“Plastics have a bright future,” Dustin Hoffman said in the classic American film “The Graduate.” That was the view of the plastics industry 50 years ago, but the reality is that plastics today pose more environmental problems than we ever imagined.
Photo: Hung Lekima
Last year in the waters of Indonesia, people found 6kg of plastic waste in the stomach of a dead sperm whale that washed ashore, including: flip-flops, bottles, bags, 115 plastic cups and more than 1,000 pieces of plastic. In March this year, another whale died on the coast of the Philippines with 40kg of plastic waste in its stomach. According to information fromUnited Nations Environment ProgrammeEvery year, up to 13 million tons of plastic drift into the ocean, where they invade and will exist for centuries, poisoning marine life and humans.
For that reason, many countries are aiming to eliminate plastic products, including Vietnam. Since the beginning of June this year, Vietnam has been mobilizing the strong participation of the whole society in the movement against plastic waste, striving to not use disposable plastic products by 2025. Responding to the campaign for the environment, many resorts and hotels in Vietnam are making efforts to say no to the use of plastic.
Hotels of the Meliá Hotels & Resorts Group
Meliá Hotels & Resorts in Vietnam, such as Meliá Hanoi, Meliá Ba Vi Mountain Retreat, Meliá Danang and Meliá Ho Tram, have all limited the use of single-use plastic products, and replaced straws, cups, and plastic bags with products made of bamboo, paper, wood, or glass. Meliá Hanoi started the “Say No to Single-use Plastics” campaign in September 2018. Meliá Ba Vi Mountain Retreat has used ecoheim paper - an environmentally friendly paper, or recycled paper to print documents placed in the rooms. Meliá Danang has implemented the “Soap for Hope” program, collecting unfinished soap bars, performing the sterilization and cold-pressing process, drying, packaging them into new soap bars, and sending them to areas with limited sanitation conditions.
Mr. Guillermo Pantoja, General Manager of Meliá Hanoi shared: “We believe that big changes always start from the smallest actions. We call on everyone to contribute to protecting the environment, hoping that there will come a time when they will not need to use convenient plastic items during dining parties with relatives and friends.”
Paradise Cruises
Vietnam is facing a plastic waste disaster. According toEarth Day Network, Vietnam ranked 4th in the world when it emitted more than 1.8 million tons of plastic waste last year. Paradise Cruises, one of the leading cruise service providers in Ha Long Bay, has stopped using plastic straws on its 7 luxury cruise ships, reducing 36,000 plastic straws per year. The group aims to stop using non-biodegradable plastic products in its operations by the end of 2018. Mr. Edgar Cayanan, General Director of Paradise Cruises, said: “Plastic waste takes more than 200 years to decompose, they are causing significant harm to the ocean and right now in Ha Long Bay. We need to act and we need to act now to reduce the amount of plastic waste going into the ocean every day.”
Laguna Lang Co
Laguna Lang Co is located in the middle of unspoiled nature, surrounded by mountains and primeval forests that stretch from the mountain tops to the beach. Preserving the surrounding nature has always been a top priority for the resort. Laguna Lang Co Golf Course Director Adam Calver said: “Vietnam is one of the most beautiful countries in the world, and we are very fortunate to be here, amidst the most beautiful unspoiled mountains and forests in the region. We are conscious of our responsibility to the environment, and eliminating the use of plastic products is one of our many directions. Bamboo baskets have replaced plastic trash bins, paper cups have replaced plastic cups, straws made from paper, bamboo or natural grass have replaced plastic straws, and bamboo or wooden utensils have been widely used.”
The Anam Cam Ranh
The Anam Beach Resort in Cam Ranh has significantly reduced the use of plastic products by stopping the use of nylon bags, replacing plastic bottles with glass bottles, and plastic straws with bamboo straws harvested from sustainable plantations. The Anam also uses treated laundry water to water the gardens, conducts regular beach clean-ups, and calls on staff, suppliers and neighboring hotels in the area to join hands in reducing plastic waste to create a strong collective effect. “Reducing the amount of plastic waste is extremely important for humans. Plastic pollution seriously threatens the environment worldwide, we are ingesting plastic when eating fish that carry microplastic particles that we have discarded. We will be a pioneer in strongly stopping the use of plastic products at the resort,” said Mr. Pham Van Hien, investor of The Anam.
Sol Beach House Phu Quoc
“Say no to plastic straws” is a campaign by Sol Beach House Phu Quoc resort. The resort, located in Bai Truong, in the south of Phu Quoc pearl island, is always committed to supporting and joining hands with environmental protection campaigns, aiming to not use single-use plastic products, in an effort to bring cleaner and safer air, land and water. Sol Beach House Phu Quoc has used reusable bamboo straws to replace plastic straws. These 100% natural and organic bamboo straws are grown, harvested and handcrafted by local businesses and ethnic minorities. Mr. Raul Mateo Lapuente, General Manager of the resort shared: “Together, we will make a change. Please join us in this global campaign to save and protect the environment and make our earth a more perfect place to live.”
