Thais condemned as "fifth worst" polluters of the sea on the planet

[quadperfect]

Thats great india has taken the lead.

I guess me trying to read the little plastics floating by is not very scientific.

So if thailand is 5 i hope they listen and get schooled 

 

[Hannuman]

Here in Penang the automatic issue of plastic bags by major retailers and supermarkets has been banned for around 6-7 years .

One normally goes  shopping,prepared, and armed with cloth bags and shopping baskets .

In the event of leaving them at home by oversight , one may request the issue of bags by the cashier /checkout operative ....but at a cost.

They are not free , and neither are they always made of plastic: they are often made from strong brown paper .

I believe this campaign has spread nationwide now in Malaysia, certainly to Selangor and Johor .

[nisakiman]

The two main culprits are plastic supermarket bags and plastic water bottles. A small (say 2 Baht) charge for bags would dramatically reduce their use. As for water bottles, I'm not sure. They are, I believe, easily recyclable, so perhaps a deposit system like they used to have on soft drinks bottles when I was a kid would work. Given the number of bottles of water sold, a one Baht per bottle tax would probably cover the cost of setting up collection points, and the bottles themselves should go a long way to covering the cost of recycling. It just needs a bit of intelligent thought and the will to make it work.

 

If the majority of water / drinks bottles and bags were taken out of the equation, we would see a massive reduction in plastic pollution. Other plastic products can be addressed later, but those two items are the main offenders, and need to be dealt with ASAP.

[Cake Monster]

After spending just a little time in India some years ago, and several countries on the African Continent, I thought that these places were disgusting for all the trash and general dross everywhere.

IMO, Thailand fully deserves to be up there as the one of the worst polluters on the Planet.

Not just in their marine Environment, but also on land, - filthy people who have no respect for ther own country.

 

[Jeremy50]

I've almost never met a Thai who's the slightest bit interested in the environment, or the problems of deforestation, pollution, or the extinction of animal species. Largely that's because most of Thailand's forests are long gone, and fauna all but disappeared. If it's gone why bother about it? As for trash, it's  in huge piles all around every village in the land, and alongside all the roadsides, so it would be odd for them not to throw it in the sea too.

[FunkyDunky58]

I live on the beach and its heartbreaking to see the filth left behind the Thai people. They order food and drink and just leave whatever containers were used where they sat. I'm not saying that tourists are innocent but I would suggest that most have been raised to respect the environment and look for a bin. Aaah - theres a problem. Often nowhere to be found because the local council would actually have to work and empty them.

[kmj]

I remember about 6 years ago the beach of thung wua laen ( not sure of the spelling ) 30 km before chumpon, a mountain of plastic, glass bottles etc washed up on the beach after a storm, and the soulution...

 

wait for the next tides over the next week to wash it all out again instead of cleaning it up...

[zaphod reborn]

They's find some way to blame their neighbor, Cambodia, for this garbage patch, because Thais would never just dump their garbage somewhere.

[avander]

JAPAN GETS THE TROPHY!

The worsening major problems with the Fukushima reactor leaks since 2011 make Japan an easy and very offensive # 1 polluter of the worlds environment by far I would think.

I don't understand why it is not being taken up to be dealt with more seriously by the international community? Sure, plastic and other pollutants are a big problem which also need to be addressed but if we can't use what our oceans can produce and irradiated products are also getting into the food chain as a result I reckon that's a much more serious issue to deal with.

We keep on trashing our planet in a massive way and I can't understand why more isn't done.  I guess I do and it's sickening; the corporates, their profits and big bucks generally for short term gain.

It's likely I won't be around but I fear like hell for my children and theirs.

[chainarong]

Piss poor education leads to piss poor decision making, one thing you can say about Thailand , they hold plenty of records , unfortunately for all the wrong reasons.........................................

[Brother3579]

Its in the habit not gonna change dont bother influence their brains wihout self conscience towards nature

[Ceruhe]

The dear General already did everything that needed to be done, the..wednesday(?) no plastic bag day that he implemented. Which means, the statement will be along the lines of "those photos are way old and it's looking much better now" and of course how thai people need to do better and of course not to forget, thais don't do that kind of thing to begin with.

[Sphere]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

Huge garbage patch drifting in Gulf of Thailand spotted

 

Sounds like periscope depth is a no go for those new submarines....

[Shawn0000]

1 hour ago, quadperfect said:

Thats great india has taken the lead.

I guess me trying to read the little plastics floating by is not very scientific.

So if thailand is 5 i hope they listen and get schooled 

 

Yeah, I hope they all do, and before it is too late. 

 

One of the most interesting recent progressions in India is their switch to cloth bags, they use a very cheap cloth to make bags like we might use for a dish cloth and apparently they cost the same as the plastic bags they replaced, chain stores have them printed up and small shops ask you to bring your own, they also last longer than plastic bags and are more attractive so people do continue using them.  It is working for them and they earn on average a lot less than Thais, less than most people in the world.  Their motivation was largely religious as the cows were dying from eating plastic but what they have come up with is a viable solution for the world over.

[harleyclarkey]

We often mess things up in Ireland but now and again we do the right thing.

We were the first country in the world to charge for plastic bags, way back in 2002.

 

It is now, I think, 22 cents and the number of plastic bags dropped by 90-95%.

 

I buy chewing gum in Thailand and I am offered a plastic bag. Really....every time!

Edited February 9, 2017 by harleyclarkey

[Shawn0000]

26 minutes ago, avander said:

JAPAN GETS THE TROPHY!

The worsening major problems with the Fukushima reactor leaks since 2011 make Japan an easy and very offensive # 1 polluter of the worlds environment by far I would think.

I don't understand why it is not being taken up to be dealt with more seriously by the international community? Sure, plastic and other pollutants are a big problem which also need to be addressed but if we can't use what our oceans can produce and irradiated products are also getting into the food chain as a result I reckon that's a much more serious issue to deal with.

We keep on trashing our planet in a massive way and I can't understand why more isn't done.  I guess I do and it's sickening; the corporates, their profits and big bucks generally for short term gain.

It's likely I won't be around but I fear like hell for my children and theirs.

Sure, but they are using "worst polluters of the sea" a little loosely, in the original study they named the countries contributing the most specifically to plastic waste ending up in the sea, it has just been misrepresented here as the man who brought this to our attention failed to cite his source.

[Reigntax]

I thought the floating trash island was just a picture of Koh Tao. Then i realised there was insufficient visible scum 

[Chicken George]

Don't worry they will make it to number one! Just give them time.. :-/

[ezrider62]

I remember seeing a beach in Chonburi like the picture above. I can't imagine how many sea creatures are hurt by all this plastic.

 

I'll bet that beach was Bang Saen. Am I right? Filthy, filthy place at times especially after the weekend crowd leaves.

[Get Real]

In the world of dianetics they have been proving long time ago that the human being in general uses 10 percent of the brain capacity. What happens when only 5 percent is used?
I don´t know, but maybe the understanding of what happens when polluting the world and the serious effects of it just went away. I just meant it was in the other 5 percent. Not everybody can be lucky.

[Shawn0000]

21 minutes ago, Get Real said:

In the world of dianetics they have been proving long time ago that the human being in general uses 10 percent of the brain capacity. What happens when only 5 percent is used?
I don´t know, but maybe the understanding of what happens when polluting the world and the serious effects of it just went away. I just meant it was in the other 5 percent. Not everybody can be lucky.

How exactly has dianetics proved anything at all other providing a little more evidence to support the belief that Scientology is just a money extracting scam? 

 

Neurology, which is actual science rather than the pseudoscience you have quoted, has demonstrated that almost every part of the brain is being used at all times. 

 

And to link pollution to stupidity is disingenuous and to imply that the worst polluters, Asians, are less intelligent, is shameful.

[Get Real]

12 minutes ago, Shawn0000 said:

How exactly has dianetics proved anything at all other providing a little more evidence to support the belief that Scientology is just a money extracting scam? 

 

Neurology, which is actual science rather than the pseudoscience you have quoted, has demonstrated that almost every part of the brain is being used at all times. 

 

And to link pollution to stupidity is disingenuous and to imply that the worst polluters, Asians, are less intelligent, is shameful.

Excuse me, didn´t think about that it´s intelligent to pollute the world.

[Moonmoon]

this is true, everytime i go to a beach resort, I see most of the people who work and live by the beach n resorts throwing rubbish, cooking oil etc etc into the sea when they are done. Don't blame the tourist. its the residents who need to care 1st.

[rkidlad]

I remember walking along the beach with my very first Thai girlfriend. As we were waking along, there was an empty plastic 5 litre motor oil can lying on the beach. I rhetorically asked "Jesus! Who just throws their rubbish on the floor like this?" To which she replied "Farangs make our beaches very dirty" I reminded her that I was a 'farang' and even if that were true, what 'farangs' have use for motor oil on the beach? She just shrugged her shoulders with that 'yea, I just gave a thoughtless autopilot answer there' kinda face. 

 

Its all about education and everyone taking responsibility. My missus now says no to plastic and we use reusable bags at the supermarket. Imagine if everyone did this. What a different it would make. 

[elgordo38]

5 hours ago, djayz said:

In 2002 Ireland became the first country to impose a plastic bag levy. It led to a 90% drop in use of plastic bags, with one billion fewer bags used, and it generated $9.6 million for a green fund supporting environmental projects. In addition there is much less roadside litter from plastic bags. Ironically, with the success of the program, and people bringing their own reusable carriers to shop, the proceeds from the levy have fallen and there is less money for supporting environmental projects.

 

If it works for us and many other countries (e.g. Northern Ireland, Germany, etc) I see no reason why it wouldn't work here. 

A previous poster believes charging extra isn't going to work in LOS because "most people don't have money". This I strongly disagree with. If they didn't have money, they wouldn't be able to go out shopping and hence wouldn't need plastic bags in the first place. 

I use my reusable bag as often as I can. Usually I get strange "arai wah!" looks from the shop staff, but they get used to it after a while and are quite perplexed when I occassionally forget it at home. 

A bag levy would work here, but a certain company/family, which is a big manufacturer of plastic bags, might not be too keen on the idea of schemes which protect the environment at the expense of their sales. 

Yes this certain family no doubt has the profit in "the bag" so to speak and will do nothing to change habits. Curious do they put the recycle symbol on the bags and maybe a "do not litter" message some little nugget of recycling.. 

[Shawn0000]

18 minutes ago, wealthychef said:

What data do you have to say that the world's oldest profession is not sustainable? The service industry is a major part of the economy

You need data to realize that women need an income once they are older and no longer attractive to sex tourists?  Are you simple?  The service industry is large, but what relevance does that vague comment actually have?  The service industry includes banking for instance.  Tourism as a whole only contributes 8.5% towards Thailand's economy while it is estimated that sex tourism contributes less than 1%, I presume you weren't trying to imply that sex tourism is a necessary part of Thailand's economy, that would just be too funny.

[elgordo38]

2 hours ago, wealthychef said:

You say sex tourism like there is something wrong with it

Keeps the wolf away from a lot of doors. 

[elgordo38]

The plastic bag migration has kind of followed the migration of jobs and prosperity from west to east. Its much like the word "maintenance" here unheard of. It is also education at the earliest age. My children not truly understand till they were adults the garbage pickups they had to participate in when they were young. As they became young adults they did practice what was preached sometimes grudgingly. Now as retired adults this early learning has stood them in good stead over their working years and has been passed on to their offspring. You have to be right in there with your sleeves rolled up working shoulder to shoulder with them for them to understand. There is no education like the one received at the right hand of your parents. The reasoning is not immediately obvious but the seed is planted. 

[Shawn0000]

32 minutes ago, Get Real said:

Excuse me, didn´t think about that it´s intelligent to pollute the world.

 

I didn't say it was "intelligent to pollute the world", I said it is disingenuous to attempt to link a lack of intelligence to pollution, as is quite clear when you consider the clearly intelligent CEO's the world over who order their firms to pollute, not out of lack of intelligence, but actually out of greed.

[Retiredandhappyhere]

My former home in Thailand was situated next to a small river. Several times, I saw my Thai neighbour dump her trash bags in the river to float downstream out of her way. The village had a trash collection service costing 10 baht per week.  She could easily afford that, as she was married to an American who worked in the States and visited just once a year but sent her money every month.  Local streams flowing under small bridges were all nearly clogged up with trash.