Secretary for the Environment KS Wong today visited an area set aside for temporary wood waste collection in the Kai Tak Development Area to learn more about its operation.

The collection area was jointly set up by the Environmental Protection and the Civil Engineering & Development departments to cope with the huge amount of broken or fallen trees caused by Super Typhoon Mangkhut.

The public can deliver the remains of fallen trees and branches to the area for temporary stockpiling to prioritise the clearance of tree waste.

The collection area also aims to improve the waiting time of waste collection vehicles at various refuse transfer stations and maintain their operational efficiency.

Since the collection area was opened on September 21, nearly 1,000 truckloads of wood waste have been delivered there for temporary stockpiling.

A suitable portion of the stockpiled materials will be selected from the area for delivery to the Animal Waste Composting Plant at Ngau Tam Mei for treatment and recycling into compost for use by local educational, social welfare, charity and horticultural organisations and farmers.

Some of the materials will also be utilised by the Organic Resources Recovery Centre in Siu Ho Wan.

Interested parties or members of the public wishing to collect wood or leaves for recycling and reuse at the collection area can call the hotline 3741 1823 or 3741 1822.

The Environmental Protection Department has so far received about 60 calls from groups and individuals with an interest in reusing the stockpiled wood waste.

Mr Wong said the Environment Bureau and the department have been encouraging government departments and the community to adopt the principle of reduce, reuse and recycle to minimise yard waste.