Halong Bay bans plastic bags and bottles on tour boats

It’s official! Halong Bay, one of the well-known UNESCO World Heritages, has finally stepped up their eco-game! Plastic is banned in Halong, focusing on the unnecessary use of plastic products such as bottles, bags, straws and wet paper towels on tour boats. The pilot project starts from August 1.

In replacement of the harmful plastic, tour boats will provide more environmentally friendly alternatives, namely glasses and reusable cloth napkins. This is a remarkable effort to cope with environmental issues in Vietnamese tourism, especially in tourist crowded areas like Halong. The local tourism industry disposes of around 10,000 plastic bottles and napkins daily. In addition, the majority of styrofoams, plastic bottles and food packagings are found commonly near the beach areas. This has contributed immensely to the trash and waste dilemma as tourism becomes one of the key sectors of the local economy.

Therefore, other than banning plastic, tour boats will also have to make more diligent effort in their waste filtering process before discharging or bringing to the treatment facilities.

Although only 15 service providers participate in the pilot project, it is not far-fetched to expect a greener and plastic-free holiday in Halong in the near future.