Thais urged to clean streets in push for 100% plastic recycling
Natural Resources and Environment Minister Varawut Silpa-archa has urged Thais to take responsibility for cleaning up the country by picking up trash they find littering the streets.
Varawut said every country was focusing on waste management, which is now one of the world’s main challenges. It was now time for the Thai population to meet this challenge by helping to collect garbage, the minister said.
Thailand has set a goal of recycling 100 per cent of its plastic trash by 2027. The country produces about 2 million tonnes of plastic waste annually and is among the world’s top five contributors to ocean waste, according to the Thailand Environment Institute.
Varawut was speaking at Thursday’s launch of a contest organised to clean roads and intersections in Suphan Buri.
Organised by the ministry and Highways Department, the contest is urging local communities including residents, businesses, schools and places of worship to clean up their roads, intersections and sidewalks in the province just north of Bangkok.
In October, Suphanburi Provincial Administrative Organisation officials will judge each area on its cleanliness, orderliness, beauty, and creative scenery.
The minister urged people to sort and reduce the amount of trash they produce, adding that processing garbage properly would reduce the burden and boost sustainability.
