Trash for cash: Bangkok offers bin discount for food waste sorting
Throwing out your leftovers could now save you money! Bangkok’s new sort and save scheme is giving households a reason to separate their scraps, with discounts on the horizon and rubbish fees on the rise.
Bangkok residents in six districts are being offered a financial incentive to sort their waste as part of a new food scrap recycling initiative launching this month. From April 21, households in Bang Phlat, Bang Kho Laem, Lat Phrao, Phaya Thai, Thon Buri, and Lat Krabang will be eligible for a rubbish collection fee discount if they separate their food waste from general refuse.
The scheme, spearheaded by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA), aims to encourage more environmentally friendly waste disposal practices as the city gears up for an increase in collection fees scheduled for October. Advising on the project and confirming the initiative will begin with a trial run across the selected districts.
Households interested in joining the scheme must register via the BKK Waste Pay mobile app. Successful applicants will receive green waste bags specifically for food scraps, which will be collected separately from regular household waste two to three times a week.
“The idea is to reduce landfill waste while rewarding households for environmentally responsible behaviour,” Pornphrom said. “This could become the new standard for waste management in the capital.”
The BMA’s Environment Department will oversee the trial in coordination with local district offices. If the project proves effective, it is expected to be rolled out citywide.
In addition to the fee discount, residents are being encouraged to put their food waste to good use by converting it into animal feed or fertiliser, further promoting sustainability within the community, reported Bangkok Post.
In similar news, Industry Minister Akanat Promphan has ordered the suspension of four recycling plants in Samut Sakhon following complaints of severe air and water pollution affecting nearby salt farms in Nakhok subdistrict, Mueang district.
Residents reported blackened salt fields and foul odours, believed to be caused by soot and emissions from heavy metal smelting processes, particularly at night. Wastewater leakage is also suspected to have contaminated the salt fields, significantly disrupting local salt production, a vital livelihood for many families.
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