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Ma says Taipei's use of landfills to end by 2010

"I have to work harder because the survey shows that Taipei residents are more satisfied with [the city's] environmental policies than they are with the city mayor."

Ma Ying-jeou, Taipei mayor

Taipei City will stop using landfills to dispose of trash by 2010, Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) said yesterday.

At a ceremony celebrating the second anniversary of a plan where-by city residents can only dispose of their trash in Taipei City trash bags, the price of which includes a fee for their disposal, Ma said the goal would be achieved through recycling and incineration.

Last month, 2.7 percent of the city's household waste and non-hazardous waste, about 317 tonnes a day, was disposed of at the city's only landfill, at Shanchuku (山豬窟), according to the city's Bureau of Environmental Protection.

Last year, the landfill was receiving an average of 1,815 tonnes a day.

The fall is a result of the city's efforts to find alternatives to landfill sites, after a sharp increase in waste reduced the lifespan of the Shanchuku site.

Typhoon Nari, which caused severe flooding in Taipei City last September, boosted the amount of household waste dumped at the site, meaning it will fill up by June 2004, six months earlier than predicted.

A new landfill in Neihu, known as the Third Landfill (第三掩埋場), is expected to be completed by June 2006.

Ma yesterday praised the city's waste management policies, saying a recent survey of public opinion indicated residents were satisfied with what had been achieved.

"I have to work harder because the survey shows that Taipei residents are more satisfied with [the city's] environmental policies than they are with the city mayor," Ma said.

The city is producing a third less trash than it did before the introduction of the per-bag trash collection fee in July 2000, according to city officials.

Officials said they wanted to increase the percentage of garbage recycled to 25, from 17 percent now, to ease the burden on the city's only landfill and three incinerators.

They plan to do this by promoting the recycling of organic waste, such as food leftovers, and inspecting the trash sent to incinerators.

Yesterday, the city's Bureau of Environmental Protection released details about a one-month trial it will conduct next month in which food leftovers will be collected in four boroughs in the Nankang (南港) and Wenshan (文山) districts.

Modified garbage trucks that will be used in the trial, starting on Aug. 1, to collect recyclable waste and food leftovers were presented at the ceremony yesterday.

A waste-processing plant that can handle 90 tonnes of organic waste a day is expected to be completed by February next year.

The city will also try to increase the amount of garbage recycled by inspecting the trash sent to incinerators to sieve out reusable material. The city's three incinerators burn about 2,400 tonnes of household and non-hazardous waste a day.

In addition, officials said, by 2007, the ash collected from incinerators and the sludge collected from sanitary sewers will be treated before being processed into construction materials.
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