A pensioner was arrested today for allegedly starting wildfires - a contributor to the air pollution in northern Thailand.

Boonsong Wongchampa, 70, was caught by Pha Daeng National Park staff and turned over to the Na Wai Police Station for reportedly setting fire to his longan field in Chiang Mai province.

He claimed he was burning the weeds on the field. The resulting blaze ripped through 24 rais of land, adding to the 69 other hot spots causing air pollution in the province.

On March 6, levels of PM 2.5 reached more than 100 microgrammes per cubic metre in Chiang Mai - more than 20 times the safe level set by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Dangerous levels of deadly PM 2.5 particles are recorded every year in Thailand between December and April.

Despite paying lip service for several years, politicians have failed to stop individuals from burning their land due to it being cheaper and easier than modern farming methods.

In March 2023, the Public Health Ministry of Thailand reported that around 1.3 million people in the country had been unwell due to the rising levels of air pollution. Officials said 200,000 residents were hospitalised in a single week.

They warned hospitals in December 2023 to prepare for an influx of patients.

It came as researchers from Peking University in Beijing, China, also discovered that long-term exposure to particulate matter PM.25 air pollution is associated with an increased risk of lung cancer.

In December, Dr Krittai Thanasombatkul from Chiang Mai, Thailand, died of lung cancer. He had previously blamed PM 2.5 microdust particles for his condition.

The New York State Department of Health say PM 2.5 increases the risk of heart disease, asthma, and low birth weight.

While medics from South Korea published research in the National Institute of Health in the United States that said the pollutant increases the risk of stroke, ischemic heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), lung cancer, and other illnesses such as immune deficiency and even obesity.