HASTE NOT WASTE
A government sub-committee wants to set the deadline for halving plastic waste at 5 years, down from 20.
A subcommittee tasked with plastic waste management wants to accelerate its schedule, with the goal of at least halving the use of plastic and foam in five years instead of 20.
The sub-committee’s members are considering completely phasing out the use of plastic and foam, particularly plastic shopping bags and straws, said a source on the subcommittee who requested anonymity.
The subcommittee, chaired by the permanent secretary for national resources and the environment, set the initial plan for the country’s plastic consumption reduction by dividing it into three phases: one year, five years and 20 years.
Cabinet approval for the plan will be sought in 1-2 months, said the source.
Plastic use reduction has become a national agenda item after the death of a male short-finned pilot whale, which had 80 plastic bags weighing 8 kilogrammes in its stomach, in Songkhla province. A series of crackdowns on illegally imported waste have sparked concerns that Thailand has become a dumping ground for the world.
The National Resources and Environment Ministry estimated during the past decade, Thailand has produced an average of 2 million tonnes of plastic waste a year, only half a tonne of which was reused. And 2016 was even worse with a total of 3.2 tonnes of plastic waste being generated.
The 2015 Ocean Conservancy Report said Thailand, along with China, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines, are responsible for more than half of the 8 million tonnes of plastic waste dumped into the world’s oceans every year.
In an effort to tackle the problem, the Industrial Works Department has promised to ban local factories from recycling plastic and electronic waste, a move intended to discourage them from importing waste into Thailand and help authorities deal with the increasing amount of waste in the country.
The source said Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has instructed state agencies to spearhead efforts to phase out plastic consumption, while 50-60 national parks nationwide would ban the use of foam and plastic. The Finance Ministry is also working out measures to discourage using plastic.
The Fiscal Policy Office found the appropriate legal framework can encourage the private sector to cut plastic consumption, the source said, adding the Board of Investment’s 15-year tax holiday for new machinery purchases to produce either bioplastic or environmentally-friendly plastic substitutes is an example.
The Pollution Control Department reported plastic waste totals 2 million tonnes a year, representing 12% of total
waste, and 75% of the plastic waste or 1.5 million tonnes are not recycled. The Environmental Quality Promotion Department reported that each Thai consumes, on average, eight plastic shopping bags a day, with Bangkokians throwing away 8.7 of them.