Dusty Bangkok is getting a desperately needed breath of fresh air.

For more than fifty years, a state tobacco monopoly operated in the Thai capital, mass-producing cigarettes on a vast industrial site in Bangkok. A stream of heavy trucks delivered tobacco to the city center and then took away millions of finished products. However, this troubled industrial space has now transformed into a completely different reality: a green zone that has provided the capital's residents with fresh air amidst frequent smog and hidden pollution.

The transformation of this area has been a remarkable success, creating a 42-hectare oasis for city dwellers. This site is an extension of the already existing Benjakitti Park, which includes:

• kilometer-long eco-trail,
• wetlands for water purification,
• 8000 new trees,
• courts for playing pickleball and basketball,
• dog walking areas.

The eco-trail known as Skywalk is especially popular among young people. At sunset, when the heat begins to subside, a huge number of visitors gather here, many taking selfies. "Benjakitti Park is one of the best places for photos," he stated.Pongsaton TatonA freelance photographer who captured a group of students joyfully posing in gowns at Skywalk. "It's an incredibly popular spot."

A new section of the park was officially opened in August 2022 in honor of the 90th birthday of Queen Sirikit, the mother of the Queen of Thailand. Some facilities are still under construction, including a museum. Visitors stroll along the walking path through the wetlands of the newly expanded Benjakitti Park in the center of Bangkok on October 7, 2023.

Adding such significant space in a large city, especially in the densely populated Southeast Asia, is a rarity. This $20 million investment nearly doubles the area of the original park, which features a lake and a popular running track. For Bangkok, where 11 million people live, such places are essential.

According to the 2022 report, the city lacks sufficient green spaces to meet the minimum standards set by the World Health Organization of 9 square meters per person in urban areas. Benjakitti Park, like Central Park in New York, is surrounded by skyscrapers. It is just a few blocks away from Sukhumvit Road, one of the busiest highways in the city. Emissions from traffic fill the air on Sukhumvit as pedestrians navigate the crowded sidewalks past offices, hotels, multi-story shopping malls, street vendors, and the rare beggar.

Mateusz TataraA software designer from Poland was surprised to stumble upon a forest park in the city center, known for its magnificent temples, street food, vibrant nightlife, and now marijuana shops. "Even now we can hear nature," Tatar said during an evening visit to the park. "It's a calm and relaxing place." At that moment, a flying fox, a large fruit bat with a face resembling a fox, flew over him and landed on the nearest tree. "When you think of Bangkok," Tatar noted, "that's not the first thought that comes to mind."

The government declared the area of the tobacco factory a park zone in the early 1990s, and shortly after that, the first section of Benjakitti was opened. But more than 25 years later, the state company, known at that time as the Thai Tobacco Monopoly, finally handed over all the land. GeneralPrayut Chan-o-chaThe military chief who came to power as a result of the coup in 2014 and became the prime minister took personal control over the expansion of the park, despite suppressing protests for democracy. He called for a creative approach to the park's design (and suggested creating a dog-walking area, which is a rarity for Bangkok).

To speed up construction during the pandemic, General Prayut's government enlisted the military.

Bangkok, located on the shores of the Gulf of Thailand, was once built on swamps. The flood-prone city had so many canals that Europeans referred to it as the Venice of the East. Over time, many canals were filled in, and some became polluted stagnant waters. One of the foul-smelling canals was contaminated with sewage.Klong Phaisingtowas chosen as the water source for the new park wetlands.

Water is pumped from the canal into a series of pools and channels, where sunlight and vegetation help purify it. The odors disappear long before the water reaches the main ponds of the marsh, filled with lotuses and other aquatic plants. Residual sediments settle at the bottom while the water flows to the far end of the park. In four days, it becomes clean enough for irrigation. "Nature balances itself," Chatchanin said during a walk in the park. "We didn't expect everything to work so well."

The soldiers built 500 islands within the swamps, using pieces of concrete salvaged from demolished factory buildings as foundations. More than 400 different species of trees were also planted. The expanded park created a self-sustaining ecosystem that quickly attracted wildlife, including storks, herons, snakes, lizards, and dragonflies, which can eat over 100 mosquitoes a day. At its center is the Skywalk, which smoothly rises and falls, zigzagging high above the swamps.

“When you walk through it, you never see the end goal, which makes you keep moving forward and see what’s next,” noted Chatjanin. Of the huge tobacco factory that once marred the landscape of central Bangkok, only four buildings remain. Three of them have been transformed into sports facilities. All four buildings are open to the environment, with some walls and roofs partially removed — a unique approach that Chatjanin calls natural air conditioning. Some beams have been left in place, like the skeleton of the factory. New trees have already grown through them.

“If you are standing in a building,” said Chatchanin, “you can see the nature around you.” This article originally appeared inThe New York Times.

Pongsaton Taton, a freelance photographer, takes pictures of university graduates posing in their gowns on the Skywalk in the newly expanded Benjakitti Park in central Bangkok on October 5, 2023.