Environmentalists call for policy revamp
Environmentalists have called for a revamp of the nature-conservation policy, which they say has failed to curb a spate of tree felling, illegal dumping and unauthorised development.
The policy, which went into force in 2004, guides the protection of ecologically important sites that are on private land. It also helps assess activities that may affect biological diversity and determine what should be done to lessen them.
But environmentalists argue that despite the policy, deliberate damage has continued to be wrought on Hong Kong's natural heritage.
In some cases, the damage was done to pave the way for development that had not yet been approved.
'The policy is clearly inadequate and is not enforced in a satisfactory manner,' said Billy Hau Chi-hang, director of the Conservancy Association. 'We believe it is time to take steps to carry out a comprehensive review on that.'
Enforcement responsibilities rested with different departments, including land, planning, conservation and the environment watchdog, Dr Hau said. This was not the most efficient way to structure enforcement.
To monitor the damage better, the group has used Google Maps to create a blacklist map. It lists about 30 sites of concern with text and images about the damage, enforcement actions taken and latest developments.
Most of the listed sites are in the New Territories. They include recent cases of unauthorised road building and tree cutting that infringed a country park in Lai Pek Shan.
The group has also listed the notorious dumping case in Lam Tsuen, where construction waste was illegally dumped over a large area with none of the departments stepping in. The site was recently said to have been sold to another developer who plans to build low-density houses there.
The map, which the group is putting on its website, would serve as a central database to monitor these cases and act as a platform for the public to report new environmental damage, Dr Hau said.
Alan Leung Sze-lun, senior conservation officer with WWF Hong Kong, said each of the cases was unique and required detailed analysis into their causes and possible solutions. But the first thing the government could do was increase the penalty for violating existing regulations.
The environmental affairs panel will discuss the progress of the implementation of the nature-conservation policy today, and Democrat lawmaker Lee Wing-tat has proposed setting up a subcommittee to address the problems.
