Environmental Protection Agency contractor involved in assisting recyclers with free dumping of construction waste; 6 people charged in the case

The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) earlier uncovered that employees of an Environmental Protection Department (EPD) outsourcing contractor were suspected of receiving benefits from employees of a waste disposal contractor. They assisted the recycling contractor in using a “makeup van” to disguise their activities, so that construction waste could be dumped into a landfill site without paying the required fees. They also conspired to defraud the EPD of building waste disposal charges totaling more than HK$830k. Today, three defendants admitted the charges in the District Court.

The three defendants admitted one count of conspiracy to defraud, contrary to the common law. They are: two former employees of the EPD outsourcing contractor—Zhong Peizhen (aged 60) and Zhang Jinning (aged 40), who at the time of the incident were both weighbridge operators of Far East Environmental Protection Waste Landfill Company Limited; and Lin Wenjian (aged 33), a former worker of Tianshi Environmental Protection Waste Recycling Company Limited.

Acting judge Liang Jiaqi adjourned the case to April 30 for mitigation. During the period, the three were granted bail. Zhong Peizhen and Zhang Jinning were each charged with one count of offering an advantage to an agent, contrary to the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance, which was filed by the District Court.

At the time of the incident, the EPD outsourcing contractor Far East was responsible for operating a waste landfill site in Fanling. The landfill site handled construction waste as well as other waste, such as municipal waste. The disposal charge for construction waste was HK$200 per tonne, while disposal of non-construction waste required no payment. Tianshi, the waste disposal contractor, operated a waste recycling yard in Fanling, transporting construction waste to the landfill site for disposal for customers.

The ICAC earlier received an anti-corruption complaint and conducted an investigation, discovering that between January 2021 and June 2022, during the period in question, Tianshi worker Lin Wenjian, on instructions from a company truck driver, used the “makeup van” method to cover construction waste with non-construction waste, disguising the truck as it dumped construction waste at the landfill site. The “makeup van” would also enter the landfill site via the non-construction waste entrance, thereby avoiding payment of the disposal charges for construction waste.

During the period in question, weighbridge operators Zhong Peizhen and Zhang Jinning of Far East repeatedly assisted Tianshi trucks in evading inspection, allowing their “makeup vans” to enter the landfill site via the non-construction waste entrance smoothly, so that they could dump construction waste without paying fees.

The ICAC’s investigation found that within about one month from mid-May 2022 to mid-June 2022, Tianshi declared nearly 760 trips of non-construction waste trucks. Of these, nearly 90% were suspected to be “makeup vans.” The loads on the vehicles contained over 4,100 tonnes of construction waste, involving disposal charges for construction waste totaling more than HK$830k.

In the same case, three other defendants—namely Tianshi truck driver Mai Jiankun, Far East’s refuse tipping-area inspector Mai Huasheng, and Far East weighbridge operator Zhong Jingtong—had earlier denied a total of six charges, namely four counts of offering an advantage to an agent, one count of accepting an advantage by an agent, and one count of conspiracy to defraud. The trial began today in the District Court.