Garbage piling up in Phuket amid tourism revival

By:
On:
In: South-East Asia

Mayor asks all people to help with compost and recycling.

PUBLISHED: 27 Sep 2024 at 17: 01

Phuket welcomes tourists from all over the world. The 11 million local and foreign visitors who came last year were double the number the island welcomed 20 years ago. But more visitors mean more garbage for the island province to handle. (Photo: Tourism Authority of Thailand)
Tourists from all over the globe come to Phuket. The number of local and foreign visitors who came to the beach 20 years ago was twice the amount that it had received. However, more visitors means more garbage for the beach territory. ( Photo: Tourism Authority of Thailand )

Phuket, Thailand’s most well-known beach area, is looking for better ways to get rid of the garbage that is accumulating with the post-pandemic restoration of commerce.

According to lieutenant governor Norasak Suksomboon, 100 tons of garbage are transported daily to a waste removal facility in the state, according to a news release on Friday. According to numbers from the municipal statistics company and the pollution control office, the number has grown from 742 tonnes in 2022 to 961 tonnes last season.

At the 25th Inter-Islands Tourism Policy Forum, Mr. Norasak addressed the issues that the state faces. The forum brought together 150 international leaders and politicians to discuss hospitality, conservation issues, and strategies to improve climate resilience.

The continuous resident population of Phuket was 418, 000 as of 2021, according to the Provincial Administration Department. People working on the island from outside the state and from other nations are not included in the physique.

According to statistics from the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, the beach welcomed 11 million local and foreign visitors last year, up from 5.7 million in 2002.

The Phuket town operates one incinerator in the province that can handle just about 900 tons of garbage per day. The remainder is transported to abandoned structures on the island. According to the Pollution Control Department, only 10 % of the trash in Phuket is recycled, and 60 % is organic waste.

Mr. Norasak requested donations from local businesses and socially aware residents to help them meet a campaign to reduce trash by composting or improving soil rather than bringing it to recycling centers.

He claimed that the state needed their assistance to address the issue right away.

In the Samakkee Samkong community in Muang district, the municipality tested a “garbage bank” earlier this year to discard trash and waste. If successful, it will be rolled out to other sites, Thai PBS has reported.