bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

sponsorType

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

quizIds

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

paywallTypes

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Phila Siu

Hong Kong environmental authorities have asked the Malaysian government to provide details on nine containers of plastic waste it sent back to the city.
This came as local environmental groups demanded on Wednesday that the city government revamp and tighten plastic waste import policies.
Earlier this week, the Southeast Asian government said it had returned 150 containers of plastic waste, weighing 3,737 tonnes, to 13 places of origin since the third quarter of last year.
Nine containers have been returned to Hong Kong, while others were sent to France, Britain, the US and elsewhere.

The containers returned to Hong Kong were labelled as recyclable plastics, but did not have permits to enter Malaysia. The Malaysian government suspected the waste had been contaminated.
Kate Lin Pui-yi, Greenpeace Hong Kong’s senior campaigner, said the waste should be sent on to its country of origin if it was discovered Hong Kong had originally re-exported it.
“If Hong Kong was only the re-exporter of the nine containers, then they should be sent back to the country of origin,” she said. “But if the waste was indeed exported from Hong Kong, it should be sent back here.
“But more importantly, in the long term, this waste should be banned from entering the city.”
Green groups estimate that in 2018 Hong Kong 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.
More than 17 million pieces of plastic waste flushed into sea via Hong Kong’s Shing Mun River each year
Hong Kong has become one of the biggest re-exporters of plastic waste after mainland China stopped importing waste two years ago. Other countries that have traditionally imported the waste, including Malaysia and the Philippines, have become reluctant to accept any more.
Such waste is usually exported from developed countries to developing nations, where traders then pick out items to be recycled for a profit.
According to amendments to the Basel Convention, an international treaty that covers Hong Kong, waste traders will from January 2021 need the consent of the importing countries for the export of mixed, non-recyclable and contaminated plastic waste.
But Lin said the Hong Kong government did not have to wait for another year and could just decide right now to ban the imports. She was concerned some waste would be dumped in the city’s landfills.


On Wednesday, the Environmental Protection Department said Hong Kong would not accept any waste containers that had not originated in the city, and that it was “contacting the relevant authority of Malaysia to request for more information” on the nine returned consignments.
A spokesman added that last year 12 containers of plastic recyclables were sent back to Hong Kong because no party accepted the shipments at the receiving end.
“The concerned exporters finally sent the plastic recyclables to local recycling facilities in Hong Kong or re-exported to other places for recycling. There is no evidence suggesting that the concerned shipments involved illegal exports,” he said.
He added the government “fully commits” to joining the global efforts under the Basel Convention.
“The import and export of recyclables, including waste plastics, are allowed only if the shipment is uncontaminated and imported or exported for the purpose of reprocessing, recycling, recovery or reuse,” he said.


Edmond Lau Shiu-long, project officer at environmental group The Green Earth, suggested the government should only allow containers of waste that could largely be recycled to be brought to Hong Kong.
Lau’s colleague, executive director Edwin Lau Che-feng, urged authorities to conduct more frequent inspections of the containers, to ensure they carry the items that are declared to the Customs and Excise Department.
Dr Chung Shan-shan, a Baptist University expert specialising in waste management, said the head of the Environmental Protection Department had the power to stop plastic waste from entering, if he believed it to be contaminated.
China's recycling revolution: How the National Sword policy caused global disruption
However, there is no clear definition of “contamination” under the law, meaning it is subject to different interpretations, she added.
This mechanism, which gives the department head the power to make a decision, allowed the government flexibility in handling different situations, Chung said.
She did not agree that waste imported to Hong Kong would easily end up in landfills, as traders would need to pay hefty sums to the government to dump it there.


Dragon boat races and the like must have proper waste management plans

Groups warn poorly planned Hong Kong tourism projects will damage eco sites

Source of black particles in Hong Kong estate’s water supply remains mystery

Hong Kong display strikes gold at Chelsea Flower Show with rare orchids

Hong Kong environmental issues

Hong Kong green groups demand action after Malaysia ships nine containers of waste back to city

Malaysia's environment minister Yeo Bee Yin stands beside a container full of plastic waste just before it is shipped back to its country of origin. Photo: EPA-EFE

epaselect epa07607021 An auxiliary police officer inspects plastic waste inside cargo containers before it is sent back to the country of origin in Port Klang, Selangor, Malaysia, 28 May 2019. Malaysia will ship 450 metric tons of contaminated plastic waste back to the countries of origin said Yeo Bee Yin today on 28 May. The waste came from Australia, US, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Japan, China, Spain and Bangladesh. EPA-EFE/FAZRY ISMAIL

Environment minister cites calmer atmosphere in Hong Kong as he lifts recycling ban on glass bottles

The recycling ban on glass bottles has been lifted by the government. Photo: Nora Tam

A glass beverages bottle crusher at Hong Kong Glass Reborn Limited's glass recycling plant in Yuen Long. 20FEB19 SCMP / Nora Tam

China’s recycling revolution 04: confronting the global plastic crisis

Plastic waste at HKTDC Food Expo at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Hong Kong waste collectors to get lion’s share of HK$2.8 million recycling subsidy

An elderly woman collects cardboard on a street in Hong Kong. A local company has committed HK$2.7 million to subsidise the recycling industry. Photo: Bobby Yip

A senior craft collector crosses a street in Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong 06AUG14 SCMP / James Wendlinger [FEATURES 2019]

***RETOUCHED, SEE ORIGINAL AT 60680471 *** Elderly collect waste paper in To Kwa Wan. 28MAY18 SCMP / David Wong

Shanghai recycling scheme slips up on 9,000 tonnes of wet waste churned out each day

A worker riding a tricycle to carry dry garbage from residential blocks to a garbage transit station. Photo: Alice Yan

The Legislative Council (LegCo) joint-Panel delegation continued the duty visit in Shanghai (April 22). Photo shows the Mayor of Shanghai, Ying Yong.  Photo: POOL

A residential is throwing rubbish in a residential block in Shanghai_s Changning District with a volunteer wearing blue vest recording each household_s rubbish throwing behavior. 01NOV19 SCMP/ Alice Yan

Shanghai residents are expected to sort wet waste from dry, and separate recyclable and hazardous items. Photo: Xinhua

News

Hong Kong

Health & Environment


Southeast Asian country says containers did not have proper permits and believes waste was contaminated
Hong Kong is one of biggest re-exporters of waste after mainland China stopped importing it



Southeast Asian country says containers did not have proper permits and believes waste was contaminated.


Hong Kong green groups demand action after Malaysia ships nine containers of waste back to city

Southeast Asian country says containers did not have proper permits and believes waste was contaminated Hong Kong is one of biggest re-exporters of waste after mainland China stopped importing it

Southeast Asian country says containers did not have proper permits and believes waste was contaminated

Hong Kong is one of biggest re-exporters of waste after mainland China stopped importing it