ANG THONG, Thailand – A local sub-district administrative organization (SAO) in Ang Thong province has taken an unorthodox approach to combat chronic littering—by putting up sarcastic and strongly worded signs along a 200-meter stretch of the Asian Highway to shame those who refuse to dispose of their trash properly.
On April 20, the Ban It SAO placed several large signs near the northbound side of Highway 32 (Asian Highway) in Moo 5, Ban It Subdistrict, Mueang Ang Thong District, after ongoing issues with people dumping garbage and even urinating along the roadside.
Despite providing numerous trash bins, the area remained littered with waste and plagued by foul odors. In response, the SAO erected signs with blunt messages, such as:
“Only bad people litter.”
“Anyone dumping trash here, may karma find its way to you.”
“Why are you throwing this away? I’m exhausted from cleaning up!”
“Littering is prohibited. Violators may face imprisonment up to 3 years or a fine up to 60,000 Baht.”
These were placed alongside an official notice from the Department of Highways citing the legal consequences under the 1992 Highway Act.
Ban It SAO President, Jamnong Mali-ong explained that despite placing numerous bins and cleaning the area daily, people continued to discard trash improperly. The strong messages, sourced from online social media posts, were intended to provoke reflection and have already shown promising results—fewer people are now littering outside the bins.
“We apologize for the strong language,” Mr. Jamnong said, “but we had to find a way to get through to irresponsible individuals. It’s starting to work.”
