Banteay Srei district governor in Siem Reap province has asked that tourists who visit or pass through the district stop littering in public places and treating them like rubbish dumps even though certain plots of land are left vacant.
District governor Khim Finan said on January 29 that residents in the district had developed good habits and have always been ready to welcome tourists.
He noted that before each festival or events, people always picked up the rubbish along the public streets and near the places where tourists stop to eat, but unfortunately the tourists do not clean up and leave a lot of rubbish out in open spaces.
The governor said that most Banteay Srei district residents had stopped dumping rubbish in the open spaces but they often complained that it was being done by those who came from far away like passers-by and tourists.
“Mostly we observed that along the public roads the open plots of land where cars and tuk-tuks are parked, they are leaving plastic bags, water bottles and styrofoam boxes all over,” he said in a Facebook post.
Finan asked for understanding from all local tourists who plan to visit or pass through Banteay Srei district, saying people should respect the good cleanliness of Banteay Srei residents, especially when visiting the district during the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday.
Chrin Srey Roth, a supplier of environmental cleaning products, said on January 30 that she was currently working to keep the environment clean in collaboration with environmentalist youths to raise funds for purchasing rubbish bins to put in public places as well as rubbish clean-up activities in order to be role models for people to participate in maintaining cleanliness in public places.
She said that in order to get many people to dispose of rubbish properly, the environmentalists will lead by example and educate people to understand and know how to use rubbish cans. She said she had observed that some people knew how to use the bins and dispose of rubbish properly, while others continued to throw garbage out in the open.
“We are working to show them what they have thrown away by showing them a group of people who have no time to rest and cannot use their personal time to do other things. They need to spend their time picking up the rubbish that others threw away improperly.
“Therefore, they should be more responsible as other people are spending their valuable time cleaning up after their irresponsible acts,” she said.
