Letter to the Editor of SCMP - Response to letters headlined " Plastic bags are not wasted" (Nov 23, 2007)

 
Letter to the Editor of SCMP - Response to letters headlined " Plastic bags are not wasted" (Nov 23, 2007)

I write in response to the letter headlined "Plastic bags are not wasted" on 23 November 2007 from Bonnie Corwin of Mid-Levels.

The Government has launched a territory-wide programme on source separation of domestic waste which seeks to make it as convenient as possible for residents to participate in waste recovery and promotes floor-based facilities where residents can conveniently drop off their separated waste. For buildings without sufficient space to set up waste separation facilities on each floor, separation bins can be set up on the ground floor to collect all types of recyclables for recycling such as waste paper, plastic bags and bottles, compact discs, metal containers, clothes, toys as well as electrical appliances. Apart from waste separation at source by residents, some cleaners are also willing to separate recyclables from the refuse deposited by residents if it is not heavily contaminated. The recyclables collected from the building can then be sold directly to recyclers, and management companies or cleansing contractors may also pass on some benefits to the residents. So far over 730 housing estates have signed up to join the source separation programme.

For those buildings which are unable to join the source separation programme due to space or other constraints, residents can bring recyclables to the nearby 3-coloured waste separation bins in public places for recycling. Since the beginning of 2005, the Government has placed separation bins of a new design at public places which have larger openings to facilitate the collection of a wider range of recyclables and larger items such as all types of waste paper, metal containers and plastics, including plastic bags. The Government will gradually replace old separation bins by those of the new design.

The Government has been calling on the general public to avoid the indiscriminate use of plastic bags. Clean and uncontaminated plastic bags can also be put into waste separation bins for recycling whereas contaminated bags can be used as trash bags.

For more information about the Government’s initiatives to enhance waste reduction and recovery, please visit the Waste Reduction Website of the Environmental Protection Department: http://www.wastereduction.gov.hk.

I thank Ms. Corwin for her interest in waste recycling and we look forward to her continuous support in tackling the waste problem in Hong Kong.

Lawrence Wong
Principal Environmental Protection Officer
for Director of Environmental Protection Department