Registered retailers in Hong Kong are required to charge customers not less than HK$0.5 (US$0.06) for each shopping bag from July 7 this year, Hong Kong's top environmental official said Sunday.

Edward Yau, secretary for the Environment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government, made the remarks while officiating the launch ceremony of the "Environmental Levy Scheme on Plastic Shopping Bags" publicity campaign.

He called on people to take their own bags instead of using plastic shopping bags, saying that he was confident that Hong Kong will be able to reduce the local consumption of plastic shopping bags by billions within a year.

"In Hong Kong, the public is becoming more conscious of protecting the environment and we are striving to keep it better for our next generation," he said.

(Xinhua News Agency May 25, 2009)