Rubbish On The Beaches And Islands

[snamos]

I just got back from Phi Phi yesterday. It was absolutely supurb, I hired a longtail and spent a good half day touring around Phi Phi Don and Phi Phi Lei. One thing did leave a bitter taste in my mouth was the amount of plastic bottles and rubbish that was collecting in some parts of the islands. The longtail driver also comment on the amount of plastic and he told me that at times he would swim in the water and clean it up a bit.

The beach in Ton Sai bay was also a bit dirty but its sort of understandable because of all the traffic in and out of there..... but on the other side where the main beach is the rubbish was shocking. There were empty beer bottles everywhere, the plastic tops for water bottles and also loads of cigarette butts. There is a 20 baht entrance fee to Phi Phi to keep it "sparkling clean" all the time. I didnt see any evidence of clean ups. The good thing was there were plenty of bins around just no one was using them.

I also went for a walk on Surin beach this morning, same same, rubbish everywhere. Mainly evidence of previous nights partying and general crap washing up on the beach.

I was also diving at Racha Noi last November, there was fishing nets and 44 gallon drums, old tyres and other s**t in the water. The visability was spectacular and there were plenty of fish to see....just the rubbish took the shine off the dive

I generally pick up a little bit of rubbish before i leave the beach to do my bit. I was just wondering...who is responsible for the beach cleanups? Why arent they doing it? If its a question of money Im sure people would happily donate some money for an organised beach clean up. If its a question of labour .... if the Thai and farang locals dont want to do it, Im sure there would be some Burmese people who would love the extra money and probably do a great job.

In Australia they have a clean up Australia day which is very successful, It is also considered a fun family day. Why couldnt something like this be organised by one or all of the local dive companies on an annual basis? They could also make a little bit of money out of it.....all the free publicity would be great, and the future customers would be happier too

[happyrobert]

When I lived in Mexico, it was so bad after a three day holiday that the government had to use big, and I do mean BIG, bulldozers on the beach to have any chance to clean things up. They dug a pit and buried it all. I always wondered what happens when they run out of pit space.

Where I live here, I see my neighbors taking out trash, including styrofoam, and tossing it over the hill onto the beach to wait for the next tide to take it to someone else's beach. I say nothing. The last westerner who said something did not have a peaceful few months before he gave up and moved. Strangers in a strange land, you know. Our unsolicited views are not welcome. I have tried to set an example by cleaning up a bit, but they all just make fun of me. So I kayak around the rocks to a 100 foot beach no one ever goes to. There I have a rake and made a pit and keep it clean for myself.

They live tide to tide. None of them think long term. Years from now? I don't even want to think what it will look like.

What I see here is mostly plastic bottles. But a good portion of the garbage is from the fishing boats - including floats and the really big light bulbs the squid guys use, they throw them overboard when they burn out. And hospital trash. An unbelievable amount of syringes - minus the needles, thank God, and ampules.No livers or arms as of yet. But I'm hopeful.

On the bright side, my sand worn beach glass collection is getting pretty big. Any ideas what I can make from 100 pounds of sandblasted pieces of glass?

Edited March 19, 2011 by happyrobert

[grumpyoldman]

Putting trash in proper bins has yet to get ingrained here, example I regularly see the kids in their school bus trolleys just toss their trash right out of the vehicle.

Subject has been covered ad nauseum here, but the bottom line is it was not too long ago that the Thais only had biodegradable packaging (banana leaves etc.), the semi recent introduction of plastics added with the inability to connect the dots about the garbage, leads to the "it's out of my hand now, not my matter" mentality.

[keestha]

True there are quite a few beaches in Thailand which are very filthy. Often local authorities don't care playing a very active role, and then it depends on owners of beach/beachfront businesses getting themselves organized yes or no.

[Valentine]

There was a thread recently with a video link showing a mechanical digger burying a bunch of rubbish on Layan beach. Not a very good method of disposal but it does hide the rubbish. BTW the whole of Phuket is a dumping ground for all & sundry. Take a look at the road running from Honda through to Kathu. PG used to highlight certain blights in their newspaper.

[backstairs]

I put it at the top of my list of grievances. The litter from the Airport down the highway into town is never cleaned and yet that is what many new tourists first see.

The idea that people once used banana leaves and it is hard for them to adjust does not win me over. Folks quickly left pay phones

for mobile phones with very little prompting.

The high levels of self-regard do not help. It is the same in my birth place in the UK. People do not see their own crap. We love picking our noses but we hate to watch other people doing it.

[grumpyoldman]

The idea that people once used banana leaves and it is hard for them to adjust does not win me over. Folks quickly left pay phones

for mobile phones with very little prompting.

Hi backstairs,

maybe you can clarify this analogy for me because to me it seems you are proving the point, phones became more convenient-it's more convenient to just toss litter than find a proper receptacle.

It's not about winning anyone over, it's just that when all packaging used to be biodegradable, when the current kids parents were kids, they could just toss about. Current kids see parents continue this, they follow suit, without realizing the effect of their actions.

[snamos]

I put it at the top of my list of grievances. The litter from the Airport down the highway into town is never cleaned and yet that is what many new tourists first see.

The idea that people once used banana leaves and it is hard for them to adjust does not win me over. Folks quickly left pay phones

for mobile phones with very little prompting.

The high levels of self-regard do not help. It is the same in my birth place in the UK. People do not see their own crap. We love picking our noses but we hate to watch other people doing it.

im agreeing with grumpy old man here....it wasnt so long ago that I was burning rubbish in the backyard of my suburban house in Sydney. Such actions now would be unthinkable. There was an advertising campaign in Australia that was called "do the right thing" it shamed people into putting their rubbish in the bin. An advertising campaign like that in Thailand would be extremely effective as we all know how much the Thais hate losing face. The only problem would be who foots the bill

[ddharder]

I just arrived in Phuket today, so my observations will likely be quite naive. I spent a few months in Goa India a couple of years ago, and after returning, I thought of a plan I might try if I returned.

In Goa the beach is loaded with kids begging for money from western tourists. I'm sure western tourist would appreciate a cleaner beach environment, so I thought of recruiting a few of the beach kids, providing them with signs and a mission to clean the beach for a small, voluntary fee from the tourists. That is, I would provide them with a sign they could carry, or wear around their neck, that promised an hour of beach patrol for a 100 rupee donation. 100 rupees was the price of a very, very cheap lunch for the sunbathers, but it is more than a rice worker makes in a 15 hour day of hard toil. It seems to me to be a win win situations, but for one small (big) problem. What do they do with the trash when they gather it?

Anyway, if I see it here, I might give it a go. Maybe it will catch on and work out its own kinks.

[backstairs]

Dear Grumpy, Snamos and DD

good evening. I hope you have been tidy today. I enjoyed your comments. But I do not know what the answer is.

Singapore shames guilty people by making them clear the streets in a bright jacket.

Japan relies on centuries of culture: hammer the nail down that sticks up.

The Rich pay Mexicans and Filippinas to do it.

The very poor collect it, resell it or use it.

But all the crap on the side of the highway. If you can't fine them or catch them then the island must pay for someone to pick it all up. Where do those 25% taxes go?

People don't throw cigarettes on to a carpetted barfloor. They do if it is tiled, stone or bare.

[BusyBee123]

I just arrived in Phuket today, so my observations will likely be quite naive. I spent a few months in Goa India a couple of years ago, and after returning, I thought of a plan I might try if I returned.

In Goa the beach is loaded with kids begging for money from western tourists. I'm sure western tourist would appreciate a cleaner beach environment, so I thought of recruiting a few of the beach kids, providing them with signs and a mission to clean the beach for a small, voluntary fee from the tourists. That is, I would provide them with a sign they could carry, or wear around their neck, that promised an hour of beach patrol for a 100 rupee donation. 100 rupees was the price of a very, very cheap lunch for the sunbathers, but it is more than a rice worker makes in a 15 hour day of hard toil. It seems to me to be a win win situations, but for one small (big) problem. What do they do with the trash when they gather it?

Anyway, if I see it here, I might give it a go. Maybe it will catch on and work out its own kinks.

If you were paying 100rupees an hour i can guarantee where that rubbish will go, it will be back on the beach whilst you're tucked up in bed ready to be collected again for another 100 rupees an hour the next day, the following day you will have 50 kids and more litter.....

[snamos]

I just arrived in Phuket today, so my observations will likely be quite naive. I spent a few months in Goa India a couple of years ago, and after returning, I thought of a plan I might try if I returned.

In Goa the beach is loaded with kids begging for money from western tourists. I'm sure western tourist would appreciate a cleaner beach environment, so I thought of recruiting a few of the beach kids, providing them with signs and a mission to clean the beach for a small, voluntary fee from the tourists. That is, I would provide them with a sign they could carry, or wear around their neck, that promised an hour of beach patrol for a 100 rupee donation. 100 rupees was the price of a very, very cheap lunch for the sunbathers, but it is more than a rice worker makes in a 15 hour day of hard toil. It seems to me to be a win win situations, but for one small (big) problem. What do they do with the trash when they gather it?

Anyway, if I see it here, I might give it a go. Maybe it will catch on and work out its own kinks.

If you were paying 100rupees an hour i can guarantee where that rubbish will go, it will be back on the beach whilst you're tucked up in bed ready to be collected again for another 100 rupees an hour the next day, the following day you will have 50 kids and more litter.....

Yep I was sort of thinking the same thing....sort of reminds me of a story where the government put a bounty on cane toads that are a plague in Australia....the kids started to breed them.....

The idea of donating money to the beach kids is nice though.

The reason i started this forum was to throw ideas around.... and possibly come up with a solution...or at least get more people thinking about the problem

[ddharder]

I just arrived in Phuket today, so my observations will likely be quite naive. I spent a few months in Goa India a couple of years ago, and after returning, I thought of a plan I might try if I returned.

In Goa the beach is loaded with kids begging for money from western tourists. I'm sure western tourist would appreciate a cleaner beach environment, so I thought of recruiting a few of the beach kids, providing them with signs and a mission to clean the beach for a small, voluntary fee from the tourists. That is, I would provide them with a sign they could carry, or wear around their neck, that promised an hour of beach patrol for a 100 rupee donation. 100 rupees was the price of a very, very cheap lunch for the sunbathers, but it is more than a rice worker makes in a 15 hour day of hard toil. It seems to me to be a win win situations, but for one small (big) problem. What do they do with the trash when they gather it?

Anyway, if I see it here, I might give it a go. Maybe it will catch on and work out its own kinks.

If you were paying 100rupees an hour i can guarantee where that rubbish will go, it will be back on the beach whilst you're tucked up in bed ready to be collected again for another 100 rupees an hour the next day, the following day you will have 50 kids and more litter.....

LOL, a valid criticism, and you're not the first to confront me with it.