Everyday, the equivalent of 2,000 garbage trucks full of plastic are dumped into the world’s oceans, according to the United Nations Environment Program.
While marine pollution is a global crisis, Southeast Asian countries are among the top polluters due to the region’s mismanaged and ubiquitous plastic use.
The worldwide total volume of plastic has reached 8.3 billion metric tons, with over 8 million metric tons flowing out to sea every year.
Most of this waste is carried by just 10 major rivers, one of which is the Mekong, carrying around 40,000 tons of plastic into the world’s oceans each year.
In Cambodia, which hosts around 480 kilometers of the river, rapid urbanization and growth over the last decade have led to a surge in solid and plastic waste.
As a result, Cambodia, like its neighboring countries, began partnering with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and other organizations in 2021 to develop programs aimed at alleviating its waste management sector and waterways from being overrun by plastic scraps.
But even with NGOs and local environmental groups joining the fight to combat plastic pollution by organizing clean-up crews and awareness campaigns, policy lapses and years of accumulated waste have pushed back Cambodia’s timeline for achieving a circular economy and cleaner waters.
Phnom Penh alone currently generates around 3,000 tons of municipal waste a day, of which only 20% is recycled, according to the Ministry of Environment.
Discarded plastics make up 21% of the city’s annual waste.
Despite continued efforts from anti-pollution campaigns such as the “Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle” initiative, much of this waste is still disposed of at open dump sites, burned in areas without waste collection services, or thrown into the intersecting rivers in the capital.
Nou Sovann, executive director of River Ocean Cleanup (ROC), an environmental protection organization based in Phnom Penh, told CamboJA News that since 2020, the organization has been cleaning up runoff waste, particularly plastic products, from major rivers in Cambodia, including the Mekong, Tonle Sap, and Bassac.
Since August 2020, ROC has collected 1,860 tons of miscellaneous trash from the rivers and redirected much of it into a circular waste management system, according to Sovann, who added that the rubbish they usually collect are bottles, plastic bags, clothes, and kitchen waste.
ROC clears 50 to 60 tons of waste from waterways throughout the country each month, the organization’s director asserted.
While Sovann is confident in the ROC’s ability to fish out floating garbage on the rivers’ surfaces, he notes that the issue of “legacy waste” is exhausting the organization’s resources.
Legacy waste is the accumulation of garbage buried deep in riverbeds and on the ocean floor which resurface over time. Despite ROC’s repeated efforts—cleaning some areas up to five times—these remnants persist in many of Cambodia’s waterways. Sovann estimates that it will take at least six years – with proper funding – to fully remove all legacy waste from Cambodia’s share of the Mekong, Tonle Sap and Bassac.
To speed up the collection of legacy waste, support from private companies and donors is crucial – both financially and materially, he emphasized.
The request for more assistance comes as the ROC warns that continued pollution of the rivers will limit access to drinking water, harm marine ecosystems, and exacerbate flooding during monsoon season.
Mey Nak, Marine Plastic Waste Management Project Manager at the UNDP in Cambodia, said in a recent podcast posted by the agency that Cambodia’s mismanaged plastic waste poses a number of health and environmental risks.
Nak highlighted the issue of microplastic trophic transfer, where plastic pollution in Cambodian waterways leads to fish absorbing microplastics. These contaminants then move up the food chain, ultimately reaching humans.
Cambodia needs a more comprehensive strategy, outside of programs already in place, to tackle plastic pollution more effectively, Nak warned.
Outside of stringent regulations and limiting imports of plastic waste from other countries, educational campaigns and tax incentives for plastic alternatives should be a top priority, he added.
Mean Lisa, an environmental activist who often travels to Koh Kong to study environmental issues, told CamboJA News that many locals throw their trash directly into the ocean.
“Residents often don’t realize the impact of discarding trash in waterways, and limited public outreach and enforcement from local authorities have perpetuated the status quo of persistent littering,” she said.
Hem Sophem, the founder of Nisset Plastic, a group that regularly clears garbage along canals, also noted the issue of uninformed rural communities.
“After clearing a site, waste will often reaccumulate in the same area only weeks later as people continue to discard their waste along the canals and into sewers,” he said.
Presently, The Ministry of Environment has a number of forward-looking policies designed to rehabilitate Cambodia’s recycling sector and limit the use of virgin plastics.
But these policies are lacking when it comes to public outreach and developing effective waste management systems in rural and poor urban areas, according to stakeholders in clean-up initiatives.
The Ministry of Environment did not immediately respond to CamboJA News’ questions regarding the department’s adjustments to potential lapses in its policies for waste management.
Despite the oversights, Cambodia continues to receive international aid for improvement in these areas.
The most recent support came in May of 2023 when the World Bank authorized a USD $60 million credit from the International Development Association to help Cambodia improve its capacity to manage an influx of waste and promote a circular economy.
The aid followed a series of donations given to the Cambodian government over the past few years to support efforts in curbing marine pollution.
While Cambodia’s waste is expected to continue increasing with economic and population growth, its success in keeping rivers free of plastic and solid waste will depend on leveraging multilateral aid. At a grassroots level, local environmental organizations remain steadfast on bringing awareness to communities and cleaning up what they can.
