The Ministry of Natural Resource and Environment (MNRE) will push a draft Clean Air Act for cabinet consideration later this month to prevent the problem of air pollution from spinning out of control.
Pol Gen Phatcharavat Wongsuwan, the environment minister, said the bill has been put up for public opinion on its website until Nov 13.
On Nov 16, the bill will be passed to the cabinet secretariat office for a further gathering of opinions from state agencies before it reaches the cabinet on Nov 21.
The bill focuses on measures to prevent pollution as well as cutting back on government red tape in executing actions to combat pollution, said Pol Gen Phatcharavat.
Moreover, once enacted, the law will remove hindrances to tackling the causes of smoke from forest fires -- a longstanding trans-border issue -- and allow for an integration of efforts by all sides via the Public-Private-People Partnership approach in easing air pollution.
"Clean air is a basic right. The MNRE has prepared the Centre for Air Pollution Mitigation [CAPM] for publishing real-time daily [air] pollution reports and will declare an emergency if the air pollution crisis worsens," he said.
Meanwhile, government deputy spokeswoman Kenika Ounjit said on Saturday the MNRE is following Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin's policy guideline for putting in place measures to end air pollution.
With the creation of the CAPM, reports of PM2.5 pollution will be delivered at 8.30am daily on its Facebook page.
The centre also will sound the alarm in cases when the level of PM2.5 exceeds the safe threshold.
Pol Gen Phatcharavat has consulted various parties and agreed to set up a national committee on wildfire, smog and haze pollution prevention.
Ms Kenika said the committee will look into the national management of wildfires in agricultural areas and transborder air pollution issues and work with neighbouring countries to end pollution that is affecting the region.
"Next year, [the MNRE] will establish operation centres in 17 northern provinces, to be chaired by the provincial governors who will execute national agendas at the provincial level," she said.
The Environment Department of Bangkok Metropolitan Administration reported on Saturday the hazardous ultra-fine PM2.5 dust pollution had gone up to 32.1-61.3 microgrammes per cubic metre, which is an unhealthy level, from around 5-7am.