Conservation group calls for waste processing plants over artificial Island

The Hong Kong Dolphin Conservation Society is urging Macau authorities to build construction waste screening and processing facilities instead of an artificial island made from the debris.

In a statement, the group has said the ecological island proposal is not an effective solution to Macau’s waste issues.

The society argues the government should recycle and reuse inert waste like concrete and rubble, which has a recycling rate of over 95%.

The conservation group, after contacting a Chinese builder of waste processing plants, has found a single facility could process one-fourth of Macau’s construction waste from last year if operating continuously for a year.

The society is calling on authorities to build four such plants on a 10-hectare plot near the existing landfill.

The group notes the four facilities would require only 1.6 hectares of land and cost around MOP13.2 million.

In comparison, the artificial island requires 245 hectares of marine area and MOP15.6 billion. The plants could be operational by 2025, according to the Society.

It warns the island threatens the habitat of endangered Chinese white dolphins and blocks their movement in the Pearl River estuary.

An earlier study found Macau’s entire marine area is important for the dolphin population.

The NGO last week launched a campaign urging public opposition to the government’s island proposal in letters to environmental authorities. A decision on the project is pending.

Meanwhile, yesterday, the government announced the ecological island project’s public consultation period has been extended by 11 days.

Originally scheduled to end Sunday, the deadline will now be extended until May 9.

The Environmental Protection Bureau (DSPA) said this extension is to gather more opinions from various sectors of society.

Currently, most opinions support construction of the new landfill for urban waste, the DSPA claimed.

However, there have been requests to relocate the site and establish protection zones for Chinese white dolphins.

The SAR government has reiterated that Chinese central authorities will make the ultimate decision.

The controversial ecological island has been a concern for environmentalists since its announcement because of the presence of Chinese white dolphins in the area.

Lawmaker Ron Lam has previously alleged the government is withholding information concerning the effects of a landfill island on the white dolphins’ survival.

Lam has said the authorities’ scientific research has shown the existence of these marine mammals in the region where the government is evaluating the construction of the aforementioned ecological island.

However, lawmaker Ma Chi Seng said that should the ecological survey teams conducting a feasibility survey greenlight construction of the ecological island, the government can continue to improve the protection of Macau’s natural ecology and cultural landscape, and build a low-carbon, high-quality, livable and tourist-friendly ecological environment for Macau. Staff Reporter