Make plastic lovers pay

In a bold, drastic move to help the country cut back on plastic consumption, a major retail chain announced it will no longer give away single-use plastic bags to customers, but instead encourage them to bring tote bags or reusable carrier bags.

The new policy of the Mall Group which operates The Mall, Paragon, Emquartier, Emporium, and others, is to take effect tomorrow.

Those who do not bring a tote bag and want a plastic one will be asked to pay one baht per bag. The money, the group said, will go to a WWF campaign to reduce plastic use.

The Mall Group's new policy has drawn mixed reactions from netizens.

Some complained that the paying for bags will rob customers of convenience, pushing the burden on the customers. But many have thrown their support behind the move, saying that the measure will bring about a change in consumers' behaviour which will be good for the environment.

It is widely expected that other retail chains and convenience stores will stick to their longstanding policy.

Yet, the move by the Mall Group is noteworthy at a time when the government is being sluggish in handling plastic pollution problems, ruling out a law that will introduce an outright ban as "impractical". Other retail chains fiercely stick to bringing bags on a voluntary basis for fear of losing customers amid stiff business competition.

The government's policy on plastic waste management is too passive. It is reluctant to introduce tax or financial penalties that will enable it to achieve the goal of reducing plastic pollution.

In 2017, the regime kicked off a campaign to reduce use of plastic bags with Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha as the poster boy.

The campaign conducted in collaboration with hypermarket operators encouraged people to use cloth bags three days a week: Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

The government claimed the campaign resulted in 166 million fewer plastic bags being used last year. At a glance, this figure may appear a major success, but Thais use more than 70 billion bags each year.

Thailand is one of the worst offenders among Asian countries for plastic waste ending up in the ocean.

On June 5, World Environment Day, the Pollution Control Department (PCD) boasted of having reduced plastic waste in a year-long campaign.

Suwanna Tiasuwan, deputy director-general of the PCD, said she was satisfied with voluntary bans on single-use plastic bags and "better law enforcement related to plastic waste management".

Many criticised her statement, which was made to mark World Environment Day, as too optimistic.

Among the achievements cited by Ms Suwanna was a massive 80% reduction in plastic rings used in drinking water bottle caps.

Yet, she stopped short of mentioning measures against single-use plastic bags, which are a major contributor to the environmental crisis.

It was reported that a sub-panel under the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment rolled out a plastic waste management plan covering 2018-2030, with an aim to reduce plastic waste and promote reuse and recycling.

It sets a target that all plastic waste in Thailand must be fully recycled by 2027.

There are concerns that this will be impossible to achieve in that time without a drastic change in consumers' behaviour such as adopting bold measures like those being introduced by a certain major retail chain.