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APD | Southern Thailand's famed destination Samui goes green to proctect island ecosystem

By APD writer Juicy Chan

BANGKOK,Oct.30 (APD) -- Thailand's tourism body is working together with local stakeholders and tourists on southern Thailand famed island Ko Samui to eliminate the use of single-use plastics and encourage all to reduce waste, reuse and recycle to help protect the island’s ecosystem.

Local Thai authorities on Ko Samui are proactively campaigning for recycling and waste management. It is urging residents and business operators to separate their waste for recycling to reduce the amount of garbage produce on the island.

Waste reduction thinking is quickly gaining traction amongst environmentally concerned Thai businesses and globetrotters on Ko Samui.

With some of the most stunning landscapes in Thailand, it is no wonder that visitors to Ko Samui continue to increase at an astonishing pace. With this influx comes a need to find a balance between the competitive, high level service and environmental impact. Fortunately, as attention has turned to exploring ways to preserve Ko Samui’s delicate ecosystem, travellers can give back to the local Thai community by creating less waste and leaving a minimal holiday footprint.

Local stores and shops on the island are campaigning against single-use plastics. Hotels and resorts as well as tourism-related businesses on Ko Samui are also helping to lead the way on responsible waste management by following the three ‘R’ principle: reduction, reuse and recycle.

Luxury resorts on Ko Samui were among the first to use the plant-based straw revolution that is sweeping across Thailand and make their tourism operations more sustainable.

Thailand is the world's sixth biggest contributor of ocean waste, while China is the largest. Thailand generates 1.03 million tons of plastic waste per year, with over 3% of that finding its way into the ocean.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)

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