Thailand pledges to sharply reduce tourism-related waste
Thai Tourism and Sport Minister Weerasak Kowsurat on November 27 pledged to cut tourism-related waste by 50 percent by 2020.
Illustrative photo (Source: chiangraitimes.com)Hanoi (VNA) - Thai Tourism and Sport Minister Weerasak Kowsurat on November 27 pledged to cut tourism-related waste by 50 percent by 2020.
The minister highlighted the responsibility of authorised agencies to clean up the environment and raise awareness amongst Thais as well as seek cooperation from tourists to safeguard waters and land.
He stressed that single-use plastic bags, fabric bags, portable water bottles, foam boxes and single-use drinking straws will all be wiped out.
The minister said one of the main campaigns this year in promoting eco-tourism is to ask private sectors for cooperation in eliminating the use of non-degradable products at tourism hot spots.
Thai Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has also banned the use of single-use foam and plastic containers in all 154 national parks country-wide.
Meanwhile, Thai Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Surasak Kanchanarat said that waste had created a negative impact in Thailand's forest ecosystems.
He added that the ministry launched a "Green National Park" campaign in 2015 and laid out policies amongst stakeholders in all national parks.
There is an immense drop in the use of plastic bags since the campaign was launched, he noted, underscoring that there are much to do more to tell international friends that Thailand is very serious in tackling plastic waste.
The environment ministry said in a statement that in the past 10 years, plastic wastes had accounted for about 12 percent of the total wastes, an equivalent of 2 million tonnes a year. These plastic wastes were also difficult to decompose and recycle, therefore the best resolution is to eliminate all single-use plastic bags and foams, said the minister.
According to the Pollution Control Department's information, of the 10.78 million tonnes of garbage generated in 23 coastal provinces in 2016, about 1.3 million tonnes were plastic trash and 74 percent of them were properly disposed of, while the remaining were washed into seas.-VNA
You should also see
Airports to offer 9,000 domestic flights during upcoming holidays
Vietnamese airlines are expected to operate 9,000 flights on domestic routes to meet the travel demand during the upcoming National Reunification Day (April 30) and May Day (May 1) holidays, according to the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV).
See more
World
Indonesia’s coffee exports surpass imports
Indonesia’s coffee exports have surpassed imports for 47 consecutive months since May 2020, the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) has reported.
World
Thailand expects wave of tourists during Golden Week
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) estimates that about 996,000 foreign tourists will visit the Southeast Asian country between April 26 and May 5, known as the Golden Week holidays in Japan, during which Chinese tourists also prefer to travel overseas.
World
Argentinian media praises Dien Bien Phu Victory
Argentinian newspapers have called Vietnam's Dien Bien Phu Victory (May 7, 1954) a symbol of the national liberation movement of oppressed and colonialised peoples worldwide.
World
Laos speeds up granting licences to foreign workers
Laos's Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare plans to issue visas to illegal foreign workers and extend permits to legal ones so that they can continue to work in the country.
World
Argentinian scholar praises Vietnam’s April 30, 1975 victory
The complete reunification of Vietnam on April 30, 1975 was an extremely significant event in the history of the country and the world, opined a scholar from the Institute for International Relations at the National University of La Plata, Argentina.
