On this day | When Hong Kong International Airport’s second runway opened amid tensions over aircraft noise – from the SCMP archive
- On this day 25 years ago, Hong Kong International Airport’s second runway opened
- Aircraft landed as Tsuen Wan residents threatened to hold protests over noise
This article was first published on May 27, 1999
By Anne Stewart, Ceri Williams and Alex Lo
Chek Lap Kok’s second runway opened yesterday amid threats of protests from Tsuen Wan residents who claim they were not warned about aircraft noise of almost 80 decibels.
More than 150,000 people - half of Tsuen Wan’s residents - are under the flight paths of the second runway, said Albert Chan Wai-yip, Tsuen Wan District Board member and convenor of Aircraft Noise Concern Committee.
One million people could be affected by aircraft noise from Chek Lap Kok, the District Board estimates.
But acting director of the Civil Aviation Department Alex Au Kang-yuen said the figure was “exaggerated”.
After yesterday’s runway opening, noise levels of 77 decibels were recorded at Belvedere Garden and 78 decibels at Allway Gardens, according to the Aircraft Noise Concern Committee.
Civil Aviation Department readings yesterday ranged from 60 to 66 decibels.
The safe noise limit is 85 to 90 decibels - anything higher can cause a temporary loss of hearing.
Planes are now flying within 1,000 metres of some densely populated areas, with a maximum of 37 flights per hour, 24 hours a day.
By late October, each runway will have the capacity to handle up to 40 flights an hour, a Civil Aviation Department spokesman said.
Mr Chan said the disruption to the New Territories lifestyle could trigger unrest.
“When the economy turns sour and emotions are unstable, people can do extremely unreasonable and crazy things,” he said.
The group wants a change of route for aircraft, depending on wind direction.
Petitions would be presented to the Civil Aviation Department soon, Mr Chan said.
A resident of Allway Gardens, Chen Ying-sung, 71, claimed the authorities were under-reporting noise levels.
Noise pollution reached 78 decibels on the roof of his building, according to measurements he took with Mr Chan yesterday.
“When it’s the loudest, I can’t hear the television,” Mr Chan said. “I am worried what it is going to be like after August when flights [on the second runway] will be round-the-clock.”
The Civil Aviation Department had repeatedly met 12 district boards, including Tsuen Wan, a spokeswoman said. There would be no compensation for residents, she said.
Chairman of the Advisory Council on the Environment Peter Wong Hong-yuen said it would request a briefing with the Airport Authority and the Civil Aviation Department.
“We need to look into the proposed flight path - the difference of one mile can make a big difference,” he said.
The first passenger flight to land on the new northern runway was Dragonair flight KA807 arriving from Shanghai at 10.30am.
