Policy Address

Waste Management

160.         The Government needs to bring fundamental changes to the principles of waste management and take actions accordingly in the current term.  Last year, the Government published the Blueprint for Sustainable Use of Resources, which sets out our strategy for waste management for the coming ten years.  The blueprint sets a target of reducing waste by 40% in a decade and puts forward the related policies and action plans.

161.         We have completed the public consultation on a Producer Responsibility Scheme on Glass Beverage Bottles and introduced into this Council the proposed legislative amendments to extend the scope of the Environmental Levy Scheme on Plastic Shopping Bags.  Also, the image of “Big Waster” in the Food Wise Hong Kong Campaign is gradually taking root in people’s minds and changing attitudes towards food wastage.

162.         It is our policy to introduce quantity-based charging for municipal solid waste.  Based on the principle of “pay-as-you-throw”, the initiative will provide an incentive to reduce and recover domestic, commercial and industrial waste.  The Council for Sustainable Development has conducted a public engagement exercise for over three months to explore how quantity-based charging can be implemented.  It will collate the views received as soon as possible and put forward specific proposals for the Government to devise a quantity-based municipal solid waste charging mechanism suitable for Hong Kong.

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