The Department of Local Administration (DLA) chief has been told that his job security depends on how well he implements refuse disposal nationwide.
DLA director-general Suttipong Juljarern has been asked to tackle the mounting refuse problem after Interior Minister Anupong Paojinda convened a meeting of state agencies to draw up a waste disposal disposal master plan, according to a source in the DLA.
Gen Anupong also made it clear that implementation of this plan will be Mr Sutthipong's key performance indicator (KPI), the source said.
The minister said the DLA integrates the country's administrative affairs with related agencies working under it. The framework should ensure a well-coordinated effort to deal with the refuse problem on a national scale, the minister said.
Commenting on the directive, Mr Suttipong said the issue is of such importance that it has been listed as a national agenda item and his own performance will come under close scrutiny.
So far, waste disposal has been managed improperly and largely ignored by the public, said Mr Suttipong, adding the situation has worsened due to people's lack of discipline and responsibility as the government sets about meeting its goals.
The DLA estimates that each person produces 1.14kg of waste a day.
The department has devised measures to ease the problem which involve reducing, reusing and recycling waste.
The DLA will direct a campaign to cut down on the use of plastic while promoting the reuse of certain types of organic waste by turning it into compost, to help cut down on the amount of waste produced. Also, recycling will be promoted for other types of rubbish.
"We will drive a campaign, with the participation of local administration organisations, which involves training family members in every household in the correct methods of refuse disposal," he said.
The campaign will kick off in the New Year and it will run throughout 2018.
Mr Suttipong insisted that households must be made aware of how much and what kind of rubbish they produce so they know what waste to cut down on.
The local administration organisations will host sessions to educate volunteers who will go home and tell their families how to effectively manage their household rubbish disposal.
Second, refuse collected by the local administration organisations will be kept in secure areas before it is delivered for disposal at designated facilities.
The DLA chief said the Interior Ministry has instructed agencies to strictly enforce the Cleanliness and Orderliness Act which governs waste management.
Also, a ministerial regulation was recently amended to allow private businesses to jointly invest with the local administration organisations in establishing and operating waste disposal facilities.
Mr Suttipong said a "refuse clinic", consisting of six members, will be appointed by the department to follow up on the local administration organisations' progress in reducing the volume of local waste as well as to offer advice and support.
Local organisations nationwide will be divided into 324 clusters which will be responsible for tackling refuse disposal problems in their jurisdictions.
The authorities will have to adopt proactive measures to put the system into practice, he said.
The measures, Mr Suttipong added, require collaboration between the Department Of Provincial Administration (DPA) and the Department of Community Development (DCD), which work closely with people on the ground.
The DLA, the DPA and the DCD are the core agencies which directly supervise waste management policy.
The DLA oversees the local administration organisations while the DPA has contacts with provincial governors and administrative officials.
The DCD, on the other hand, retains the household database and records the needs of the families.
According to the Interior Ministry's statistics, refuse nationwide amounted to 27 million tonnes last year, up about 0.7% from the previous year.
Of this, 4.2 million tonnes was collected in Bangkok.