Ma On Shan: Waste in the Bin, We Make It Green

Authors. CHEUNG Ching Lam Chris, LAI Shui Wun Billy, NG Pak Chung

We want to address the problem of excessive amounts of organic waste that is being disposed of on the street by markets at the Ma On Shan town centre in our project. What we would like to achieve is environmental sustainability through the elimination of organic waste that litters, as well as the processing of this waste matter into a more eco-friendly material.

Since there are no garbage bins designated for disposing of organic waste at the Ma On Shan town centre, we would first set up organic waste collection stations around that area. To provide shopkeepers with an incentive, a reimbursement scheme would be implemented in which markets would be paid a sum of money that is proportional to the weight of the organic waste that they contribute to the collecting station. These stations are monitored by workers to ensure that only organic waste is being disposed of and to keep track of the amount of waste discarded by each individual market. The collected organic waste is then transported to Ma On Shan Park where it is converted into compost. The compost would be used in a monthly event in the local community which involves demonstrating how composting is done, getting the local residents involved in making compost, and engaging them in the greening effort within the town by planting trees. Residents would also be educated about the benefits of composting as a mean to raise their awareness about the importance of recycling organic waste.