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The Waste Disposal (Amendment) Ordinance 2013 (Commencement) Notice was published in the Gazette today (June 6) to bring the Waste Disposal (Amendment) Ordinance 2013 (Amendment Ordinance) into full operation on August 4, 2014, for enhanced control of the depositing of construction waste on private land.
A spokesman for the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) said, "The new legislation requires that any person who intends to deposit construction waste on private land must obtain prior written permission from each and every owner of that land and such permission will not be regarded as valid unless it bears an acknowledgement by the Director of Environmental Protection."
The new legislation also requires that any person who intends to deposit construction waste on private land must submit the specified form, together with the relevant documents, to the EPD at least 21 calendar days before the intended commencement date of the depositing activity. The acknowledgement will only be given after necessary checking. To facilitate the full implementation of the Amendment Ordinance on August 4, the specified form and the relevant documents can be submitted to the EPD for checking starting from July 14. In addition, during the depositing of construction waste on private land, a copy of the acknowledged form must be displayed in a conspicuous place on the lot at all times so as to enhance transparency and to strengthen public monitoring.
"Unauthorised depositing of waste will cause an adverse impact on the environment. We will continue to strengthen the inter-departmental collaboration in monitoring illegal depositing of construction waste and landfilling activities. In future, any person who deposits, or causes to be deposited, construction waste on private land, without following the new procedures will be liable to a fine of up to $200,000 and imprisonment for up to six months," the spokesman said.
Information on the enhanced control under the Waste Disposal Ordinance is available at the EPD's website at
www.epd.gov.hk/epd/english/environmentinhk/waste/prob_solutions/wdao.html .
For any enquiries on the implementation of new measures under the Amendment Ordinance, please contact the EPD at 2838 3111 or email to enquiry@epd.gov.hk.
Ends/Friday, June 6, 2014
Issued at HKT 11:01
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