A popular beach destination in Lam Dong Province, Mui Ne is known for its long sandy beaches and thriving tourism industry.

Its beaches attract tourists from Vietnam and abroad, who are drawn by the area’s scenic coastline and water sports such as kitesurfing and windsurfing.

'Ocean waste' in Mui Ne?

According to Tuoi Tre (Youth) online newspaper observations, in recent days, authorities in Mui Ne Ward, Lam Dong Province have repeatedly mobilized excavators, dump trucks, officials, employees, and volunteers to collect trash from several local beaches.

These efforts have helped clean up some of the litter-strewn beaches, but they have yet to solve the problem completely, as similar situations occur almost every year.

Local authorities refer to it as 'ocean waste,' which washes ashore seasonally.

At the Front Beach, particularly along the seawall near the local fishing village, trash remains scattered from the water to the shoreline, including seashells, fishing gear, plastic bags, old clothes, and plastic items.

According to the Mui Ne Ward People’s Committee, ocean waste occurs seasonally and is mainly influenced by wind direction, waves, tides, and ocean currents.

During the southerly wind season, roughly from April to October each year, trash tends to drift ashore and accumulate along the Front Beach.

During the north-easterly wind season, the waste tends to wash up along the Back Beach.

The waste does not wash ashore evenly in terms of either location or density.

The affected areas and amount of waste frequently change, and no specific recurring cycle has been identified.

As the tide rises and falls, waves continue to carry the trash from one area to another.

This makes it difficult for local authorities to determine the scope and volume of waste and organize a complete clean-up.

Ward authorities acknowledge that besides waste drifting in from the sea, some residents also dump and dispose of trash directly on the beach on a daily basis, significantly increasing the amount of waste generated and left behind.

For now, the locality is relying on manual clean-up efforts, while a comprehensive solution would require greater resources and the involvement of multiple agencies and organizations.

'People dump it and the sea gives it back'

Nguyen Ngoc Tuyen, 50, who regularly swims at Rang Beach in Mui Ne, said he was saddened to see trash continuously washing ashore.

According to Tuyen, Mui Ne is blessed with a favorable climate and beautiful scenery, but its trash problem is a downside.

Whether the waste comes from the ocean or elsewhere, he said, it is ultimately dumped by people and returned by the sea.

“Local authorities have made great efforts to clean up the trash, but that alone is not enough,” Tuyen said.

“The locality should install more trash bins along the beach so that residents and tourists can pick up any trash they see and put it in the bins.

“If we do that every day, the amount of trash will gradually decrease.”