Hua Hin: Stinking trash building up on the streets - crisis could threaten tourism reopening in October

[webfact]

Picture: 77kaoded

 

Hua Hin's trash collection is in crisis.

 

And it could even threaten the planned reopening of the tourism city in Prachuap Khiri Khan province to foreign tourists in October. 

 

77kaoded said that trash went uncollected yesterday. Festering piles of refuse were building up everywhere on the streets in the hot sun. 

 

An agreement to use land at an army camp to dump the trash ended recently catching the local authority on the hop.

 

The first plan was to transport the rubbish across provincial lines to a private dump in Phetchaburi but this appears to have fallen through.

 

Picture: 77kaoded

 

Now the mayor of Hua Hin Noppaporn Wuthikun is appealing to the provincial governor to beg him to negotiate with the army to use their facilities temporarily to alleviate the crisis. 

 

He is even going right to the top - the Thai PM Prayuth Chan-ocha - to say that he needs to step in to help as this mess could have a detrimental effect on plans to reopen Hua Hin in October, one of the government's stated aims following the Phuket Sandbox trial. 

 

In the meantime it is hoped that collections would be possible today as 7 rai of unused land has been found as a temporary relief measure. 

 

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[Thomas J]

How is it that Singapore is so strict about littering that you can literally eat off the streets.  There is not so much as a gum wrapper or cigarette butt.  But in other regions of the world Thailand included the disposal of trash everywhere is just accepted as normal.   The government here is pushing the use of electric vehicles to be environmentally conscious.  How about passing and enforcing tough laws against the throwing of trash everywhere. 

[relax33]

10 minutes ago, Thomas J said:

How is it that Singapore is so strict about littering that you can literally eat off the streets.  There is not so much as a gum wrapper or cigarette butt.  But in other regions of the world Thailand included the disposal of trash everywhere is just accepted as normal.   The government here is pushing the use of electric vehicles to be environmentally conscious.  How about passing and enforcing tough laws against the throwing of trash everywhere. 

They have incinerators that generate electricity when burning off waste 

[Thomas J]

2 minutes ago, relax33 said:

They have incinerators that generate electricity when burning off waste 

I know this, I have been to Singapore and it is lovely.  They give you a warning card as you are about to land about things that are not permitted in Singapore including littering.   They mean it.  Littering is not only against the law their push has made it culturally unacceptable.  

If Thailand wants to improve its image it should also attempt to change the cultural patterns about just discarding trash anywhere.  It is not only unsightly but a health hazard as a place for snakes and rats to infest.  However if they are going to pass a law to discourage it, they will have to do a far better job of enforcement than they do with the helmet required law. 

[spidermike007]

An agreement to use land at an army camp to dump the trash ended recently catching the local authority on the hop.

 

Who is this local authority? Why not call him out? Why was there no planning done? Surely they must have had some notice the arrangement would end. So, who is responsible for this extreme level of civic malfeasance?

 

And why does the army create more problems? Are they not "trashing" the nation enough? Why are they so uncooperative, so unhelpful, so uncharitable? What are they good for? Anything at all? 

[Denim]

Relax. Its part of the latest tourism promotion.

 

Unclean Thailand.

[sammieuk1]

ASQLP is one idea alternative state quarantine litter pickers but you must have $100,000 insurance a COE a PCR and two jabs

[xtrnuno41]

1 hour ago, relax33 said:

They have incinerators that generate electricity when burning off waste 

You mean they have the oceans to dump their waste in.

Average of 5000000 TONS of plastic every year in the oceans.

[Meat Pie 47]

10 minutes ago, xtrnuno41 said:

You mean they have the oceans to dump their waste in.

Average of 5000000 TONS of plastic every year in the oceans.

Nonsense

[spidermike007]

The one thing that many love about Thailand. The relative degree of cleanliness and decent sanitary conditions, for the third world. Poof. Gone. In a major tourist and expat area. Nice job guys. Great planning. 

[RichardColeman]

I can only guess that is a son tam vendor, numb from the smell

 

[mlmcleod]

Stinking trash building up on the streets - crisis could threaten tourism reopening in October!

 

Please tell me where in Thailand that this is NOT the case?

[Burma Bill]

5 hours ago, webfact said:

Hua Hin's trash collection is in crisis.

 Phuket has a "sandbox", what will Hua Hin have????

 

[hotchilli]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

In the meantime it is hoped that collections would be possible today as 7 rai of unused land has been found as a temporary relief measure. 

That's just another dumping ground out of sight... not a solution!!!!!

[Pedrogaz]

I guess we can have trash on the beaches, trash in the ocean or trash in the streets. Our leadership are so dumb that they cannot have a decent trash collection organised.

[Socrates01]

In Case anybody want to change anything about waste, he or she should understand the System before. 
 

Give the Major any Idea that Garbage has Value and he can earn Money with it. Then I am sure, he will change anything.

 

Only Complaining makes no sense. Talking constructive is the only way out.

[NCC1701A]

i love the smell of stinky trash in the morning. 

 

smells like Hua Hin. 

 

 

[MrJ2U]

It seems planning and Thailand are akin to oil and water.

[Foexie]

9 hours ago, Meat Pie 47 said:

Nonsense

Yes it is nonsense. It's aprox 8 mil tons of rubbish what get in the ocean every year.

 

100+ Ocean Pollution Statistics & Facts (2020-2021) (condorferries.co.uk)

[impulse]

10 hours ago, Thomas J said:

I know this, I have been to Singapore and it is lovely.  They give you a warning card as you are about to land about things that are not permitted in Singapore including littering.   They mean it.  Littering is not only against the law their push has made it culturally unacceptable.  

If Thailand wants to improve its image it should also attempt to change the cultural patterns about just discarding trash anywhere.  It is not only unsightly but a health hazard as a place for snakes and rats to infest.  However if they are going to pass a law to discourage it, they will have to do a far better job of enforcement than they do with the helmet required law. 

 

Can you afford to live in Singapore?  Neither can Thais.  That's why Thailand isn't like Singapore.

 

[Thomas J]

12 hours ago, impulse said:

Can you afford to live in Singapore?  Neither can Thais.  That's why Thailand isn't like Singapore.

It has nothing to do with the expense. It is extremely expensive to live in Manhattan however trash is all over.

 It has everything to do with establishing values and enforcing community standards.  If Thailand enforced not throwing trash the way it is enforcing not drinking at a bar right now there would be a marked change in behavior. 

Edited July 4, 2021 by Thomas J

[worgeordie]

The rats will be fat and happy,and multiplying .

regards worgeordie

[Excel]

23 hours ago, Denim said:

Relax. Its part of the latest tourism promotion.

 

Unclean Thailand.

Yes a new TAT  logo like "Come to Thailand and choose Leptospirosis or Covid 19 - the choice is yours for free and even get one get one free"

Edited July 4, 2021 by Excel

[Thomas J]

On 7/3/2021 at 11:55 AM, relax33 said:

They have incinerators that generate electricity when burning off waste 

They must not generate much electricity from the trash strewn in the streets.  There is none. 

[xtrnuno41]

On 7/3/2021 at 8:45 AM, Meat Pie 47 said:

Nonsense

Probably you mean it makes no sense, however it is not "nonsense"

There are 5 islands, as big as Texas floating around in the oceans.

You tell me where they come from.

Do some googling and you will wake up. 

[Stargeezr]

Where is WALL E when you need him.

[RocketDog]

On 7/3/2021 at 11:44 AM, Thomas J said:

How is it that Singapore is so strict about littering that you can literally eat off the streets.  There is not so much as a gum wrapper or cigarette butt.  But in other regions of the world Thailand included the disposal of trash everywhere is just accepted as normal.   The government here is pushing the use of electric vehicles to be environmentally conscious.  How about passing and enforcing tough laws against the throwing of trash everywhere. 

Sure, that will work as well as all the laws here do. To be fair it's easier to control a smaller self-contained island nation state than a larger population. But that's not really the point.

 

Such efforts must always depend primarily on the public cooperation and personal responsibility, which is non-existent for most citizens.

Like road death, they simply don't care.

Your suggestions are well meaning, but the pace of cultural change is glacial. For the foreseeable future, it is what it is: TIT.

 

I will hazard a guess that many expats here left their home countries because of existing conditions they chose not to tolerate. I'll hazard another guess that such conditions have degenerated further rather than improved since they left.

[Thomas J]

Just now, RocketDog said:

Like road death, they simply don't care.

I suspect you are right.  You grown up in an environment like trash in Thailand believing that is normal.  However in order to change things you have to change the mentality of people.  That "could" occur if those in power passed laws requiring the proper disposal of trash and enforced strict penalties on violators.  Also, changing cultures begins in the schools.  If again those with the power to change things really wanted to change attitudes they would start with the schools teaching the young to be environmentally conscious and to properly dispose of trash.  If littering was considered socially unacceptable fewer people would do it.  While it might be easier to do in Singapore I would counter that if the government of Singapore did not adopt and actively enforce littering bans that Singapore would look a lot more like Thailand than it currently does.  

[Hepbub]

Hw will Hau Hin open in October? next to no-one will be vaccinated. they have already run out of vaccines at HH hospital. What will tourist bring....some extra vaccine?

 

 

 

 

[Hepbub]

I went to collect some friends from a little fishing trip, they collected all their rubbish, then when we got to the car it was just dumped in a ditch. I suggested they take it home, and was met with it's OK this is Thailand, I said if everyone did that, they would be walking around knee deep in rubbish, and probably walking on rats. they looked at me with some amusement but collected it back up again, and took it home. it must have had some effect, because several months later one of the friends admonished someone else, who just threw down their rubbish, and told them if everyone did that they would be walking around knee deep in garbage.