My favourite among the countries mentioned. Who doesn't love Thailand? Or more like, who doesn't love shopping for cheap clothes and delicacies? But, wait a second.. Shopping in Thailand sounds awesome, but do we carry our own shopping bags when hauling those clothes back to the hotel? In fact, we would be disposing chunks of plastic bags at the end of our trip just because we got a plastic bag for every single thing we bought in that country.

With an estimated 2.83 million tonnes of total amount of garbage uncollected or disposed improperly from the coastal provinces of Thailand in 2016, 12% was plastic trash, making Thailand one of the top five ocean polluters.

“It is necessary to remove the garbage from the sea as soon as possible,”

-Department of Marine and Coastal Resources’ deputy director-general Sopon Thongdee

Natural News describes this garbage patch to be roughly 10km long and weighing an estimated 100 tons, threatening to wash up to some of Thailand's popular beaches such as Koh Talu Island. Authorities are fearing this threat against the tourism industry along with the extensive environmental damage.

Comprising of mostly plastic, the garbage poses risks to marine life such as sea turtles that may eat floating bags mistaken as jellyfish, and also coral which can be killed by plastic debris that ends up at the bottom of the ocean.

Officials have found part of a plastic bag in the stomach of a dead sea turtle during the clean up effort by the Royal Thai Navy and Marine and Coastal Resources Department.

Koh Talu Island , Prachaubkirikanth

Image Source: Flickr

FLOODS

Located only 5o cm above sea level and criss-crossed with canals, Thailand has long been tackling incoming floods and an encroaching sea.

The National News featured city workers having to clear Bangkok's sewers of plastic debris, due to clogging of vital machines during seasonal downpours. However, the city's insatiable appetite for plastic bags in combination with a poor recycling record are hampering these efforts. As heavy downpours shove bags back into the water system, sewers and drainage systems would be blocked once again, with these plastics eventually making their way into the ocean.

SAY "NO" to PLASTIC BAGS

Tesco Lotus; a hypermarket chain in Thailand, has been running the "SAY NO TO PLASTIC BAG" campaign for 5 years now, and proclaimed to have reduced 100 million plastic bags' usage among these years.

Earlier in March, the organisation joined hands with Department of Environmental Quality, Protect Phi Phi Group and local authorities in launching the "Lending a Bag" Campaign.

While changing mindsets remains a challenge, campaigns as such promotes awareness among consumers. Chain retailers which have the means to provide incentives for pro-environmental behaviour among consumers also serve as good role models, perhaps able to spur other retail companies to follow suit.

LENDING A BAG

Campaign

1000 TESCO LOTUS cloth bags were provided for consumers to borrow at selected supermarkets and convenience stores at Phi Phi Island.

"if you forget to return it, it's OK"

Trash Hero Kids | Say No To Plastic Bags

LEARN to say "NO" to plastic bags in thai:

MAI SAI TUNG KA / MAI SAI TUNG KAP

Hover to Learn

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