Over 4.6 million mobilised in anti-plastic campaign

OVER the past five months, the plastic reduction campaign in Cambodia has engaged over 4.6 million people, according to the Ministry of Environment.

Khvay Atiya, undersecretary of state at the ministry, said on January 31 that as of the previous day, approximately 4,616,968 individuals, including monks, had participated in the “Today I will not use plastic” initiative nationwide.

“Specialist data indicates that over the past five months, our citizens have enthusiastically joined the campaign, consciously avoiding plastic use at least once a week,” he stated.

Atiya highlighted the diverse participant demographic, including over four million students, more than 170,000 teachers, upwards of 280,000 garment workers and over 420,000 others.

He said the movement, launched September 1, 2023 across 44 school campuses, had been carried out 14,949 times to date in various local events related to the reduction of plastic use.

Sea Sophal, director of the

NGO2 BambooShoot Foundation, expressed support for the programme. He emphasised that while initiating the campaign is vital for maintaining cleanliness in the country, actual, effective action is crucial.

He stressed the importance of pagodas leading the way in eliminating plastic and urged the ministry to also implement an environmental monastery campaign.

“Commitment alone is insufficient following the initiative’s launch; we must take concrete actions. The ministry should encourage each school to commit to this eco-friendly campaign, perhaps even organising a competition to reduce plastic use,” he added.

Sophal noted that starting February 2, his organisation, in collaboration with the Siem Reap environment department, planned to commence a clean-up effort at Tonle Sap Lake to reduce non-biodegradable pollution.

He said the group intends to distribute documents and sign memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with selected schools for a two-year period.

Sophal added that the foundation plans to encourage communities around the lake to tidy their areas in preparation for the Khmer New Year.

The ministry reported that in the campaign’s second phase, it aims to provide rubbish bins to all schools and pagodas for sorting and recycling waste into fertilisers, focusing primarily on plastic waste on land and in water. The third phase aims to promote environmental protection, gradually making the Kingdom pollution-free and eradicating plastic waste.