Think hard before burning forests: Offenders face up to 20 years in jail and a Bt2 million fine
National Parks Department warns forest burners face up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to Bt2 million as wildfire arrests intensify
- Offenders caught setting fires in national parks or wildlife sanctuaries face severe penalties, including prison terms of 4 to 20 years and fines from Bt400,000 to Bt2 million.
- Authorities are enforcing a zero-tolerance policy, meaning anyone found illegally setting fires will be arrested and prosecuted immediately without warning.
- The offense is considered complete the moment a fire is deliberately lit, even if it is quickly extinguished and does not spread widely.
- This crackdown is a response to worsening wildfire and haze conditions, particularly in the North, where hotspots are concentrated in conservation forests.
Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation has issued a stark warning to anyone still thinking of setting fires in forest areas: offenders face severe criminal penalties, including prison terms of up to 20 years and fines of up to Bt2 million, as authorities step up enforcement amid worsening wildfire and haze conditions.
The warning comes as wildfire and smoke pollution continue to weigh heavily on many parts of the country, especially in the North, where PM2.5 levels remain at crisis levels and hotspots are concentrated largely in conservation forests, followed by national reserved forests and areas outside forest boundaries. Against that backdrop, forest burning has become one of the central targets in the state’s campaign to curb haze and contain environmental damage.
The department says it is now enforcing a zero-tolerance approach. Anyone found illegally setting fires in forest areas will be arrested and prosecuted immediately, with no warnings and no relaxation of the rules. Officials say the legal penalties are already clear: under Section 41 of the National Park Act 2019 and Section 99 of the Wildlife Conservation and Protection Act 2019, people convicted of burning forest in national parks or wildlife sanctuary areas face jail terms ranging from four to 20 years, fines of Bt400,000 to Bt2 million, or both.
Authorities are also stressing that the offence is considered complete from the moment a fire is deliberately lit, even if it has not yet spread widely. That point has been reinforced by a recent case in Phrae province, where a local man was caught after allegedly setting fire to forest land in front of Doi Pha Klong National Park on February 15, 2025. Rangers spotted the blaze while it was still beginning and managed to bring it under control before it spread.
The case has since become a warning example. On March 17, 2026, the Phrae Provincial Court sentenced the defendant to one year and four months in prison, suspended for two years, and imposed a fine of Bt143,000. Officials highlighted the ruling as proof that the courts are prepared to punish forest-burning offences even when the fire is stopped before causing major destruction.
The crackdown is already showing in the numbers. According to the department, from the start of the fire season on October 1, 2025 to February 28, 2026, officials had already pursued 269 cases involving forest encroachment and illegal forest burning, including 262 encroachment cases and seven burning cases. Authorities have also ordered the closure of several high-risk conservation forest areas, warning that anyone who trespasses and starts fires in those zones will be prosecuted without exception.
Members of the public who spot wildfires or people setting fires are being urged to report them immediately via the 24-hour forest protection hotline, 1362. The department says public reporting remains one of the fastest ways to help contain outbreaks before they spread into a wider disaster.
