Thai Hotels Association’s war against plastic

Published on : Tuesday, January 22, 2019

As per TAT Governor Mr. Yuthasak Supasorn, Thai hotels can play an important role in reducing plastic waste in daily hotel operations. They can raise awareness against plastic among their guests as well. Plastic is non-biodegradable and poses threat to environment.

Here is a bird’s eye view on the effort of one of the Thai tourism organisations to raze a war on plastic.

The joint effort will focus on 12 preliminary guidelines for participating hotels:

• No plastic straws

• Reduce single use plastic food or drink containers

• Reduce plastic packaging of bathroom amenities

• Use local products made with biodegradable packaging materials

• Reduce plastic water bottles by using reusable containers, especially for meetings and seminars

• Waste segregation at the hotel

• Self-service corner for coffee/tea breaks during meetings and seminars

• Separate trash bins on beach areas adjacent to hotels

• Create a sustainable ‘no plastic’ rate card for meetings and weddings customers

• All departments within the hotel to reduce plastic

• Encourage guests, customers, clients and partners to join the ‘anti-plastic revolution’

There are other public and private sector partners who have joined TAT’s reducing tourism-related waste initiative. These include the THA, Tourism Council of Thailand, the Expedia Group, Siam Piwat Retail and Development Company, Chao Phraya River tourism-related businesses including ICONSIAM, Nonthaburi Municipality, plus other local communities in Bangkok.

Various campaigns will encourage hotels, to reduce single use plastic. Tour companies, travel agencies and online travel agencies will be motivated to support participating hotels that are part of this project.

TAT will support all participating hotels in the participation in trade shows including the ITB, TTM, and WTM of the many.

TAT is determined to make sustainability real and irreversible.