News Forum - Plastic predicament: Thailand faces a ton(ne) of trouble with a 62% surge in waste

[Thaiger]

Plastic waste in Thailand has witnessed a surge of 62%, escalating from 2.12 million tonnes in 2019 to 3.4 million tonnes in 2020, according to the Thailand Environment Institute. This increase has been largely attributed to lifestyle changes induced by the pandemic, such as an increased reliance on food delivery services. The Prayut Chan-o-cha government … …

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[ChrisS]

Why is anyone surprised at this when for even the smallest purchase you are given it in a plastic bag.

[Khunmark]

7 hours ago, ChrisS said:

Why is anyone surprised at this when for even the smallest purchase you are given it in a plastic bag.

One I’ve my pet hates is at the supermarket where they find it necessary to wrap all fruit and veg in plastic.

[Ramanathan.P]

Wanted to control the use of plastic....start it from phuket. Ban all use of plastic bags in entire phuket first including street vendor and night market. 

[Grumpish]

2 hours ago, Ramanathan.P said:

Wanted to control the use of plastic....start it from phuket. Ban all use of plastic bags in entire phuket first including street vendor and night market. 

And 7-11's - I still get an odd look when I produce my own bag for purchases there.

[QECE]

35 minutes ago, Grumpish said:

And 7-11's - I still get an odd look when I produce my own bag for purchases there.

Yet, many still carry their own bags when shopping at the traditional local fresh markets and vendors - as they have forever. This practice is almost instinctively procured by older generations [from 70s onward], where plastics weren't commonly used/available by seller or buyer......and long before particular Western cultures systematically introduced the ideals of "everything plastic" to more traditional and organic societies. 

Today's generations [from Xers forward] know nothing else but throw-away plastic encompassing/encasing everything......and most of the modern synthetics are not recyclable, increasing the ever present build up that we witness today. This is just not a Thai issue, but a worldwide one - especially within the confines of the convenient and siwilai Farang world.