One of the major concerns among all Hongkongers is the problem of food waste. The government has been thinking up ideas of how to reduce the amount of food waste, and one of the many ideas – imposing food waste charges for daily household food waste – has stirred up much controversy. In my opinion, the imposition of the food waste charges would not do much help to solving the problem.
The people who suggest imposing food waste charges believe that the extra charges may be a signal to Hongkongers to start reducing food waste. No one wants to pay for the rubbish they produced, and in order to pay less, or even not to pay, the households would have to throw lesser portion of their dinner away. If every family in Hong Kong does so, a huge amount of food waste would be reduced. If everyone did their own part, the result might be quite significant. However, has the government considered the diverse needs of the citizens and the feasibility of implementing the food waste charges?
First of all, not all of the people in Hong Kong can afford such an extra expense. For the poor or low-income groups, maintaining their daily living is already hard enough, yet if the government forcibly imposes the charges on them, how could they pay for the charge? If they cannot pay for the charge, what should the government do? This is a potential problem to be discussed. On the other hand, for the middle-income class and the high-income groups who do not need to worry about their daily expenses, a little more food charges means nothing to them. If the food waste charges have no effect to them, will they care to reduce the food waste? If they do not change their food consumption pattern, is the food waste charge effective? Don’t forget that the high-income group is usually the ones who produce the most unwanted food. This policy, in this way, would not affect their daily livings.
Another concern is how to classify food waste from other solid waste from the households. The conditions to classify whether the waste belongs to food waste or not are still not yet announced. Besides the food that is left after a meal, should the rotten food and the expired food be identified as food waste, and has to be paid also? And how about the overcooked food? Is it reasonable to pay for the trimmed food that is not even eatable? In some public housing estates, there is, on each floor, a garbage chamber which allows people to throw their rubbish bags inside. Here comes the problem. How should the government distinguish the solid waste from food waste? Or is there anyone who could check the rubbish bags floor by floor? How should the government implement the checking procedures? It is absurd to unpack the garbage bag and make sure that the food waste is collected separately.
Lastly, how can the government monitor the payment for the food waste charges effectively? People may avoid paying the charges through many different means. As the food waste charges program is regional, only the food waste produced by households would have to be paid, people may then throw rubbish on the streets instead of placing them into the right garbage chambers. Other than throwing it onto the streets, people may also reduce the amount of waste by putting them into some non-food containers, in order to avoid paying the food waste charges. If it happens, other problems arisen from evading the charges may happen. Is the government going to send inspectors to check the smelly garbage bags one by one, spotting the rule-breakers out, and send them to the court? Food waste charges may have its value but the side-effect overrides its advantages.
In conclusion, the imposition of the food waste charges could not solve the food waste problem effectively. Instead some undesirable scenes may happen and the loop holes of the policy may create more social and environmental problems than solutions. To help solve the food waste treatment problems, other ways like food recycling and education would be more beneficial to the long term development of the food waste treatment plan. If food waste charges have to be implemented, the government should consider who to charge and how to charge carefully or the government should cook up more practical measures that align with the charges to eliminate this urgent problem.