Tons Of Rubbish Dumped Overboard At Sea At Night, Who Cares!

[ThaiTrav]

Took the family to a supposedly nice clean beach at satahip navy base today! Everything but nice the beach is coated for miles and miles with every piece of junk you can imagine!!We spent the whole day trying to clean it up funny the thais still charged us 20baht each for the privilige.Our efforts were not even noticable there was so much and there was 6 of us.

Wheres Mr Suntan Jomtien Man now when hes needed??? as mentioned in another forum he is absolutely wasting his time as the rubbish just keeps on coming. Funnyhow when an oil spill occurs offshore the whole world complains and the people responsible get caught and face appropriate punishment ... but when people dump several tons of refuge and I mean catastophic tons of which occured apparently at night off shore at satahip, no one bats an eyelid nor does it even make news.. ah what is it...." ma pen rai" .Let our little kiddies and toddlers swim and play in all this garbage ! Its ok its our new look ! not our job to clean it up right! The Navy supposedly are trying to clean it up , to get or have bins and trucks to take it away would be a great start, they haven't even got that! Guess it just disappears by itself with all the fish and wildlife. What is it with these people ? Do you see how beautiful your country and beaches could be or does it make more sense to just destroy it by letting the minority get away wrecking it for all.

I will post pics soon of this mess ,you will see for yourself this polluting mentality and mindset is beyond help. and yes critics come and bag me for posting this and in return I,ll happily watch you go to a rubbish dump for a swim in garbage especially the children if you have some . I know I am wasting my time and I am complaining about something most people here in this country seem to enjoy well at least they don't seem to be preturbed about doing anything about it.

[BlackPuddingBertha]

There was crap all over Bang Saray beach on Friday too. I dont think it has anything to do with ships, it just washes out from rivers after rain (mostly from Bangkok?) and, depending on the tides and prevailing wind, ends up down here when it doesnt get swept out to sea.

Much of it seems to be polystyrene noodle soup containers and assorted small plastic take-away food bags, and I dont think they get a lot of that on ships.

[ThaiTrav]

Yes a lot of that and the rest old shoes ,chairs , wood ,glassbottles ,nets ,bouys ,

The navy people said it was dumped at night off shore where it came from perhaps is unclear but what about the stuff that sunk if a virtual island of this stuff was floating. there aren't even bins around in the parks at Sattahip beach where hoards picnic on the weekend! Who is going to clean all this garbage up? is there a council or any authority that cares or do they wait till someone has to do it for them or go and complain directly.would it help ?Does sattahipp come under the Pattaya City Councils area of control ?Do we wait for some poor kid to impales his foot on some sharp piece of glass? Why do the locals seem to have a couldn't give a shit attitude? Seriously this would be headline news at home and the whole community would most likely help out. Fat chance happening here!

[BlackPuddingBertha]

Why do the locals seem to have a couldn't give a shit attitude?

Probably because most of them couldn't give one.

[Langsuan Man]

It is the one trait about Thais that I really can't understand. The other day I was waiting at a red light and a Baht bus was stopped and a bunch of school girls got off and started walking towards the corner. One girl had a styrofoam dish from which she was eating. When she finished she just threw it on the ground as she passed an empty blue trash barrel directly in her way

If anyone wants to know where all this beach garbage comes from I suggest that you take a stroll down past Bali High pier in Pattaya and watch them offload the Pattaya City garbage trucks on to the barges and ask yourself where are they going with it

[LennyW]

Not unique to Pattaya/Gulf of Thailand unfortunately, go stand on the banks of the Clyde in Glasgow and watch the procession of garbage ships heading out to sea - they are not heading for Thailand!!

If you look at a map and see how the Gulf of Thailand / Pattaya bay is shaped, it is hardly surprising that this area gets it's fair share of rubbish on the beach - can't go anywhere else!!

[lonewolf99]

Its "out if site out of mind" mentality.

If the council bin men came at night and dumped crap all over your lawn and down your Soi there would be a massive out cry. There is only so much rough land at the side of the roads in the countryside that they can dump rubbish.

So the next best thing is to load ton after ton of it in barges and take it out to sea. Where no one sees you doing this. Until the tides and currents drift it all onto beaches. The Gulf here does not have the massive swirling churning drifting waves and currents of the Pacific and Atlantic. So it takes no time before all this muck comes back onshore. It is also not deep enough for it to sink 5,000 feet down as it is off the North American coast where this practice was a regular system of dumping New Yorks junk,.I am not sure if they still do this ?

The recent "climate discussion" in Doha ended in stalemate...Poor nations blaming rich nations for polluting the planet with C02.... If they cared to drive 90 Km up the road from Doha to Ras Laffan industrial City they would see well over 30 oil and gas flares pumping out massive quanatiies of pollution, It is even worse at night when you cant see the thick black smoke. I know this because I worked there several times between 2003 and 2008.

The Thai attitude of turning a blind eye to the mess and pollution is a cultural thing. Not exclusive to them. Many countries and nations have this "attitude". Never interfere in others affairs. Dont be demonstrative, say nothing. Unless it offends or you lose face.

U.K, U.S.A, Australia, New Zealand, Canada are countries where true nationals will challenge an individual or even a company and governments for their actions. Try that any where else and you go to jail and you are never seen again. China, India, S.E. Asia, Soviet nations....no chance.

How many countries are their still where I could go to jail for putting this on the internet ???

Sadly I was at that same beach in Satahip a few weeks ago and it was as clean as I have ever seen it. Azure blue and sparkling in the sun. But the beach did have the normal Thai plastic crapola scattered about.

instead of Armies that fight wars - we need armies that fight crap like this. Whole legions would be needed for Pattaya and Jomtien alone. How many brigades and companies would it take to tackle the planet...?

No wonder they are offering one way flights to Mars....this planet is f*cke*d beyond repair.

Edited December 10, 2012 by lonewolf99

[LennyW]

Excellent post Lonewolf99!

[fakename]

Good post Lonewolf, but as your name suggest, you are just a lone wolf, and this problem needs a whole pack of wolves! Usually these threads are followed by post, from people saying "if you dont like it here, go back where you came from". Its a wonder that Thai people cant understand this garbage thing, or even that the city officials cant understand. Mostly they are interested in some kind of "gimmick", to get people to come to Pattaya, like building more world class hotels on the beach. Who is going to stay in a world class hotel, that has a beach full of garbage? Yes, you can rake it up in the morning, but world class people dont shit on their floor at night, and say "I will clean it up in the morning"! Even after you clean it, the Stink is still there.

[Naam]

it just washes out from rivers after rain (mostly from Bangkok?)

[mogy]

We (wife + kids) used to go to Ban Amphur beach quite a bit before and the 4 of us used to spend about an hour walking and piling the trash up high on the beach away from the water line - in the hope that the restaurants would eventually be embarrassed enough to clear it away from their patch. The muck and shit that comes from that sea is phenomenal but even that single hour with only 2 adults and 2 kids used to make a huge difference. Locals and expats sitting along the restaurants used to look at us as if we were mad. The quantity arriving on pattaya beaches varies depending on the time of year with rainy season being just pityful. Haven't been to Ban Amphur for a while but I hope it's improved again.

Also snorkelling in Phuket last year and watching fish trying to eat the plastic in the water was sick.

The winner though has to be the sewer that used to run into the sea under the old pier at the beginning of walking street. Excrement and condoms were the stars of the show - apart from the kids paddling in the sea less than a hundred meters from there.

It'd be so easy for the government to request the NBTC to insist the writers of soap operas incorporate a few scenes each month related to polution which might eventually sink in to the doe-eyed audience. But I guess they've got more pressing issues...

[dogleg]

Judging by the amount of vegetation mixed in with the appalling floating rubbish, I'm sure most of it is being flushed down river(s).

The total amount seems much more than previous years, though. Some enterprising town council found a cheap way to 'solve' their rubbish problem? More rain up North? Or dams being drained.?

Sadly what you see is only the floating stuff. Local dive and snorkeling sites are just as bad as the beaches and much harder to clean up. It doesn't exactly encourage repeat tourism.

Much of it is recyclable too!

[Potosi]

It is the one trait about Thais that I really can't understand. The other day I was waiting at a red light and a Baht bus was stopped and a bunch of school girls got off and started walking towards the corner. One girl had a styrofoam dish from which she was eating. When she finished she just threw it on the ground as she passed an empty blue trash barrel directly in her way

One of the many reasons why it is so difficult to get a Schengen visa for a Thai.

[toenail]

I have lived and worked in the Pattaya area for 7 years now. Before, I worked in Malaysia, Japan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Saudi Arabia.. Thailand is the biggest disappointment in not caring about their environment. It surprises me since Budhism seems to be more "nature oriented" than the Christian nations. Yes, this country couldn't care less. It is suppose to be more developed and appear to be modern, but it is in the gutter when it comes to caring about pollution. I live along Beach Rd, and it is not the "farangs" that leve their trash, it is the Thais. And there are times I have to walk 10- 20minutes before I find a trash bin to get rid of my empty water bottle or other trash. This place is hoples.. (or ting tong when it come to caring about keeping the beach clean for their money maker, the tourist...)

[Rajab Al Zarahni]

_{I have lived and worked in the Pattaya area for 7 years now. Before, I worked in Malaysia, Japan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Saudi Arabia.. Thailand is the biggest disappointment in not caring about their environment. It surprises me since Budhism seems to be more "nature oriented" than the Christian nations. Yes, this country couldn't care less. It is suppose to be more developed and appear to be modern, but it is in the gutter when it comes to caring about pollution. I live along Beach Rd, and it is not the "farangs" that leve their trash, it is the Thais. And there are times I have to walk 10- 20minutes before I find a trash bin to get rid of my empty water bottle or other trash. This place is hoples.. (or ting tong when it come to caring about keeping the beach clean for their money maker, the tourist...)}

I don't think Saudi Arabia was any better. I remember driving across the desert from Riyadh to Al Khobar many years ago. The desert was littered with discarded coke tins and supermarket plastic bags for the entire journey. On my occasional visits to Malaysia I have been impressed with the general standard of cleanliness and tidiness. I think Singapore has the best solution with swingeing fines for non compliance with litter disposal regulations.

[surangw]

Why do the locals seem to have a couldn't give a shit attitude?

Maybe its their shit

[vel_tins]

Could be a problem with the "location beachroad - South Pattaya" and the kind of locals(?) who live, visit and "work" there...

I live on the "Darkside" in a shophouse area whith many other shop/townhouses around.

And it's clean here. My wife cleans the pavewalk two-three times a day and so do the other shop/house owner who live here.

We have these blue plastic bins here and it seems that everybody uses them.

Even the motocy taxi guys put all their crap stuff in the bins and clean their place regularly in a radius of 15-20 m.

I seems that most of the pollution is caused by soi dogs, which found plastic bags with food and tear them apart at night times.

Edited December 11, 2012 by vel_tins

[fakename]

People seem to change, depending on the area they are in. I had a Thai restaurant in Europe, and every high season, we would get one of the family or a friend, to come come from Thailand to help us. At first, I thought I would have a big problem, with them throwing trash from the car or when we were out somewhere. No problem at all, and they even walked around the restaurant, picking up any pieces of paper that blew in. But they, when they went back to Thailand, they reverted back to throwing trash out the car window.

I guess that shows that Thai's can learn, but then they can un-learn, just as fast!

[Sandman77]

One time I see a report on German tv come to Phuket and make a documentation about this!

The camera team make a interview with the tourist manager, and programm to cleanup the beach beginn but maybe only for the tv, so there Is someone who cares but maybe also not helps!

Sent from my iPhone using ThaiVisa app

[Ohio]

Seems to me this has been on before some years ago with pics of the local barges taking out trash & dumping it at night & back it comes. Not forgetting the out flow from under the tunnel running through Siam Bayshores land into the bay inc. 'floaties'

I remember watching that muck getting soaked up into drums on the back of trucks for Songkran

Ah well nothing much changes , BUT , there are many places in Asia , Europe,USA etc.

Check out Mekong in Vietnam & Galveston Bay in Texas

Edited December 11, 2012 by Ohio

[londoedan]

I live along Beach Rd, and it is not the "farangs" that leve their trash, it is the Thais. And there are times I have to walk 10- 20minutes before I find a trash bin to get rid of my empty water bottle or other trash. This place is hoples.. (or ting tong when it come to caring about keeping the beach clean for their money maker, the tourist...)

This is simply not true - there are loads of bins, that are emptied daily, along both sides of Beach Rd. On the beach side they are usually the big green dumper type, and a lot of the shops that front onto Beach Rd also have trash bins. Most of the bars in the area will also happily dispose of your rubbish if you ask nicely.

There was a lot of rubbish washed-up on the beach in this area over the last week or so, and a lot of the beach vendors and visitors cooperated to clean it all up.

[Rajab Al Zarahni]

People seem to change, depending on the area they are in. I had a Thai restaurant in Europe, and every high season, we would get one of the family or a friend, to come come from Thailand to help us. At first, I thought I would have a big problem, with them throwing trash from the car or when we were out somewhere. No problem at all, and they even walked around the restaurant, picking up any pieces of paper that blew in. But they, when they went back to Thailand, they reverted back to throwing trash out the car window.

I guess that shows that Thai's can learn, but then they can un-learn, just as fast!

It's true what you say about entirely different standards of behaviour being exhibited by the same people in different countries. It isn't just confined to Thai's. You can observe the same phenomenon when you see mature experienced European drivers drive like discourteous,deranged imbeciles in Thailand yet they would never dream of driving that way in Europe. Strict law and punitive enforcement make a huge difference. Edited December 11, 2012 by Rajab Al Zarahni

[Potosi]

I don't think Saudi Arabia was any better. I remember driving across the desert from Riyadh to Al Khobar many years ago. The desert was littered with discarded coke tins and supermarket plastic bags for the entire journey. On my occasional visits to Malaysia I have been impressed with the general standard of cleanliness and tidiness. I think Singapore has the best solution with swingeing fines for non compliance with litter disposal regulations.

Singapore dissapointed me in this regard, it's still a long way from the cleanliness of Austria, Switzerland, Germany, and other places in Europe. A couple of cities have fines for littering, way lower than in Singapore, but most can do without and manage to stay clean nonetheless. They put sufficient manpower in rubbish collection, and that's all the difference.

[inzman]

I see trash being dumped daily on the roadside. People R oblivious to their environment.

[Rimmer]

I don't think Saudi Arabia was any better. I remember driving across the desert from Riyadh to Al Khobar many years ago. The desert was littered with discarded coke tins and supermarket plastic bags for the entire journey. On my occasional visits to Malaysia I have been impressed with the general standard of cleanliness and tidiness. I think Singapore has the best solution with swingeing fines for non compliance with litter disposal regulations.

Singapore dissapointed me in this regard, it's still a long way from the cleanliness of Austria, Switzerland, Germany, and other places in Europe. A couple of cities have fines for littering, way lower than in Singapore, but most can do without and manage to stay clean nonetheless. They put sufficient manpower in rubbish collection, and that's all the difference.

In Singapore they have something called a Corrective Work Order where all the naughty people have to wear an orange jacket with CWO on the back and have to spend several days cleaning up the rubbish that inevitably

gets thrown down, they could maybe use that idea on the beach here.

[Rajab Al Zarahni]

I don't think Saudi Arabia was any better. I remember driving across the desert from Riyadh to Al Khobar many years ago. The desert was littered with discarded coke tins and supermarket plastic bags for the entire journey. On my occasional visits to Malaysia I have been impressed with the general standard of cleanliness and tidiness. I think Singapore has the best solution with swingeing fines for non compliance with litter disposal regulations.

Singapore dissapointed me in this regard, it's still a long way from the cleanliness of Austria, Switzerland, Germany, and other places in Europe. A couple of cities have fines for littering, way lower than in Singapore, but most can do without and manage to stay clean nonetheless. They put sufficient manpower in rubbish collection, and that's all the difference.

In Singapore they have something called a Corrective Work Order where all the naughty people have to wear an orange jacket with CWO on the back and have to spend several days cleaning up the rubbish that inevitably

gets thrown down, they could maybe use that idea on the beach here.

A great idea.Could we also have them supervised by overseers with whips.

[rocky123]

I won't go near the cesspit Pattaya beach but brought my 4 year old to Jomtien today. So sad, she wanted to play in the sea

but it had so much crap floating around we ended up going back to a pool. The venders renting out the chairs and selling their

goods should be made clear their patch up or loose their licence. It would'nt take long, Jomtien has'nt got half the floating crap that Pattaya has, instead of just sitting around waiting for punters they should fish out the bags and rubish littering their area from time to time. Be a long time till they see me on their beach.

[HLover]

The practice of large Navy ships 'dumping rubbish' overboard has been a long standing practice, dating +20 years ago. The crew on Western Naval ships are 'supposed' to sort the garbage into nothing environmentally harmful (petrol, electronics, ect) and just throw over food scraps mainly. BUT we all know that as teenagers, discretion isn't always used.

So, since this is common practice on a ship (aircraft carrier) with +3,500 people on board and having supposed strict regulations...can you only imagine the number of ships/boats in the Eastern Seaboard area that are unsupervised and unregulated?

That may account for the amount of rubbish seen on the shores.

[toenail]

...All I know, is the more educated an individual is or a community, the less they pollute. For me, I get frustrated when I have to hunt for a bin along the streets of Pattaya or at a night market.

Edited December 13, 2012 by Rimmer
Racist flame

[Ohio]

I don't think Saudi Arabia was any better. I remember driving across the desert from Riyadh to Al Khobar many years ago. The desert was littered with discarded coke tins and supermarket plastic bags for the entire journey. On my occasional visits to Malaysia I have been impressed with the general standard of cleanliness and tidiness. I think Singapore has the best solution with swingeing fines for non compliance with litter disposal regulations.

Singapore dissapointed me in this regard, it's still a long way from the cleanliness of Austria, Switzerland, Germany, and other places in Europe. A couple of cities have fines for littering, way lower than in Singapore, but most can do without and manage to stay clean nonetheless. They put sufficient manpower in rubbish collection, and that's all the difference.

In Singapore they have something called a Corrective Work Order where all the naughty people have to wear an orange jacket with CWO on the back and have to spend several days cleaning up the rubbish that inevitably

gets thrown down, they could maybe use that idea on the beach here.

I nwould suggest if they got EVERYONE who broke the rules here into that there would be NO Trash as the cleaners would outweigh the dumping ability of the public