Letter to the Editor of SCMP - Response to letter headlined "Recycling law needed in Hong Kong"

 
Letter to the Editor of SCMP - Response to letter headlined "Recycling law needed in Hong Kong"

I write in response to the letter headlined "Recycling law needed in Hong Kong" on 1 January by Mark Peaker.

The Government has placed some 28,000 three-coloured waste separation bins throughout Hong Kong in many public places including public housing estates, schools, roadside, parks, sports, and leisure and cultural venues. For private places including housing estates, commercial and industrial buildings, shopping malls, transport stations and car parks, waste separation bins are arranged by the management of the premises.

The Environmental Protection Department (EPD) has launched a territory-wide Programme on Source Separation of Domestic Waste since January 2005. The programme promotes floor-based bins or other facilities where residents can conveniently drop off different types of separated waste for recycling. Up to now, close to 800 housing estates throughout the territory, covering some 45% of the population, have signed up for the programme.

To further promote source separation of waste, the above programme has been extended to the commercial and industrial (C&I) sector in October 2007. We have invited the management of C&I buildings to set up waste separation facilities in their premises. More than 300 C&I buildings have signed up and more will be recruited in the coming year. Information about the source separation programmes is available in our dedicated website (www.wastereduction.gov.hk/en/index.htm).

I thank Mr Peaker for his interest in waste recycling in Hong Kong.


Lawrence Wong
Principal Environmental Protection Officer
for Director of Environmental Protection