Pay-as-you-throw scheme postponed to April
Environment minister Tse Chin-wan has revealed that the government's long-awaited pay-as-you-throw waste charging scheme won't now be implemented this year as officials had intended. Instead, people will have to buy designated bags for their rubbish from April 1 next year under a project that's intended to reduce the amount of waste going to landfills and encourage recycling. Speaking to RTHK in an interview released on Monday, Tse said officials had decided to push back the implementation date after cleaning workers said their workload would be very heavy during the Christmas and Lunar New Year holiday, and that the end of the year therefore isn't a good time to bring in the scheme.  "Many people, like the green groups, may be disappointed that I decided to change the date, but I really hope the waste-charging scheme can be rolled out successfully and smoothly," he said. "What the [cleaning] sector told us is a fact. They support us but they just want us to accommodate them on the date... I think that's a reasonable request." Tse said officials are making good progress preparing for the scheme's launch, and are expecting to award a contract for manufacturing designated garbage bags by next month. The environment chief added that there will be a six-month grace period after the waste charge kicks in, and people found to have violated the policy during that time will get a warning instead of a HK$1,500 fine. Separately, Tse said electricity prices, which are currently substantially higher than last year, may come down next year if fuel prices continue to drop. The increase in local fuel surcharges have recently reversed, reflecting the fall in international fuel prices. Tse said officials will be reviewing operation agreements with the city's two power firms this month, and there are plans to introduce a mechanism for CLP Power and Hongkong Electric to share costs in case of energy crises.