More than 20 businesses and state agencies have set about tackling the nation's mounting plastic waste problem with the roll-out of a "plastic waste killer" campaign aimed at cutting plastic waste in half by 2027.
The parties signed a memorandum of understanding Tuesday in Bangkok meant to cut their plastic waste.
The announcement was made on the occasion of World Environment Day, which promotes the joint efforts of state and private entities to handle the country's severe plastics contamination problem.
State agencies included Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA), the Natural Resource and Environment Ministry, and the Local Administration Department. Among the businesses were Central Pattana Group, PTT Global Chemical PLc, Siam Cement Group and Dow Chemical.
Suphan Mongkolsuthree, chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries, said each firm will contribute to raise public consciousness about the environmental damage from plastics and work to curb the problem through smart waste management and recycling.
Thailand produced more than 27.4 million tonnes of rubbish last year, 12% (2 million tonnes) of which was plastic, according to a report by the Marine and Coastal Resources Department.
Only a fourth of the 2 million tonnes was recycled, while 1.5 million tonnes remains in landfills and other locations across the country. Most plastic waste is offshore, said the report.
"Thailand is among the top five countries in terms of plastic waste channelled into seas and other bodies of water [an estimated 1 million tonnes], following China, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam," according to a study conducted by the University of Georgia.
Dhana Yantaragowit, deputy director of the Interior Ministry's Local Administration Department, said the government allocates 14 billion baht a year to place waste in landfills across 8,000 municipalities in Thailand.
However, municipalities (excluding Bangkok) can receive only 5 billion baht per year in monthly fees from households, which allows only 5% of waste to be recycled, he said.
Suwanna Jungrueng, deputy permanent secretary of BMA, said Bangkok residents use an average of eight plastic bags per day. Some are likely to use more bags, depending on their lifestyles, she said.
Waste in Bangkok amounts to 10,000 tonnes per day, 13.3% of which is plastic.
Leading retailer Central Pattana Plc is considering whether to announce a second plastic campaign this August to combat plastic waste.
"We are discussing with our area rental customers the possibility of shifting away from plastic," said executive director Pichai Chirathivat.
The group started a campaign against plastic waste in 2008, at which time the company offered special discounts on some goods if buyers used cloth bags instead of plastic bags.
Cholanat Yanaranop, president of SCG Chemicals, said the company has gradually halved the production of feed stock for single-use plastic products like plastic bags to 20% of its total petrochemical output, down from 40% a decade ago.