Thai Sang Thai vows to end PM2.5 pollution in Bangkok in three years if it comes to power

Thai Sang Thai leader Khunying Sudarat Keyuraphan made the promise when she spoke at rally of her party’s tentative candidate for Don Muang district, Karun Hosakul, at Pin Charoen 2 community on Sunday.

Party secretary-general Sita Divari and deputy leader Suphan Mongkolsuthee were among key leaders joining the election campaign.

An estimated 3,000 people attended the rally.

Sudarat said if her party became a coalition partner in the next government, it would pitch the PM2.5 issue firmly on the national agenda.

As part of measures to end PM2.5 pollution in Bangkok in three years, vehicles emitting black smoke would be banned from the capital's streets.

Her government would crack down on public transport vehicles and trucks that emit black smoke, she said.

Trucks would be required to deliver goods at warehouses outside Bangkok limits and public transport vehicles would be required to undergo strict inspection before their annual licence is renewed.

Her government would also enforce staggered work and study hours for different companies and schools to prevent traffic congestion, Sudarat added.

She said the Thai Sang Thai government would also strictly monitor construction sites of mega-projects, such as electric railways, to prevent dust emissions above the safe limit.

As part of long-term measures, Thai Sang Thai would propose the change of buses and motorcycles to electric vehicles. Vehicles with old engines would also be required to be transformed into electric vehicles, she added.

Sudarat said the government would also support farmers to have access to weed-processing machines so that they would not have to burn weeds or leftovers at their plantations.

Sudarat warned that Bangkok was also under threat of floods due to rising sea levels caused by global warming. She cited a report by Greenpeace that Bangkok would be under sea water in 10 years.

She said her government would cite the Delta Works project of Netherlands for a case study on how to build dams so as to prevent the rising sea from flooding Bangkok.

Sudarat urged Don Muang people to vote for Karun, saying he has served them for a long time and has been fighting for democracy until he faced a terrorism charge.

Speaking to the rally, Anudit promised that if Thai Sang Thai became a part of the next government, it would reduce the cost of power for household use to 3.5 baht per unit.

He alleged that the current power rate was too high because the Electricity Generating of Thailand had inked contracts in advance to buy up to 53,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity from private power plants although real usage had never reached 33,000kWh. He said the 60% excessive power reserve inflated the power bills at the expense of the consumers.