Abstract :

Disposable plastic pollution has become one of the biggest environmental issues. It is evident that single-use plastic products are cheap, versatile, lightweight, resistant, easily available everywhere, which has made them very popular among people around the globe.

However, in many countries, single-use plastic shopping bags are the main source of rubbish, causing pollution impacting the environment and biodiversity. Although a lot of people understand harmful effects of plastic pollution, most people still keep using single-use plastic products. Due to these problems, our study aims to 1) understand the relationship between awareness about plastic pollution and the use of disposable plastic products, 2) explore students’ behaviors, knowledge, and awareness in reducing global warming caused by the overuse of plastic products, 3) observe the students’ attitude toward the impacts of disposable plastic pollution, and 4) raise participants’ awareness about environmental issues among a group of Thai high school students. Data were collected using a questionnaire asking about participants’ global warming knowledge, behaviors, and opinions about plastic usage. Survey samples, including Triamudomsuksanomklao students, were randomly selected through a random sampling method with a total of 307 students (100 males, 182 females, and 25 others). The majority of participants understood how harmful plastic pollution is to the environment. Our results revealed that participants’ knowledge and awareness were at high levels. Nevertheless, statistical analyses showed that there is a significant correlation between the level of awareness about plastic pollution and behavioral change, i.e. trying to avoid and reduce the use of one-time plastic bags or stop using plastic straws.

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Keywords :

awareness, disposable plastics, global warming, high school students, plastic pollution, single-use plastic

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