Ba Vi and Soc Son districts are now in the rice harvest time, so it is easy to see local people burn straw.

Straw burning in Hanoi

Results from Personal Air Monitor (PAM) Air showed that over the past days, the air quality in Minh Tri Commune in Soc Son and Phu Dong Commune in Ba Vi are often in bad condition which are sometimes even worse than some of Hanoi’s inner-city areas.

For instance, at 7 am this morning, Air Quality Index (AQI) at Minh Tri was 143 and in Phu Dong was 160, equal to the capital city’s most polluted level measured at Hang Trong and Bao Linh streets in Hoan Kiem District and Tam Trinh Street in Hoang Mai District and much higher than other inner-city streets such as Quan Hoa Street in Cau Giay and Thuong Dinh Street in Thanh Xuan.

At 8 pm on Monday evening, AQI in Ba Vi was recorded at 228 and at 180 in Soc Son.

Experts blamed this on rice straw being burnt in outlying districts.

Dr. Hoang Duong Tung, Chairman of the Vietnam Clean Air Network, the straw burning produces a great amount of PM2.5 described as superfine particles which can lead to many dangerous diseases, including cancers and gene mutation. It will also cause other impacts such as greenhouse effect, smog in big cities like Hanoi.

Many countries such as Hong Kong and Singapore have banned straw burning. Any violator will be strictly punished.