Thailand’s cleanest beaches, where are they and are they environmentally friendly?

Where are Thailand’s cleanest beaches?

If you are big on the environment, you may have traveled to some of Thailand’s beaches and thought “What the hell?”. After all, some of them are covered in so much plastic, bottles and other garbage, they may as well be rubbish dumps. (Excess plastic is a huge problem in Thailand, as just about everything comes packaged in it, which is discarded once the product has been opened).

That being said, there are many very clean beaches in Thailand. Beaches you would love to take your family too, as they really are pristine.

So where are Thailand’s cleanest beaches? And are they what would be classified as ‘environmentally friendly’ in other areas of the world?

13 Thai beaches have just been awarded stars under the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry’s ‘Beaches With Stars’ program, and all are beaches well worth going to see.

The 13 beaches that should easily classify as Thailand’s cleanest beaches are:

1. Toey Ngam beach, Chon Buri

2. Laem Sala beach, Khao Sam Roy Yot National Park, Prachuap Khiri Khan

3. Ao Manao beach of the air force’s Wing 5, Prachuap Khiri Khan

4. Ao Kha, Ang Thong Islands National Park, Surat Thani

5. Sam Sao beach, Ang Thong Islands National Park, Surat Thani

6. Tham Rang beach, Ang Thong Islands National Park, Surat Thani

7. Thai Muang beach, Khao Lampi-Hat Thai Muang National Park, Phangnga

8. Ao Kuak beach, Similan Islands National Park, Phangnga

9. Mai Ngam beach, Surin Islands National Park, Phangnga

10. Laem Tanot beach, Ko Lanta National Park, Krabi

11. Ko Rok beach, Ko Lanta National Park, Krabi

12. Pile beach, Than Bokkhorani National Park, Krabi.

13. Ko Lidi beach, Phetra Islands National Park, Satun

All 13 beaches were assessed for pollution control, natural conditions, environmental management, and tourism management. They were then awarded stars for their high ratings in all four of these categories.

As being environmentally friendly is very high up the list of what the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry looks for when doing their assessments, you can guarantee these beaches are environmentally friendly as well.

What can you do to keep Thailand’s beaches clean and environmentally friendly?

Whether you go to one of these 13 Thailand’s cleanest beaches, or to other beaches along the Thai coast, there are, of course, things you can do to keep all Thai beaches clean and help them get to an environmentally friendly level.

Don’t take plastic to the beach. And, if you must, make sure it goes back with you to be deposited in the proper garbage facilities. That includes small things like plastic straws, bottle tops and bags — all these can be lethal to ocean wildlife, both inside the water and on the beach itself.
Bottles too should always be removed from the beach after use, and disposed off correctly. A broken bottle can hurt a child or ocean-based wildlife.
Take a garbage bag with you and pick up any garbage you see lying around. Thailand’s waters have a huge problem with plastic and other trash getting into the ocean and harming or killing the fish and other wildlife, so prevent that from happening if you can.
While many Thai beaches ban dogs, some don’t. If you take your dog with you to the beach, please make sure you also take plastic bags so you can pick up his poop and dispose of it correctly.
Cigarette butts are one of the most damaging things to the ocean environment. So either don’t smoke on the beach, or make sure you take those butts with you when you leave. Again, a small bag for all your garbage will go a long way to keeping Thailand’s beaches clean, and environmentally friendly for all of us.