MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT STRATEGY
| NENT | : | North East New Territories Landfill |
| SENT | : |
South East New Territories Landfill (SENT Landfill receives only construction waste since 6 January 2016.) |
| WENT | : | West New Territories Landfill |
| IETS | : | Island East Transfer Station |
| IWTS | : | Island West Transfer Station |
| KBTS | : | Kowloon Bay Transfer Station (Closed) |
| STTS | : | Shatin Transfer Station |
| NLTS | : | North Lantau Transfer Station |
| OITF | : | Outlying Islands Transfer Facilities |
| WKTS | : | West Kowloon Transfer Station |
| NWNTRTS | : | North West New Territories Refuse Transfer Station |
The management strategy for municipal solid waste is based upon strategic landfills located in the New Territories and a network of refuse transfer stations located near the urban areas where most of the waste originates. Currently, three strategic landfills and seven refuse transfer stations are in operation. Closed Old Landfills are being restored to give land back the community.
Everyday, thousands of tonnes of garbage from commercial, industry and residences need to be disposed of. Three strategic landfills namely West New Territories (WENT) Landfill, South East New Territories (SENT) Landfill and North East New Territories (NENT) Landfill, are the key disposal sites for Hong Kong. These landfills have taken the benefit of advancement in landfill technology to respond to the more demanding environmental requirements and to provide the much needed capacity for waste disposal in Hong Kong.
Waste collected in the major urban centre of population is delivered to the refuse transfer stations (RTSs) where the waste is compacted and containerized in purposely built containers for onward transportation to the strategic landfills. This method of transporting waste in bulk has reduced the overall transportation cost and greatly reduced the traffic and environmental nuisance associated with a large number of small refuse collection vehicles moving on the road. A total of seven RTSs are currently in operation.
Restoration and Afteruse of Closed landfills
There are 13 closed landfills in Hong Kong. A restoration programme is to remove the potential safety and health risks which could impose on the surrounding areas. The restored landfills are landscaped to provide a green zone to the urban areas, for people to enjoy a healthy living environment. Recreation facilities like golf courses, multi-purpose grass pitches, rest gardens, ecological parks, etc are being planned at the restored landfills. Utilization of the landfill gas as non-fossil fuel is an environmentally friendly way to deal with landfill gas and at the same time reduce HK's energy need. Greenhouse gases emitted from closed landfills are substantially reduced by flaring or utilization of the extracted landfill gas.
