CHAPTER 2 The problem - Need for Firm Action

Hong Kong's waste arisings have exceeded the expected amount. At the time the three-landfill strategy was implemented, it was forecast that the daily amount ...   CHAPTER2 Theproblem-NeedforFirmAction Schematic Diagram   Shrinking Options,GrowingCosts 14. In1989,theGovernmentmade thecriticaldecisiontoabandonanout-datedsystemofurban incineratorslocatedatKwaiChung,KennedyTownandLaiChi Kokand13small,inadequatelandfills.OurMSWmanagementsystem currentlyreliesonthreelarge,state-of-the-artstrategic landfillsinremotepartsoftheNewTerritoriestogetherwith anetworkofrefusetransferstations(RTSs)andcollection servicesprovidedbyboththeGovernmentandprivatesector. Thecommonperceptionisthatlandfillsaremerelydumpsat whichsolidwasteisburied.Infact,theyarescientifically designedandhighlyengineeredfacilitiesformanagingwaste disposal. 15. HongKong'sthreestrategiclandfillsare: TheWestNewTerritories (WENT)LandfillatNimWan; TheSouth-EastNewTerritories(SENT) LandfillinTseungKwanO;and TheNorth-EastNewTerritories(NENT) LandfillatTaKwuLing. Thesethreestrategiclandfillscameonlinein1993,1994, and1995respectivelyastheretiringlandfillsandincinerators werephasedoutby1997. 16. HongKong'swastearisingshaveexceeded theexpectedamount.Atthetimethethree-landfillstrategy wasimplemented,itwasforecastthatthedailyamountof waste1tobedisposedofatlandfillswouldrise from12,500tonnesin1989,to14,000tonnesin1997and16,700 tonnesby2001.Butby1997thethreestrategiclandfills werealreadytakingin16,000tonnesofwasteeveryday.Should thistrendcontinue,thelandfillswillbefullby2015,instead oflastinguntil2020astheyweredesignedfor.   1This comprisedMSW,constructionwasteandsomespecialwaste(e.g. sewagesludge). Outofsight,ourlandfillsitesarefilling upfasterthananticipated TextAlternativeforMapofOutofsight,outlandfillsitesarefillingupfasterthananticipated.   Landfillsarescientificallydesignedand highlyengineeredfacilities Titleofthephotograph:Landfillsarescientificallydesignedandhighlyengineeredfacilities.   17. Ourlandfills takeupintotal270ha.ofland,cost$6billiontoconstruct, andtheirrunningcostsin2004amountedto$432million. TheannualcostsoftheGovernment'swastecollectionandtransfer serviceamounttoanother$435millionand$355millionrespectively. Thesimpletruthisthatifwedonotreducethegrowthinthe amountofwastethatweproduce,then,giventheleadtimeto developamodernlandfill,withinthenextfewyearswewill havetoidentifyabout400hectaresofspacefornewlandfills toserveHongKongupto2030.Thisisequivalenttoslightly lessthanone-thirdtheareaofHongKongInternationalAirport, orisenoughlandtoabsorbandhousehalfofHongKong'spopulation growthforthenextdecade. 18. Thefullcostsof managingMSWarehiddenfromthecommunity.Whilecalculating theannualcostsofhandlinganddisposingofHongKong'swaste isnotanexactscience,reliabledataexistonwhichreasonable estimatescanbebased.Thefiguresobtained,however,arestill wellbelowthetruecosttothecommunityforsuchservices. Theydonot,forinstance,factorintheopportunitycostsof therestoredlandfillsandtheirmaintenancecosts,andalso omit: Thecosts ofremovingMSWfromindividualhousingunitstorefuse collectionpoints(RCPs); Theremovalcostsincurred bycommercialandindustrialconcerns; Thecapitalcostsand landvalueofsome1,000orsopublicandprivateRCPs; and Thelandvalueofthe sevenRTSseachoccupyingmorethanonehectareinthe urbanarea,Shatin,YuenLongandNorthLantau,aswell asseveralsmallerRTSsontheoutlyingislands. 19. Thegreatestsignificanceisthatthecosts ofdealingwithMSWaremostlynotbornebythosewhoproduce thewaste.Thisisbecause: Privateowners,tenants andHomeOwnershipSchemeresidentsusuallyseethecost ofwastecollectionintheirbuildingmanagementfees (estimatedatabout$20to$50perhouseholdpermonth), butthisrepresentsonlythefirststepinhandlingMSW. Commercialandindustrialentities payfortheremovaloftheirMSW.Whileasmallnumber ofprivatewastecollectorsusetheRTSs,theycontribute toonly2%oftherecurrentcostsoftheRTSs.Mostof thesubsequenthandlinganddisposalcostsarepaidfrom thepublicpurse.Thosewhosendtheirwastedirectto thelandfillsdonotpaythelandfilldisposalcostsat all. 20. MostofthecostsofMSWdisposalarebeing paidforoutofthepublicrevenueandthecostsappearinsignificant orevennon-existentformostwasteproducers.Therearevirtually noincentivesforanyonetorecycleorreusewastethatthey produce,ortoreducethevolumeofmaterial,becausetheyare notbeingmadetopaydirectlyforwhattheyarethrowingaway. 21. ThefreewastemanagementserviceinHong Kongnotonlyprovidesnoincentivesforthegeneralpublic toavoidwaste,butalsoaffectsthegrowingcostsfordisposal. ThatMSWproducersdonothavetopaytodisposeoftheirwaste isnotconducivetothedevelopmentoftherecyclingindustry. Atthesametime,allthehiddencostspaidforbytaxesmake ithardforthegeneralpublictoappreciatehowcost-effectively MSWcollectionandmanagementservicesarebeingrun. 22. Thestarktruthis thatweneedtogeneratelesswaste.Thiswillrequire concertedeffortsofthewholecommunity,withtheguidance offirmpolicies.Howweachievethisisthepurposeofthe PolicyFramework.       WhereDoes OurWasteComeFrom? 23. Tobetterexplainthisstrategy, itisnecessarytofirstdescribeMSWandwhereitcomesfrom. TherearethreesourcesofMSW: Domestic -thisincludeshouseholdsandinstitutionalpremises. Wastecollectedfromresidentialbuildings,publiclitter bins,streets,marineareasandcountryparksalsocomes underthiscategory. Commercial -thisincludesshops,restaurants,hotels,offices, andmarketsinprivatehousingestates.Mostofthiswaste iscollectedbyprivatewastecollectors.Sometimes,commercial wasteismixedwithdomesticwasteandiscollectedby theGovernmentasapublicservice. Industrial -thiscoversallindustries,exceptconstructionand chemicalactivities.Industrialwasteisusuallycollected byprivatecontractors.Somecompaniesmaydelivertheir wastedirectlytolandfillsfordisposal. 24. In2004,HongKongproduced15,480tonnes ofMSWperday.Expressedinanotherway,thisequatesto eachpersongenerating2.25kgofMSWthatmustberecovered, recycledor,ifthesetwooptionsarenotcarriedout,be disposedofeveryday.Thefollowingbreakdownshowswhat wasinHongKong'sMSWin2004: TextAlternativeofthechartforMSWCompostion2004 25. Paperandplasticsmakeupsignificantproportions ofdomesticwaste,andthisisareflectionofourparticular lifestylechoicesthatplaceapremiumonconvenienceandattach inappropriateandinadequatecoststotheimpactsofthesematerials. 26. Anothernotablefactoristhataboutaquarter ofMSWconsistedofputrescibles,orprimarilyfoodwaste.If poorlyhandled,thisbiodegradablewastecanposeseriouspublic healthchallenges.Furthermore,thiskindofwastewhenlandfilled contributessignificantlytoemissionsofmethanegas,oneof therecognisedcausesofthegreenhouseeffect. 27. AddinggreatlytotheseMSWproblemsand intensifyingtheurgencyisthefactthatwhileourpopulation hasgrownanaverageofonly0.9%eachyearoverthepast nineyears,overthesameperiodithasgeneratedanannual averageof3.0%moreMSW.Thismeansthateachindividual isproducingmorewasteeachyearandincreasingtheburden onourscarceandpreciouslandandourownpockets.This worryingtrendisshownbelow.     Ourwastelineasitgrewfrom 1996to2004   TextAlternativedescriptionforwastegrowthfrom1996to2004     What HasBeenDoneSoFar? 28. Thereisagrowingawarenessthatthere aremanysoundsocial,environmentalandeconomicreasons forcreatinglesswaste.Byproducinglesswaste,weease ourrelianceonlandfillsandtheneedtodevotemorevaluable andscarcelandtowaste.Moreimportantly,reducingwaste easestheburdenonpublicfundsandallowsresourcestobe reallocatedtoeasetheloadonHongKong'sotherpressing needslikehealthcareandeducation.ReducingMSWfurthermore contributessignificantlytowardsourbroadvisionforsustainable development. 29. Manyofthesekeypointswerecapturedin theWRFP.ThedevelopmentoftheWRFPtookstockofpolicydevelopments andtechnologicalinnovationsandfocusedonthreeareasthat hadbecomethecornerstoneoftheGovernmentapproach,namely, wasteprevention,institutionalarrangementsandwastebulk reduction. Waste prevention-thisaimsatreducingtheamountof wastegeneratedatsourceandincreasingtheamountof wastematerialthatisreused,recoveredorrecycled. Itidentifiesthedomesticwastestreamashavingthe greatestscopeforimprovement; Institutional arrangements-thisinvolvessettinguptheinstitutional structurestooverseewastereductionandthelegislative measurestomakeparticipationinsomewastereduction measuresmandatory;and Waste bulkreduction-thisaimsatreducingthebulk ofwasterequiringfinaldisposalandsomaximisesthe usablelifeofourthreelandfillsandreducestheamount ofnewlandneededforwastedisposalinthefuture. 30. Wehavemadeprogressinseveralareas. Recognisingtheneedtochampiontheseissuesatthehighest level,aWasteSub-Committeehassincebeenformedunderthe AdvisoryCouncilontheEnvironment(ACE),thehigheststanding bodyonHongKong'senvironmentalmatters,toactivelydebate MSWpolicymeasures.IntheGovernment,themergingofthe EnvironmentBranchoftheEnvironment,TransportandWorks BureauwiththeEnvironmentalProtectionDepartmenthasfurther strengthenedtheresolvetotackleMSW(aswellasotherenvironmental issues)throughcombiningtheresourcesoftheBureauand theDepartmenttoprovideamoreeffectiveinstitutionalarrangement foroverseeingwastereductionprogrammes. Reachingouttothelocalcommunitytoencourage thepublictoparticipateinwastereduction TextAlternativeofTitleofthephotographforReachingouttothelocalcommunitytoencouragethepublictoparticipateinwastereduction. 31. HongKongalreadyhasaMSW recyclingrateof40%butthiscanbefurtherimprovedupon. TheGovernmentandthecommunityhavebeguntopursuevarious initiativesatdifferentlevels: TheGovernment,together withtheEnvironmentalCampaignCommittee(ECC)2, hasrunagoodnumberofenvironmentalprogrammesfor differentsectorsofsocietytochangepeople'shabits, especiallyregardingMSWseparationatsourceandrecycling. Outreachprogrammesstartedintheearly1990s,whenenvironmental awarenesswaslowandtherewerenolarge-scalerecycling programmes.Afteradecadeofventuringintothecommunity, thesituationhasbeenreversed;mostsectorsofsociety arerecyclingandmanyareinitiatingtheirownenvironmental events. TheGovernmenthasbeenexamining wasterecoverysystemstoidentifythemostcost-effective andsuitablemode.Some28,000three-colouredwasteseparation binsarenowplacedatsome9,300pointsthroughoutthe territory(includingparks,sportsvenues,leisureand culturalfacilities,Governmentbuildings,hospitals, clinics,public/privatehousingestates,schools,RCPs andbytheroadside)andaltogether663,000tonnesof MSWhavebeencollectedforrecyclingthroughthisscheme since1998. A12-monthpilotprogrammeonsource separationofdomesticwastewaslaunchedinAugust2004 in13housingestatesintheEasternDistrict.Thepilot programmeaimedatmakingitmoreconvenientforresidents toseparatedomesticwasteatsourcebyencouragingand assistingpropertymanagementcompaniestoprovidewaste separationfacilitiesoneachfloorofallbuildings. Theprogrammealsoaimedatexpandingthetypesofrecyclables tobecollectedtoincludealltypesofplastics,metals, paper,clothingandelectricalproducts.Inviewofthe positiveresultsrecordedunderthepilotprogramme,a territory-widecampaignwasrolledoutinJanuary2005 topromoteseparationofdomesticwasteatsource. TheGovernmenthasbeenpromoting theuseofreusablebagstoreducetheconsumptionof disposableplasticshoppingbags.Schemeshavebeenrun bymajorretailchainstoencouragethepublictouse reusablebagsinsteadofplasticbags.Theterritory-wide separationofdomesticwasteatsourceschemehasalso encouragedthesourceseparationofplasticbagsforrecycling. Businesseshavebeenpartneringwith greengroupsandtheGovernmenttorecoverandrecycle rechargeablebatteries-afirstforHongKonginencouraging producerresponsibility.Withbusinessesprovidingthe recoveryandrecyclingcomponents,thepublichasaccess tomorethan1,000collectionpointsinshops,housing estates,publicbuildings,schoolsandotherpublicplaces atwhichtoleavetheirrechargeablebatteriesthathave reachedtheendoftheirusefullives. Campaignssuchasthe"Eco-friendly packagedmooncakes"havemarkedsuccessinraising theawarenessofthecommunityontheimportanceofavoiding excessivepackaging. Trialschemeshavebeenconducted tocollectscraptyresandwasteelectricalandelectronic equipment(WEEE)includingcomputers. Tohelptherecyclingindustry,29 shorttermtenancy(STT)sitesexclusivelyfortherecycling tradehavebeenleasedtoprovideaffordablelandresources tosupportrecyclingcompanies. Mostpublicandsomeprivatehousing buildingsbuiltafter1995haverefuseroomsoneachfloor whichcanbeusedtohouserecyclingbins.Since2000, theplanningrequirementshaveincludedthemandatory provisionofadequatespaceatthegroundfloorforrefuse storageandmaterialrecoverychambersforwasteseparation. However,theprovisionofarefusestorageoramaterial chamberoneachfloorisnotyetamandatoryrequirement, althoughanincentiveisprovidedbywayofexemption fromgrossfloorareacalculation. (a)environmental educationthroughgenerations, (b)recyclinghabitsshouldstartwhenyoung (c)collectionofrechargeablebatteriesforrecycling, and (d)oldelectricalequipmentcanbebeneficially reused TextAlternativeforThephotoofenviromentalactivitiesamongpublic   Theintroductionoftheconstruction wastechargesin2005marksakeymilestoneingaining thecommunity'sacceptanceoftheneedforthe"polluter- pays"principletoreducewastegeneration. Expressionsofinteresthavebeen invitedfromthelocalandtheinternationalwastemanagement industriesforthedevelopmentoflarge-scalewastemanagement facilitiesinHongKong.   2TheEnvironmentalCampaign Committee(ECC)hasbeenrunningsince1990topromotepublic awarenessofenvironmentalissuesandencouragethepublicto contributeactivelytowardsabetterenvironment.Sinceits establishment,theECChasplannedandorganisedmanyenvironmental eventsandactivitiesfordifferentsectorsofthecommunity.   32. However,ithasbecomeclearthatthere isaneedtomovetowardsamoreintegratedapproach.Wehave achieveda40%recoveryratebasedontheseinitiativesand torealisefuturetargets,wenowneedamoreintegratedapproach toourMSWproblems.Asacommunitywemustadoptacollective approachtomanageourwasteinasustainablemanner.Wemust investnowinthefuture.     The GovernmentActs:AStrategyforMSWManagement 33. Inthe lightoftheseriousnessandurgencyoftheissues,theGovernment recognisesitsresponsibilityforleadingthecommunityinfinding thesolutions.InMay2005,theGovernmentpublished AFirstSustainableDevelopmentStrategyforHongKong(May 2005)inswiftanddirectresponsetotheconcernsarticulated intheSDC'sreportontheengagementprocess.Thespeedof itsresponsereflecteditsrecognitionoftheurgencythatthe communityatlargeplacedonthepilotareas. 34. TheGovernmenthasoutlinedclearandsocially acceptableobjectivesforsolidwastemanagement:   StrategicObjective 1   Asacommunity,to makeeveryefforttoavoidgeneratingwasteandtoreduce theamountofsolidwastethatneedsfinaldisposal, byadoptingmeasurestofacilitatetheseparationof discardedmaterial,therecoveryandreuseofmaterial andtherecyclingofnon-reusablematerial.   StrategicObjective2   Toapplythe"user-pays principle"asameansofreducingvolumesofwaste fordisposal.   StrategicObjective3   Toadoptadvancedtechnologies andpracticestotreatwasterequiringfinaldisposal andtocreateneweconomicopportunities. Table2.TheGovernment'sstrategicobjectives onMSW 35. Inordertomovetowardsthese strategicobjectives,theGovernmenthascommittedtoachieving thefollowingtargets:   Target1   Reducetheamountof MSWgeneratedinHongKongby1%perannumuptothe year2014,basedonthe2003levels.   Target2   Increasetherecovery rateofMSWto45%by2009and50%by2014.   Target3   ReducethetotalMSW disposedofinlandfillstolessthan25%by2014. Table3.The10-yeartargetsforMSWmanagement   Summary 36. Achievinglong-termsustainable developmentsolutionsinMSWmanagementwillrequiretheentire communitytoworktogethertomeetthemanychallengesfacing HongKong. 37. Oneofthemostpressingchallengesis thelikelyexhaustionofexistinglandfillspacewithinthe next6to10years.Withnofirmlyestablishedprecedentfor makingwasteproducerspay,HongKongseesitslandfillsand wastecollectionandtransferservicesasfree.Thishasled tothenextpressingchallenge:weneedtochangeourconsumption-led lifestyleofcasuallydisposingofoldorsurplusitems,and tothinkofhowwecanavoidcreating"unnecessary" waste.Hence,weeachmustrecogniseourresponsibilityfor avoidingorreducingMSW,inreusingandrecyclingmaterials, andwemustcontributetoeffectivewastetreatment.While theGovernmentrecognisesitsresponsibilityintheseareas, itisessentialthatthewidercommunityalsoplaysitspart. 38. TheGovernment canonlyservethecommunitywhenithasitssupportin firstacknowledgingthepresenceofaproblemandthenaccepting thesolution.InMSWmanagement,itrequiresthe communitytoclearlyseetherealpriceforwastemanagement servicesandtoembracethe"polluter-pays"principle.   backtotop