Samoeng ( th, สะเมิง) is a district (''

amphoe An amphoe (sometimes also ''amphur'', th, อำเภอ, )—usually translated as "district"—is the second level administrative subdivision of Thailand. Groups of ''amphoe'' or districts make up the provinces, and are analogous to countie ...

'') of

Chiang Mai province Chiang Mai ( th, เชียงใหม่, ; nod, , ) is the largest Province (''changwat'') of Thailand. It lies in upper northern Thailand and has a population of 1.78 million people. It is bordered by Chiang Rai to the northeast, Lam ...

in northern

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

Geography

Neighbouring districts are (from the north clockwise) Mae Taeng, Mae Rim, Hang Dong, Mae Wang, Mae Chaem, and

Galyani Vadhana Galyani Vadhana, Princess of Naradhiwas ( th, กัลยาณิวัฒนา; ; 6 May 1923 – 2 January 2008) was a princess of Thailand and the elder sister of King Ananda Mahidol (Rama VIII) and King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX). She w ...

of Chiang Mai Province and Pai of

Mae Hong Son province Mae Hong Son province ( Burmese: မဲဟောင်ဆောင်; th, แม่ฮ่องสอน, ; Northern Thai: ; Shan: ; formerly called ''Mae Rong Son''), also spelled ''Maehongson'', ''Mae Hong Sorn'' or ''Maehongsorn'', is one of ...

Environment

Most years, air quality in Samoeng declines in March–April due to field burning and forest fires. In April 2019, Samoeng's air quality declined to levels heretofore unseen. To blame were forest fires in the hills surrounding the valley. Readings by the Chiang Mai Air Quality Health Index (CMAQHI) showed

air quality index An air quality index (AQI) is used by government agencies to communicate to the public how polluted the air currently is or how polluted it is forecast to become. AQI information is obtained by averaging readings from an air quality sensor, whi ...

(AQI) scores in Samoeng's tambon Yang Moen had exceeded 500, the highest level the AQI can record. The AQI measures a spectrum of air pollutants including

PM2.5 Particulates – also known as atmospheric aerosol particles, atmospheric particulate matter, particulate matter (PM) or suspended particulate matter (SPM) – are microscopic particles of solid or liquid matter suspended in the air. The ter ...

, PM10, and

carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide (chemical formula ) is a chemical compound made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in the gas state at room temperature. In the air, carbon dioxide is transpar ...

. PM2.5 is particulate matter (PM) with a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometres, or about 3% the diameter of a human hair. It can lodge in the lungs and enter blood vessels, leading to respiratory and cardiovascular disease.

History

The district was originally created in 1902 as a minor district (''

king amphoe An amphoe (sometimes also ''amphur'', th, อำเภอ, )—usually translated as "district"—is the second level administrative subdivision of Thailand. Groups of ''amphoe'' or districts make up the provinces, and are analogous to countie ...

''). It was upgraded to a full district in 1908, downgraded to a minor district in 1938, and returned to its current designation as a full district in 1958.

Administration

The district is divided into five sub-districts (''

tambon ''Tambon'' ( th, ตำบล, ) is a local governmental unit in Thailand. Below district (''amphoe'') and province (''changwat''), they form the third administrative subdivision level. there were 7,255 tambons, not including the 180 ''khwaeng'' ...

''), which are further subdivided into 45 villages (''

muban Muban ( th, หมู่บ้าน; , ) is the lowest administrative sub-division of Thailand. Usually translated as 'village' and sometimes as 'hamlet', they are a subdivision of a tambon (subdistrict). , there were 74,944 administrative mu ...

''). Samoeng Tai is a sub-district municipality (''

thesaban tambon Thesaban ( th, เทศบาล, , ) are the municipalities of Thailand. There are three levels of municipalities: city, town, and sub-district. Bangkok and Pattaya are special municipal entities not included in the ''thesaban'' system. The mu ...

''), which covers parts of ''tambon'' Samoeng Tai. There are a further four

tambon administrative organization ''Tambon'' ( th, ตำบล, ) is a local governmental unit in Thailand. Below district (''amphoe'') and province (''changwat''), they form the third administrative subdivision level. there were 7,255 tambons, not including the 180 ''khwaeng'' ...

s (TAO).

Economy

The Royal Project Agricultural Station Pang Da near Samoeng Tai conducts plant research, primarily on tropical fruit trees, temperate fruit trees such as the

fig The fig is the edible fruit of ''Ficus carica'', a species of small tree in the flowering plant family Moraceae. Native to the Mediterranean and western Asia, it has been cultivated since ancient times and is now widely grown throughout the world ...

, flowers, beans,

vetiver ''Chrysopogon zizanioides'', commonly known as vetiver and khus, is a perennial bunchgrass of the family Poaceae. Vetiver is most closely related to '' Sorghum'' but shares many morphological characteristics with other fragrant grasses, such a ...

, rapid-growth trees, and

medical cannabis Medical cannabis, or medical marijuana (MMJ), is cannabis and cannabinoids that are prescribed by physicians for their patients. The use of cannabis as medicine has not been rigorously tested due to production and governmental restrictions ...

References

External links

*
amphoe.com
(Thai)

Samoeng Samoeng ( th, สะเมิง) is a district (''amphoe'') of Chiang Mai province in northern Thailand. Geography Neighbouring districts are (from the north clockwise) Mae Taeng district, Mae Taeng, Mae Rim district, Mae Rim, Hang Dong district ...

Populated places in Chiang Mai province {{ChiangMai-geo-stub