A three-month trial on Municipal Solid Waste Charging will launch in November. It will consider the necessary logistics for waste recovery and disposal, as reference for a study into the feasibility of introducing a variable rate charging scheme.

The Environmental Protection Department said it will carry out the trial in 20 housing estates, examining the arrangements for distributing bags, collecting waste and auditing, as well as other measures. No charging will be involved during the trial period.

Participating housing estates include public rental estates, subsidised sales flats, private housing estates and Government quarters. For a list of participating estates, click here.

Residents of participating housing estates will be given "designated bags" for disposal of non-recyclable domestic waste.

Food waste separation to be tested

To examine the feasibility of separating food waste at source, selected housing estates will also be provided with "food waste bags" to separate domestic waste from food waste.

The department will collect the relevant data and conduct a questionnaire survey to collect views and opinions from residents participating in the scheme.