The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) yesterday launched a campaign to reduce public waste during the Mid-Autumn Festival, following estimates by environmental protection group Re-think that the annual festivity could produce 3 million pieces of trash in one day.
Assuming 1 barbecue grill could produce 106 pieces of trash and more than 30,000 grills were used on the holiday yesterday, they would produce more than 3 million pieces of trash, according to the non-profit campaign’s Facebook page.
The EPA is encouraging people to submit pictures showing low-emissions, environmentally friendly Mid-Autumn Festival activities.
People can upload their entries to www.greenpoint.org.tw until Oct. 15, from which the agency is to select 200 winners who will receive gift coupons.
In addition, the first 500 individuals who fill out a questionnaire after registering on the Web site will receive 1,000 “green points,” the EPA said.
“Green points” is a project launched last year by the agency to encourage people to take public transportation or buy “green” products at designated stores. Using EasyCards, each 100 “green points” can be exchanged for NT$1.
The EPA also offered several environmentally friendly tips for marking the holiday, such as taking public transportation or riding a bicycle when going out; visiting nearby environmental promotional areas or low-carbon promotional areas for moon-watching; buying local, in-season foodstuffs; using recyclable shopping bags and avoiding items that have too much packaging.
The agency also advised people against using disposable utensils, cups and plates, which are some of the biggest sources of trash.
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