HK Experts Being Consulted on Future Landfill DevelopmentThe Environmental Protection Department (EPD) of Hong Kong Friday convened a session to exchange views with green groups, academics, professional experts and relevant organizations on future landfill development in Hong Kong.Representatives from some 20 organizations had been invited to attend the session which was chaired by Rob Law, director of environmental protection. It is envisaged that several more sessions will be held as the studies proceed. A spokesman for the EPD said it is important to enlist the participation of experts and interested groups at the very beginning and throughout the planning process for future landfill development. "There is an urgent need to plan for new landfills as the existing three landfills could be exhausted in 10 to 15 years. "The government is committed to improving Hong Kong's performance on waste minimization and recovery for recycling, but even if we match or surpass the best performances in the world, there will always be a significant amount of waste that will still require disposal," the spokesman said. The planning and development of new landfills takes a long time, as numerous complicated constraints including environmental, socio- economic and technical factors have to be taken into consideration. The spokesman said: "The view-sharing session is a good way to involve key stakeholders during the early planning stage of long- term environmental projects to assist the government in working out a balanced solution for the way forward." The participants were informed of the government's plans for conducting studies into potential ways to increase landfill capacity in Hong Kong and were given an opportunity to express their views, he said. |
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