Environmental group warns of ‘dark period’ as Hong Kong waste hits highest level since 1991
- Hongkongers sent an average of 1.53kg of municipal solid waste, which includes domestic, commercial and industrial debris, to landfills every day last year
- City sent a total of 5.87 million tonnes of solid waste to local landfills in 2018, up from 5.66 million tonnes in 2017
Hong Kong’s rubbish disposal rate per person has hit the highest level since records started in 1991, with a local environmental group warning of “dark times” if the government fails to implement a stalled waste-charging scheme.
Each Hongkonger sent an average of 1.53kg (3.37 pounds) of municipal solid waste, which includes domestic, commercial and industrial debris, to landfills every day last year, according to figures released on Monday by the Environmental Protection Department. The city sent a total of 5.87 million tonnes of solid waste to local landfills in 2018, up from 5.66 million tonnes in 2017.
The increase was attributed in part to Typhoon Mangkhut, which generated large amounts of unexpected waste. Even accounting for the typhoon, however, the city still generated an average of 1.5kg of waste per person, up from 1.45kg in 2017.
“The increase in waste is very worrying and the government has to take the lead by speeding up the passing of the proposed waste-charging scheme,” said Edwin Lau Che-feng, executive director of local environment group The Green Earth.
The bill, which would require a fee for the collection of municipal waste, was introduced in November. Progress on the bill was stalled when committee meetings were cancelled during the months of Hong Kong’s anti-government protests. Although Legislative Council meetings have resumed, no date has been set to discuss implementation of the waste plan.
Hahn Chu Hon-keong, the director of environmental advocacy for The Green Earth, said there would still need to be a transition period of at least three years, even if the charging plan was passed by the end of this year.
“That means that in the next few years, Hong Kong will go through a dark period in terms of its waste disposal,” said Chu said.
Chu also suggested that Hong Kong landfills were overflowing with exported waste, possibly industrial waste that had been returned by Southeast Asian nations such as Thailand and Indonesia. The Green Earth estimated there was about 1,380 tonnes of industrial waste in local landfills in 2018, up from 925 tonnes in 2016.
“This increase is worth noting because Hong Kong does not have much industry, which is why we suspect this could be from returned waste exports,” Chu said.
The Green Earth learned this month that the city had re-exported 280,000 tonnes of plastic waste worth HK$727 million (US$93 million) from the US, Japan, Germany, Britain and Mexico to countries such as Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam.
The city’s recycling rate also decreased 30 per cent last year, down from 32 per cent in 2017. A government statement attributed the decrease to a weak export market for recyclables and the fact that Hong Kong is reliant on the service industry, which has no need for raw or recycled materials.
The most commonly recycled materials in Hong Kong last year were metals, paper and plastics. But The Green Earth said the steady decline of recycling was because the mainland stopped accepting waste exports from other regions, including Hong Kong, since January 2018.
“When China stopped accepting waste imports, our waste increased and recycling rates decreased,” Chu said. “On the other hand, the government needs to quickly implement its centralised plastic recycling policy.”
The government introduced a centralised plastic collection programme in October, starting in the Eastern District. But Lau and Chu said the government needed to increase its efforts and expand the programme to effectively tackle the city’s waste issue.
“The government needs to speed up its work pace and implement the plan soon, rather than shirking its responsibility,” Lau said.
