Hong Kong’s environment chief has admitted that the government has not done enough to explain a delayed waste-charging plan, pledging to arrange more demonstrations showing how the scheme works to raise public awareness.
Secretary for Environment and Ecology Tse Chin-wan on Saturday also pledged to install 660-litre (174-gallon) mobile bins near some old buildings which did not have owners’ corporations, residents’ organisations or property management companies to collect rubbish.
He said it would take time for residents to understand the charging scheme, despite a lot of promotion work and hundreds of thousands of people downloading a new mobile phone app for it.
“I don’t mean our work is sufficient, but I want to say we have done lots of work,” he told a radio programme. “Only relying on our work has obviously not been enough. If we want to introduce the scheme, we have to find ways to allow residents to understand it easily.”
Hong Kong leader John Lee Ka-chiu on Tuesday last week told Tse to devise “sharper and clearer” strategies to promote awareness of the plan. Three days later, Tse announced that the scheme’s implementation would be pushed back from April 1 to August 1.
Authorities said the public needed better education on the scheme amid widespread confusion, with a trial set to begin on April 1 at government offices.
The scheme aims to encourage people to recycle more and cut down on the amount of rubbish they throw out by requiring them to buy government-approved garbage bags, available in nine sizes, for 11 HK cents (1 US cent) per litre. Bag sizes range from three litres up to 100 litres.
What you need to know about Hong Kong’s coming waste-charging scheme
What you need to know about Hong Kong’s coming waste-charging scheme
A six-month grace period will be applied after implementation, during which residents will receive verbal warnings for not following the rules.
Once the period ends, people who fail to use the designated bags or labels will face a fixed penalty of HK$1,500 (US$191). Serious or repeat offenders could be prosecuted and face fines between HK$25,000 and HK$50,000, and up to six months’ jail.
Tse said the government would demonstrate how the scheme worked to the public before the official launch.
He said the 660-litre mobile garbage bins would help address the potential issue of rubbish being thrown “everywhere” by households living in “three-nil buildings”, which refers to estates that do not have owners’ corporations, residents’ organisations and do not engage property management companies.
“It will let the households throw trash in the bins, and the government will then collect it,” he said. “For them, it is their first step. And later we will ask them to use the green designated bags.”
6-month grace period for Hong Kong waste scheme ‘may be extended if needed’
6-month grace period for Hong Kong waste scheme ‘may be extended if needed’
He said government outreach teams would also get in touch with them to raise their awareness of the scheme.
“During the six-month grace period, we will also distribute some green bags to the households living in the three-nil buildings and teach them how to use them. We will also set up some recycle points and arrange recycle bins nearby,” he said.
Tse added the aim of the scheme was not to collect more money from the public as the fees would all be used to reduce waste and foster a greener community.
