Macao and mainland China have signed an agreement for the disposal of construction and demolition materials in mainland Chinese waters, according to multiple media reports.
The move may mean that the SAR government’s controversial proposal to build an island from construction waste near Hac Sa Beach – one of Macao’s most scenic spots – will be put on hold, at least for now.
The director of the DSPA Ip Kuong Lam, described the deal as a “breakthrough” because there are many major projects – especially the excavation of tunnels for the East Line of the Light Rail Transit (LRT) – that will generate a huge amount of construction waste in the coming years, putting great pressure on Macao’s only landfill.
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However, some of the materials may not meet mainland standards for disposal at sea, and therefore will need to be disposed of in Macao’s landfill or other places in the future. According to a DSPA guide, Macao will still have to deal with over half of the construction and demolition waste it produces.
The island of construction waste was originally proposed as a solution to Macao’s bursting landfill, but many concerns have been raised over its environmental impact, especially regarding Chinese white dolphins and the preservation of the natural landscape.In a bid to win public acceptance for the move, the local government originally tried to frame the project as an “ecological island” that would eventually offer leisure facilities. However, last April, the then public works secretary, Raimundo Arrais do Rosário, conceded to local broadcaster TDM that the island could not be a leisure area “because what is going to be put there is not exactly pleasant … We are talking about a landfill, with ashes.”
