The Government today submitted the Product Eco-responsibility (Amendment) Bill 2023 to the Legislative Council for the regulation of disposable plastic tableware and other plastic products.

The amendment bill proposes prohibiting the local sale and provision of any disposable plastic tableware for both dine-in and takeaway customers, with implementation carried out in two phases.

In the regulation’s first phase, the sale of expanded polystyrene tableware and other disposable plastic tableware that are small in size and difficult to recycle or to which there are mature alternatives will be prohibited, as will the provision of such tableware for takeaway customers.

Moreover, the provision of any disposable plastic tableware for dine-in customers at catering premises will be prohibited.

In the second phase, the provision of any disposable plastic tableware for both dine-in and takeaway customers at catering premises will be prohibited, as will the sale.

The amendment bill also proposes regulating the manufacturing, selling and distributing of a series of disposable plastic products in two phases.

In the first phase, it proposes to ban the sale and provision of products that either have established non-plastic alternatives or are not necessities.

Furthermore, the bill proposes that hotels and guesthouses should be banned from providing disposable toiletries and in-room plastic-bottled water for free. It also proposes that the manufacturing, selling and free distribution of oxo-degradable plastics products should be banned.

In the second phase, the sale and provision of disposable plastic products to be banned will include multipack rings, table cloths, non-medical use transparent gloves and plastic stemmed dental floss. Additionally, hotels and guesthouses will be banned from providing ear plugs.

The Environment & Ecology Bureau said subject to the progress of the scrutiny by LegCo, it proposes that the regulation’s first phase will start six months after the passage of the amendment bill, in late 2023 or early 2024 at the earliest.

The timing of the regulation’s second phase will depend on the availability and affordability of non-plastic or reusable alternatives.

The bureau encourages the trade to get prepared for the control measures, and jointly build a plastic-free culture. The Government will also promote the regulation to the trade and the general public to facilitate their understanding of it.

The Environmental Protection Department has appointed the Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency to set up an online information platform for reference by the trade, tableware suppliers and the public.

The platform has been accepting applications from tableware suppliers since November last year, and the information of the first batch of non-plastic disposable tableware products was listed on the platform.

The department will also establish an information platform on disposable plastics to share the characteristics and pros and cons of different alternatives with the public.

Meanwhile, the amendment bill also proposes expanding the coverage of the producer responsibility scheme (PRS) on waste electrical and electronic equipment and optimising its operation and that of the PRS on glass beverage containers.