A city losing its lungs
The barrage of public criticism over the chief executive's statements about Hong Kong's air pollution speaks for itself. Despite the government's denials, the city's air quality has deteriorated to such an extent that the health and well-being of its residents are gravely threatened. Does the government bear any responsibility for our present plight?
Victoria Harbour is the lung of Hong Kong. It ventilates the city, enabling a free flow of fresh air to remove the fumes and stale air generated by motor vehicles, air conditioners, factory emissions and the carbon dioxide that we all breathe out. It is hard to imagine that anyone would want to deliberately cut out one of his or her own lungs; yet half of our city's lung has been removed with the reclamation of half of our harbour.
To make matters worse, the result of this is more high-rise developments, roads, traffic and people. Therefore, on top of blocking the free flow of air, reclamation results in more air pollution being generated. Further, the toxic fumes emitted from vehicles, being heavier than air, are trapped between the tall buildings.
What is alarming is that, despite local and international condemnation of the air quality in Central, the government has persuaded the Town Planning Board to permit the development of a further six pieces of land on the Central reclamation, totalling more than 1 million sq ft. These have been approved for commercial, office and hotel use, and will produce 10 million sq ft of gross floor area including a 'groundscraper' and two new 28-storey hotels right on the Central harbourfront.
These developments will attract an estimated further 50,000 people to Central every day. According to the Traffic Report prepared by the Transport Department, these developments will generate an additional 7,623 vehicular trips per hour to Central: that will require building a new surface highway, in addition to the underground Central-Wan Chai bypass now under construction.
According to another report from government experts, the traffic in Central and Wan Chai will be saturated by 2016 - soon after the completion of the Central-Wan Chai bypass. The government will then be obliged to consider the introduction of an electronic road pricing system and/or further reclamation. The whole vicious cycle will be repeated. The plan directly contradicts the government's statement, to the High Court under oath, that the Central reclamation complies with the 'overriding public need' test.
On the contrary, by the administration's own admission, such developments will attract more traffic to Central and worsen both congestion and air quality. How can this meet an 'overriding public need'?
Therefore, Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen's show of support for the Clean Air Charter is meaningless. Hong Kong urgently needs concrete action, not words of comfort, from the government.
The government should be aware that more reclamation equals more development, which equals more people, which equals more traffic, which means more pollution.
It should cease all polluting activities and immediately abandon its plans for more property developments on the Central reclamation, West Kowloon reclamation, and in Kai Tak and other harbourfront areas. Instead, it should plan for more green open space, both for public enjoyment and to improve air quality.
Officials must show that they have the vision, wisdom and maturity necessary to plan properly Hong Kong's future development. They must move away from the obsession with financial returns and economic growth, and give priority to what the public desperately needs: a healthy environment and good quality of life.
Winston Chu Ka-sun is an adviser to the Society for Protection of the Harbour
