Lessons from Kenya’s war against plastic
As Kenya wages war on plastic waste, it appears I happen to be in the country at a very crucial time. Late last month, the National Environment Management Agency (Nema) slapped a ban on the use of polythene bags — those one-time-use bags known in Thai as toong gobgaeb.
With the ban that took effect after a sixmonth grace period, Nema put in place harsh and extreme measures to enforce it — so extreme that recycling and reuse have been ruled out. Anyone in possession of such bags can faces a hefty fine of up to four million shillings (around 1.3 million baht) and/or a jail term. The blanket ban applies to both manufacturers and users.
Nema has also allocated drop-off points where people can get rid of the banned items to avoid punishment.
Weeks before the ban became effective, plastic bag manufacturers took the case to the Supreme Court, asking for a delay in the measures they claimed would leave many people in the industry jobless. They lost the case.
But the strict ban has been applied to secondary packages only, that is the use of plastic bags when shopping from retailers. Plastic is still allowed in primary packaging of goods from manufacturers.
Locals and shops have adapted to the ban and now look for alternative bags that allow them to accommodate a greener lifestyle. Handmade sisal handbags called kiondo have become one of the top choices among women shoppers. Retailers wrap goods, including books and even edible items like fruits, in brown paper bags. Use of polypropylene plastic bags (cloth-like bags) which are comparatively more environmentally friendly is still allowed, but consumers have to pay for them. Overnight, single-use plastic bags have become a thing of the past.
As someone from a country mired in a plastic mess, I admire the bold move by this African nation in tackling the issue and how locals cooperated fully.
Of course, life may be less convenient, especially for those who do not like the idea of managing their own bags. The sight of people walking home from a shop with their groceries — a huge cabbage or a one-litre bottle of milk — in their bare hands is quite common. But no one seems bothered. A small sum charged for greener bags is enough for many consumers to turn away from that option.
As Kenya makes progress with the move, Thailand is clumsily trying to figure out the problem and has got lost along the way.
The Prayut Chan-o-cha government set waste management as a national agenda item, pleading with the Thai public to reduce plastic consumption since 2015.
In July, Gen Prayut started a campaign to raise public awareness about plastic waste and encourage people to switch to bags made of cloth or other reusable materials.
The use of tote bags became a fad and faded quickly. Green campaigns by department stores for people to reduce single-use bags simply evaporated.
Thais have a strong passion for plastic bags, and with our mai pen rai attitude, we tend to put convenience before the environment. Many find taking their own bags with them too inconvenient — so much so, that Thais use 70 billion plastic bags a year.
A clean-up campaign of the Chao Phraya River over the weekend gave strong evidence of our dire failure in dealing with plastic waste. More than 2,000 plastic bags were fished out of the river in a single hour during the clean-up activity conducted along a 6-km stretch of the river, from Rama III Bridge to the Yodpiman Market next to Tha Tien.
The bags were part of 132kg of solid waste collected in the campaign, an initiative by state and private organisations, including the Bangkok River Partners, as part of a strategy to improve the country’s waste-management system.
Thailand is among the top five countries polluting the oceans with plastic waste, after China, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam. The combined plastic waste from these countries accounts for 60% of plastic pollution in the oceans. Not a statistic to be proud of.
Thailand made a pledge at a global forum in New York earlier this year to clean up our act and reduce plastic waste. But what do we really have apart from wimpy, ceremonious campaigns that are only an opportunity for photo-ops? Without strong laws and strong enforcement, along with economic/tax measures, the efforts will not pay off.
There is much to learn from Kenya when it comes to the war on plastic waste, and I hope someone in the government cares enough to look at their successful experience.