Have to admit it is gross ( and very common) to be sitting on the beach in pattaya and step off your bed only to tramp on one or more cigarette butts as most smokers seem to believe that if they bury their finished butts under a 1mm layer of sand that that it's gone and done with - unfortunately that's rarely the case of course.

So, if smokers would perhaps take more care then perhaps non smokers wouldn't get so pissed with them. ( Apologies in advance to all those considerate smokers who DO try not to inflict their choices on others, but alas they appear to be in the minority these days)

Mind you typical Thailand - whilst I dont disagree with some form of penalty ( small 1000 baht on the spot fine perhaps?) but to suggest that throwing a cigarette butt on the beach could incur up to a year in jail is of course just ludicrous and actually rather than enforcing the point on the new law i.e it's to encourage people to be thoughtful about others and the environment etc it actually just takes away from the whole thing and makes it sound just a little bit ridiculous as of COURSE no one is going to jail for a year for that - are they !??

Mind you being Thailand that is likely designed just more to give the Police a bigger bargaining position on site for when THEY are trying to extract their unofficial on the spot fines from the smoker as they threaten them with their one year jail sentence - how very considerate of the Government !