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THE ENVIRONMENT

Seven modern transfer stations and one set of Outlying Island Transfer Facilities handle a total of 5 100 tonnes of waste every day. This is mostly domestic waste, and represents more than 67 per cent of Hong Kong's total daily domestic waste production. Four transfer stations at Hong Kong Island East and West, West Kowloon and North Lantau also provide service to private waste collectors.

Chemical and Special Wastes

Comprehensive controls on the handling and disposal of chemical waste have been in place since 1993. The formerly widespread malpractice of dumping chemical waste into the sewers and surface waters has stopped. All chemical waste producers are required to properly pack, label and store their chemical wastes before disposal at proper treatment facilities. A trip ticket system involving the waste producers, licensed collectors and licensed disposal points tracks the movement of chemical waste from its origin to final disposal.

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A daily average of 170 tonnes of chemical waste including waste from sea-going vessels is treated at the Chemical Waste Treatment Centre (CWTC) on Tsing Yi Island. A government contractor operates the CWTC, the main treatment facility for chemical waste. Waste producers using the treatment centre's services are required to pay part of the treatment cost.

Large-scale Waste Treatment

No matter how good it is in dealing with waste prevention and recycling, Hong Kong still needs to handle a large volume of non-recyclable waste. New facilities to treat waste and reduce its volume will have to be put in place accordingly. Such facilities would need to meet the highest international environmental standards and be cost- effective. The Government has invited local and overseas waste management service- providers to offer proposals to treat Hong Kong's non-recyclable waste. The Government maintains an open mind on the types of technologies that should be adopted. However, even with such large-scale waste treatment facilities, there are residual wastes that must be handled safely. Hence, Hong Kong will continue to require landfills for final waste disposal.

Import and Export of Waste

Controls on the import and export of waste under the Waste Disposal Ordinance (WDO) came into operation on September 1, 1996. A ban on the importation of hazardous waste from developed countries (mainly of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the European Union) was introduced on December 28, 1998. The controls are in line with the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal.

The convention's main control mechanism requires notification and consent by authorities of the states of origin, destination and transit before the shipment of hazardous or non-recyclable waste can begin. The import or export of hazardous or non-recyclable waste into or out of Hong Kong without a permit, regardless of the purpose of the import or export, is an offence under the WDO. Maximum penalties include a fine of $200,000 and six months' imprisonment for the first offence, and $500,000 and two years for subsequent offences. In 2001, there were 15 prosecutions for illegal import or export of waste, with fines totalling $266,500.

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