bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

sponsorType

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

SCMP Reporter

Updated at 6.06pm:
Secretary for Housing, Planning and Lands Michael Suen Ming-yeung on Wednesday rejected claims that a government policy to promote eco-buildings was being exploited by developers.

Mr Suen was responding to a question in the Legislative Council on Wednesday afternoon from Social Welfare legislator Fernando Cheung Chiu-hung.

Mr Cheung asked: 'It has been reported that the government policy to promote eco-buildings has enabled developers to add to their projects' floor areas that are worth hundreds of millions of dollars, by paying land premiums which represent a tiny fraction of the value of the additional areas.'

But Mr Suen said these incentives were provided to encourage the incorporation of green features in building developments. They did this by exempting the green features from the calculation of gross floor area (GFA). 

'Subject to the relevant lease conditions, payment of premium may be required in respect of the exemption of GFA of the relevant type of green features,' he told Legco in a written reply.

Mr Suen said prior to implementation of the policy, professional institutes, the industry and the relevant Legislative Council Panel were consulted. 

'Any allegation that the government policy to promote eco-buildings has enabled developers to add to their projects' floor areas that are worth hundreds of millions of dollars, by paying land premiums which represent a tiny fraction of the value of the additional areas is completely without foundations.

'This may have arisen from a lack of understanding as to how the policy operates,' he added.

 Mr Suen said that since the implementation of the policy, 117 residential projects with green features had been completed.

Asked to provide further details about the policy, he said: 'Specific and accurate details in respect of the green features provided in each of the individual projects and the relevant GFA calculations are not readily available.

'Given the time constraint, it is not possible to compile such breakdowns,' he explained.

Mr Suen cited the Buildings Department's statistics, which showed that the total GFA exemption for green features in residential projects was about 188,600 square metres (two million square feet).

'Green features which attract premium are essentially those that form part of the individual flats in the building and are for the exclusive possession and enjoyment of the owners and residents of these individual flats, i.e. including balconies, utility platforms and non-structural prefabricated external walls,' he said.

Mr Suen said other green features were 'communal in nature' and did not involve exclusive possession and enjoyment by owners of the individual flats. For example: wider common corridors and lift lobbies, communal sky gardens and mail delivery rooms with mail boxes.

'They serve all owners and residents of the development and do not attract payment of premium,' he added.

The policy to exempt green and innovative features from the calculation of a building's gross floor area was announced in 2000 to encourage environmentally friendly architecture.
However, some reports said the green policy had enabled developers to add floor space worth hundreds of millions of dollars to their projects by paying land premiums amounting to a tiny fraction of the space's value last month. 
One case is that Henderson Land gained more than 12,000 square metres (130,000 square feet) of extra floor space for the Grand Promenade's green features, worth almost $800 million, free because planning officials failed to state a maximum gross floor area in the land lease.

Lands department 



Suen defends eco-building policy