Rubbish Piles Up Over Holiday Break

Hongkongers took to beaches, hiking trails, camping grounds and outlying islands in droves over the Easter and Ching Ming holiday – but not everyone who enjoyed the countryside left it in the condition they found it in.

Photos shared online showed mounds of rubbish piled next to overflowing rubbish bins in scenic spots, with commenters expressing disappointment and disgust.

“People who have the habit of going to the countryside, they will bring their rubbish away,” said Henry Lui, a senior conservation manager at the environmental group Green Power, adding that people who don’t regularly visit the countryside may have not prepared well and just disposed of their rubbish while they were outside.

Lui said people need to be educated about the problems associated with leaving rubbish in the countryside, but was against the idea of temporarily installing more rubbish bins to handle the additional waste.

“If you leave the rubbish bin in the countryside, there are many other problems – I think it’s not the right solution,” he said. “Maybe some animals will take away the rubbish and the wind will blow away the rubbish – I don’t think it’s a good solution.”

Lui said people who want to go hiking or camping should bring food that doesn’t come with packaging, and take waterproof bags out with them, so they can bring any rubbish they create back home with them.