THE ENVIRONMENT
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Bay and Ngau Chi Wan started in 1993. Studies on the restoration of Tseung Kwan O Landfill, the Northwest New Territories Landfill and Shuen Wan Landfill were com- missioned in 1993 and the restoration programme will commence after completion of the studies in 1994.
Refuse Transfer Stations
As part of its waste disposal strategy, the government is developing a network of refuse transfer stations. These will centralise the collection of refuse and ensure that its transport to remote landfill sites is effective and economical.
The development of transfer stations, built to high environmental standards, will enable the government to close the poorly-located incinerators currently operating in Hong Kong. This will eliminate a significant source of air pollution in the urban area.
The transfer stations will receive waste collected by small refuse collection vehicles and enable its delivery, in bulk, to the landfills in sealed containers, by road or sea transport.
The first transfer station, at Kowloon Bay, has been in service since April 1991. It processes an average of 1 600 tonnes of municipal refuse per day.
The second transfer station, Island East Transfer Station, was commissioned in November 1992 and is processing an average of 1 300 tonnes of refuse per day. Collected refuse is compacted into sealed containers and then delivered to landfill sites by purpose-built vessels. With the commissioning of this transfer station, the incinerator at "Kennedy Town was shut down in March 1993 to improve the air quality in the vicinity.
The contract for the third refuse transfer station, at Sha Tin, was awarded in July 1993. The station is expected to be operational in late 1994.
A study on the feasibility of building an underground transfer station on a rock cavern site on western Hong Kong Island was commissioned in 1992. Detailed planning of this underground transfer station is in progress and tenders will be invited in 1994. Consultancy studies for refuse transfer stations for the outlying islands, Northwest New Territories and West Kowloon commenced in 1992, with a target commissioning date of 1996. Studies for a refuse transfer station in North Lantau Island also started in early 1993.
Chemical and Special Wastes
There were, until recently, no central treatment facilities for chemical waste in Hong Kong and there were practical, technological and financial obstacles to local industries having their own. This led the government, in December 1990, to appoint a specialist contractor to design, build and operate a chemical waste treatment centre on Tsing Yi Island.
The centre, commissioned in April 1993, is the first integrated facility for chemical waste helping the
in the region. It collects, transports, treats and disposes of chemical waste
waste producers to comply with the law. It serves also as the regional reception point for oily and noxious liquid wastes from ships. This meets Hong Kong's obligations under the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships and its Protocol (the Marpol Convention).
With the coming into force of chemical waste regulations, all chemical waste producers must properly store and dispose of their chemical waste. A trip ticket system involving the waste producers, licensed collectors and licensed disposal points, tracks the movement of chemical waste. Most of the chemical waste goes to the treatment centre but some, such as asbestos, is sent to landfills for disposal.