Rapeseed saga: Hong Kong developer reports planting of crops in Sha Lo Tung village to police
Sha Lo Tung Development Company also meets environmentalists to discuss the development in an ecologically sensitive area
The developer embroiled in a land ownership saga with self-proclaimed villagers of protected land in rural Tai Po has lodged a police report after the villagers replaced a field of wild plants hosting fireflies and dragonflies with rapeseed plants.
This came after environmental groups last week condemned the move at Sha Lo Tung as “illegal” and “damaging” to the area’s biodiversity.
READ MORE: Greens see red as Tai Po village’s dazzling field of yellow rapeseed flowers draws 10,000 visitors a day
In a statement, Sha Lo Tung Development Company stressed that it had not been directly or indirectly involved in the removal of the original vegetation and the planting of rapeseed plants in the rural enclave.
It explained that in the past, when it spotted illegal activities taking place on its land at Sha Lo Tung, it would take all reasonably practicable measures to prevent such activities from continuing, while taking into account security.
The measures include issuing a notice in the area through a lawyer and a surveyor, warning those who entered the company’s land illegally to stop the illegal act and notifying the relevant government departments.
However, such actions had not been effective in stopping the illegal activities, the company added. As such, it reported what had happened to the police last Friday.
The police confirmed on Wednesday that a woman had lodged a report about a person fly-tipping soil on the developer’s land in Sha Lo Tung. After initial investigations, they did not think the case involved criminal elements. The woman also asked that the case be placed on record, police added.
The development company also said that it had met with environmental groups on Tuesday to give a detailed explanation of the event, answer queries and clarify possible misunderstandings.
READ MORE: Sha Lo Tung project in doubt
Dr Michael Lau, senior head of local biodiversity and regional wetlands at WWF-Hong Kong, confirmed the meeting, adding that the developer had said it would look into the matter after conservation groups raised concerns about environmental damage.
The field of yellow flowers in Sha Lo Tung has attracted crowds since the flowers bloomed earlier this month.
The scenic spot on a remote mountainside is protected under Hong Kong laws as a site of special scientific interest.
The Sha Lo Tung Welfare Association, whose members claim to be indigenous villagers from the area, believes it has an ancestral right to the land. The villagers said that while the developer acquired the land back in the 1970s, the company did not honour its promise to develop residences for them. Hence, they deemed the agreement void.
The villagers also believe that the act of planting crops in lieu of what they described as “weeds” does not undermine the area that they have pledged to restore to its “former glory”.
