Hong Kong households willing to spend extra HK$100 monthly to go green, study finds
The amount was ‘high’ compared to HK$19 for mainland families; energy-efficient lighting most welcomed while new energy cars met with reluctance
Hongkongers are willing to pay about HK$100 extra per month on average to upgrade their appliances to eco-friendly ones in order to reduce household carbon emission, a study has found.
City University yesterday announced the results of its study – sponsored by a government fund of HK$450,000 – based on questionnaires randomly sent to 655 households.
Researchers said the extra amount of HK$100.40 that local households were willing to spend was “reasonably high” in comparison with findings from similar studies in other countries.
In comparison, earlier separate studies found families on the mainland were only willing to spend an extra HK$19 monthly to reduce household carbon emission while American households were willing to incur an extra HK$57.50 per month. The number was much higher – HK$167.40 and HK$262.50 for Australian and British households respectively.
Dr Zhang Xiaoling, a City University professor who led the study, said the “willing-to-pay level is relatively high in Hong Kong”, although the study could not conclude why this was so.
The research revealed that participants were the most generous when it came to upgrading to energy efficient lighting for which they were willing to increase their budgets by 8.8 per cent.