ENG-2012 — Page 298

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The Environment

Refuse Transfer Stations

Municipal solid waste is collected and delivered to refuse transfer stations by refuse collection vehicles, containerised and then taken to landfills in bulk by sea or land transport. A network of six transfer stations and seven outlying islands transfer facilities handled 1.78 million tonnes of waste in 2012. At present, about 80 per cent of Hong Kong's domestic waste is delivered via this network to landfills.

Chemical and Special Wastes

All chemical waste producers are required to pack, label and store their chemical waste correctly before disposal at licensed treatment facilities. A trip ticket system tracks the movement of chemical waste from its origin to the final disposal point. In 2012, a daily average of 27 tonnes of chemical waste, including MARPOL Annexes I and II waste from ocean-going vessels, were treated at the Chemical Waste Treatment Centre on Tsing Yi Island, which is operated by a Government contractor, Waste producers using its services are required to pay part of the treatment cost.

The Low-level Radioactive Waste Storage Facility at Siu A Chau is purpose-built to meet stringent international standards for the safe storage of low-level radioactive waste and most of such waste generated in Hong Kong has been transferred to the facility for long-term storage.

Clinical Waste

To safeguard public health, the Government's Clinical Waste Control Scheme ensures that all clinical waste from healthcare practices is handled and disposed of in an environmentally sound and safe manner. Under the control scheme, clinical waste is collected by licensed waste collectors and sent to the Chemical Waste Treatment Centre (CWTC) for disposal by high- temperature incineration. The installation of additional facilities at the CWTC, including the upgraded air pollution control system meeting the latest European Union emission standards, is fully operational to treat clinical waste. In 2012, the CWTC received on average 5.7 tonnes of clinical waste each day.

Construction Waste

The construction industry generated 27.8 million tonnes of construction waste in 2012. Of that, about 95 per cent was inert and suitable for re-use. To maximise the recovery and re-use of inert materials and minimise their disposal at landfills, a construction waste charging scheme provides an economic incentive for reducing construction waste. The Government continues to deliver inert materials to the Mainland for re-use in reclamation projects there.

Large-scale Waste Treatment Facilities

To deal with the large volume of non-recyclable municipal solid wastes, Hong Kong needs new state-of-the-art, cost-effective facilities to reduce the volume of waste that requires landfill disposal. A multi-technology approach is needed so that different types of waste can be dealt with by the most suitable technology. The first phase of the Government's large-scale Integrated Waste Management Facility (IWMF) will adopt advanced incineration as its core technology to reduce the waste volume by 90 per cent and to turn waste into energy, thereby reducing local greenhouse gas emission. The environmental impact assessment report for the

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