Quang Nam: Zero plastic waste tourism

Pressure on environment

Giving a speech at the conference, Deputy Chairman of the Quang Nam provincial People’s Committee Le Tri Thanh talked about the problems of global ecological system under threat of plastic waste. The amount of plastic waste in Quang Nam is about 240 ton a year, mainly from tourism and hospitality.

The number of visitors to Quang Nam is more and more increasing, which results in the increase of waste, especially plastic bags and bottles. It is an obstacle to local tourism development. As a province of two world cultural heritages and a world biosphere reserve, Quang Nam wishes to protect natural and cultural environment for the sustainable development.

According to the Quang Nam Tourism Association, 80% of local tourism and hospitality businesses classifies solid waste, replacing plastic products with organic ones, reducing plastic waste and finding recycling solutions.

Challenges or chances

Hoi An has long since become one of the pioneer cities saying no to plastic waste, building a friendly tourism environment. In Sapo restaurant, used cooking oil has been processed into kitchen soap instead of discharged directly into the environment for 5 years. Similarly, An Nhien Farm Resort has recycled about 300 kg of disposable soap and 1.5 tons of white cloth since 2018, creating jobs for the disabled and reducing direct waste. Besides, collecting plastic waste has become new tourism products in Hoi An, contributing to make the environment cleaner. As such, challenges of plastic waste have become good chances for tourism development. However, it is not a good solution in the long run.

According to Micheal Croft, Head of UNESCO Office in Vietnam, preservation and conservation of cultural heritages attached to green, clean and beautiful environment should be encouraged for sustainable tourism development and for our future generations.