Chiang Mai has been named the city with the highest air pollution in the world repeatedly. From the Air Visual application data that collects weather data from around the world and reports in real time.

The impact of forest fires is still greater than what we know. It directly affects the world environment. Scientists have found that forest fires increase the temperature of the earth to form a vicious circle. When the world heats up by one degree, the forest will need about about 15% more rain to compensate for the moisture lost. As for humans and wildlife, when the frequency of forest fires increases, dust and airborne particles become denser and become permanent pollution, resulting in a higher incidence of respiratory disease rates. Wild animals, not only losing their lives, but also losing their long-term habitats.

Although it may seem worrisome, the phenomenon of frequent and intense forest fires every year, which is a worldwide phenomenon, is just the beginning of the disappearance of forests. Something that environmental experts are more concerned about, because as the world steadily gets warmer, the time required for nature to be restored will also increase as well. In the end, the ecosystem in that forest will become damaged and degraded. Now, in some countries, rainforests are slowly becoming deserts.

Forest fires prevention work at this time is extremely important, even if it is only the solution at the end of the incident. The best way is to maintain the moisture in the area as much as possible by turning to a life that is sufficiently consumed and uses world resources economically, especially using electricity and water, because these two resources are truly the fruitful of forests.

Today, Thailand receives electricity and water from dams. But if it doesn’t rain, the dam will turn into a useless, dry concrete structure. Without forests, there is no water as well …

Nonetheless, it’s not too late, even though this year, the Meteorological Department announced that Thailand will face drought until the middle of the year, but if we both turn to save water and electricity seriously and make it a habit, we will help solving global problems together until tangible changes is made. Instead of playing the role of “The Trouble Maker.”

If there are no changes to the upcoming March 28th, this is the day the Earth Hour campaign will take place. On that day, millions of people all over the world will turn off the lights at 8:30 pm local time for an hour to raise awareness of the impact of global warming to the world. The research studied from the Energy Research and Social Science in 2014 with 10 countries participating in the power-off campaign for six years, found that during the time, each country saved up to 4% of their energy consumption. Which is considered not quite bad. Since that time is the period of high demand for electricity.

Think about it, if we build a new habit, change this 1-hour campaign to realize the value of a life-long resource consumption. How will this world be cooler and be more livable?

Article by Uamdoa Noikorn