Investigation on the Sources and Fates of Marine Refuse in Hong Kong Study Report April 2015 Environmental Protection Department Investigation on the Sources and Fates of Marine Refuse in Hong Kong 319475 ENP ENL 03/09 V6r P:\Hong Kong\ENL\PROJECTS\319475_Marine Refuse\03 Deliverables\09 Executive Summary\Rev 8\20150409 Received from February 2015 InvestigationStudy Report on the Sources and Fates of Marine Refuse in H Study Report April 2015 Environmental Protection Department Mott MacDonald, 20/F AIA Kowloon Tower, Landmark East, 100 How Ming Street, Kwun Tong, Kowloon, Hong Kong T +852 2828 5757 F +852 2827 1823 W www.mottmac.com Investigation on the Sources and Fates of Marine Refuse in Hong Kong Study Report Contents Chapter Title Page Study Report 1 1. Introduction _______________________________________________________________________ 1 2. Study Method ______________________________________________________________________ 3 3. Background on Quantity and Trend of Marine Reuse _____________________________________ 4 4. Nature and Origin of Marine Refuse ___________________________________________________ 6 5. Composition of Marine Refuse _______________________________________________________ 8 6. Sources of Marine Refuse __________________________________________________________ 12 7. Impact of Refuse Sources __________________________________________________________ 15 8. Seasonal and Spatial Distribution of Marine Refuse _____________________________________ 16 9. Shorelines Vulnerable to Refuse Accumulation ________________________________________ 21 10. Improvement Measures ____________________________________________________________ 23 11. Conclusions ______________________________________________________________________ 26 Appendix A. Landforms of Hong Kong Shores and the Locations of Survey Sites ___________________________ 28 Appendix B. Sample Data Card for the Marine Refuse Surveys _________________________________________ 30 Appendix C. Geographical Distribution of Non-local Items _____________________________________________ 33 Appendix D. Summary of Actions under the Improvement Measures _____________________________________ 35 Appendix E. Marine Refuse Priority Sites __________________________________________________________ 38 Tables Table 1: Possible Major Sources of Marine Refuse and Types of Activities _____________________________ 13 Figures Figure 1: Sampling Area for Focus Survey ________________________________________________________ 4 Figure 2: Annual Trend of Marine Refuse Collected by Government Departments in 2006-2013 ______________ 5 Figure 3: Distribution of Floating Refuse and Shoreline Refuse (April 2013 – March 2014) (by weight) ________ 6 Figure 4: Examples of Non-local Refuse Items ____________________________________________________ 7 Figure 5: Composition of Marine Refuse _________________________________________________________ 8 Figure 6: Top Ten Types of Refuse in Hong Kong __________________________________________________ 9 Figure 7: Examples of Foam Plastic Items _______________________________________________________ 10 Figure 8: Refuse Collected after Festivals _______________________________________________________ 11 Figure 9: Refuse on Stanley Main Beach and Shek O Beach after Festive Events ________________________ 11 Figure 10: Percentage of Marine Refuse due to Human Activities ______________________________________ 14 Figure 11: Variation of Marine Refuse Amount in Wet Season, Severe Weather and Dry Season _____________ 17 Figure 12: Marine Refuse Amount and Monthly Rainfall _____________________________________________ 17 Figure 13: Composition of Shoreline and Floating Refuse ____________________________________________ 18 Figure 14: Source Activities of Shoreline and Floating Refuse ________________________________________ 19 Figure 15: Geographical Distribution of Marine Refuse (by weight) _____________________________________ 20 Figure 16: Factors Influencing Hong Kong's Hydrography during Wet and Dry Seasons ____________________ 21 Figure 17: Shores Vulnerable to Refuse Accumulation in Wet Season __________________________________ 22 Figure 18: Shores Vulnerable to Refuse Accumulation in Dry Season __________________________________ 22 319475/ENP/ENL/03/09/V6r February 2015 P:\Hong Kong\ENL\PROJECTS\319475_Marine Refuse\03 Deliverables\09 Executive Summary\Rev.8\20150409 Received from EPD\StudyReport(ENG)v8a_20150408.docx Investigation on the Sources and Fates of Marine Refuse in Hong Kong Study Report Study Report 1. Introduction Marine refuse refers to any solid waste, discarded or lost material, resulting from human activities, that has entered Hong Kong’s marine environment irrespective of their sources. While it comprises less than 0.5% of municipal solid waste disposed of by the Government, the presence of marine refuse may pose adverse impacts on the marine ecosystems and other sensitive beneficial uses of our waters. The Government set up an Interdepartmental Working Group on Clean Shorelines (WG) in November 2012 to enhance coordination among the relevant government departments in addressing the marine refuse problem, and in support of the WG, this study was conducted to collect, collate and analyse up-to-date information on the sources, distribution and movement of marine refuse in Hong Kong waters, and to suggest measures to further improve the cleanliness of our shorelines. Abbreviations The following abbreviations are used in this report: AFCD Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department ECC Environmental Campaign Committee ECF Environment and Conservation Fund FEHD Food and Environmental Hygiene Department ICC International Coastal Cleanup IOC Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission LCSD Leisure and Cultural Services Department m/s Meter per second MD Marine Department NGO Non-Governmental Organisation NMDMP National Marine Debris Monitoring Program NOWPAP Northwest Pacific Action Plan OC Ocean Conservancy SEPA Student Environmental Protection Ambassador UNEP United Nations Environment Programme USEPA US Environmental Protection Agency WG Interdepartmental Working Group on Clean Shorelines WWF World Wildlife Fund 319475/ENP/ENL/03/09/V6r February 2015 P:\Hong Kong\ENL\PROJECTS\319475_Marine Refuse\03 Deliverables\09 Executive Summary\Rev.8\20150409 Received 1 from EPD\StudyReport(ENG)v8a_20150408.docx Investigation on the Sources and Fates of Marine Refuse in Hong Kong Study Report Definitions "Marine refuse" refers to any solid waste, discarded or lost material, resulting from human activities, that has entered the marine environment irrespective of their sources. According to the Guidelines on Survey and Monitoring of Marine Litter (Cheshire et al. 2009) published by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC), "marine refuse" can be broadly classified into the following materials of man-made origins, including: Plastics (e.g. moulded, soft, foam, nets, ropes, buoys, monofilament line and other fisheries-related equipment, smoking-related items such as cigarette butts or lighters); Metal (e.g. drink cans, bottle caps, pull tabs); Glass (e.g. buoys, light bulbs, fluorescent tubes, bottles); Processed timber (including particle board); Paper (including cardboard); Rubber; and Cloth. Following the above definition and the current practices of refuse collection by government departments (Section 3), “marine refuse” in this Study includes the refuse floating on the sea which is collected by MD and LCSD, together with refuse that has been washed ashore and collected by AFCD, FEHD and LCSD. “Floating refuse collected by the Marine Department” refers to floating refuse within Hong Kong waters including foreshore areas and typhoon shelters. Domestic refuse collected from dwelling vessels inside typhoon shelters is not considered in this Study. "Land refuse" refers to any solid waste, discarded or lost material, resulting from human activities that has not yet entered the marine environment and found on land. In this Study, it also refers to refuse collected on the sandy area of gazetted beaches by LCSD. “Shoreline refuse” refers to marine refuse collected by government departments but excludes floating refuse collected by MD. Land refuse collected by LCSD is not defined as marine refuse. “Natural debris” refers to refuse generated by natural causes such as severe weather events in which human activities are not involved (e.g. seaweed, tree branches, dead leaves. seashells, etc.). It is not regarded as “marine refuse” in this study and excluded in all charts, figures and analysis, unless otherwise specified. “Refuse from marine-based sources” refers to refuse generated from ocean/waterway activities and marine littering. “Refuse from land-based sources” refers to refuse generated from human activities conducted on land, near the coast or nearshore. “Wet season” refers to period starting from April to October. “Dry season” refers to period starting from November to March. 319475/ENP/ENL/03/09/V6r February 2015 P:\Hong Kong\ENL\PROJECTS\319475_Marine Refuse\03 Deliverables\09 Executive Summary\Rev.8\20150409 Received 2 from EPD\StudyReport(ENG)v8a_20150408.docx Investigation on the Sources and Fates of Marine Refuse in Hong Kong Study Report Analysis of marine refuse is mainly based on the survey findings and data collected from April 2013 to March 2014. The results expressed in percentages and shown in various in figures are based on the count of refuse items, unless otherwise