Enhancement of Municipal Solid Waste Management in Hong Kong through Innovative Solutions: A Review

With the world population having reached 8 billion people, waste generation is expected to continue its growth in the coming years. Solid waste management (SWM) is an essential part of sustainable development that aims to minimize adverse environmental impacts. Although waste problems have been monitored for decades, some regions still struggle to achieve their sustainability goals in this area. In particular, Hong Kong is still affected by overloaded landfills, with an average daily disposal of 14,739 tonnes. The major waste category is municipal solid waste (MSW), which originates from households and commercial activities. This paper provides an overview of the current SWM strategies and the advancement of technologies adopted in the SWM industry. Supported by a comprehensive literature review, this paper identifies the challenges of SWM in Hong Kong and suggests possible solutions. The findings lead to the direction of future research, which should include innovative solutions for improving recycling behaviors. Adopting technologies such as virtual reality on education platforms and developing mobile applications with a theme of SWM could promote a stronger awareness of waste reduction and recycling among the public.

Automated summary

With a global population of 8 billion people, waste generation is expected to continue increasing in the future. Solid waste management is crucial for sustainable development and reducing environmental impacts. Despite decades of monitoring waste problems, some regions, such as Hong Kong, still face challenges in achieving their sustainability goals, particularly with overloaded landfills and high daily disposal rates.