August 29, 2024 – Mr. Pornpot Sangket, President of the Laem Rung Ruang Community in Rayong Province, received the "First Prize" trophy for coastal community waste management across 24 provinces from Mr. Chidchanok Sukmongkol, Deputy Director-General of the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources, at Banjongburi Hotel, Surat Thani Province.

Laem Rung Ruang Community, one of the flagship communities of the Nets Up project, has implemented waste management from the source through the Laem Rung Ruang Community Recycling Bank. This includes managing household waste and waste from fishing activities, channeling them back into the recycling process. The Rayong City Municipality has provided knowledge on waste sorting and supported the community with a plastic bottle compactor for more efficient storage. Additionally, collected discarded fishing nets are sent to SCG Chemicals Public Company Limited (SCGC) for upcycling into various products under the Nets Up project.

This award recognizes the community as a coastal community with an effective and concretely successful waste management system.