Great news … with immediate effect all 154 Thai national parks will ban plastic containers and styrofoam, the National Parks Department has announced.

According to General Surasak Kanjanarat, the minister of natural resources, measures are urgently needed to reduce the amount of plastic bags Thai people use and announced that the ministry will order the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation and the Zoological Park Organisation to ban plastic bag use in all national parks and at state-owned zoos.

After the worldwide attention Thailand has received following the death of a whale in Southern Thailand found to have more than 80 plastic bags in its stomach, officials were ready to take drastic measures.

The restriction also applies to zoos throughout the country including the Dusit, Khao Keaw, Chiang Mai and Nakhon Ratchasima zoos.