Cambodia's plastic problem

This is where our community discusses almost anything! While we're mainly a Cambodia expat discussion forum and talk about expat life here, we debate about almost everything. Even if you're a tourist passing through Southeast Asia and want to connect with expatriates living and working in Cambodia, this is the first section of our site that you should check out. Our members start their own discussions or post links to other blogs and/or news articles they find interesting and want to chat about. So join in the fun and start new topics, or feel free to comment on anything our community members have already started! We also have some Khmer members here as well, but English is the main language used on CEO. You're welcome to have a look around, and if you decide you want to participate, you can become a part our international expat community by signing up for a free account.
User avatar
Kammekor
Expatriate
Posts: 6375
Joined: Fri Sep 01, 2017 12:50 pm
Reputation: 2916
Cambodia

Re: Cambodia's plastic problem

Post by Kammekor »

CEOCambodiaNews wrote: Fri Sep 02, 2022 11:56 pm Cambodia produces over 4 million tons of garbage per year: official
Ouch. That's 250 kg per Cambodian per year.
User avatar
Kammekor
Expatriate
Posts: 6375
Joined: Fri Sep 01, 2017 12:50 pm
Reputation: 2916
Cambodia

Re: Cambodia's plastic problem

Post by Kammekor »

cautious colin wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 7:25 am The problem with edible straws or any eco friendly straw is that most of them are useless. Either get to soft, impart flavour or are reusable (which doesn't seem sanitary)

Best solution in 90% of cases is to not use a straw
Yes, this is a problem, although nobody cares about the plastic cups most coffee shops serve their cool drinks in, even when drinking inside.
User avatar
Alex
Expatriate
Posts: 2593
Joined: Thu May 15, 2014 2:09 am
Reputation: 2298
Location: Bangkok
United States of America

Re: Cambodia's plastic problem

Post by Alex »

They can write a lot about it, but the plastic problem won't be solved. Ever. Most people realize that by now.
User avatar
newkidontheblock
Expatriate
Posts: 4424
Joined: Tue May 20, 2014 3:51 am
Reputation: 1545

Re: Cambodia's plastic problem

Post by newkidontheblock »

Plastics was pushed in order to save the trees.

Maybe it’s time to go back to cutting down trees for cups and bags and boxes?
User avatar
Freightdog
Expatriate
Posts: 4351
Joined: Wed May 16, 2018 8:41 am
Reputation: 3446
Location: Attached to a suitcase between realities
Ireland

Re: Cambodia's plastic problem

Post by Freightdog »

newkidontheblock wrote: Tue Jun 06, 2023 10:40 pm Plastics was pushed in order to save the trees.

Maybe it’s time to go back to cutting down trees for cups and bags and boxes?
You’ll have to be quick- by all accounts, they’ve got a handle on the illegal, or was that uncontrolled(?), logging. There might not be much left…
User avatar
CEOCambodiaNews
Expatriate
Posts: 62322
Joined: Sun Oct 12, 2014 5:13 am
Reputation: 4033
Location: CEO Newsroom in Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Contact:
Cambodia

Re: Cambodia's plastic problem

Post by CEOCambodiaNews »

‘No plastic’ campaign reaches 1M students
Orm Bunthoeurn | Publication date 29 September 2023 | 07:50 ICT
Image
Students hold a paper pledging to stop the use of plastic in schools in Stung Treng province on September 26. MOE
The “Today I Will Not Use Plastic bags” campaign, initiated by the Ministry of Environment, has now been extended to over 1,000 schools throughout Cambodia, reaching over one million students, said minister Eang Sophalleth.

He touted the success of the campaign during a meeting with representatives of the Seoul-based Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) at the ministry headquarters in Phnom Penh on September 26.

“Our goal is to reach the whole country. The next step will be to expand the campaign to private companies as well as large factories and manufacturing enterprises,” he said.

GGGI representative Shomi Kim congratulated the minister on the success of the school campaign, saying the GGGI intends to support the campaign by producing bio-plastics and strengthening cooperation with the ministry.

Sophalleth launched the campaign on September 1, initially in 44 schools with a total of more than 18,000 students across Tbong Khmum province’s O’Reang-ou district, in a bid to reduce plastic waste and promote sustainable development.
https://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/ ... m-students
Join the Cambodia Expats Online Telegram Channel: https://t.me/CambodiaExpatsOnline

Cambodia Expats Online: Bringing you breaking news from Cambodia before you read it anywhere else!

Have a story or an anonymous news tip for CEO? Need advertising? CONTACT US

Cambodia Expats Online is the most popular community in the country. JOIN TODAY

Follow CEO on social media:

Facebook
Twitter
YouTube
Instagram
Anchor Moy
Expatriate
Posts: 13458
Joined: Wed May 28, 2014 11:37 pm
Reputation: 3974
Tokelau

Re: Cambodia's plastic problem

Post by Anchor Moy »

Interesting posssility.
The long read
‘We are just getting started’: the plastic-eating bacteria that could change the world

When a microbe was found munching on a plastic bottle in a rubbish dump, it promised a recycling revolution. Now scientists are attempting to turbocharge those powers in a bid to solve our waste crisis. But will it work?
by Stephen Buranyi
Thu 28 Sep 2023 06.00 CEST
Last modified on Fri 29 Sep 2023 14.56 CEST

In 2001, a group of Japanese scientists made a startling discovery at a rubbish dump. In trenches packed with dirt and waste, they found a slimy film of bacteria that had been happily chewing through plastic bottles, toys and other bric-a-brac. As they broke down the trash, the bacteria harvested the carbon in the plastic for energy, which they used to grow, move and divide into even more plastic-hungry bacteria. Even if not in quite the hand-to-mouth-to-stomach way we normally understand it, the bacteria were eating the plastic.

The scientists were led by Kohei Oda, a professor at the Kyoto Institute of Technology. His team was looking for substances that could soften synthetic fabrics, such as polyester, which is made from the same kind of plastic used in most beverage bottles. Oda is a microbiologist, and he believes that whatever scientific problem one faces, microbes have probably already worked out a solution. “I say to people, watch this part of nature very carefully. It often has very good ideas,” Oda told me recently.

What Oda and his colleagues found in that rubbish dump had never been seen before. They had hoped to discover some micro-organism that had evolved a simple way to attack the surface of plastic. But these bacteria were doing much more than that – they appeared to be breaking down plastic fully and processing it into basic nutrients. From our vantage point, hyperaware of the scale of plastic pollution, the potential of this discovery seems obvious. But back in 2001 – still three years before the term “microplastic” even came into use – it was “not considered a topic of great interest”, Oda said. The preliminary papers on the bacteria his team put together were never published.
Read on: https://www.theguardian.com/environment ... ling-waste
Post Reply Previous topicNext topic
  • Similar Topics
    Replies
    Views
    Last post

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Bobby66, Khmu Nation, Moe and 1347 guests