Municipal solid waste charging will be launched in the second half of 2019 at the earliest, Secretary for the Environment KS Wong announced today.
Introducing the implementation details, Mr Wong said Hong Kong’s municipal solid waste has increased by over 80% over the past 30 years, far outpacing the population growth of 34% in the same period.
Mr Wong said two charging modes will be adopted.
The first one applies to most residential buildings, street-level shops and public organization venues that currently use the waste collection service provided by the Food & Environmental Hygiene Department.
Residents have to put their waste into designated garbage bags before disposal.
There will be nine types of designated garbage bags with varying sizes.
For bulk waste that cannot be put into the largest garbage bag, residents have to attach an oversized waste label before disposal.
The nine types of garbage bags range from three to 100 litres in volume.
Each litre will be charged 11 cents, while the price of the oversized waste labels will be set at a uniform rate of $11 each.
The department's staff will not collect waste that is not put in the designated garbage bags, or not affixed with oversized waste labels.
The second charging mode applies to those who hire private rubbish collectors to dispose of waste directly at landfills or Refuse Transfer Stations. Charging will be based on the weight of the waste disposed of at these facilities. Each tonne of waste will be charged $365.
To balance the usage distribution of different waste disposal facilities, the waste disposed of at the four urban and Northwest New Territories Refuse Transfer Stations will be charged a higher price of $395 per tonne.
Spot checks will be conducted at refuse collection points and vehicles.
Offenders intercepted on the spot will be issued fixed penalty tickets at $1,500 or prosecuted.
The Government will table the bill on municipal solid waste charging at the Legislative Council in the first half of this year.
After the passage of the legislation, the public will be allowed 12 to 18 months to prepare for the charging.
