01 Investigation
Author: Liang Zurao Chen Runnan
2020-06-08 08:44
Date of last update: 2020-06-08 08:47"Hong Kong 01" has placed GPS trackers in plastic bottles last year and placed them in the recycling bins of 14 housing estates to test whether the plastic bottles will eventually be recycled. Some of these housing estates have won the Environmental Protection Agency's recycling award.
It was found that the trackers of 9 housing estates were sent to landfills or waste transfer stations, accounting for about 64%. After the reporter secretly interviewed the frontline cleaners of the two tested housing estates, they all said that no one had recycled plastic, and the plastic was abandoned as garbage. Some environmental organizations say that the low economic value of plastics makes recyclers unwilling to recycle.
The recycler involved in Fengde Village insisted that no recycled plastic was sent to the landfill, and the Metropolis Phase 2 will not reply. The remaining seven housing estates said they would follow up; the Environmental Protection Agency said that it has reviewed 5 of the certificates that were obtained last year. The documents of the housing estate have been verified and recovered.
In the past year, a reporter from "Hong Kong 01" placed GPS trackers in the plastic container recycling bins of 14 housing estates. It was found that at least nine plastic bottle trackers were sent to landfills or waste transfer stations. (01 drawing)
In the past year, a reporter from "Hong Kong 01" placed a GPS tracker in a lemon tea plastic bottle and placed the batch of plastic bottles in the recycling boxes of 14 housing estates. Housing estates include private housing estates, public housing estates and HOS flats, and are located throughout Hong Kong. It was found that at least nine trackers were sent to landfills or waste transfer stations.
In the past year, a reporter from "Hong Kong 01" placed GPS trackers in the plastic container recycling bins of 14 housing estates. It was found that at least nine plastic bottle trackers were sent to landfills or waste transfer stations. (Photo by Yang Rongfei)
7 Estate court tracker to send landfill to two estates to send waste transfer station
The trackers of the seven housing estates show the final location of the signal, which is the area of the Nimwan and Lian Ma Hang landfills, including Tin Shui Wai Tin Shui Wai (2) Village, Kwun Tong Caixia Village, Tseung Kwan O Metropolis Phase 2, and Tsuen Wan Chi Tak Respect Village, Taikoo City, Fengde Village, Diamond Hill, and Jinghuju, Jiahu Village; Phase 1 of Mei Foo Village and Sha Tin City One Trackers were transported to West Kowloon and Sha Tin Waste Transfer Station, respectively.
The four housing estates that were not delivered to the landfill are Fanling Huadu Plaza, Shatin City, Whampoa Garden Phase I and Haiyi Peninsula, and finally showed that the signal is still tracking the housing estate; although the remaining Tsuen Wan Tsuen Fung Centre is delivered to Landfills, but recyclers said they would dismantle plastic bottles at the recycling yard, and the tracker showed that they had stayed in the recycler's recycling yard for more than six hours before sending them to the landfill. Excluded.
The Metropolis Phase 2 has been awarded the highest "Diamond Grade" for two consecutive years. After leaving the Metropolis in early June last year, the tracker passed the Kwun Tong Bypass to the Hung Hom Undersea Tunnel to the Hong Kong Island East Waste Transfer Station and was finally sent to Minwan Landfill. (01 drawing)
Of the 9 housing estates sent to landfills and waste transfer stations, 5 housing estates were awarded the Environmental Protection Department's "Source Separation of Domestic Waste Award Scheme" in 2018/19. Among them, the Metropolis Phase 2 has received the highest "Diamond Grade" for two consecutive years. After leaving the Metropolis in early June last year, the tracker passed the Kwun Tong Bypass to the Hung Hom Undersea Tunnel to the Hong Kong Island East Waste Transfer Station and was finally sent. To Minwan Bay landfill.
In addition, in the public housing estate Tianrui (II) Village that won the “Gold Award” the year before, the reporters placed test plastic bottles in June last year and March this year, and the two results were sent to Minwan and Lian Ma Hang piles respectively Landfill; In Caixia Village, which received the "Excellence Award" last year, the tracker was sent to the Lin Ma Hang Landfill.
In the public housing estate Tianrui (II) Village, which won the "Gold Award" the year before, the reporter had placed test plastic bottles in June last year and March this year. The two results were sent to Minwan and Lian Ma Hang landfills, respectively. . (01 drawing)
Caixia Village cleaners: no recycling in the last six months of last year
The reporter visited the frontline cleaners of these two estates in November last year. Lanxi (a pseudonym), a cleaner in Caixia Village, revealed that the vehicles collecting waste plastics had not arrived in the estate for half a year. Sister Lan had no choice but to point out that the plastic would be thrown away after being filled up.
"Do not sell the mosquitoes even if you have a waist song! 𠵱Do not collect the glue!" Auntie Xia (pseudonym), a cleaner in the Tianrui Village, a public housing estate managed by the Housing Authority, pointed out that the recovered plastic bottles will be given to Tianrui A recycler in the village sold, but Aunt Xia regretted that the recycler had no longer recycled plastic bottles and chose to discard them directly. Aunt Xia continued that at present, the price of plastic bottles is cheap, only 3 cents and 5 cents per kilo. Frankly speaking, no one will come to recover the plastic bottles, pointing to the fact that the oil cost is not enough to pay, "It’s not environmentally friendly. The filled area bursts into shed."
The reporter continued to inquire with the recyclers in Tianrui Village referred to by Aunt Xia. The staff stated that they would not collect plastics at present. Because plastics take up too much space and the recycling site in the New Territories does not have enough space to accumulate, they will not be recycled.
+6
+5
+4
According to the 2018 Hong Kong Solid Waste Monitoring Report, household waste plastics account for more than half of the waste plastic disposal in landfills. The daily disposal volume is as high as 1,244 metric tons, which is equivalent to the daily disposal of about 83 bus-weight plastics to landfills. However, the price of recycled plastics has been declining since 2018. In the Mainland, it fell from a high of 8010 yuan per ton in October 2018 (the same below) to 7164 yuan at the end of 2019. This year, it fell again under the influence of the epidemic. 6610 yuan. The price of plastics fell by 20% within a year and a half, which greatly affected the recycling industry.
The reporter visited the frontline cleaners in the housing estate in November last year. Lanxi (pseudonym), a cleaner in Caixia Village, revealed that the vehicles collecting waste plastics had not arrived in the housing estate for half a year. Sister Lan had no choice but to point out that the plastic would be thrown away after being filled up. (Photo by Liang Zurao)
Huan Tuan urges the listing of downstream recyclers
Ma Jiabao, senior project director of environmental protection touch, said that due to the low economic value of plastics, property management companies or cleaners must provide monetary incentives to recyclers for recycling, and the number of plastic bottles required for recycling and grinding into raw materials is very large. The amount collected by various housing estates is far from enough.
Ma Zhi Property Management Company only values the management of housing estates, and recycling is not a core issue. Furthermore, housing estates or property management companies have never disclosed the names of downstream recyclers, and residents simply have no channels and ability to monitor recyclers. Ma urged the EPD to require all major housing estates to list the names of downstream recyclers and publish detailed monthly recycling records and receipts so that the public can monitor together.
Ma Jiabao, senior project director of environmental protection touch, said that housing estates and property management companies have never disclosed the names of downstream recyclers, and residents simply have no channels and ability to monitor recyclers. (Photo by Lin Songhua)
Liu Yaocheng, president of the Hong Kong Environmental Recycling Industry Sustainable Development Association, made no secret that some suspected "false recycling" in the industry. He heard that some plastic recyclers did not recycle, but just discarded the recycled products elsewhere.
"All the glue collection is in the New Territories, and the paper collection is in Kowloon and the New Territories. A carton of waste paper in my car is better than car glue!" Liu Datan, some physical management companies or recyclers still claim to recycle for obtaining ISO and other environmental certifications. Plastics, but the sharp drop in prices and space occupation give recyclers a greater incentive to discard directly.
Seven Estates said it would follow up only two estates provide contractor names
The reporter inquired about the housing estates involved, the Metropolis Phase 2 property management company said on the phone that it would not reply; the Fengde Village property management company said the contractor insisted that the recycling of plastic bottles was not sent to the landfill; the remaining 7 housing estates said they would Follow up and understand the situation, including the management of the Housing Department in Tianrui (2) Village, that any violations will be reflected in the contractor’s quarterly performance.
The reporter had inquired the names of the 9 recyclers or contractors by email, and only 2 of them, namely Fengde Village and Jinghuju, were willing to provide the names of the contractors. Both of the contractors indicated that they were properly handled Recycled items. The reporter then contacted Weiyang Holdings Co., Ltd., the person in charge insisted that the plastic bottles in Fengde Village were recycled, and pointed out that the company's recycled vehicles had GPS records, but ultimately did not provide the relevant records to reporters; Wellcome, which provided cleaning services at Jinghuju Environmental Services Co., Ltd. pointed out that the recyclers indicated that they had properly disposed of all recycled items.
The EPD refers to the property management companies and downstream recyclers who have contacted the nine housing estates. Among the housing estates that obtained the certificate last year, the Department has reviewed the documents issued by the recyclers and revealed that the housing estates have handed over waste plastics to their downstream Recycler.
New Coronary Pneumonia｜Recycling Fund Two Measures Support Recycling Industry Approves 580 Projects Involving 92 Million Funds
[01 Exclusive. There is a film] Chinese and Hong Kong businessmen electronic waste heap gold rush Hong Kong environmental pay
Environmental Protection Agency
