ChiangMaiSmoke
08 CHIANG MAI, CHIANG MAI, THAILAND: A woman wears a breathing mask while she drives her motorcycle through Chiang Mai, Thailand. Many people in Chiang Mai and nothern Thailand wearing masks because of the air pollution caused by smoke from fires in the area. The "burning season," which roughly goes from late February to late April, is when farmers in northern Thailand burn the dead grass and last year's stubble out of their fields. The burning creates clouds of smoke that causes breathing problems, reduces visibility and contributes to global warming. The Thai government has banned the burning and is making an effort to control it, but the farmers think it replenishes their soil (they use the ash as fertilizer) and it's cheaper than ploughing the weeds under. PHOTO BY JACK KURTZ
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