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When you think of garbage, what comes to mind? It could be described as something useless, filthy and dirty that should be disposed of in a trash can to be sent off far away to some landfill dump. Actually, if you think about it, everything around you is potentially garbage; when an object has no more use to you, you don't store it in your dresser, do you? The likely destination for unwanted items is usually the bin. Let's look a little closer at some of the everyday items that end up in the bin. If you can stand it, why not have a look in your own rubbish bin. What are you likely to find? You may find your old math homework soaking up some of your mom's rotten curry wrapped in last week's newspaper. Under a discarded pizza box, you may find several empty, plastic water bottles mixed in with glass jars, plastic packaging and foam containers. Chances are it all smells like a chemistry experiment gone wrong. When the stench becomes too strong, it's probably time to throw it out. The unpleasant job done, you'll probably congratulate yourself on your own cleanliness, prepare for some praise from mom and then quickly forget about the trash for the next couple of days, or until it starts to pile up again. Another job well done - or is it? Khun Wanlee, who has been a street sweeper in Bangkok for years, expresses frustration with the public's laziness. She is particularly annoyed by the vendors along Pradiphat Road . "Most people aren't conscious about their waste. When I begin work at 9am , there is rubbish everywhere. The vendors rarely put their waste in the correct place. There used to be large bins along the streets but the city had to take these away as they were so messy and the rubbish spilled out onto the road, becoming a hazard for traffic." So whose responsibility is the rubbish after it's been put in the bin? Every night, around 10pm , the Bangkok Metropolitan Area (BMA) refuse disposal teams hit the streets. The roughly 200 rubbish collectors collect an average of 9,000 tons of rubbish every day from apartments, offices, factories and the city's rubbish bins. It's dirty work but someone has to do it. The refuse collectors work seven days a week and earn a little over Bt4,000. It's no wonder that most of them separate the rubbish to be recycled and supplement their meager income. A collector working in Phayathai district who asked not to be named explained: "This is strictly something we do for extra money. We get paid so little, so we choose to do this. If we work hard, sometimes we can finish by 1am . It depends, some nights we don't finish until 5am . We can sell most of the clean plastic/glass bottles and paper to vendors. It's not much but helps a little. The rest of it - plastic, foam, foodstuff that we can't sell ends up in the landfill." At the end of each night, the full refuse trucks take their loads to one of three disposal points located at Ta Raeng, On Nut, and Nong Khaem. At these sites private vendors compete to buy recyclable/reusable items from the collectors. As for the stuff that can't be sold, it gets loaded onto an 18-wheel truck to be transported to the big land fill site at Kamphaeng Saen, Nakhon Pathom, known as Fung Grop. BMA statistics suggests that 30-40 per cent of Bangkok refuse can be recycled but the actual amount that is recycled is probably nowhere near this for many reasons. Komdet Banta, the labour director of the Sanitary Department in Phayathai district explained: "Much of the recyclable items are not recycled because it (rubbish) is not separated. When the refuse is mixed up, paper, bottles, and foam become too dirty for anyone to buy. The public can help by separating food waste from rubbish that can be recycled." Under the leadership of Governor Apirak Kosayodhin, working in conjunction with the Wongpanit Organisation, the amount of refuse in the BMA area has been reduced by 7.5 per cent in the past six months. This is partly due to recycling incentive programmes that have been introduced. The Mall Bangkapi even held a recycling fundraiser in February that raised Bt300,000. Some of the money was used to provide scholarships for needy students while the rest was donated to Mangsara Temple . A similar event was also held last month at Sanam Luang and the BMA plans to hold similar events on a monthly basis in the hope of raising awareness. The ultimate goal is to lower the amount of garbage by 10 per cent per year. So, how can you contribute? Aside from separating and reducing your waste, you can recycle directly at one of the monthly BMA recycling events, or at one of the many Wongpanit recycling plants located at temples and schools all around Thailand . For a list of events, locations, and prices be sure to check out www.wongpanit.com or www.bma.go.th. END OF ARTICLE |
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