Join The Green DBers! Transformation Time!

DB just keeps getting greener! Ray Au takes a look at City Management’s ongoing success stories and latest initiatives, with a little help from the DC Green Cobras. PHOTOS BY Richard Gordon -

www.richardgordonphotography.com

& courtesy of City Management

These days, as DB residents, we can pret ty much write our own ticket when it comes to living green. We can practice the 5 Rs of waste reduction (refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose, recycle) and we can make sustainable choices in everything from the food we eat to the clothes we wear. What’s more, there are many community-wide initiatives in place to help us in our bid to be kinder to the planet. An Environmental Protection Depar tment (EPD) pilot launched by City Management (CM) in December 2021, DB’s food-waste collection scheme is a case in point, and an ongoing success story. From the get-go, over 500 households registered to take par t, and 54 food-waste collection bins were placed across 18 DB villages. One resident involved from the star t is Laura Paddison, a Year 12 student at Discovery College (DC), and a committed member of her school’s green group, the DC Green Cobras. Let’s see what she has to say.

FOOD-WASTE COLLECTION SCHEME

“My family has taken par t in the food-waste collection scheme since it started,” Laura opens. “There was composting outside our house when we first moved to DB four years ago. The bins had no signs and were full of plastic bags. When the food-waste collection scheme came out there was more encouragement from DB management, so we wanted to support it. It was great to see that more people became involved. The scheme has clear explanations and, at least where we live, plastic bags are no longer thrown into the bins with the food.” To date, more than 1,400 DB households have enrolled in the scheme, and Laura is happy to see so many DBers doing their bit to keep food waste out of landfill. “Food waste in landfills does not compost, it rots. While rotting, it produces methane – a greenhouse gas, a lot more potent than CO2,” she explains. “Also, Hong Kong has full landfills, so there is a waste problem. Reducing wasted food and using the food-waste scheme are simple steps everyone can take with next to no effor t.” “The food waste collected in DB goes to O•PARK1, the organic resources recovery centre in Siu Ho Wan,” Laura adds. “O•PARK1 turns food waste into energy and fertiliser.” On average 672kg of food waste is collected from DB per day and taken to O•PARK1. This shows that the residents involved in the scheme have already adopted a green lifestyle and are working hard to reduce food-waste generation at source. The scheme provides for sustainable handling of food waste but ultimately what’s impor tant is that each of us reduces the amount of food waste we create in our own homes. In championing the food-waste collection scheme, Laura is quick to point out how accessible it is. “We have a place to dispose of our food waste right next to our building,” she says. “Most buildings I know of have one within walking distance as well.” And how does the system work exactly? “The waste should be biodegradable, obviously,” Laura says, slightly bemused by the question. “You just put your food waste straight into the bin. Biodegradable plastic bags and other utensils that are adver tised as eco-friendly should not be thrown into DB’s foodwaste collection bins.” Residents have been asked to keep the collection points in each village clean and tidy, and, according to Laura, “the current arrangements are working quite well.” Asked whether the bins smell, Laura rolls her eyes almost imperceptibly. “I don’t think smell has been an issue so far,” she says with a smile, too polite to point out that the bins are purpose-built – leak-proof, impervious to moisture and fitted with secure lids. Alongside residential units, Fusion, Auberge Discovery Bay and some DB schools are also taking part in the food-waste collection scheme, and Laura is proud that DC is doing its part by collecting waste from the cafeteria. “The DC Green Cobras are always looking to take more actions within school to promote sustainable practices and spread more awareness because we all feel very passionate about it. “We are organising some events with my school to meet primary students and organise beach cleanups,” she says, adding, “I’m also part of the ESF Green Team Alliance, so we get to work together with other ESF schools. We are trying to create policies with ESF to spread the sustainability message across schools.” Asked about her own green lifestyle and whether she’s involved in other eco-initiatives in place in DB, Laura says she focuses mainly on reducing (always carrying a refillable bottle) and recycling. “Recycling bins are always accessible to the public,” she says. “Everyone can and should play their part.” Indeed, there are communal separation bins at all villages, for glass, plastic (bottles), paper and metal. And on Tuesdays, we can head to the Green Icon@DB, a dedicated venue established by CM, to dispose of ‘harder to recycle’ items, such as polyfoam, liquid cartons, any non-bottle plastics, rechargeable batteries and energy-saving lightbulbs. “Recycling and food-waste collection is something very common in Germany where I grew up; it was kind of part of everyday life,” Laura says. “There definitely is awareness in DB but always room for improvement. Some people are really working hard, like the Uncle Russ team who spend time recycling milk cartons. What we need now in DB is standardised sustainable actions.”

CM’S GREEN DBERS PROGRAMME

As if answering Laura’s call to action, CM is right now rolling out a Green DBers Programme as a way to draw attention to existing green initiatives, introduce new ones and get more residents involved. “Over the years, we have done a lot to make DB an eco-friendly place to live – a green lifestyle in DB has been established through various community events in landscape, leisure and environmental-care areas. With residents’ increasing participation, I believe DB can achieve social harmony eventually,” opens Ernest Lee, Assistant Director of CM. “The Green DBers Programme comprises a huge umbrella of initiatives,” Ernest adds. “It’s initiated by the community relations team of CM with joint effor ts paid by other teams and relevant stakeholders, and with the support of the Environmental Protection Sub-committee of the City Owners Committee. The objective is to build an engagement platform between residents and CM that will strengthen and give coherence to the green living ethos already established within DB.” Once enrolled in the programme, Green DBers will have access to a green lifestyle newsfeed and receive regular eco-related tips via EDM. They will also get up-to-date information about Green DBers’ events and activities, including the ongoing eco workshops, plant markets and family farm projects – and other special projects – at Community Green Square. Going forward, Green DBers will enjoy discounts at the monthly plant markets and direct access to private workshops. As a further incentive, everyone who enrols in the programme (you can do so by visiting Facebook or Instagram @DynamicDB) is being gifted a fully sustainable 2023 calendar made from seed paper. New for 2023, CM is launching an environmental programme to which Green DBers will have priority access. We can expect a series of educational talks and workshops on everything from eco-friendly cleaning products to upcycling projects for kids, plus regular recycling days and a dedicated DB Green Day. As part of the new environmental programme, CM is also organising a visit to O•PARK1 in the second quarter of the year, so that we can see how the food waste collected in DB is put to new use. “We hope DB residents will enrol in the Green DBers Programme not only because they will receive green living updates and information, but also as a way to encourage their neighbours to be eco-aware and start defining their own green lifestyle,” Ernest says. This month, CM is looking for help in naming and outfitting the Green DBers’ ambassador, a smar t little fellow whose glasses represent his eco-aware initiative. The deadline to enter the Green DBers’ Ambassador Naming and Outfit Design Contest is March 31, and you can do so by visiting Facebook or Instagram @DynamicDB or scanning the adjacent QR code. Let’s go, Green DBers!