New plan for Tuen Mun landfill extension fails to satisfy councillors

The environment minister has been told to come up with a better offer if he wants to stand a chance of winning over local politicians resisting a landfill extension plan in Tuen Mun.

Revisions to the plan will see the extension shrink by 20 hectares to 180 hectares, with the unused area turned into green buffers of 10 to 30 metres wide encircling the landfill to minimise any impact on nearby residents.

Secretary for the Environment Wong Kam-sing also suggests undertaking the project in phases. The concessions were made after half of Tuen Mun district councillors walked out of an April meeting with the minister in opposition to the expansion.

But the mere 10 per cent reduction, unveiled yesterday, still failed to appease councillors as it was far smaller than the 75 per cent they had asked for.

"We have all been saying we can accept only a 50-hectare extension," councillor Ho Hang-mui, of the Democratic Party, told Wong and other officials at a special meeting.

Councillors want compensation for affected residents, road improvements and a system to reduce household waste. They also argue the district already has more than its fair share of objectionable facilities, including a columbarium, on top of bearing the bulk of the city's waste.