City officials are asking all sectors to stop using and serving plastic bags by the 1st of January.

In a bold announcement aimed at reducing mountains of plastic waste polluting our environment and killing our wildlife, Pattaya City officials are asking all sectors to avoid using and serving plastic bags by the 1st of January.

It took a heartbreaking loss of a lovable sea creature to finally kick the project into gear. When baby dugong “Mariam” died and an autopsy showed her death was a result of 8 pieces of plastic scraps clogging the end of her colon, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment joined up with Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-O-Cha to start a Stop Using Plastic Bags project, naming January 1, 2020 as D-Day.

The program began this year with first asking merchants of all sizes to avoid using plastic bags on Thailand Environment Day and the 4th day of every month, and by donating cloth bags to hospitals for patients to carry home their medicine. Over 8,000 cloth bags were donated to hospitals.

Unnamed ministry officials said that over the past year, over 2 billion plastic bags weighing 5.7 million kilograms were reduced.

Schools, local administration organizations, ministries, bureaus, departments, and government organizations across the country are being encouraged to take part.