Secretary for Environment & Ecology Tse Chin-wan today said that enforcement action will be taken against people who contravene municipal solid waste (MSW) charging rules after the scheme comes into effect on April 1.

Under the scheme, the MSW must be properly wrapped in the designated bags before disposal. The bags will soon be available for sale at the authorised retail outlets.

At a media session this afternoon, Mr Tse said government officers will be empowered to enter residential buildings to enforce the law.

“For those who live in the multistorey buildings, it may not be easy to take law enforcement action. Nonetheless, the law has empowered the law enforcement officers to enter residential buildings to enforce the law.”

He added that the risk outweighed the benefits in terms of contravening the law.

“If you do not follow the law, do not use a designated bag, what you can save is about $1.1 or $1.7 per day, but in case if you are caught, if you do it every day, sooner or later you will be caught.

“If you are caught, the penalty is $1,500 each time. If you are caught one time, the penalty will be sufficient for you to buy the designated bags for two or three years.”

The environment chief added that the Government will provide financial support to those on welfare to alleviate their burden due to the waste charge, such as a monthly $10 allowance to each Comprehensive Social Security Assistance recipient.