Living Smart

II ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY 056 057 them as food and they remain intact throughout. Scientists therefore use the term “500 years” to refer to a process that would take “a really, really long time.” Even if plastics undergo photolysis under the sun, they won’ t be degraded and will just be “downsized.” Some may become very small and hardly recognized by the naked eye, giving these tiny plastic bits a high chance of entering the bodies of plants and animals. While it is unclear how these tiny plastics affect living creatures, we must pay more attention to the potential danger that plastic pollution poses to our society. Today, some companies have released biodegradable plastic bags and diapers. But since these plastic products are sensitive to temperature and humidity and their quality changes over time, reception to them in Hong Kong is lukewarm. In her policy address in October, Chief Executive Carrie LAM CHENG Yuet-Ngor said the government would launch before the end of the year a feasibility study on the control or ban of single-use plastic tableware. Reducing waste at source will still play a crucial role in curbing plastic pollution. Adopting a greener lifestyle holds the key in the next 500 years. Published on December 12, 2018 Go full charge into waste revolution Dr. James WONG Lecturer I, Divisions of Public Policy and Social Science A s details of a long-awaited waste charging scheme were recently put forward by the government, politicians and opinion leaders are debating whether the rate has been set at the optimal level to ensure effective compliance. This is undeniably a crucial question. But why do we care about compliance? Charging for waste is an example of “eco-taxes” which seek to discourage people from pollution through fiscal incentives. Based on the polluter-pays principle, it puts a price tag on waste disposal. The more the waste that needs to be disposed, the higher the cost that people will need to pay. An apparent advantage of eco-taxes is flexibility. It offers people the freedom to decide whether and how far they want to comply. Instead of coercion, the fiscal incentives encourage people to reduce or eliminate the polluting behavior. However, it is not difficult to identify compliance challenges for waste charging. People can stay unmotivated to reduce waste disposal if the rate is too low. On the other hand, a relatively high rate may motivate people to find ways to get around the charge, such as dumping garbage in bins on the streets or even other people’ s backyards, hence requiring additional manpower to guard against trash disposal. This way, eco-taxes are targeting changes in people’ s behavior without dealing with their underlying attitudes.