BREAKING: Hong Kong delays waste tax scheme, after trial run saw limited success

Hong Kong Free Press

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A waste charging scheme, first discussed two decades ago will be delayed, the Hong Kong government has said after a trial that saw limited adoption rates among residents.

Waste disposed in designated waste bags in Lin Tsui Estate at Chai Wan on April 8, 2024. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

Deputy Chief Secretary Warner Cheuk on Monday told the the Legislative Council’s Panel on Environmental Affairs and Panel on Food Safety and Environmental Hygiene that the waste tax would not go ahead as planned this August. He did not provide an alternative date for the introduction of the scheme.

The move to further delay the implementation of the levy, which came from the Environment and Ecology Bureau, has been accepted by Chief Executive John Lee.

The government, in the meantime, will step up public education and increase recycling facilities, said Secretary for the Environment Tse Wai-chuen. It will consult the legislature on the improvement measures in mid-2025, he added.

‘Public disturbance’

In an official document submitted to the legislature last week, the government said members of the public who took part in a trial run of the scheme found it to be a “public disturbance.” Some residents thought the waste levy was a hassle and the designated rubbish bags were overpriced, the paper said.

While use of the designated bags was limited, especially at public housing estates and “three nil” apartment blocks with no property management, uptake stood around 70 per cent at shopping malls, and government premises under the trial had generally reached full compliance.

Sanitation workers, meanwhile, reported that their workload doubled over the course of the trial, and had considered quitting their jobs over complications caused by the tax.

The waste tax, described by the government as “the centre of our overall waste reduction strategy,” was proposed by the authorities in 2005. The scheme was signed into law in August 2021 following several consultations and trials.

First step

Seven green groups on Sunday published an open letter to Chief Executive John Lee reiterating earlier calls for the levy to be implemented according to schedule this August, starting with government premises but excluding public housing estates.

“The government should take the opportunity on August 1 to take the first step. If the waste tax cannot be fully implemented, it can still be rolled out in phases,” the letter read.

A rubbish bin in Hong Kong. File photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

“We believe this crisis will turn into an opportunity and demonstrate [the government’s] determination to reduce waste and protect the environment,” they said.

The Green Earth, Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, Green Power, and Greeners Action, along with sustainability think tank Civic Exchange and the ADM Capital Foundation, also advised against blaming or punishing residents, and to instead focus on offering practical solutions to reduce waste.

They also urged authorities to improve the working conditions of the city’s sanitation workers.

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