Editorial | John Lee needs to take Hong Kong down a greener path

The growing extreme weather in recent years has made tackling climate change a priority rather than an option.

However, policies in this area are still woefully lagging, if not lacking, among governments across the world. Without clear goals and resolute efforts, damage to the environment and society will only worsen.

Ahead of Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu’s annual policy address next week, 17 green groups have joined forces to call for more vigorous measures on environmental protection.

They include developing green and sustainable finance, increasing the city’s resilience to natural disasters and instilling an environmentally conscious mindset among officials when formulating public policies.

The joint appeal comes at a time when the city has been hit by more unusual weather over the past two months, including two strong typhoons and a rainstorm that officials described as “once in 500 years”. Even though they did not result in serious casualties, disruptions to economic and social activities were beyond calculation.