PHOTO: Soaring of child dugong Mariam, which was found to be triggered from issues related to plastic baggage blocking her digestive system, has led to renewed calls for stricter management, or a whole ban, on using single-use plastic bags.
Marine scientist, and vice dean of the Faculty of Fisheries of Kasetsart University, Dr. Thon Thamrongnawasawat, told Thai PBS that the current campaigns to scale back the usage of plastic bags “was not enough”.
The campaigns, much touted as ‘environmental Community Service Initiatives’, have been perfunctory and, while the ‘savings’ in plastic bag use sound massive, they’re in a tiny proportion of the particular single-use plastic bag use in Thailand.
The Charoen Pokphand Group, owners of Thailand’s 7-11 franchise, Family Mart stores – 51% owned by the Central Group and 49% by Japan’s FamilyMart Uny Holdings – and Central Pattana, the operators of the most important variety of shopping centres around Thailand, may do a LOT to take single-use plastic bags out of the system but have up to now been reluctant to do more than simply pay lip service to the issue.
Dr. Thon suggests that single-use plastic luggage ought to be banned, starting subsequent 12 months, as was accomplished in New Zealand, or a fee should be imposed for his or her use. He additionally says that the plan to minimize back the utilization of plastic straws, because of begin within the next three years, should be brought forward to next yr.
Dr. Thon admitted that he was shocked to learn about the sudden death of Mariam, and that several items of plastic were subsequently found in her gut. The plastics finally resulted within the septic shock that killed her.
He disclosed that members of more than ten rare marine species, including sea turtles and whales, had died this yr by changing into entangled in fishing nets or from eating plastic waste, together with the case of a pilot whale which was discovered to have eighty five plastic luggage in its abdomen.
He also cited the case of a leatherback sea turtle, which was found useless on a beach in Rayong province final month. Veterinarians discovered two plastic luggage in its abdomen, one plastic wrap for bread and 5 small pieces of plastic.
Thammasat University’s vice rector Prinya Thaewanarumitkul, in the meantime, appealed to the Thai public to cease using plastic luggage “so that no more marine animals will die from consuming plastic luggage or items.”
“About 80% of the two,000 tonnes of garbage dumped into the sea every day come from the rivers.”
“The rubbish, together with plastic waste, dumped into natural inland waterways find their way into the ocean.”
SOURCE: Thai PBS