Visitors at Phu Kradueng National Park in Loei generated over 4.5 tonnes of waste between Oct 1 and Dec 27, park chief Adison Hemathanon said on Sunday, before urging tourists to dispose their waste to protect the park's natural environment.
Since the park reopened on Dec 23, authorities have been asking tourists to bring any waste they could see along the trail with them to be disposed properly, as part of their effort to keep the park in a pristine condition.
Since the initiative was launched, Mr Adison said hikers have brought down about 60.5 kilogrammes of waste. Altogether, between Oct 1 and Dec 27, visitors, porters and park authorities brought down 4,569 kilogrammes of non-biodegradable waste.
To prevent the waste from polluting the environment, vendors along the trail have been asked to dispose their trash in secure waste pits that cannot be accessed by wild animals.
Park authorities are also advising tourists to bring reusable and/or bio-degradable containers to reduce the amount of waste left behind in the park, said Mr Adisorn.
Meanwhile, Chulakorn Muangkaew, director of the Protected Area Regional Office 8 in Khon Kaen, said the park has made major changes to its waste management protocols after the Department of National Parks, Wildlife, and Plant Conservation (DNP) ordered it not to place waste bins along walking trails to prevent wild elephant attacks.
The order came after a 49-year-old woman from Chachoengsao died after she was attacked by a wild elephant while walking from her campsite to Phen Phop Mai waterfall on Dec 11. DNP closed Phu Kradueng national park for 10 days to ensure safety.
"Tourists and shop owners must be responsible for their own waste," he said.
