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Loy Krathong is one of the most beautiful festivals in Thailand. It takes place towards the end of the year during the full moon in November. A krathong is a bowl usually made from banana leaves with the stem of the banana tree as it’s base. This is then floated on lakes, canals or rivers. The aim of the festival is to beg forgiveness from the Mother of Water for any pollution that may have been caused over the previous year. It is a charming festival, but one of the things that has to be done the following day is to clear up all of the krathongs left floating on the water. A bit ironical, yes?

If people float their krathongs on the Chao Phraya River, then these are washed downstream and out to the Gulf of Thailand. But any krathongs that were floated on the lakes in the 30 parks in Bangkok have to be physically removed. And counted. Last year, a total of 661,935 krathongs were collected by BMA officials. This year, 811,945 krathongs were collected which is an increase of 22.7%. But the good news is that 93.6% were made from environmentally friendly or biodegradable materials which is a record. This shows that the general public are more aware of the environment these days. All of these krathongs that are collected are turned into organic fertilizers.

Pictures by Nation Photo