A carbon-neutral Northern Metropolis. Now that’s a plan worth executing
- There’s no reason the entire metropolis cannot be environmentally sustainable, low-carbon and socially resilient
- Such groundbreaking work would give Hong Kong an edge in gaining valuable expertise, and be an opportunity to train local talent
Under the Northern Metropolis Development Strategy, a total of 300 sq km will be transformed, and will include land for reindustrialisation, innovation and technology, housing and ecological protection. It would not be a long stretch to add carbon neutrality to the strategy as it already contains many positive environmental elements.
A climate-conscious metropolis is one that goes as far as possible to achieve carbon neutrality. This requires our officials to do more calculations upfront. There are plenty of academics and professionals keen to collaborate on this exercise.
This work will be laborious, admittedly – and hence may be resisted because it will be seen as taking too long – but it will be groundbreaking too, and will give Hong Kong an edge in gaining valuable expertise. It would also be a great opportunity to train locally based talent.
Hong Kong already has very strong talent in engineering and the built environment, both in government and the private sector.
Apart from the all-important question of the extent of the threats they need to plan for, they should favour methods that allow nature to play a bigger role. Social resilience is also important.
For example, with sea-level rises, it won’t be about just building high dams and giant gates. The Dutch experience – the best in the world, given that much of the country is below sea level – is to adopt a spatial philosophy of living with the water rather than struggling to defeat it.
The Dutch have designed and created ponds, lakes, parks, plazas and even garages that double-up as reservoirs when the seas spill over.
What can Hong Kong and Shenzhen learn from such ideas when reimagining a plan that integrates an entire neighbourhood? After all, we live in a coastal area that already faces a high risk of storm surges and sea-level rises, which will become worse in a warming climate.
In other words, environmental design and engineering that mimic nature’s functions fit well with designing and implementing an integrated plan for both sides of the border. The metropolis provides the perfect opportunity for Hong Kong and Shenzhen to give full play to new ways of doing things on a large scale.
It also fits with the government’s idea that the metropolis should become an international innovation and technology hub and that there could be “urban-rural integration and coexistence of development and conservation”.
Hence, all developments should be environmentally sustainable, low-carbon and socially resilient. Buildings in the metropolis – indeed, in the whole of Hong Kong and Shenzhen – should be very energy and water efficient.
The mainland authorities are encouraging the incorporation of smart photovoltaic power generation into building development to boost renewable energy. We should adopt the same technology in Hong Kong and be the research and development centre. The government and private sector can work together on this transformation.
All infrastructure today has information and technology components – Hong Kong must focus on this area since it continues to invest in infrastructure.
There is no reason Hong Kong cannot do all of these things as part of the Northern Metropolis strategy. Past frustration with inactivity often boiled down to a lack of imagination among leaders and bureaucrats being all too willing to pass the buck.
Perhaps the Northern Metropolis provides a timely opportunity to set things right.
Christine Loh, a former undersecretary for the environment, is an adjunct professor at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology