Hong Kong needs to win the war against mounting waste to fight climate change
Edwin Lau says charging for waste and efficient recycling are among must-have weapons as the city builds resilience against global warming, along with reverse vending machines and a ban on bottled water
Food waste constitutes 33 per cent of our municipal solid waste, and slashing this must be a priority. Instead of relying on government-owned organic waste treatment facilities, the private sector should be allowed to build and operate similar facilities of smaller scale for more efficient recycling. This would enable logistics costs and carbon emissions for delivering food waste to be minimised.
Waste charging is a must. But there are many concerns and misunderstandings over the related legislative proposal. The government has to keep reaching out to communities to explain its plans and so earn the necessary support for the proposal to be passed in the Legislative Council.
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Producer responsibility for waste management is another much-needed and effective policy, as it would shift the burden of handling waste generated from the sale of products back to producers. Legislation on this would have producers recover used plastic bottles and other drink cartons.
Wong Kam-sing, Hong Kong’s environment secretary, explains the municipal waste disposal charging scheme, at Tamar on March 20. Photo: Nora Tam
With a mainland ban on waste imports due by the year-end, Hong Kong must explore solutions with the recycling industry to tackle the waste crisis. The industry must be allowed to enhance technologies that will turn recyclables, especially low-value ones, into raw materials or products for sale in world markets. Reverse vending machines in public venues, such as sports grounds, parks, libraries, offices and MTR stations, can facilitate the recovery of plastic or glass bottles. Unlike the existing three-colour bins, reverse vending machines can offer incentives for the return of recyclables. In many cities, these offer cash rebates to encourage recycling, and are also a way for producers to recover their bottles, as required by legislation.
