Waste charging delay: how Hong Kong can make it count
- Officials should use the extra time to improve the city’s waste management facilities, such as by expanding the recycling network
- To minimise hiccups once the scheme does kick in, the authorities must strengthen communication and support the most vulnerable people and businesses
Unfortunately, that is not the case. One radio listener recently phoned in to say that she usually disposed of her takeaway food and drink containers in a little plastic bag, and that when the waste charges take effect, she would have to wrap this in a designated bag, a double bagging that she considered more environmentally unfriendly.
Why can’t we look at the coming waste charging scheme positively, and make use of the delay as an opportunity to improve the city’s waste management facilities, such as expanding the recycling network?
The authorities should have better knowledge and strategies when it comes to tackling our waste problem. Tse’s answer was geared towards recycling, a late-stage solution, when he should have been pushing for the public to reduce or stop buying single-use products or those with excessive packaging.
The authorities often refer to the waste management “hierarchy” in official documents that guide policies. This hierarchy prioritises waste avoidance and reduction over recycling. But this important message seems to be mere rhetoric, rather than being promoted and put into practice. No wonder the city’s waste problem is getting worse.
I urge them not to do so as it would defeat the objective of the waste charging scheme. It would be utterly unfair on those who follow the rules and use the designated bags; the extra cost incurred by the property management companies will inevitably be passed on to all residents.
Moreover, this would be a never-ending challenge. Once people see there are no consequences for those who ignore the scheme, they may well follow suit. There will then be more non-compliant waste bags that require more large designated bags to cope with the situation.
Hong Kong cannot afford to waste more time in starting refuse charge
Edwin Lau Che-feng is executive director of The Green Earth