Recycling and recovery of plastic waste as a means of waste reduction in Hong Kong

2000 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chung-ying Lee
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Becerril-Arreola ◽  
R. E. Bucklin

AbstractPlastic pollution is a pressing issue because authorities struggle to contain and process the enormous amount of waste produced. We study the potential for reducing plastic waste by examining the efficiency with which different polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles deliver beverages. We find that 80% of the variation in bottle weight is explained by bottle capacity, 16% by product category, and 1% by brand. Bottle weight is quadratic and convex function of capacity, which implies that medium capacity bottles are most efficient at delivering consumable product. Local data on PET bottle sales and municipal waste recovery validate the findings. A 20% shift in consumption from smaller to larger bottles could reduce the production of PET waste by over 10,000 t annually in the U.S. alone.


Buildings ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 214
Author(s):  
Ann T. W. Yu ◽  
Irene Wong ◽  
Zezhou Wu ◽  
Chi-Sun Poon

Hong Kong is a densely populated city with high-rise developments, and as in other metropolitan cities, the amount of waste generated from construction projects in the city is increasing annually. The capacity of existing landfills is expected to be saturated by the 2020s. Construction waste management has been implemented for years but the performance is still not satisfactory. The aim of this research paper is to explore and formulate strategies and measures for effective construction waste management and reduction in highly urbanized cities such as Hong Kong. A desktop study on construction waste management practices was carried out for a preliminary understanding of the current situation in Hong Kong. Semistructured interviews and focus group meetings were further conducted to shed light on how to improve construction waste reduction and management in Hong Kong. The main contributions of this research study are the potential short-term, medium-term, and long-term strategies, which are related to the design stage, tender stage, construction stage, and government support. The five major strategies recommended are financial benefits to stakeholders, public policies in facilitating waste sorting, government supports for the green building industry, development of a mature recycling market, and education and research in construction waste minimization and management.


Author(s):  
Winnie Wing Mui So ◽  
Irene Nga Yee Cheng ◽  
Lewis Ting On Cheung ◽  
Yu Chen ◽  
Stephen Cheuk Fai Chow ◽  
...  

Abstract This study aimed to explore the relationships between situational and psychological factors and Hong Kong citizens’ plastic waste management (PWM) intentions based on an extended theory of planned behaviour model with situational factors. A total of 996 Hong Kong permanent residents were surveyed, and data were analysed using structural equation modelling. The results revealed that situational factors had a direct and positive effect on PWM intention, but also affected PWM intention indirectly through their significant effects on attitude and perceived behavioural control regarding PWM. The implications for environmental education and policy are discussed.


2021 ◽  
Vol 241 ◽  
pp. 03004
Author(s):  
Jia Xu ◽  
Zixuan Wu ◽  
Yazhi Zhao ◽  
Jingsan Yang

Plastic has brought great convenience to people’s lives, but it has also brought severe environmental pollution to the world. It is almost impossible to break down entirely in nature, and plastic waste, whether in rivers, oceans, or on land, can persist in the environment for centuries. The problem of plastic waste disposal has caused worldwide concern. It is necessary to reduce the production of plastic products through global cooperation effectively. However, achieving this goal will also involve some unexpected issues, such as controlling the adverse economic impact of plastics, and the rationality and fairness of the distribution of responsibilities between different countries. This paper collects massive data and takes China as an example to study the impact of plastic output reduction on China’s Express industry and the plastics manufacturing industry using multivariate regression. This paper summarizes the positive and negative effects of plastic waste reduction. Given the distribution and management of national and regional plastic waste responsibilities, the global carbon emission rights distribution method is used for reference. The comprehensive index allocation method is used to deal with the problem of both fairness and efficiency relatively. What is more, based on the conclusions, this paper also provides suggestions for a global joint response to plastic waste.


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