Hong Kong’s long-awaited plan to charge residents for waste delayed to next year

Government agrees that scheme, first floated in 2004, cannot be launched by end of year after waste collectors warn of overload

Bag will be offered in nine sizes, priced at 11 HK cents per litre, and residents will face HK$1,500 fine for using other ones

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Authorities had initially planned to introduce the scheme at the end of the year. Photo: Felix Wong

Published: 10:50pm, 10 Jul 2023Updated: 12:21am, 11 Jul 2023

A scheme to charge Hong Kong residents for each bag of rubbish they throw away has been pushed back to next year, delaying yet again a plan first floated nearly 20 years ago to transform the city’s household waste management.

Charging would begin on April 1, instead of at the end of the year, the environment bureau told lawmakers on Monday, admitting more time was needed to work out the logistics of the scheme after waste collectors raised concerns over an expected surge in rubbish during the winter holidays.

“Some sectors, such as the cleansing service providers, have been appealing for postponing the implementation, in view of the expected large quantity of waste that will be disposed of around Christmas and Chinese New Year, as well as the manpower shortage during Chinese New Year,” the bureau said in a paper submitted to the Legislative Council.

“We therefore propose to implement municipal solid waste charging on 1 April 2024, which signifies a major milestone in waste management in Hong Kong.”

Only about 30 per cent of the 4.15 million tonnes of municipal solid waste the city handled in 2021 was recycled, with the rest sent to landfills. Photo: Felix Wong

An average three-person household is expected to pay HK$33 (US$4.20) a month for the government-approved bags, based on the assumption they produce 13 litres of rubbish daily.

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Hong Kong’s long-awaited plan to charge residents for waste delayed to next year

Government agrees that scheme, first floated in 2004, cannot be launched by end of year after waste collectors warn of overload Bag will be offered in nine sizes, priced at 11 HK cents per litre, and residents will face HK$1,500 fine for using other ones

Government agrees that scheme, first floated in 2004, cannot be launched by end of year after waste collectors warn of overload

Bag will be offered in nine sizes, priced at 11 HK cents per litre, and residents will face HK$1,500 fine for using other ones