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The Environmental Protection Department (EPD) today (October 17) issued the report "Monitoring of Solid Waste in Hong Kong - Waste Statistics for 2011". The report presents the 2011 statistics on disposal and recovery of solid waste, including municipal solid waste (comprising domestic, commercial and industrial waste), construction waste and other categories of waste in Hong Kong.
According to the report, the average daily quantity of solid waste disposed of at landfills was 13,458 tonnes, representing a reduction of 2.6 per cent as compared to 2010. The quantities of landfilled municipal solid waste, domestic waste and construction waste were reduced by 1.3 per cent, 2.7 per cent and 7 per cent respectively, while commercial and industrial waste increased slightly by 1.5 per cent compared to 2010.
Looking at the figures from a medium range perspective, domestic waste disposal has dropped cumulatively by 15 per cent since 2004 (before the implementation of "A Policy Framework for the Management of Municipal Solid Waste 2005 - 2014") while commercial and industrial waste disposal has remained steady in the past few years. On a per-capita basis, the municipal solid waste disposal rate, now about 1.27 kilograms per day, is also on a downward trend. Regarding construction waste, the quantity being disposed of at landfills has dropped by 50 per cent since the implementation of the Construction Waste Disposal Charging Scheme in 2006, while the recovery rate of inert construction materials delivered to public fill reception facilities and other outlets has remained above 90 per cent in the past few years.
Compared to 2010, the quantity of waste plastics disposed of at landfills has decreased by 0.09 million tonnes or 13 per cent, yet there has been a significant decrease in the quantity exported for recycling by 0.73 million tonnes – a decrease of 47 per cent. These reductions have resulted in a drop in the municipal solid waste recovery rate from 52 per cent in 2010 to 48 per cent in 2011, after a cumulative rise of 12 per cent since 2004. The waste recovery rate is calculated as the ratio of total waste recovered (including export) to waste generated.
The report, which is available in electronic format, can be obtained from the EPD website at www.wastereduction.gov.hk/en/materials/info/msw2011.pdf.
Ends/Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Issued at HKT 14:46
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