Green group reveals air-con offenders
Three-quarters of places surveyed are still below target of 25.5 degrees
The average room temperature in air-conditioned public and commercial places almost meets official recommendations after a public education campaign by the government and environmental groups, say Friends of the Earth.
But the green group's environmental affairs manager, Hahn Chu Hon-keung, said there was room for improvement as three-quarters of the places surveyed still kept their indoor temperature below 25 degrees Celsius.
Cafe de Coral in the Argyle Centre in Mongkok was the coldest place, with a reading of 18.8 degrees recorded at 3.30pm. The company did not return calls for comment.
Friends of the Earth measured the temperature in 126 indoor places based on previous complaints it had received. Its survey found the average temperature was 23.8 degrees, compared with the 25.5 degrees widely promoted by the government.
The places surveyed included shopping malls, commercial buildings, betting stations, hospitals, fast-food restaurants and banks between July 4 and 17.
The readings in 91 places were below 25 degrees, while 31 places were 25 to 26 degrees.
Four places had readings of more than 26 degrees, including a McDonald's outlet in Peking Road in Tsim Sha Tsui.
The government launched a campaign in June last year to promote temperature settings of 25.5 degrees.
The Environmental Protection Department said it was happy with the findings, which showed the community had become more conscious about temperature settings and would help reduce the emission of air pollutants and greenhouse gases blamed for global warming.
Mr Chu said air conditioners should be used wisely to reduce energy consumption and air pollution, especially during summer, when air-conditioning was responsible for 60 per cent of electricity consumption. Reducing the use of spotlights could also help save energy as they increased the room temperature.
'Hong Kong people have been spoiled by the luxury of air-conditioning,' he said.
'We would like to change this kind of lifestyle but it cannot be changed overnight. In fact, the temperature [in many places] is so low that it has drawn complaints from tourists.'
Mr Chu quoted a survey by Chinese University last month that found 24.4 per cent of mainland tourists were unhappy with the low temperatures in shopping malls.
He said the group would continue to measure the temperature at more places, including public transport, to identify the perpetrators of 'thermal crime'.
Last year, a survey by Friends of the Earth found the tourism board's Tsim Sha Tsui branch, a men's toilet in a Kowloon Bay restaurant, KCRC trains and the Star Ferry were among the worst offenders.
Temperatures on East Rail trains were as low as 16 degrees, as was the men's toilet at the Tao Heung Super 88 Restaurant in Telford Plaza.
