Evaluation of Government Policies on Construction and Demolition

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Requirement

Write a dissertation on the topic "Evaluation of Government Policies on Construction and Demolition Waste Disposal in Hong Kong"

Solution

Chapter 1: Introduction 
Introduction:

In Hong Kong, every year huge amount of construction and demolition waste is generated which is quite difficult to manage for the local authority. The studies on construction and demolition waste in Hong Kong indicate that the amount of such waste is increasing rapidly with time . As stated by Lu et al.(2015), the amount of construction and demolition (C&D) waste in Hong Kong almost doubled during the period from 1993 to 2004. As more amount of C&D waste is being generated, managing the waste is becoming more challenging with time. As the C&D wastes cause severe damage to the environment, the Government is now realizing the importance of finding out new ways for waste management. The current research deals with evaluation of the current waste management policies in Hong Kong and identification of the issues in existing waste management system. The research also includes identification of possible waste management strategies that can help the government to manage the C&D without damaging the nature.

Background of the research:

In Hong Kong, the construction industry is found to be one of the main contributors of the solid waste. Studies on the trend of waste generation in Hong Kong indicate that there is a rapid increase in the amount of C&D waste in this city. In 2004, the amount of C&D waste was about 20 million tonnes which is almost twice of the amount in 1993 (Epd.gov.hk, 2018). The trend of increasing generation of C&D waste was observed in later years also. For instance, in 2016, a total amount of almost 25 million tonnes C&D waste was generated in Hong Kong. However, despite the rapid rise in amount of solid waste, the government in Hong Kong mainly used the waste for land fillings. In 2016, nearly 15 million tone of C&D waste was used for land filling in Hong Kong. Land filling with solid was can cause severe harm to the environment (Epd.gov.hk, 2018). Therefore, the strategy of using C&D wastes for land filling is not safe for the environment and the government requires adopting other strategies to manage the waste without affecting the environment. It is evident that the current waste management practices of the Hong Kong government needs to be reviewed and new policies require being developed. The current research focuses on identification of the issues in current waste management policies in Hong Kong. The research also includes finding out the ways to manage the waste without causing environmental degradation.

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Statement of the problem:

In Hong Kong, every year large amount of C&D wastes are produced and a major part of this waste is used for land filling. Analysis on the waste generation trend indicates that the amount of C&D wastes is increasing every year and the increasing amount of waste cannot be managed by land filling only. Additionally, the practice of land filling with solid waste has several negative impacts on the environment. So, there is an urgent need of modifying the current waste management practices of the Hong Kong government and move to the sustainable practices.

Aim of the research:

The current research aims at evaluating the existing waste disposal policies in Hong Kong and identifying the issues in current disposal policies. The research also aims at assessing the current waste disposal charging schemes and identifying issues. Finding out possible waste management policies to eliminate the current waste management issues in Hong Kong is another important aim of the research.

Research questions:  

What are the issues faced by the Hong Kong Government to manage its construction and demolition waste?
What are the possible ways to manage the C&D wastes in a sustainable manner?
Procedures:
The current study consists of both primary and secondary research on the waste management policies in Hong Kong with a special focus on the C&D wastes. For primary research , the qualitative and quantitative data is collected through case study analysis and also on basis of the primary data collected by conducting survey. The secondary research is done by collecting information related to the waste management policies in Hong Kong from the books, journals and websites. The primary data is analyzed using graphs and charts. The issues in waste management policies in Hong Kong are identified using both the primary and secondary data. On basis of the gaps as identified in the research, recommendations to improve waste management policies are made.

Significance of the study:

The current waste management policies in Hong Kong mainly include the techniques like land filling to manage the solid wastes. It is still in practice despite the increasing amount of waste. However, due to the continuously rising amount of waste, not only there is a shortage of land to fill with the waste, but the negative impacts of such practice on the environment is also being more intense. It is evident that the Hong Kong government needs to adopt a new approach to manage the wastes so that the huge amount of solid waste can be handled effectively without degrading the environment. The current research focuses on identifying the issues in existing waste management policies in Hong Kong. The research is also important because it recommends new waste management strategies in Hong Kong.

Organization of the research:

The research is segmented into six chapters. The first chapter deals with analysis on background of the research, problem statement, aim of the research and research questions. The second chapter is about the research objectives. The third chapter includes review of the literature related to the research topic. The fourth chapter describes the research methodology and the primary data is analyzed in the fifth chapter. The sixth chapter includes recommendations and conclusion.

Summary:

Discussion in this chapter indicates that the Hong Kong government needs to change their waste management policies in order to handle the huge amount of waste generated due to construction and demolition works every year. So, the government of Hong Kong needs to adopt new waste management policies to handle the increasing amount of solid waste. 

Chapter 2: Objectives 

Introduction:

Development of research objectives helps the researcher to meet aim of the study in a systematic way. Objectives for the current research are mentioned in this chapter.
Research objectives:

  1. •    To identify the issues in generation and disposal of construction wastes

  2. •    To evaluate the waste management policies of the Hong Kong Government

  3. •    To recommend suitable C&D waste management policies for Hong Kong

Conclusion:

Objectives mentioned in the current research indicate that the research focused on identification of the issues associated with generation of the construction wastes. The researcher also focused on evaluating the current waste management policies of the Hong Kong government, and recommending strategies for improving the existing system. 

Chapter 3: Literature Review 

Introduction:

Managing the waste generated in a city is crucial for preserving the environment (Lu et al.2015; Lu et al.2016; Wang et al.2016). The traditional ways for managing the waste such as land filling with the solid wastes causes severe degradation whereas the contemporary approaches such as recycling the wastes reduces the negative impacts on the environment. Managing the waste becomes more difficult when huge amount of waste is generated in a city. Hong Kong is one such city where huge amount of solid waste is generated every year and a major portion of the waste is used for land filling. In 2016, 1.41 kg waste per capita was used for land filling and it was about 3 % higher than the amount of per capita wastes used in land filling in 2015 (Epd.gov.hk.,2018). It indicates that a huge amount of wastes is used to land fill in Hong Kong every year and the amount is increasing every year. As a result, the environmental degradation caused due to improper waste management is also getting intensified. The C&D demolition wastes constitute a significant part of the total waste. In 2016, the C&D waste constituted about 29% of the total solid wastes which was used for land filling (Epd.gov.hk.,2018). Analysis on the current situation in Hong Kong indicates, the existing waste management practices of the city require being modified. In this research the existing practices of waste management in Hong Kong are reviewed and gaps in current policies are identified. 

Current issues in construction and demolition disposal in Hong Kong:

The Hong Kong Government encounters several issues to manage the C&D wastes in Hong Kong because of the huge amount of wastes and lack of sustainable disposal policies. The issues in waste management that are degrading the environment in Hong Kong are:
Generation of huge amount of C&D waste: One of the main issues in the waste management in Hong Kong is, generation of huge amount of wastes every year. In 2007, the total amount of generated construction waste in Hong Kong was about 8.4 million tonnes whereas the amount of construction waste used in land filling in the year 2016 was more than 24 millions (Epd.gov.hk.,2018). It can be stated that the rate of construction waste generation increased during the period in a rapid rate.

The term construction waste indicates the substance which is generated due to construction works, found in abandoned and unprocessed form (Chen et al.2017; Chinda, 2016; Evangelista et al.2015). The materials generated because of clearing construction site, demolition, excavating or refurbishment are also considered as the construction works. However, the root causes of generating huge amount of construction waste are as follow:

  1. Increasing number of construction works: The amount of construction wastes increases with the number and frequency of construction works (Rodríguez et al.2015; Chen & Lu, 2017; He et al.2014; Ledesma et al.2-15). In the developing cities, more number of construction works is found and it increases the amount of generated wastes also. Being a rapidly developing city, in Hong Kong also, a huge number of construction works take place every year and it causes the large amount of solid construction wastes. 

  2. Poor material management: Managing the raw material for construction works in right way is crucial for reducing the amount of wastes (Kucukvar et al.2014; Li et al. 2016; Tam et al.2014). The construction works undertaken in Hog Kong often lack proper policies for managing the raw material and so, large amount of construction waste is generated here every year.

  3. Improper design and mistakes: Frequent changes in the construction design increases the amount of waste. On the other hand, frequent errors in the construction works also generate more waste (Won et al.2016; Butera et al.2015; Schlummer et al.2016). In case of Hong Kong, these two reasons also played a pivotal role in increasing the amount of construction waste. 

  4. Leaving leftover materials in the construction sites: Leaving the leftover raw materials in the construction site is another cause of huge amount of waste generation. Lack of [roper waste management policies also caused generation of large amount of waste in Hong Kong.

  5. Waste disposal for land filling: More than 90% of the construction wastes in Hong Kong is used as public fill (Udawatta et al.2015; Li et al.2015; Oleinik & Grigorieva, 2014). The inert construction wastes such as the rubber and concrete are used for public fill despite such wastes can be recycled and used for construction works again. However, the existing land filling facilities and reclamation sites in Hong Kong are not able to accommodate the huge amount of construction wastes. In 2013, the construction wastes constituted 25% of the total public fill wastes whereas the amount increased to 29% in 2016 (Epd.gov.hk., 2018). If the C&D wastes are generated in the city in an increasing trend, the public fill capacity in Hong Kong is going to be fully depleted in near future. 

  6. Managing land contamination: Use of construction wastes for public fill contaminates the land (Chen et al.2015; Tam et al.2015; Wan et al.2018). As use of solid wastes for land filling is a common practice in Hong Kong, the level of contamination becomes more intense with the increasing amount of wastes used for land-filling.

Current waste management policies in Hong Kong:

The waste management strategy of the Hong Kong management focuses on avoiding and minimizing the waste generation, reusing and recycling the waste. The final aim of the Hong Kong government is reducing the amount of waste disposal with time.

The aim of the Hong Kong government for waste management is reducing the generation of construction waste. Managing the waste becomes more difficult with its amount (Wang et al.2014; Xu et al.2017). Therefore, the focus of the Hong Kong government for reducing the amount of construction waste is effective for obtaining long term benefits. The Hong Kong government also focuses on maximizing the recycling and reusing the generated construction waste. Recycling and reusing the wastes is a sustainable way (Butera et al.2015; Sarhan et al.2017; Yuan & Wang, 2014). So, it can be stated that the focus of the Hong Kong government for maximizing recycling and reusing the construction waste can provide the government with long term benefits. However, the government also uses some part of the construction waste for land filling. Using wastes for land filling degrades the environment. Therefore, it is not an effective practice for managing the waste. Having enough space to accommodate huge number of wastes for land filling is another issue. In case of Hong Kong, the available land filling sites also are being depleted rapidly and so, there is a scarcity for the adequate space for accommodating the waste.

  1. Charging schemes for waste management in Hong Kong: (Refer to appendix 2,3 and 4): Analysis on the charging policies of Hong Kong government indicates that the government has increased the charges significantly than it was in 2016 with the intention to manage the C&D wastes in more efficient manner. However, despite the increase in charges, the amount of waste also increased.

  2. Identification of problems in waste management: The current status of waste management policies in Hong Kong indicates that the city is encountering a number of issues to manage the increasing amount of waste in the city. The amount of construction waste is increasing at a rapid rate. However, the city has limited number of land fill sites which can be used for treating the C&D waste. Analysis on the current condition of waste management in Hong Kong indicates that the major problems in waste management practices of the city are – 

  3. Lack of adequate land filling sites: In Hong Kong, there are three strategic sites for land filling. The West New Territories land fill has the capacity of 61 Mm3 whereas the rest two strategic land fill sites such as South East New Territories Landfill and North East New territories Landfill have the capacities of 43 Mm3 and 35Mm3 respectively (Epd.gov.hk.,2018). However, the rate of generation of construction waste is very high in Hong Kong and if the rate of waste generation is controlled, the public fill facilities will not remain able to accommodate the increasing amount of waste by late 2010s (Wu et al.2014). Similarly, the capacities of land filling sites are also reducing at a very fast rate. If the generation of waste is not controlled, in near future, the Hong Kong management will face problem to stockpile the construction and demolition waste.

  4. Lack of policies to control the increasing amount of waste:   The   amount  of  construction   waste  increased   significantly  from 1991 to 2016. In Hong Kong, the amount of per capita waste , which was used for land filling , increased by 3% from 2015 to 2016 (Epd.gov.hk.,2018). A huge portion of the solid waste used for the land filling purpose was generated from the construction and demolition work. It indicates that the government needs to take policies for controlling the generation of construction waste. (Refer to appendix 4)

  5.  The Hong Kong government has taken some policies for the waste reduction. For instance, the Hong Kong government gives importance on identifying the category of waste and set waste reduction and recycling targets for each identified category. In addition, the Hong Kong government also gives importance on reviewing the west generation trends and set the guidelines for disposal practices for each type of waste. Although the Hong Kong government has developed some guidelines for controlling the generation and disposal of wastes, these guidelines are not highly effective for reducing the amount of waste significantly. So, it can be stated that there is an urgent need for introducing stricter guidelines for reducing the waste generation.

  6.  Lack of infrastructure for recycling the wastes: In 2015, the average amount of construction waste used for landfills was about 4200 tonnes per day (Epd.gov.hk.,2018). A major portion of the total solid waste generated in Hong Kong constituted with inert material which can be recycled and reused for the construction works. However, Hong Kong is more dependent on the service industry and the city does not have adequate infrastructure for waste recycling. In most of the cases, the waste that has to be exported outside the city for recycling. The current discussion on the recycling policy in Hong Kong indicates that the lack of infrastructure is restricting the government from recycling and reusing more amount of C&D waste. As there is very limited recycling opportunity, even the recyclable wastes in Hong Kong are used for land filling. It not only restricts the government from optimizing usability of the abandoned materials, but the depletion rate of public filling sites is also increasing. It, in turn, is intensifying the current waste management problems in Hong Kong.

Evaluation of Construction waste disposal charging scheme and other associated policies

The Hong Kong government has adopted several disposal charging schemes and other associated policies to control the disposal of generated waste. However, these disposal policies have different impacts on the waste management procedure in Hong Kong.
 Since 2005, the government of Hong Kong has implemented the waste disposal charging scheme (Laurent et al.2014). According to the charging scheme, the waste generators have to open a billing account and pay for the disposal and treatment. Any material or substance that have been abandoned after the construction work, processed or in unprocessed form is considered as the construction waste and come under the charging scheme. The wastes generated from dredging work, deslugging and desilting work are also considered as the construction waste and treatment of such wastes is done according to the disposal charging scheme.
 The Hong Kong Government focuses on charging the waste producers such as renovation contractors, the construction contractors and the premises owners for disposing the wastes at the public land filling. Depending upon the amount of waste, the charges for disposal are decided. Additionally, except the outlying islands transfer facilities, the minimum loading charges for the public filling facilities, sorting facilities and the land fill facilities is for 1 ton. In other words, even if the waste generators have to pay for 1 ton waste. Implementation of the disposal charging scheme increases the cost of contractors and premise owners. 
Discussion on the disposal charging scheme in Hong Kong indicates that the waste generators have to pay higher amount for disposing large amount of wastes. It can restrict the construction owners and contractors from generating the wastes in larger amount. The charging policies of the Hong Kong government encourage the waste producers for managing the waste at every stage of construction and the recycling the maximum amount of waste. The disposal charging scheme, in turn, also reduces the depletion rate of landfills.
Guidelines for raw material management: Managing the raw material is crucial for reducing the amount of waste at the time of construction (Sáez et al.2014; Calvo et al.2014). The Hong Kong government provides the construction contractors with guidelines for managing specific materials such as sand, cement and plaster to avoid damages. In addition, the government also suggests the contractors to order the raw materials on time for reducing the damage. 
 A huge amount of construction wastes are generated due to improper storage. The guidelines provided by the Hong Kong government help the contractors to reduce the damage of raw materials and so, cut down the total amount of construction waste. 
Lean and modular construction: The Hong Kong government is focusing on encouraging the contractors for switching the lean buildings and the buildings with modular design. The lean buildings are created with thinner walls and smaller foundations (Bravo et al.2015; Kurdve et al.2015; Smol et al.2015). As a result, less amount of raw materials are required for developing the buildings. Use of fewer amounts of raw materials reduces total amount of generated wastes also.

Case study of waste disposal policy in other regions:

Not only in Hong Kong, is management of waste one of the major challenges in other large cities also across the globe. However, assessing the waste management policies used in the other cities is necessary for modifying the waste management policies of the city. 
Waste management policies used for construction of police and court complexes in Melbourne: The construction of court and police complex in Melbourne can be considered as a prominent example of the waste management policies in the urban areas. While constructing the complex, the constructor helped to reduce the amount of waste generated from the construction work.
The constructors separated the waste materials for maximizing the rate of reuse and the recycling. The constructor also focused on reuse of the demolition materials. Another strategy used by the constructor was recording the waste generation statistics and reviewing the policies.
Reuse and recycling the construction materials optimizes their usability and hence the amount of generated waste reduces (Brunner & Rechberger, 2015). Tracking the data on waste generation also helps the constructors to identify the issues in their policies (Gangolell et al.2014). In case of police and court complex in Melbourne, the constructors were managed to reuse about 30% of the total waste and saved approximately 55% of the financial costs for waste removal (Laurent et al.2014). It indicates that the strategy of reusing the materials and reviewing the waste management policies are effective for reducing the total amount of waste and also for keeping the construction cost low. The same policies can be used for the construction works in Hong Kong also to reduce the amount of waste.
Reconstruction of Birkenhead Apartments in Sydney: The scope of the project included expansion of the Birkenhead shopping center and construction of five residential buildings. The large construction work generated huge amount of construction and demolition wastes when the project was being undertaken. However the project management team used the following strategies for the development of this housing. 
Setting up waste management teams: Development of separate waste management rams helped the project manager to keep an eye on the generation of waste and reviewing the policies continuously.
Including the waste management policies into the contract: Inclusion of the waste management policies to the contract helped the project manager to ensure that all the stakeholders are abiding by the waste management policies. It again helped the project manager to reduce waste generation.
Introducing financial penalties for violation of the waste management policies: Introducing financial penalties for violating the waste management rules and regulations encouraged every stakeholder to minimize the amount of waste. 
Taking help from the external experts: Taking help from the experts on the waste management policies helped the project manager to review their existing policies and make them better. The waste management policies for the current construction work also included –

  1. Allocation of special area for sorting the waste: Sorting the wastes before treating them helps the constructors to identify the recyclable items (Silva et al.2014). In case of the apartments construction also, the project manager focused on sorting the wastes. It , in turn helped the managers to remove the recyclable items.

  2. Returning the packages: The packages used to deliver the raw materials of construction work increases the total amount of waste. In this case, the constructor returned all the packages abd it reduced the amount of waste significantly.

  3. Giving importance on the waste recycling: Recycling the waste materials is effective for enhancing usability of the materials and reducing the negative impacts on the environment. 

  4. Recording the waste by type and volume: Recording the wastes by size or category helped the project manager to review their policies and take actions accordingly. 

  5. Educating and training the subcontractors: Educating the sub-contractors with the knowledge on waste reduction and management helped the project manager to reduce the amount of waste at all levels of the construction.

 Adoption of the above stated strategies helped the constructor to recycle about 77% of the total waste (Kern et al.2015). It, in turn , reduced the amount of waste which was used to landfill. Educating the sub contractors helped the project manager to obtain long term benefits from the program.

Summary:

The above discussion on the waste management policies of Hong Kong government indicates that the government focuses on reusing and recycling the wastes. However, due to lack of adequate infrastructure and the lack of strict guidelines, such efforts do not provide the requested results. The waste disposal charging schemes in Hong Kong are effective for encouraging the waste generators to reduce less amount of waste and recycling the generated waste instead of land filling. However, the rate of waste generation in Hong Kong is quite high. So, only implementing the disposal charging schemes is not sufficient for managing the increasing amount of construction waste. Here, the waste management policies used at the time of police and court complex are analyzed. The waste review policies by the Melbourne constructor can be followed in case of Hong Kong constructions also. Analysis on the waste management policies of Birkenhead Apartments indicates that the project manager along with adopting the other waste management policies focused on educating the sub-contractors also and it provided them with long-term benefits.

 

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