It does not make any green sense to buy plastic bin-liners

I refer to the letter from the assistant director of the Environmental Protection Department, Alfred Lee, ('Majority support for bringing in proposed plastic bag levy', April 26). In my last letter, I asked environment secretary Edward Yau Tang-wah, to explain what he meant by 'abuse' of plastic bags ('Forced recycling of bags could defeat purpose of legislation', April 16).

First, it seems unnecessary for Mr Lee to repeat how his department has obtained its alarming disposal figure 'of more than three plastic shopping bags per person per day'. He said: 'The disposal figure is very high, even compared with Asian cities which share similar shopping practices and culture.' But that doesn't make him question whether such a figure is at all reliable, as the alarming figure would give a good reason for the proposed bag levy.

Mr Lee, for the third time in these columns, has not been able to substantiate his claim of 'indiscriminate' use of plastic supermarket bags. So, why should we, or indeed our legislators, support an early passage of the bill, for the implementation of the proposed 50 HK cent levy on the targeted bags? The humble supermarket carrier bags, currently available free except on Tuesdays, are doing a superb job in helping to protect our city's general environment - by serving as receptacles for domestic waste disposal, in lieu of the purpose-made plastic bin-liners that are even more environmentally damaging.

When the latter is levy free, the proposed levy makes no common sense in protecting the environment and is clearly nothing more than a form of regressive tax on an easy target.

Mr Lee is right to concur that, 'the best solution to our waste problem is to reduce waste at source'.

However, I disagree with his suggestion: avoid taking plastic shopping bags and bring one's own bags. It doesn't make any green sense bringing one's own bags and having to buy the more damaging plastic bin-liners for waste disposal.