By the second half of the new year, Hong Kong is supposed to have a waste-charging scheme in place to help end the city’s dependency on scarce landfills. But as we said farewell to the old year, there was disappointing news about how the pandemic and controversial changes to citywide recycling efforts have pushed that goal further out of reach. We reported last week on how Hongkongers were increasingly struggling to recycle household waste as authorities rush to remove kerbside bins to make way for the new charging scheme. Officials are acting on an ombudsman’s complaint in April that most of the bins were being used for ordinary rubbish. The Environmental Protection Department has been encouraging people to use centralised recycling stations, but many residents have found them to be too remote. Environmentalists now warn of a one-year recycling hiatus, because residents will find it too difficult to handle their recyclables as old bins vanish and before new programmes are in place. It is a disappointing setback after seeing a surge in waste output during the pandemic, from masks discarded on roadsides and takeaway food containers piling up in our landfills. The amount of domestic waste had already been on the rise since 2011, with each person creating an average of 910 grams every day in 2020, according to government statistics. In the same year, the recycling rate sank to a 10-year low, with only 19 per cent of domestic waste recycled, compared with around 24 per cent in 2016. It is clear that more needs to be done to reverse the trend. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu has proposed a new, more systematic approach, involving mandatory recycling collection at main buildings. ‘The white man’s waste’: why fast fashion is burying African beaches This seems to be a sensible way forward, and the Environmental Protection Department said it was working out the legal framework and operational details. But precious time is being wasted as space in landfills is lost. Most Hongkongers want to do the right thing, but there is a need to further step up awareness and education about recycling in general, as well as to make it easier for people to play their part. Removing recycling bins before alternatives are in place is a step in the wrong direction.