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Government fails to fund Earth Day

Updated at 5.56pm: The Earth Day Festival will be staged this Sunday despite the SAR Government's failure to provide funding for what is being billed as Hong Kong's largest ever environmental event.

Last year the festival was partially bank-rolled by the Government's Environmental and Conservation Fund but, four months ago, organisers were told not to expect money this year.

The secretary-general of the Government's Environmental Campaign Committee, Mabel Mak Lok-sheung, said it would cost too much to fund both World Environment Day and Earth Day.

However, the committee had offered other assistance to the Earth Day organisers which was not accepted, she said.

Earth Day celebrated in 184 countries around the world started as a grass roots celebration in 1970. This year the chief Hong Kong organisers are a company, Time to Recycle, which is a new commercial offshoot of the charity Able (A Better Living Environment).

The project's director and company founder Tobias Forster did not want to dwell on the Government funding issue focusing instead on corporate sponsors which had stepped in including Sony, Shell and Epson.

The free festival, to be held between noon and 8pm on the Tamar Site, is expected to attract about 25,000 people.

Canto-pop singers Uku Peng and Cleo Ko will perform at the event which will also feature African drummers and a comedian. There will also be a market with stalls featuring non-polluting vehicles and wind and solar power.

An art gallery will exhibit works by local and international Hong Kong schools.

''It's an international mass event to celebrate the Earth, to highlight our concerns about the way humankind is treating the environment and the planet,'' Mr Forster said. ''It will raise awareness and inform the local community about ways that they can all participate to keep Hong Kong clean and protect the amazing natural environment.

''To provide environmental solutions to all the inherent problems will require the concerted joint effort of the entire public sector, private sector and NGOs [non-governmental organisations].''

Community group Clear the Air will hold a mask parade to the site, starting at 1.30pm in Chater Garden with prizes for the best-decorated face masks.

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