Hong Kong Identifies Biowaste Reuse Opportunities, Supports Sustainable Development

The Environmental Protection Department awards Black & Veatch with a consultancy service agreement to assess environmental engineering techniques for city’s first woody waste recycling plant

HONG KONG--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hong Kong is increasing the recycling rate of yard waste and wood waste to promote sustainability.

Hong Kong is embarking on a semi-research project to facilitate territory-wide recycling of woody waste material. The Environmental Protection Department (EPD) of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region has appointed Black & Veatch to be the Owner’s Engineer of Hong Kong’s first pilot plant for woody waste recycling. The pilot plant will have a capacity of 24 tonnes-per-day and will be constructed in EcoPark, Tuen Mun.

Reducing waste is one of Hong Kong’s strategies to optimize resources and reduce landfill disposal, while supporting sustainability. Woody waste recycling is a core element of the city’s biowaste management strategy to divert valuable biomass resource from the landfills.

“Black & Veatch is ready to support Hong Kong’s sustainability visions. We have worked with a large number of utilities and government agencies on waste-to-energy projects throughout the world, and many of them involve the conversion of biomass by means of pyrolysis or gasification to energy products,” says Andy Kwok, Managing Director, Black & Veatch Asia North.

“The unique aspect of this pilot project is its focus on the production of biochar-type products, which are expected to find sustainable outlets in the Hong Kong market,” says James Chan, Project Director, Black & Veatch Hong Kong.

Biochar is similar to charcoal and made by burning biomass in a process called pyrolysis. Biochar improves soil fertility and captures and stores carbon dioxide safely. In addition, the pilot plant project will explore if biochar can be produced to meet higher quality standards for other beneficial uses. For Hong Kong’s woody waste recycling plant, the potential feedstock includes used pallets, yard wastes as well as spent bamboo scaffolds.

Black & Veatch Hong Kong is tasked to review the technology, market, environmental and regulatory aspects of the project’s proposed biochar plant. It is responsible for preparing a reference design, assisting in procurement, supervising construction and commissioning, and overseeing the pilot testing.

Black & Veatch is recognised as a global leading provider of environmental engineering services. Waste management is another way Black & Veatch supports Asia’s resource resilience and sustainability strategies.

Editor’s Notes:

• Black & Veatch’s experience encompasses over 50 different biomass types and a wide variety of biomass conversion processes and technologies.

About Black & Veatch

Black & Veatch is an employee-owned engineering, procurement, consulting and construction company with a more than 100-year track record of innovation in sustainable infrastructure. Since 1915, we have helped our clients improve the lives of people in over 100 countries by addressing the resilience and reliability of our world's most important infrastructure assets. Our revenues in 2018 were US$3.5 billion. Follow us on www.bv.com and on social media.