THE royal Danish consulate general in Hong Kong sent an environmental delegation from the SAR to Denmark recently so it could experience the quality of life enjoyed by the Danes. 'I think there are a couple of areas [related to energy conservation and the environment] from which Hong Kong can learn from Denmark,' consul-general Jens Peder Jensen said. Denmark began to introduce tough legislation in the 1970s related to energy savings and measures to promote environmental technologies. 'We now export more energy savings products and technologies than our usual agricultural exports,' Mr Jensen said. Last year, Denmark exported a little under US$2 billion worth of pork compared with US$3 billion worth of energy savings products and technologies. It also exports many turbines for windmills with wing spans that are as wide as those of a Boeing 747, measuring 62-65 metres. Windmills, each costing about HK$4 million, have been exported to farms in the United States, Japan and India. Denmark produces 60-70 per cent of global windmill products and windmills produce almost 7 per cent of its own energy consumption, representing 2,000 gigawatt hours per year. It also recycles about 64 per cent of its waste - a high percentage compared with most countries. Mr Jensen said waste was recycled in incinerators and energy producing units - a method which Hong Kong could learn. As Hong Kong was attempting to develop itself into a world-class city like New York and London, the quality of life had to be improved across the board for the SAR to be able to attract the smartest and brightest the world over, he said. 'We hope that showing our ideas will be in the interests of Hong Kong citizens and the large Danish community in the SAR who operate 80 Danish subsidiaries,' Mr Jensen said. Denmark was able to achieve a high success rate in energy conservation and had become more environmentally friendly because the country's politicians took the lead to implement rules and regulations that made it mandatory to use energy savings products and technologies, Mr Jensen said. For example, the building sector was now environmentally friendly after it became mandatory to fit all new buildings with double-layered glass and to build heavy insulation into walls. 'Heavy taxes on cars drove people to drive smaller and less polluting cars,' he said. Mr Jensen said Denmark was also in the forefront in converting buses to use liquefied natural gas and in developing a filtration system for power stations which took away nitrogen oxides and sulphur dioxides. Denmark became more closely linked with the SAR on November 18, 1995, when the country's Prince Joachim, the second son of Queen Margrethe II, married Alexandra Manley - a former Hong Kong resident. On May 11, Denmark will also celebrate its 50th year of diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China.