HHTel

13 minutes ago, Monomial said:

And who decided that hospital should get the money? And what benefit did CPAll get in return to their corporate image?  What you are citing there is called "greenwashing" and corporations do it all the time. They donate sums in order to bolster their corporate image and try and give the impression they aren't as evil as they truly are.

 

Don't get me wrong. If an individual wants to give money from his or her personal wealth, that is a good thing. When a corporation does it however, it is very, very suspect.  Certainly not something we should applaud.  And certainly not something that justifies the profits they are earning from this policy.

What you are saying is true. But you are surmising/assuming.  We don't know that these retailers profited other than promoting their public image (nothing wrong with that). I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt and hope that they are NOT profiting financially.

Until there is evidence to the contrary, I will keep an open mind.

Statement from the government:

Quote

Since the launch of the campaign in 2019, Thailand has managed to reduce single-use plastic bags by more than 2 billion, or by 5.7 million kilograms, valued around 400 million baht. Much of the money saved has been donated to hospitals, particularly in a campaign started last year by CP All, the owners of the 7-Eleven franchise in Thailand.

CPAll went further in stating amounts and naming the hospitals they have donated to.  As I've said before, if the hospitals were not receiving these donations, surely they would say so.

What we don't know is whether the FULL amount of the saving has been donated or just a portion of it.  That would require audited accounts.

However, I'm hopeful that the statements are true and hospitals are benefiting.

Whilst I agree that you should always give way to emergency vehicles, drivers of emergency vehicles should be taken to task when using their sirens/lights for their own benefit. i.e. just to get through heavy traffic on the way home!

The other dangerous and life threatening habit of Thai drivers is using the 'hard shoulder' on highways which prevents emergency vehicles from getting to an incident.  That is the whole point of a 'hard shoulder'.

Even with huge 'No Entry' signs painted on the 'hard shoulder' along with diagonal hash lines, drivers will still ignore them.

10 minutes ago, zydeco said:

Lots of chimneys to pump out piles of CO2 just to keep Davey all warm and toasty.

Based on his documentaries and various interviews, on with Barrack Obama, his house does not use fossil fuels.  Surprise surprise.  

He's not a person that would blatantly shoot himself in the foot.

20 minutes ago, TooBigToFit said:

I'm all for getting rid of the plastic and going back to paper or cloth. Yesterday at BigC, I noticed they had heavier plastic bags for sale if you didn't bring something. What a joke! Thais that run sewing shops should be cashing in on cloth bags at this moment. Why are these stores selling plastic bags as replacements for plastic bags?!!

 

 

Because these thicker plastic bags can be recycled whereas the thin ones can't and finish up as flotsam around the country and more often than not finish up in the sea .  Well not in Thailand.

3 hours ago, Max69xl said:

The requirement for 800k in the bank 90 days after the extension came with the official police order. If going below 800k, your extension will be void. And it's only ONE 90 days check. 

Having checked my thoughts with my neighbour (immigration officer) the financial requirement of 800K/400K/800K over the previous year is the qualification needed to extend your stay for the next 12 months.

That qualification will be checked again when applying for your next extension and if it doesn't pass the criteria then your extension is refused.

3 hours ago, Max69xl said:

An average tourist stays in Thailand ~14 days. If you think that every single tourist spends a lot of money,then you don't know what you're talking about. Some do of course. Normally, expats have a budget from 40-45k/month and up (some way up) depending on lifestyle. A year has 12 months. Do the math, please. Every expat spends way more than every tourist. 

Yep done the maths.  According to Thai figures, tourism reached $58 billion dollars in 2018.

For the income of expats to equal that, they would have to spend more than 800,000 baht per person per month.

Over to you!

1 hour ago, zydeco said:

I love it when people who live like THIS tell the rest of us to cut back in our lives: 

1.  The family bought the home back in the 1870's.  Can hardly be attributed to Sir David.

2.  Sir David Attenborough was drawing attention to several reports regarding pollution.  

Clutching at straws again (plastic ones) to further your impossible argument.

7 minutes ago, Elzear said:

Hey.. great gadget.. give us the link and I'll buy a few for me and my family.. 

You can get them from Lazada at 60 baht.

https://www.lazada.co.th/products/shopping-bag-to-roll-up-i558088693-s1024908073.html?exlaz=d_1:mm_150050845_51350205_2010350205::12:1498579383!58089999096!!!pla-812551840257!c!812551840257!1024908073!135277430&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIn-nay4Pz5gIVTx0rCh3AqgizEAQYASABEgLG9PD_BwE

6 hours ago, Andrew23 said:

I have more probability to die from an alien invasion than get sick from a fish polluted with plastic from a 7/11 bag. So, it would be more rational to stop using our TV and phone because its waves emission may uncover our presence on the Earth to aliens.

Quote

Sir David Attenborough has warned that the growing tide of plastic pollution is killing up to a million people as year as well as having devastating consequences on the environment.

A report on the impact of plastic pollution, one of the first to document the impact of discarded plastic on the health of the poorest people in the world, estimates that between 400,000 and one million people die every year because of diseases and accidents linked to poorly managed waste in developing countries.

Sir David, whose Blue Planet TV programme alerted the world to the damage plastic was wreaking on the oceans, says that the effects of plastic pollution is an “unfolding catastrophe that has been overlooked for too long”.

He said it was time to act “not only for the health of our planet, but for the wellbeing of people around the world”.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/climate-and-people/plastics-killing-million-people-year-warns-sir-david-attenborough/

They don't.  Jaideedave needs to understand that we're not as important as he thinks.  If all expats left, it would hardly be noticed!

2 hours ago, tropo said:

The winners are the shop tellers. They don't do so much packing now.

I've been using my own bags for a couple of years now.  I've never had a problem with packing.  The cashier always packs it for me.

19 hours ago, baansgr said:

Jomtien only require proof of funds once on 90 days after extension

...other offices are apparently asking proof every 90 days for the whole period...jomtoin is not a rogue office...its one of the few Thai bodies that is run professionally, the amount of people they have to service everyday, they do a fantastic job.

Out of around 45 immigration offices, I think Jomtien is one of the very few, if not the only one, to ask for financial verification 90 days after renewing an extension.  Under normal circumstances it is a requirement for your next extension, when, if you've not abided by the rules, your extension will be refused.

I'm curious as to which offices are asking ongoing proof through the year!

1 hour ago, 4MyEgo said:

Thanks for your input, a sad story, but a common one no doubt.

 

Could you elaborate on the burning ban, I thought it was already in place everywhere, but everyone just does as they please, especially as night falls ?

I don't believe there is a national ban on burning.  The bans we hear about are local bans, Chang Mai for example, at certain times of the year.  

There is a ban on lighting fires within a distance from a highway, 100 metres I believe.

29 minutes ago, TigerandDog said:

Surely there is a recycling centre in your district where you can take the plastic & other recyclable items and get paid by the kg to drop them off. Where I am we have recycling centres springing up all around our district and get paid reasonable money per kg to leave it with them. 

The problem is that 'single use' plastic (less than 36 microns) cannot be recycled in Thailand which is why it becomes flotsam finishing up in the klongs and eventually in the sea.  Recycling those bags requires special machinery and there are none in Thailand.

13 hours ago, Chivas said:

No....The Thai Baht is strong against the Benchmark USD and thats the only one that matters

Yes, the USD is the world's reserve currency.  But the baht is strong and gaining strength against all the major currencies. GBP, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Malaysia etc etc.

In the past the baht has been strong against the dollar but weak against other currencies.  This is about the baht being strong generally. Remember when GBP as 73+ baht.  It certainly didn't show that weakness against the dollar at the time.

13 hours ago, Chivas said:

Sterling was $2.60 ??  When fella lol !

Having just had a quick glance it looks like it was in 1971.....lets just say not in the 2010-2020 period you thought !

You're correct.  I was looking at a BS chart (first one that came up).  However looking at other sources, it seems like it was around $1.71.

Apologies.

3 hours ago, tlock said:

The situation in Thailand amounts to pure profit for the stores, they are not only saving money by not providing bags,

Well at least CPall is donating the saving to hospitals.  Their first announcement was almost a year ago when they published a detailed amount and the specific hospital it went to.  Currently, they claim to have donated millions to various hospitals which they name. If that wasn't true, then I would have thought these hospitals would come out and refute their claim.  Hopefully, other major retailers will follow suit.

11 hours ago, Mac98 said:

Calling plastic bags "single use" is the PR scam of the Green crowd. The bags are used in the home for garbage, storing, packing, and even shopping at places like Makro where no bags are on offer. Nobody has mentioned that plastic bags can be tied to various parts of a motorbike, Trying to haul a week's groceries home on a motorbike on a rainy day will be a nightmare. The answer is to buy boxes of 50 plastic bags. Easily folded. you can always carry two in your cargo shorts for those impulse shopping days. Plastic bags stay in use but are supplied by the customer, not the retailer.

The name 'single use bags' is a convenient name.  It is used for plastic less than 36 microns thick.  It doesn't matter how many times it's used, it's still remains the same thickness.

14 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

With better efforts to prevent plastics going into the rivers and oceans and better direction of these plastics to recycling stations and plants

The problem with thin plastic is that they need special recycling equipment.  Thailand has none and these 'single use' bags can clog the machinery and often cause temporary disruption of the recycling plant.

14 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

I’m not sure the Bio-degradable plastic bags are a solution, I suspect they are more of a problem as the plastics break down into smaller plastics, eventually microscopic. I suspect the plastic still enters the food chain and eventually us.

Oxo degradable plastic does just what you say.  That has now been banned in Thailand. However, true biodegradable plastic is made from natural substances and degrades with the use of bacteria.  The word 'biodegradable' is overused and doesn't necessarily mean BIOdegradable.

There is also 'compostable' bags which are different.

33 minutes ago, topt said:

And when I changed cash at the end of 2010 it was below 30........

2011 it went up a bit but in the summer (May and August) it again fell below 30 before starting to rise again.

 

You have to look at the dollar strength/weakness.  In the period you are covering, other currencies were high against the baht and the dollar.  GBP was running at around $2.60.  You can't blame the THB for being high in those days.  Now the THB is strong against all currencies.

5 hours ago, Puccini said:

The law does not require drivers to stop and let pedestrians cross at a pedestrian crossing.

See post #76

3 minutes ago, DannyCarlton said:

As a car driver in Thailand, I do observe the rules that I have been brought up with and stop at crossings. Invariably, one or more mototcyclists don't stop and come up my inside, narrowly missing the pedestrian I'm allowing to cross. Answer, remove all pedestrian crossings in Thailand. Pedestrian crossings, in Thailand, are a hazard.

 

 

I'd go further.  Remove all traffic signs, road markings and the like.  They're a waste of paint and money.

6 hours ago, impulse said:

 

In most of the places I've lived and traveled, zebra crossings simply mean it's legal for pedestrians to cross there.  They don't convey any right of way.  The red light does that.

 

Other places, like California, drivers do have to stop for pedestrians already in the crosswalk.

 

If you always had to yield to pedestrians in a zebra crossing, these cars would never move...

Haha.  This has actually become tourist 'must see' in Tokyo.

Only in Japan!

1 hour ago, bluesofa said:

This has been claimed before regarding Thai traffic law and whether it states that drivers must give way to pedestrians at zebra crossings.

 

If you can find the section that clearly states this, I'd be interested to see it, as so far I haven't managed to find anything.

 

I haven't been able to find the relevant section but much is missed out in the English translations.

I've found this on many sites, including some 'legal/law firm' sites:

Quote

According to Thai law, drivers are liable to a maximum fine of Bt1,000 if they fail to stop their vehicles for pedestrians at marked crossings. In the events of a road accident taking place, drivers involved must compensate victims or their families. In the case of death, reckless drivers are liable to up to 10 years in jail and a fine of up to Bt20,000. 

In the event of serious injuries, reckless drivers are liable to up to three years in jail and/or a maximum fine of Bt6,000.