SET joins hands with partners to launch the 4th year of Care the Whale: Zero Waste Station, extending waste sorting to multi-layer plastic

BANGKOK, April 17, 2024 – The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), in collaboration with Wat Chak Daeng, Saha Pathanapibul pcl (SPC), Osotspa pcl (OSP), and Principal Capital pcl (PRINC), has unwaveringly promoted environmental sustainability and enhanced quality of life for community dwellers in Khung Bang Kachao, Samut Prakan province through the “Care the Whale: the Zero Waste Station - Khung Bang Kachao” project held for the fourth consecutive year. The initiative is aimed to change behavior of people in the community to segregate waste at source. The waste separation effort this year will be extended to recyclable multi-layer plastic which is prolific and causes environmental problems. The project targets over 40 percent year-on-year increase in waste sent by the community for the separation process in 2024.      

Wat Chak Daeng Abbot Phra Rachwatcharabunchid (Pranom Thammalangkaro) expressed gratitude to private sector partners for the steadfast support in the “Care the Whale: the Zero Waste Station - Khung Bang Kachao”. Thanks to the project, people in the community have eagerly participated in and changed waste management behavior, and placed importance on environmental issue which will lead to the truly community-level sustainability. The project also aligns with the work of Wat Chak Daeng which serves as a waste management learning center and knowledge development to connect and collaborate with various organizations in creating circular economy-based innovations. The project, in 2023, successfully separated 354,265 kilograms of waste, of which 86 percent was food waste used to produce bio-fermented liquid for agricultural benefits. In 2024, the temple is pleased to support the community in separating multi-layer plastic waste, which can be further processed into fuel and aluminum for maximum utility.  

SET Executive Vice President Kirati Kosicharoen said that SET is committed to promoting sustainable practice in business sector, focusing on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) aspects. SET has continuously teamed up with partners in implementing the “Care the Whale: the ‘Zero Waste Station - Khung Bang Kachao’ project to enhance the local environment and community quality of life by changing behavior in sorting waste at source and applying circular economy practice to the community. Leveraging its knowledge, management tools, and expert partners, SET continues to support systematic waste management and coordinate with the local community. 

“Over the past three years, SET has facilitated 378,759 kilograms of waste management in Khung Bang Kachao, reducing the carbon footprint by 341,559 kgCO2e, equivalent to planting 37,951 trees. In 2024, the project aims to drive the community, organizations, and businesses to separate 500,000 kilograms of waste, a 40 percent increase from the previous year, and extend waste separation to Multi-Layer plastic, which is widely used for consumer goods packaging but was not recycled in the past due to its high separation cost and more complex recycling process than other types of plastic. We hope that this year's project will reduce the environmental impact of waste and improve the quality of life for people in the community in a sustainable way,” Kirati added. 

SPC Executive Vice President Chailada Tantivejakul said SPC as the project’s partner since its inauguration has seen progress and social and environmental impacts in Khung Bang Kachao, both in terms of the increasing amount of waste separated by the community and sent to Wat Chak Daeng and expanding community access more broadly by educating about environmental problems caused by leftover waste. The company has provided waste management knowledge to youth through schools in the area, raising awareness and changing waste management behaviors of people in the community. Moreover, the company has sponsored products from affiliated companies, enabling the community dwellers to redeem waste for the consumer products to help alleviate their cost of living burden. The initiative continues into this year, along with providing knowledge on managing the new type of waste that is added this year, to ensure a sustainable solution.

PRINC Chief Sustainability Officer Atiya Awachanakarn said that the partnership in the "Care the Whale Zero Waste Station, Khung Bang Kachao" project aligns with the company's commitment to driving sustainability through its expertise in healthcare. This year, the company will extend the concept of exchanging waste for healthcare, providing items such as blood pressure monitors, thermometers, and pulse oximeters to enable community members to monitor their basic health status. The company will also provide knowledge on proper infectious waste management and conduct on-site health inspections for the monks at Wat Chak Deang, the center for waste management and health screening for people in the community. Furthermore, the company will initiate waste separation for pharmaceutical packaging waste and establish drop points for the community to deliver such waste for further processing using a new type of pyrolysis machine. The aluminum will then be sent on for other uses, such as making artificial legs. 

OSP Head of Corporate Communication and CSR Sutida Siamharn said that the "Care the Whale: the Zero Waste Station - Khung Bang Kachao" project has underscored the company's commitment on glass bottle waste management using circular economy approach as glass bottles are 100 percent recyclable and can be recycled indefinitely. In 2023, the Khung Bang Kachao community delivered 20,623 kilograms of glass bottle waste to the projects' waste collection points and the volume is expected to increase this year on the back of the continuous campaign and implementation which will promote the waste separation behavior of people in the community. The company has sponsored THB 0.50 for every one kilogram of glass bottle waste which will be turned into products manufactured by companies under the OSP group for Wat Chak Daeng based on the weight of collected glass bottle waste. Furthermore, the company has connected a network of recycling companies to purchase glass bottle waste from Wat Chak Daeng, for recycling into new glass bottles. The volume of waste from the project that re-enters the recycling process each year is a testament to the significant power of the community in effectively caring for the environment.
  
The "Care the Whale: the Zero Waste Station - Khung Bang Kachao" project has solicited the community to sort seven types of waste comprising cloudy plastic bottles, clear plastic bottles, clear plastic, and multi-layer plastic bags and send to Wat Chak Daeng to accumulate points for consumer goods redemption from partners, through three stations: the Zero Waste Station at Wat Chak Daeng, the Mobile Zero Waste Station at Bang Nam Phueng Market on Saturdays, and the Immediate Zero Waste Station on electric tricycles in the community. This is to collectively find ways to move forward with the waste and reduce waste left behind in the area.  For more details, please visit https://www.setsocialimpact.com/carethewhale