Thailand tourist island enforces plastic ban

Tourists are also required to do the same to retain the island’s natural environment and protect the coral reef.

Comprised of three islets connected by white sand, the island is a great diving spot to see coral reefs. During the peak tourist season, Koh Nang Yuan attracts thousands of tourists every day, most of them are foreign travelers who want to scuba dive to see coral and record wonderful scenes underwater.

However, visitors to the island are not allowed to bring any plastic items and styrofoam boxes. It means that they cannot even bring water bottles there unless they are recyclable ones.

During their stay, visitors will be provided with glass bottled water instead of plastic ones and have specific instructions on where to collect empty glass bottles when they are no longer in use. They are also encouraged to use water sparingly.

Previously, the coral reef on Nang Yuan island was heavily affected by Typhoon Gay in November 1989 and the El Nino phenomenon in the 1990s.

The restoration of coral reefs took place over the following years. Thanks to the enthusiasm of the people on the island as well as local businesses, especially the effectiveness of a ban on single-use plastic items, waste treatment on the island has been greatly eased, and shallow and deep water coral reefs there have had a clean environment to restore their intact beauty.