Hong Kong prepares for October Eco ExpoAsia

Pictured above, from left: Victor Li, immediate past chairperson of the Hong Kong Waste Management Association, and Wolfgang Ehmann, executive director of German Industry and Commerce Ltd.

Hong Kong’s vision for a “greener city” through new waste management and recycling initiatives was outlined to eco-industry leaders and associations—along with consul-generals and trade commissioners representing 16 countries—at a networking lunch in support of the Eco Expo Asia event in that city.

The luncheon, which carried the theme “Waste Less, Save More - Creating Business Opportunities” was held in mid-March of 2018 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. It served in part as a preview of an introduction of Eco Expo Asia 2018, which is scheduled for Oct. 25-2018 at Asia World-Expo in Hong Kong. The Expo is jointly organized by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) and Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd.

Remarked HKTDC Executive Director Benjamin Chau at the luncheon, “Waste has become a common problem for affluent societies, with ever-growing amounts of refuse, including food, produced as a result of economic expansion.”

In a keynote address, HKSAR Secretary for the Environment Wong Kam-sing outlined HKSAR Environment Bureau waste management and recycling initiatives and commented, “Waste management is a major challenge for a green city. Clearly, Hong Kong needs a more sustainable way to deal with waste.”

Among the city's new initiatives is a waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) treatment and recycling facility known as WEEE PARK and Hong Kong's first self-sustained sludge treatment facility, known as T PARK.

T PARK has been designed to combine a variety of advanced technologies into a single complex and bring together sludge incinerators with power generation and desalination.

Hong Kong's first organic resources recovery center, known as O PARK, was described by Wong as a large-scale waste-to-energy facility being built for treating food waste generated from the industrial and commercial sectors, including manufacturers, restaurants, hotels and supermarkets.

At the residential level, a “Dump Less, Save More” municipal solid waste (MSW) charging scheme has been designed to provide financial incentives to promote waste reduction at source and reduce overall disposal.

“With all these initiatives, we will make Hong Kong cleaner, and save more,” Wong stated.

Eco Expo Asia 2018 in October is described by its organizers as the region’s “premier business platform of its kind,” which in 2017 welcomed 335 exhibitors from 18 countries and regions and more than 14,000 attendees from 102 countries and regions.

Waste Management and Recycling is likely again to be one of the largest exhibition zones at the trade fair, according to Chau of the HKTDC.