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SECTION
3 NATURAL RESOURCES CAPITAL STOCK
| 3.5 |
Solid
Waste |
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| 3.5.5 |
Sustainability
Assessment |
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| 3.5.5.1 |
This
discussion of solid waste issues has highlighted
that several initiatives are underway to
counteract a troubling projected increase
in waste arisings and to plan for necessary
future waste disposal capacity. Government's
Waste Reduction Framework Plan (WRFP) provides
an overall policy structure for these initiatives
as well as specific targets and action areas
as practical steps toward sustainability.
A key tenet of the WRFP is to reduce the
amount of waste generated and to encourage
re-use and recovery of the waste stream.
In order to achieve the objectives of this
strategy, new infrastructure will be needed
inter alia for the collection of recyclable
waste, for source separation and material
recovery, and for increased treatment capacity
through waste-to-energy incineration.
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| 3.5.5.2 |
Given that the greatest threat to remaining
landfill capacity is the projected growth
in domestic solid waste (HKSARG 1998), the
community as a whole must accept responsibility
for identifying realistic solutions to the
long term shortfall of disposal capacity.
This will require acknowledging that waste
treatment facilities in Hong Kong are a necessity
and providing for such facilities as an explicit
component of future land use planning schemes. |
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| 3.5.5.3 |
The
targets set by the WRFP are ambitious but
attainable given appropriate support from
Government, the Legislature, the private sector
and the community. The consequences of failing
to stem the tide of increasing arisings will
result in wasteful producer and consumer behaviour
becoming more ingrained with time. In parallel,
the urgency of identifying additional and/or
alternative disposal capacity may result in
foreclosure of some options which would otherwise
be environmentally preferable or cost-effective,
given a longer planning horizon. |
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| 3.5.5.4 |
One
of the solid waste issues discussed in the
preceding sections which is not directly addressed
by the WRFP is the problem of illegal dumping.
Such activities bypass the authorised waste
management system and result in soil and surface/ground
water contamination, as well as degrade the
quality of the landscape, recreational amenities,
and the potential for development. These issues
should be embraced as part of the overall
waste strategy since appropriate disposal
practices for illegally dumped waste will
increase the volume of waste arisings requiring
disposal. Once illegally dumped materials
are routed through authorised disposal pathways,
areas which have been degraded by such activities
should be prioritised for remediation. Restoration
of degraded lands will increase the supply
of land development, improve the environmental
quality, and potentially the habitat, in the
area, and remove a source of contamination
for downstream marine or freshwater systems.
The recent development of new EPD guidance
notes for investigating and remediating three
types of sites highlights an increasing recognition
of the potential benefits to be gained in
this area. |
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| 3.5.5.5 |
In
contrast to many of the natural capital stock
issues discussed in this report, solid waste
issues have already been addressed by a strategic
policy document, the WRFP, which addresses
the issue of sustainability. In addition to
the need for political will, the challenge
in this arena is thus not to define the future
sustainability strategy, but to mobilise all
waste generators, including the public, to
implement the waste reduction, reuse and recycling
recommendations of the strategy. These efforts,
in combination with initiatives to discourage
illegal dumping and remediate contaminated
land will provide a solid basis for sustainable
management of solid waste issues. |
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| 3.5.5.6 |
Key
sustainable development issues for solid waste
in Hong Kong are presented in Figure
3.5a. |
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