Plastic is Ruining Asia

When I asked our tour guide just today, he reassured me that Laos is getting much better than it used to be. "People used to throw garbage all over the place," he said. I had just finished telling him that Laos would be much more beautiful if plastic didn't exist. That, or some meaningful method of trash collection.

You hear on occasion that people visiting Canada for the first time find it really clean. I can tell you that this is because they've just come from Laos. Do not get me wrong - I'm not talking about run down buildings, dirty and dusty everything, or even the open sewers. I'm just talking about simple plastic. I'm talking about wrappers, bags, dishes, cups - just everyday garbage. It's everywhere! You can walk down any street and not take two steps without finding another jettisoned bit of the stuff. It's the only thing I've found that is ugly.

Here in Laos they are missing both a certain mentality and believe it or not - waste bins. Try to find a waste basket around here will drive you to littering! Unlike in Canada where I'd sooner litter in my vehicle than throw trash on the ground, there is a pervasive ease about litter in these parts. It's not the street people, or the backpackers; it's everyone. I've watched boat and bus drivers deposit every last stitch of garbage out the window, or over the gunnells .

The irony is that much of what they toss out in these parts is biodegradable. It's the plastic that sticks around. The coolest thing is to go to a local bus station and see how inexpensive food is packed for a journey. You'll see Banana leaves folded into a tight package, or a fresh coconut being prepared for consumption. Just the other evening we bought some really good sticky rice that was stuffed up a length of bamboo. Cool!

I hope that next time I come the Laos people continue to improve their penchant for littering.

Greg