3 weeks ago
- New authorities successful Hong Kong has banned Styrofoam products and single-use integrative cutlery.
- Under nan caller law, single-use cutlery for illustration forks, spoons, straws and plates cannot beryllium sold aliases distributed to dine-in aliases takeaway customers.
- The extremity of nan regularisation is to trim integrative contamination astatine its source, according to Hong Kong’s Environmental Protection Department.
Hong Kong has agelong been a awesome shaper and user of awesome food, and a awesome magnitude of integrative and Styrofoam to spell pinch it.
That’s going to alteration arsenic caller authorities aiming to extremity nan waste and distribution of Styrofoam products and single-use integrative cutlery went into effect connected Monday.
Under nan caller law, single-use cutlery specified arsenic forks, spoons, straws and plates cannot beryllium sold aliases distributed for some dine-in and takeaway customers. However, integrative nutrient containers and cups tin still beryllium fixed retired for takeaways.
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The regularisation of disposable integrative tableware and different integrative products successful Hong Kong intends to trim their usage astatine nan root to trim down connected pollution, Hong Kong’s Environmental Protection Department said successful an emailed consequence to The Associated Press.
A pedestrian carries a integrative container of takeout nutrient successful Hong Kong connected Feb. 21, 2024. Hong Kong has agelong been a awesome shaper and user of awesome food, and a awesome magnitude of integrative and Styrofoam to spell pinch it. New authorities successful Hong Kong has banned Styrofoam products and single-use integrative cutlery. (AP Photo/Louise Delmotte)
Restaurants were fixed a six-month grace period. A 2nd shape of nan ban, expected adjacent year, will prohibition each single-use plastics including containers for some dine-in and takeaway.
Many restaurants person already begun implementing nan caller measure.
Kuen Fat Kitchen is simply a emblematic luncheon extremity for galore group successful Hong Kong. Even earlier the caller law was introduced, it had already started to trim nan usage of Styrofoam boxes.
Owner Kitty Chan said nan changes will mean higher costs.
"For a single-use cutlery set, you mightiness deliberation it’s conscionable a mini change, but switching nan integrative spoon to a insubstantial spoon doubles nan costs for us. So, it’s not truthful friends to nan business of nan nutrient and beverage industry," Chan added.
Customers astatine Kuen Fat Kitchen person mixed feelings. Some don’t want to look other hassle erstwhile going retired to eat if they are asked to bring their ain containers and utensils.
"When I’m astatine work, I only person an hr for lunch, and I request to eat efficiently. I don’t deliberation it’s convenient for maine to bring my ain cutlery and do nan washing up afterwards. It’s not convenient and I don’t deliberation it’s a bully idea," said customer Darren Seng.
Others recognized nan environmental impacts of their dining-out habits.
"I deliberation it's amended for nan environment," said resident Thomson Choi.
Single-use integrative cutlery is nan second-largest root of integrative discarded aft single-use integrative bags successful Hong Kong, according to Greenpeace. Many businesses are changing to replacement plastics made of earthy resources to comply pinch caller rules, alternatively of improving their packaging, nan statement added.
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Greenpeace campaigner Leanne Tam hopes that nan caller rule will discourage nan throwaway civilization and beforehand reusables, alternatively of "greener" disposables.
"Any benignant of integrative prohibition argumentation should purpose to power nan nationalist to enactment distant from plastic. We should move on, and person a caller approach," said Tam. "But we would for illustration to punctual nan authorities that it should give much resources to beforehand reusable alternatively of disposable. This is nan measurement to lick nan guidelines of nan problem."
According to nan latest figures by Hong Kong's authorities successful 2022, nan metropolis disposed 11,128 tons of coagulated discarded per day, among which plastics contributed 2,369 tons.
Hong Kong is reliant connected nan city’s 3 landfills to grip its waste, but they are expected to beryllium filled up by astir 2026, according to nan government.
The metropolis plans to instrumentality municipal coagulated discarded charging from Aug. 1, but nan logistics person yet to beryllium worked out. It would compel individual homes, restaurants, and each businesses to salary for trash they propulsion away.
