Hong Kong needs to use waste incineration for sustainable development, the environment minister said ahead of the release of a waste management blueprint.
Monday, May 13, 2013
Hong Kong needs to use waste incineration for sustainable development, the environment minister said ahead of the release of a waste management blueprint.
Wong Kam-sing said that as soon as legal challenges against a proposal to build state-of-the-art incineration facilities are addressed, the government will restart the study.
Wong, secretary for the environment, earlier visited Seoul and found that its incinerators can handle 20 percent of the city’s waste.
Although Hongkongers may not welcome incinerators and landfills, he believes these are necessary for sustainable waste management.
A blueprint on waste management policy, which will be released this month, will set out the goal of reducing waste in the next decade.
Wong said he hopes the public will understand the challenges of handling waste in Hong Kong.
The recycling rate here is about 48percent with about 50percent of waste going to landfills, he said.
The blueprint will increase the proportion of recycling.
Meanwhile, the plastic bag levy is likely to be extended to all retail outlets by the middle of next year.
Wong believes some shops will switch to paper bags and hopes the public will bring their own boxes to carry food, to cut single-use products.
He expressed concern over the filibustering in the Legislative Council, which might affect operations of the HK$5 billion environmental fund.
Green Sense spokesman Roy Tam Hoi-pong said the government should launch a waste-charging policy before considering incinerators.
“A charge is effective to reduce waste in many places. For instance, Taipei has seen its waste reduced more than 70 percent after waste charging,” Tam said.
He also called on the commercial sector to minimize waste.