Associated with the population and economic growth, solid waste generation in Hong Kong has been increasing over the last decades.  In 1999, a daily average of 18,040 tonnes of solid waste were disposed of at the landfills.  It is equivalent to over 200 double-deck buses.  Based on the current trend of solid waste generation, it is predicted that the three strategic landfills - into which all this waste goes - will be full by 2015, instead of lasting until 2020.  

     Just a tiny little place, it is very difficult to find an appropriate area big enough to "accommodate" our waste.  Encountering landfills overflowing very soon, the Environment Protection Department (Hong Kong) is thinking of opening a new landfill at the border area between Guandong and Hong Kong.  It is absolutely an irresponsible idea, being described as an "immoral transaction".  Guandong is also suffering from the problems of solid waste mounting.  If we develop a new landfill at the border area, it seems that we have solved the problem of accommodating the waste.  But from macro-view, it is not.  We are only transferring our problem to our neighborhood, and increasing the accumulative adverse impacts of solid waste on Guandong.  It is definitely immoral.  It strongly reveals that the Hong Kong government is always under poor planning.  Encountering any problems, try to figure out a as direct and quick solution as possible.  But it never thinks thoroughly that such direct and quick solution can be very short-term only, and in the long-term, it may bring out more environmental adverse impacts.  Let's think on this case.  The opening of landfill at border area implies the dispersion of a local issue to a transboundary issue, affecting not only Hong Kong herself but also her "victim" neighborhood.  What a pity, and ridiculous planning!!!!!!!!!!  For detail, refer to Ming Pao on 9 December 2000.

Recycling performance in hong kong

Domestic waste and Construction & Demolition (C&D) waste form the major components of solid waste, accounting for 41 % and 42 % respectively.

                    

Waste recycling in Hong Kong is still in an infant stage, especially among the recycling of domestic waste accounting for only 8 %, compared with 53 % of commercial and industrial (C&I) waste and nearly 80 % of construction and demolition (C&D) waste.  (Remark: the remaining 20 % construction and demolition waste, about 8,000 tonnes per day, are disposed of at the three landfills, and this quantity equals to 44 % of the total waste intake of the landfills (18,000 tonnes per day).  

Though called "waste", indeed, many disposed materials are still useful (can be either recycled or reused), like plastic bottle, glass, paper, and even some abandoned construction wastes can be reformulated to produce a new construction material.  For example, recently, the Housing Authority is using a kind of new environmental brick, generated from mixing construction and domestic wastes, for paving the floor of market.  With technological improvement, recycling technique is approaching more mature and feasible.  On the one hand, it helps extend the life cycle of materials.  On the other hand, it helps save the use of more new materials and hence lessen the further exploitation from our environment. 

Waste Reduction Framework Plan

In the long term, the target reduction levels for Municipal Solid Waste for the future years 2001, 2003, 2005 and 2007 are 10 %, 14 %, 22 % and 40 % respectively as set out in the Waste Reduction Framework Plan, which was initiated by the Hong Kong SAR government and launched in November 1998.  For the management of Construction & Demolition materials, the Waste Reduction Framework Plans sets out the target that, in addition to the 80 % of the total C&D materials arising already diverted to public filling areas, a further 20 % reduction of the remaining C&D waste (i.e. 4 % of total C&D materials arising) to be disposed of at landfills is to be achieved.  Three Core Programmes under the Waste Reduction Framework Plan are as follows: