Bangkok offers incentives for rubbish sorters

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In: South-East Asia

New regulation to be enforced in six months

PUBLISHED : 31 Oct 2024 at 11:50

Collectors sit on a City Hall garbage truck on April 1, 2024, with a message encouraging Bangkok residents not to throw everything into a single dump, as the administration campaigns for a greener capital. (Photo: Apichart Jinakul)
Collectors sit on a City Hall garbage truck on April 1, 2024, with a message encouraging Bangkok residents not to throw everything into a single dump, as the administration campaigns for a greener capital. (Photo: Apichart Jinakul)

Bangkok’s new garbage collection fee will provide big discounts for households that sort their rubbish before routine collection.

The Bangkok Council approved the new bill with a unanimous vote of 34-0, paving the way for it to become law after publication in the Royal Gazette.

Bangkok deputy governor Jakkapan Phiewngam announced that the draft bill is expected to be enforced in about six months, replacing the previous 2019 flat rate of 80 baht per household, which the current administration considers too high.

Under the new fee structure, households that sort their waste will pay just 20 baht per month, while those that do not will be charged 60 baht. To participate in the garbage-sorting initiative and receive the lower rate, residents must register via an application or at district cleaning departments.

Mr Jakkapan said that officials will visit registered households to verify compliance, although he did not provide details about the app.

Currently, out of over 2 million households in the city, only 50,000 separate their waste before collection, with disposal costs averaging 2,300 baht per tonne, according to the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA).