Hong Kong can align with Guangdong's zero-waste goal for National Games

South China Morning Post

2 days ago

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With fewer than 100 days to go until the National Games, the co-hosts are preparing to showcase not only athletic excellence but also their commitment to sustainability. Guangdong province has set a clear goal: to host a green, low-carbon and zero-waste Games.
In Hong Kong, the state-of-the-art Kai Tak Sports Park is gearing up for its role as a key venue. Yet, recent discussions suggest that Hong Kong's current approach may not fully reflect its sustainability ambitions.
In response to a lawmaker's question in the Legislative Council, the secretary for culture, sports and tourism said that using reusable plastic cups at Kai Tak would
'undermine' efforts to promote carbon reduction and resource recycling. The secretary instead expressed a preference for biodegradable paper cups, arguing that reusables would consume more resources and generate higher emissions.
This reasoning deserves clarification. While plastic-free is an important goal, it is commonly understood as avoiding disposable plastic. In a truly zero-waste framework, however, the focus should be on reducing all single-use items, not just the material. Choosing paper cups over reusable ones may satisfy the plastic-free criterion but risks losing sight of the broader objective – shifting away from a throwaway culture. The 4R's – reduce, reuse, recycle, recover – highlight the importance of prioritising reduction and reuse as primary waste management strategies.
Reusables are essential to effective waste reduction. A recent Greenpeace report reveals that a well-implemented reusable cup system at Kai Tak Sports Park could eliminate up to 6 million single-use cups over three years. Compared to single-use paper cups, reusable cups perform better in 15 out of 16 environmental impact categories – including climate change, water depletion and marine ecotoxicity. Notably, such a system could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 51 per cent to 75 per cent.