Bali thinking of taxing all foreign tourists

One of the world's favourite holiday destinations Bali makes a clean-up move.

Bali proposed a tax of up to 10 dollars on visitors to remove tourism-generated trash.

The Bali authorities are working on a bylaw which will make tourists accountable for environmental and cultural preservation.

The revenue collected from the 10 dollar tax will be used to fund programmes for preservation. The levy is still under discussion.

The authorities are deliberating on how the tax should be collected, whether it should be included in the airfare, or if it should be collected at separate airport counters.

But, the policy is expected to be imposed only on foreign tourists.

This plan comes at a time when the province is fighting against the growing volume of plastic waste on its beaches.

Bali is particularly popular among Chinese and Australian holidaymakers -- it welcomed up to six million visitors in 2018.

An environment agency recorded that the island produced 38-hundred tonnes of waste every day -- out of this, only 60 per cent ends up in the landfill.

This is not Bali's first step towards environmental conservation. Free plastic bags in supermarkets and grocery stores have been banned in Bali's capital since the beginning of this year.

Other parts of Indonesia are also struggling with the problem of excessive plastic waste. The Pisang Batu river in west java is one of the country's most polluted rivers. Hundreds of tonnes of rubbish collect there every monsoon.