Vietnam is at the heart of the marine plastic pollution challenge, as a worldwide hotspot for post-consumption plastics leaking into the oceans. Plenty of global recommendations on how to combat land-based sources of plastic pollution exist, but how local actors experience, understand and respond to local actors has been studied surprisingly little.

Taking Phu Quoc Island, Vietnam’s tourism magnet, as a vivid case in point, this paper explores ‘whose problem is plastic pollution and why’ by grounding it on qualitative data, using a risk perception approach and research into waste governance as an analytical frame.

The paper shows how high visibility, haptic experiences and greater knowledge of plastic impacts make plastic waste-associated risks increasingly tangible. By this, the overall increasing visible everyday waste pollution and the ill-equipped waste governance come into focus. Interviews reveal a linkage between the observation of ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ disposal practices with distinct perceptions of island places and waste pollution responsibilities. That, in turn, shapes both response strategies to combat plastic pollution and to improve the island’s overall waste governance. This research points to the complexity of waste governance, especially when convenience and ignorance clash with attempts to protect the environment. Action repertoires range from beach clean-ups, awareness-raising, and usage of eco-friendly reusable materials to managerial waste infrastructure improvements. Yet, hierarchies, budget constraints, the absence of an environmentally sound waste collection and treatment system and inadequate environmental knowledge limit perceived agency, genuine commitment and ultimately an effective waste governance.

越南是海洋塑料污染挑战的核心，是消费后塑料泄漏到海洋的全球热点。关于如何应对陆上塑料污染源的全球建议很多，但令人惊讶的是，对当地行为者如何体验、理解和回应当地行为者的研究却很少。

以越南的旅游胜地富国岛为例，本文以定性数据为基础，使用风险感知方法和废物治理研究作为分析框架，探讨了“谁的问题是塑料污染及其原因”。

该论文展示了高能见度、触觉体验和对塑料影响的更多了解如何使与塑料废物相关的风险越来越有形。由此，可见的日常垃圾污染总体增加和垃圾治理设备不良成为关注的焦点。访谈揭示了对“正确”或“错误”处置实践的观察与对岛屿地方和废物污染责任的不同看法之间的联系。这反过来又塑造了应对塑料污染和改善岛上整体废物治理的应对策略。这项研究指出了废物治理的复杂性，尤其是当便利和无知与保护环境的努力发生冲突时。行动项目包括海滩清理、提高认识、和使用环保的可重复使用材料来改善管理废物基础设施。然而，等级制度、预算限制、缺乏对环境无害的废物收集和处理系统以及环境知识不足，限制了感知的能动性、真正的承诺以及最终有效的废物治理。