Phuket, The Prime Minister kicked off the 'Phuket Sandbox, a model for preserving Thai beaches in honor of His Majesty the King on his 6th cycle, 72nd birthday,' piloting the project to reduce beach waste and marine waste at 14 Phuket beaches, hoping to expand to cover 72 beaches nationwide after Thailand was ranked in the world for the most waste released into the sea.Mr. Settha Thavisin, Prime Minister, and his team visited Patong Beach, Tambon Patong, Amphoe Kathu, Phuket Province, to launch the Rak 72 Thai Beaches Project to honor His Majesty the King on the occasion of His Majesty the King's 6th Cycle Birthday Anniversary on 28 July 2024, which is a collaboration between the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the Ministry of Interior, and the Ministry of Justice, as well as the private sector.Upon arrival, the Prime Minister visited the exhibition 'Phuket Sandbox: A Model for Conservation of Thai Beaches in Honor of His Majesty the King', organized by agencies under the Ministry of Natura l Resources and Environment. The exhibition reported on the marine waste situation in Phuket and measures to manage marine waste, which will last for 3 years in 14 beaches in Phuket. The project aims to be a model for reducing beach waste, promoting the use of environmentally friendly packaging, and building cooperation with beach vendors and tourists to manage waste properly before expanding to 72 beaches nationwide.The Prime Minister asked how the project would be expanded to other areas if the project was successful and suggested evaluating the project's performance in 2-3 months before adjusting it to cover 6 coastal provinces: Krabi, Trang, Surat Thani, Chon Buri, Rayong, and Trat, with Phuket as a model.The Prime Minister visited the booth of Sirinat National Park, where volunteers from South Africa and youth from Mai Khao Village, together with Sirinat National Park, brought products made from marine waste, such as key chains and marine artworks, to show the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister bough t the key chains made from waste for 4,000 baht to encourage the volunteers and youth to conserve the environment and thanked the volunteers for coming to do this project in Thailand.The Prime Minister then presided over the opening ceremony of the project, stating that the government has adopted the royal initiatives, royal aspirations, and royal policies of His Majesty the King on environmental development as guidelines for operations. Thailand is ranked among the top 10 countries with the most plastics floating into the ocean in the world. The government is therefore accelerating efforts to solve this problem by assigning the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to implement the Phuket Sandbox project, a model for preserving the Thai coastline, to raise awareness among the public to help conserve and maintain the beauty of Thai beaches and seas, which are important natural tourist attractions that generate income for the country. He also expects that the determination and dedication of all secto rs to jointly create a model area that creates awareness of beach conservation today will be an important step towards a sustainable solution to the problem of plastic waste on beaches and in the ocean, preserving the abundance of Thailand's marine and coastal areas, and preparing to pass on this valuable heritage.Before the Prime Minister joined the activity of 'Sifting Sand and Sorting Waste' with the youth, volunteers, tourists and the Kaw Phon group, amidst the interest of both Thai and foreign tourists who came to greet and ask for souvenir photos.Source : Thai News Agency