https://www.scmp.com/rss/328665/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Brian Wang,Carlos Araujo,Catherine Ma,Davies Christian Surya,Jiang Chuqin,Joe Lo,Kaliz Lee,Rocio Marquez,Victor Sanjinez Brian Wang,Carlos Araujo,Catherine Ma,Davies Christian Surya,Jiang Chuqin,Joe Lo,Kaliz Lee,Rocio Marquez,Victor Sanjinez https://www.scmp.com/infographics/hong-kong/society/article/3326461/when-typhoon-hits-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/infographics/hong-kong/society/article/3326461/when-typhoon-hits-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 23 Sep 2025 12:00:08 +0000 One afternoon last July, storm water crashed an underground retaining wall at Guangzhou Metro’s Shenzhou Road station, forcing the subway operator to shut Line 21 for seven hours, as a torrential downpour lashed southern China’s largest metropolis. Guangzhou received 74.4 millimetres (3 inches) of rain within an hour that day, an unseasonably violent storm in a city that typically gets three times that precipitation over an entire month. But what happened in Guangzhou paled in comparison with... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3170981/extreme-weather-scorecard-hong-kong-macau-vulnerable-greater-bay-area?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3170981/extreme-weather-scorecard-hong-kong-macau-vulnerable-greater-bay-area?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 19 Mar 2022 02:00:22 +0000 Humanity’s need to tackle climate change is more pressing than ever, with the United Nations warning last week that global warming would accelerate at a faster-than-expected pace over the next 20 years. In this four-part series, the Post examines its impact on the city, how the Hong Kong government can best play catch-up, and who is walking the talk in the private sector. Part one looks at how human activity is leading to extreme weather patterns, leaving the world vulnerable to floods, forest... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3145066/sweltering-heat-hong-kong-extreme-weather-events-worldwide-signal-need-act?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3145066/sweltering-heat-hong-kong-extreme-weather-events-worldwide-signal-need-act?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Aug 2021 00:30:06 +0000 More Hong Kong workers who are injured or killed while commuting to or from work in inclement weather would be compensated by their employers under a new legal amendment first drafted in the wake of Typhoon Mangkhut more than two years ago. At present, commuters are entitled to compensation for mishaps only when either a No 8 typhoon signal or higher, or a red or black rainstorm warning, is in force. But under the Employees’ Compensation (Amendment) Bill 2021, to be introduced in the Legislative... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3122086/legal-amendment-expand-compensation-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3122086/legal-amendment-expand-compensation-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Feb 2021 12:57:08 +0000 China experienced record-setting floods this summer, disrupting the daily lives of millions. The Pearl River Delta and Greater Bay Area are also at higher risk of extreme weather events, as higher temperatures and sea-level rise increase the frequency and impact of extreme storms, threatening infrastructure and people’s homes, water safety, agriculture and energy supply. This seriously threatens the livelihoods of Hongkongers and others in the region. For example, in 2017, Typhoon Hato, one of... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3108441/how-investing-nature-can-help-protect-chinese-coasts-rising-seas?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3108441/how-investing-nature-can-help-protect-chinese-coasts-rising-seas?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Nov 2020 22:50:17 +0000 Two typhoons that ravaged the region in 2018 – Mangkhut and Rumbia – have seen their names forever struck from the international roster of tropical storm designations, though the next dark clouds on the horizon could just as likely bear the name of a popular fruit. Pulasan and Krathon, named after delicacies from Malaysia and Thailand, respectively, have made the latest roster of potential appellations after being endorsed at the 52nd session of the World Meteorological Organisation’s Typhoon... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3097702/typhoon-mangkhut-which-slammed-hong-kong-2018-joins-rumbia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3097702/typhoon-mangkhut-which-slammed-hong-kong-2018-joins-rumbia?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 17 Aug 2020 11:38:59 +0000 Hong Kong sits in the middle of the 13,000km East Asian-Australasian Flyway, a long-distance migration route for 50 million waterbirds. But now these birds are threatened with extirpation; 62 per cent of waterbird populations along the flyway are in decline, a trend indicative of the rapid loss of wetlands along the coasts from the Arctic to the Antipodes, and of the insidious erosion of biodiversity and ecosystem services threatening survival of all life on Earth. Since 2018, the second... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3082743/hong-kong-wetlands-must-be-protected-because-lives-depend-them?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3082743/hong-kong-wetlands-must-be-protected-because-lives-depend-them?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 May 2020 23:25:05 +0000 Four historic gas lamps at the heart of Hong Kong’s busiest district are lit up again after a 15-month repair, as the government overcame the challenges in obtaining accessories and skills essential for the century-old monuments. Technicians from Town gas, the company in charge of maintaining the lamps, were on Friday morning putting their finishing touches to the lamps, which had been shattered by Typhoon Mangkhut in September 2018. The lamps, known as a heritage landmark in Central, will again... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3043764/hong-kongs-historic-gas-lamps-along-duddell-steps?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3043764/hong-kongs-historic-gas-lamps-along-duddell-steps?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Dec 2019 03:00:15 +0000 Hong Kong resort Ocean Park has reported a widening deficit for the past financial year, largely caused by Typhoon Mangkhut, with ongoing civil unrest in the city also dimming its prospects. Its deficit more than doubled to HK$557.3 million (US$72 million) in the year to June 30, from HK$236.5 million in the previous year, according to an annual report released on Wednesday. The results did not reflect the impact of the tourism slump since July, as anti-government protests keep visitors away and... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3041595/hong-kong-protests-and-typhoon-mangkhut-prove-be?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3041595/hong-kong-protests-and-typhoon-mangkhut-prove-be?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 Dec 2019 05:26:02 +0000 New technology is helping to protect Hong Kong’s extensive shoreline with the city facing more extreme weather in the coming years, government engineers say. The carnage wrought last year by Typhoon Mangkhut, the most intense storm in the city’s recorded history, has led the administration to step up its use of cutting-edge imaging techniques for inspections of piers, sea walls, breakwaters and typhoon shelters. The potential for disaster was revealed when a sea wall collapsed during the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3041289/hong-kong-government-says-new-technology?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3041289/hong-kong-government-says-new-technology?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 Dec 2019 01:15:06 +0000 No one can deny that Hong Kong has had a lashing this year, and it wasn’t just on the city’s protest-hit streets – 2019 has been one of the stormiest and wettest on record. Thunderstorms battered the city on 59 days between February and October, an unusually high number and almost 50 per cent above the annual average. The prevalence of storms this year is on a par with 2014; no other year exceeds 53 days. (Storms in November and January are uncommon, though not unheard of, while there has never... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/3040588/hong-kong-weather-2019-record-thunderstorms-equalled-more-hot-nights-ever?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/3040588/hong-kong-weather-2019-record-thunderstorms-equalled-more-hot-nights-ever?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Dec 2019 00:30:06 +0000 Hong Kong’s rubbish disposal rate per person has hit the highest level since records started in 1991, with a local environmental group warning of “dark times” if the government fails to implement a stalled waste-charging scheme. Each Hongkonger sent an average of 1.53kg (3.37 pounds) of municipal solid waste, which includes domestic, commercial and industrial debris, to landfills every day last year, according to figures released on Monday by the Environmental Protection Department. The city... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3039304/environmental-group-warns-dark-period-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3039304/environmental-group-warns-dark-period-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 Nov 2019 14:33:12 +0000 Super Typhoon Mangkhut, which left Hong Kong with a HK$3.1 billion (US$397 million) insurance bill as it swept past the city in the summer of 2018, could have been even more devastating, if it had hit directly during high tide. According to researchers at China Water Risk (CWR), a Hong Kong-based non-profit initiative, large swathes of the business districts of Tsim Sha Tsui, Central, Wan Chai and Causeway Bay would have been inundated. The initiative used a digital terrain model to show areas... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3038935/climate-change-can-hong-kong-businesses-cope-direct-hit-super?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3038935/climate-change-can-hong-kong-businesses-cope-direct-hit-super?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 23 Nov 2019 00:00:20 +0000 Cockroaches, remnants of trees mutilated by last year’s Typhoon Mangkhut, postcards of Hong Kong landmarks, polycarbonate acrylic sheets used to reinforce windows against storms, and footage from this summer’s anti-government rallies and protests – objects and images representative of the city, both glaring and subtle, fill Blindspot Gallery’s 7,000 sq ft industrial warehouse space. Taken together they offer a timely narrative. They form the elements of an exhibition by two Hong Kong artists,... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3027156/artists-reflections-destructive-power-nature-take-new?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3027156/artists-reflections-destructive-power-nature-take-new?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Sep 2019 07:45:11 +0000 Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor announced the full withdrawal of the extradition bill last week. Many people in Hong Kong must now be hoping there is an end in sight to the conflict that has divided our city for three months. I do not want to sound too optimistic. As the chief executive herself said, the withdrawal of the bill is a technical issue – the measure was already “dead”. Some opponents of the bill are insisting that the government meets other demands. But, as Chief... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3026756/diverse-and-tolerant-hong-kong-has-always-managed-unite-face?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3026756/diverse-and-tolerant-hong-kong-has-always-managed-unite-face?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Sep 2019 22:00:09 +0000 On a 16-metre-long wall at the Asia Society Hong Kong headquarters is a black-and-white mural of trees, plants, animals and birds that live or once lived in the city. They are painted in silhouette, a style American artist James Prosek has perfected over the last 12 years. It is part of the Asia Society’s latest exhibition, “To See the Forest and the Trees”. The mural on the back wall of the Chantal Miller Gallery depicts a banyan tree that the staff at the Asia Society have nicknamed the... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3018589/typhoon-mangkhut-inspired-tree-exhibition-window-complexity?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3018589/typhoon-mangkhut-inspired-tree-exhibition-window-complexity?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Jul 2019 04:30:27 +0000 What would you do if a super typhoon like Mangkhut struck Hong Kong again? That was the question posed to pupils at Marymount Secondary School to get them to come up with creative ideas to solve societal issues for a year-end, graded assignment. The project was part of an initiative by the girls’ school in Happy Valley to revamp its computer literacy classes to promote innovation, while allowing the Secondary Two pupils to have a sense of ownership in their work. Shirley Ann Fu Tang, head of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3017537/how-dc-comics-superhero-flash-inspired-pupils-marymount?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education/article/3017537/how-dc-comics-superhero-flash-inspired-pupils-marymount?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 06 Jul 2019 10:18:07 +0000 Many of the trees that were uprooted by Typhoon Mangkhut last year had already been weakened by poor management, a study by Education University has found. Researchers from the university said the tree management section of the Development Bureau had not done enough to prevent trees being felled by typhoons. Limited space and poor quality soil weakened trees to the extent they could not withstand storm-force winds, according to research conducted by the university. “This is because the way we... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3015865/typhoon-mangkhut-caused-havoc-hong-kongs-trees?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3015865/typhoon-mangkhut-caused-havoc-hong-kongs-trees?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 24 Jun 2019 10:35:41 +0000 Typhoon season is almost upon us. If Super Typhoon Mangkhut of September 2018 and the double punch of Hato and Pakhar in August 2017 are anything to go by, we should brace ourselves for the likelihood that weather-related damage will become increasingly common and painful in the years ahead.  Against this backdrop, the Hong Kong government’s issuance of a green bond last month came at the perfect time. It spotlights the most urgent challenge facing humanity today, and at the same time helps... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3014784/typhoon-season-round-corner-and-climate-change-upon-us-theres-no?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3014784/typhoon-season-round-corner-and-climate-change-upon-us-theres-no?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 17 Jun 2019 07:00:12 +0000 Hong Kong could emerge as a trading hub in products that help insurance companies in the “Greater Bay Area” offset risk related to property damage arising from flooding and other natural disasters, according to experts. Catastrophe bonds are structured credit instruments often used by US and Japanese insurers, as well as reinsurers, to raise capital by offloading the insured risks from natural disasters, be it wildfires in California or earthquakes in Nagano. Tow Lu Lim, a partner at law firm... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3014753/hong-kong-become-hub-catastrophe-bonds-greater-bay-area?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3014753/hong-kong-become-hub-catastrophe-bonds-greater-bay-area?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 17 Jun 2019 03:00:07 +0000 A scenic Shek O beach has been closed down because of flood damage, with officials pointing fingers over who is going to fix the deeper problems at the popular, government-run recreation site. Big Wave Bay beach was closed by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department after flash flooding from a nearby river broke through embanking sand dunes and split the beach in two after heavy rains on Tuesday. The trail of debris from the river water fanned out as it made its way to the ocean, leaving... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3013482/big-wave-bay-beach-closed-flood-damage-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3013482/big-wave-bay-beach-closed-flood-damage-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 06 Jun 2019 23:30:08 +0000 Hong Kong has weathered many storms over the years, but the onslaught of Typhoon Mangkhut in September exposed inadequacies in our preparations for natural disasters. A case in point was the chaos over the rush to get back to work after the monster cyclone halted most public transport. Eight months after the mayhem, a government review suggested workers may be advised to stay home for another two hours if storms caused widespread power outages, extensive flooding, major landslides and stopped... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/3010556/flexibility-needed-when-storms-strike?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/3010556/flexibility-needed-when-storms-strike?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 May 2019 13:37:14 +0000 In September last year, Typhoon Mangkhut wreaked havoc in Hong Kong, felling at least 46,000 trees, smashing hundreds of windows and leaving more than 1,000 roads blocked. Eight months since the most intense typhoon in Hong Kong’s history, most things have returned to normal. But over in Siu Sai Wan, Hong Kong’s second-largest stadium remains closed to both athletes and the public, its stands still surrounded by scaffolding. The extended closure has stirred up a storm among athletes and nearby... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3009910/eight-months-hong-kongs-siu-sai-wan-sports-ground?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3009910/eight-months-hong-kongs-siu-sai-wan-sports-ground?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 13 May 2019 02:30:11 +0000 A law allowing Hong Kong’s leader to give workers a day off after extreme weather or natural disasters is not needed, officials said on Tuesday, despite calls for the government to better protect labour rights. Deputy security minister Sonny Au Chi-kwong told a security panel meeting at the Legislative Council there was no need for such a law at present. “The government’s mechanism [to prepare for and respond to] super typhoons has been effective, although there is room for improvement on work... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3009249/state-emergency-law-following-extreme-weather-events?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3009249/state-emergency-law-following-extreme-weather-events?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 May 2019 12:25:29 +0000 Hong Kong’s 3.8 million workers will be able to stay at home for two hours after a storm subsides instead of returning to work immediately, under government proposals to avoid a repeat of the transport chaos seen in the aftermath of Typhoon Mangkhut last year. The amended storm guidelines, which were revealed on Tuesday, will not be legally binding however, and lawmakers suggested the changes would not keep people at home for longer. Typhoon Mangkhut prompted the city’s weather authority to... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3008347/two-hour-grace-period-hong-kong-employees-return?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3008347/two-hour-grace-period-hong-kong-employees-return?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 May 2019 01:00:18 +0000 The Hong Kong CrossFit community banded together to help a dog shelter devastated by last year’s Typhoon Mangkhut. Athletes from all over the city descended on CrossFit Asphodel to compete against each other, and a team from Japan, CrossFit Habu, took part. They aimed to raise HK$50,000 for Catherine’s Puppies but smashed their target, reaching almost HK$115,000, so now the dog shelter can fix its roof as planned, but also pay off vet bills and improve the conditions for its dogs. “The CrossFit... https://www.scmp.com/sport/outdoor/crossfit-strongman/article/3006229/dog-shelter-dismantled-typhoon-mangkhut-gets-boost?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/outdoor/crossfit-strongman/article/3006229/dog-shelter-dismantled-typhoon-mangkhut-gets-boost?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Apr 2019 00:00:14 +0000 Hong Kong will introduce a new storm defence system to fend off extreme weather after Typhoon Mangkhut wreaked havoc around the city last year. A new wave warning system and floating breakwaters will be tested in the coming storm season – starting in May – in areas susceptible to flooding and high waves, the Drainage Services Department said on Thursday. “Climate change has gained recognition in international society,” department director Kelvin Lo Kwok-wah told reporters. “Adverse weather may... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3003710/new-storm-defences-hong-kong-after-experience?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3003710/new-storm-defences-hong-kong-after-experience?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 28 Mar 2019 11:40:16 +0000 Kitchee players said it felt like “coming home” after they returned to their training centre in Shek Mun for the first time since their ground was severely damaged by Typhoon Mangkhut last September. Kitchee’s soccer training centre was hit by one of Hong Kong’s most powerful typhoons on record but six months after the centre was struck by strong winds, flooding and torrential rain, the centre has been patched up and reopened to little fanfare. Led by coach Chu Chi-kwong, Kitchee returned to... https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/2188906/kitchee-return-home-first-time-typhoon-mangkhut-devastation?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/2188906/kitchee-return-home-first-time-typhoon-mangkhut-devastation?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 Mar 2019 10:40:17 +0000 A Hong Kong retiree who sprayed workers with disinfectant because he was upset about the pace of repairs to his typhoon-hit residence last year was ordered on Monday to do 200 hours of community service. Ng Heung-man, 55, also struck a table in the management office with a knife when he confronted the staff there on September 20 last year. He was ordered to pay HK$500 (US$64) in compensation. Tuen Mun Court heard earlier that Ng’s rage arose from his dissatisfaction that staff at the management... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/2188506/hong-kong-retiree-given-200-hours-community-service?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/2188506/hong-kong-retiree-given-200-hours-community-service?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 Mar 2019 06:46:23 +0000 What’s in a name? Bad memories when it comes to typhoons, according to international meteorological experts. A committee of storm specialists this week endorsed a proposal by the Philippines to remove the name Mangkhut from a list of approved monikers for new storms forming over Asia. The request was made in light of the extent of the destruction and death caused by the monster typhoon last summer. The body operates under the World Meteorological Organisation and United Nations Economic and... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2188102/philippines-has-mangkhut-struck-typhoon-names-list?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2188102/philippines-has-mangkhut-struck-typhoon-names-list?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 28 Feb 2019 10:50:46 +0000 Clambering along Clear Water Bay’s mountain trails yesterday, sweltering in an unseasonably hot 26 degrees Celsius, I was reminded afresh of the harm inflicted by Typhoon Mangkhut five months ago. Not just the shattered trees, but the silence, and the paucity of butterflies. I cheered myself by recalling the astonishing capacity of nature to recover from the constant onslaught it faces here in Hong Kong. Outside my house, predatory creepers are well on the way to engulfing the wall of flotsam... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2186525/climate-could-be-about-do-something-it-hasnt-done-50-billion?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2186525/climate-could-be-about-do-something-it-hasnt-done-50-billion?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 17 Feb 2019 09:22:08 +0000 Hong Kong lags behind Singapore and other cities when it comes to preparation for climate change challenges, such as typhoons and flooding, according to Sean Tompkins, chief executive of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. He said the city’s housing problem was to blame. “If you look at Hong Kong, there’s no doubt the developers are looking at issues around sustainability and resilience. The government is increasingly looking at this and it’s getting higher up the priority list. But is... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2184473/hong-kong-trails-singapore-christchurch-climate-change-readiness-thanks-its?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2184473/hong-kong-trails-singapore-christchurch-climate-change-readiness-thanks-its?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 31 Jan 2019 10:00:52 +0000 The devastating effects of Typhoon Mangkhut appear to have had little impact on Hong Kong’s residents, if a new study from Chinese University is any indication. A storm that injured 400 people, downed thousands of trees, smashed hundreds of windows and paralysed the city for days afterwards, Mangkhut was one of the most powerful typhoons on record. But a survey shows some Hongkongers are not prepared – and have no plans to prepare – for another storm of similar ferocity striking in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2178989/devastating-effects-typhoon-mangkhut-not-enough-convince?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2178989/devastating-effects-typhoon-mangkhut-not-enough-convince?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 21 Dec 2018 03:02:00 +0000 Last week, Japan’s Kanji Proficiency Society revealed its “Word of the Year”, based on a nationwide annual poll organised since 1995. The word was “sa i”, which means “disaster” – chosen for the second time in 24 years. While it was chosen after unprecedented heat, floods and typhoon damage across Japan in 2018, the word was tailor-made for the 25,000 scientists, officials and environmental campaigners gathered for the COP24 global climate conference in Katowice in Poland, who dispersed on... https://www.scmp.com/business/commodities/article/2178208/only-way-kick-world-action-politicians-see-how-climate-change?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/commodities/article/2178208/only-way-kick-world-action-politicians-see-how-climate-change?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 16 Dec 2018 08:00:00 +0000 This year could be the most expensive on record for insurers as climate change increases the severity and volatility of natural catastrophes worldwide, while storm damage tops the list of corporate claims in Hong Kong, according to a leading insurer. Global insured losses from natural disasters this year – from wildfires in California, to floods in Sydney and super typhoons in Asia – will at least equal if not exceed the US$144 billion in 2017, according to Allianz. “Scientists predict that the... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2177679/insurance-claims-could-reach-all-time-high-2018-climate-change?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2177679/insurance-claims-could-reach-all-time-high-2018-climate-change?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 12 Dec 2018 23:04:20 +0000 Hong Kong’s security chief has said the city may consider requesting help from mainland China in the event of future natural disasters like Typhoon Mangkhut. John Lee Ka-chiu, the Secretary for Security, said the government was exploring what outside help could be used in the event of a serious storm hitting Hong Kong. Lee made his comments on Saturday during a panel discussion at the Fight Crime Conference, which was held at the Central Government’s offices in Admiralty. “Apart from organising... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2177076/hong-kong-consider-asking-mainland-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2177076/hong-kong-consider-asking-mainland-china?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 08 Dec 2018 15:45:45 +0000 Ombudsman Connie Lau Yin-hing said she would consider investigating the government’s handling of fallen trees in the aftermath of Typhoon Mangkhut. She made the comments in response to lawmakers’ requests in a Legislative Council meeting on Friday. “The government’s follow-up work fell short of the public’s expectations,” lawmaker Helena Wong Pik-wan of the Democratic Party said. She said there were still uncleared fallen trees on roadsides and lots of tree waste, rather than being recycled, has... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2176962/hong-kong-ombudsman-will-consider-investigating-governments?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2176962/hong-kong-ombudsman-will-consider-investigating-governments?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 07 Dec 2018 11:19:12 +0000 The amount of yard waste collected by government departments that ended up in landfill this year was triple the amount of last year, according to official data, a reflection of a noticeable increasing trend over the past five years. A total of 44,600 tonnes of yard waste was sent to landfill this year. Trees felled by Typhoon Mangkhut in September accounted for 20,480 tonnes, almost half the total. The amount dumped in landfill was three times as much as last year’s total, which was 14,506... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2176555/hong-kong-produced-three-times-much-tree-waste?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2176555/hong-kong-produced-three-times-much-tree-waste?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 05 Dec 2018 11:00:36 +0000 Lawmakers who represent Hong Kong people should thank the army garrison for sending hundreds of soldiers to help clean up debris and felled trees in country parks after Typhoon Mangkhut battered the city in September. It wasn’t their job, only a charitable act. Cynics may call it a public relations exercise. Whatever it is, the 400 or so People’s Liberation Army soldiers had performed a useful service for the city. But at a formal meeting in the legislature, opposition lawmakers Raymond Chan... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/hong-kong/article/2175660/pan-dems-stoke-fear-pla-bogeyman?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/hong-kong/article/2175660/pan-dems-stoke-fear-pla-bogeyman?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 29 Nov 2018 10:03:20 +0000 As a landscape professional, I understand complexities and difficulties of “recycling” the waste wood from Typhoon Mangkhut. Unfortunately, we appear not to have the necessary facilities available at the moment for such a massive task (“How trees in landfill tell the story of Hong Kong”, November 18). However, and I’m sure Professor Jim Chi-yung and others in the industry will agree, leaves are not “litter”. Hong Kong must embrace the composting of fallen leaves. These should never be bagged and... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/2174681/how-typhoon-mangkhut-waste-could-help-build-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/2174681/how-typhoon-mangkhut-waste-could-help-build-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Nov 2018 05:38:24 +0000 Peng Lanxiang thought her rickety shack in a remote village in Sheung Shui’s Tsiu Keng was unlikely to stand up to Typhoon Mangkhut, so she took shelter in a relative’s flat well before the storm hit Hong Kong in mid-September. When the 60-year-old returned home, she found her rooms, made of tin plates and wood, had been severely damaged by the strong wind and floods. Despite its bad condition, Peng said she never thought about abandoning the shack, which she had rented from her friend for... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2173216/project-space-help-operation-santa-claus-helps-poor?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/2173216/project-space-help-operation-santa-claus-helps-poor?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 Nov 2018 02:02:37 +0000 Most of the trees felled when Typhoon Mangkhut hit Hong Kong will go straight to landfill, starting this Sunday. Officials announced the plan on Thursday, as the collection site at Kai Tak for tree waste was about to close. The Environmental Protection Department (EPD) also announced a new attempt to reuse tree waste by making its newly bought industrial-grade wood shredder available for public use. It will be placed near T.PARK, the city’s first sludge treatment facility, next to the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2172375/most-trees-felled-hong-kong-typhoon-mangkhut-go?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2172375/most-trees-felled-hong-kong-typhoon-mangkhut-go?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 09 Nov 2018 00:00:00 +0000 I refer to the letter from John Fleming (“Pressure on for an answer over typhoon advice”, October 30) regarding how to minimise household damage brought about by air pressure under high winds.  Ferocious winds of an intense typhoon like Mangkhut can cause a noticeable pressure difference inside and outside a building, and this accounts for the difficulty that Mr Fleming encountered in opening the front door of his flat. This can be explained by way of Bernoulli’s principle, which is the... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/2171878/hong-kong-typhoon-season-means-windows-should-stay-shut-risks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/2171878/hong-kong-typhoon-season-means-windows-should-stay-shut-risks?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 06 Nov 2018 09:05:50 +0000 Trees felled by Typhoon Mangkhut and stored on the site of Hong Kong’s former airport at Kai Tak will soon have to be moved as the land has been earmarked for development. The city’s Environmental Protection Department (EPD) said a new arrangement for the debris would be announced next week. According to the Lands Department, two of four sites lent to the Civil Engineering and Development Department for temporary storage of the trees have already been returned in line with a deadline of October... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2171522/7400-truckloads-typhoon-mangkhut-tree-waste-be?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2171522/7400-truckloads-typhoon-mangkhut-tree-waste-be?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 03 Nov 2018 06:13:40 +0000 It has been five weeks now, since Typhoon Mangkhut wreaked havoc across Hong Kong. Still, the scars are raw, and not just a matter of a few tens of thousands of trees gone. If we are to properly absorb what climate change is all about, we need to look around us now. For most of the world’s 7 billion-plus people, climate change is not about whether global mean temperatures will be 1.5 degrees or 2 degrees higher, or about sea levels rising 10 centimetre more than previous models, or the melting... https://www.scmp.com/business/commodities/article/2170540/see-how-climate-change-close-and-very-personal-look-no-further?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/commodities/article/2170540/see-how-climate-change-close-and-very-personal-look-no-further?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 28 Oct 2018 05:30:00 +0000 As a former employee of the Hospital Authority, I was jolted out of my complacency when I heard that the authority was penalising staff for not returning to work during Typhoon Mangkhut. Most hospital staff rely on public transport to get to work. Remember that public transport remained severely affected not only during the storm but for two full days after. Mangkhut was Hong Kong’s strongest typhoon since the Observatory started keeping records in 1946, and it will not be the last. Witness the... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/2170126/did-typhoon-mangkhut-see-hong-kongs-hospital-authority-fail?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/2170126/did-typhoon-mangkhut-see-hong-kongs-hospital-authority-fail?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 25 Oct 2018 21:34:32 +0000 Hong Kong’s development secretary has pledged to find ways to stop coastal communities being flooded, even when superstorms hit the city. A month after Typhoon Mangkhut brought extensive devastation to places such as Heng Fa Chuen and Tseung Kwan O, Secretary for Development Michael Wong Wai-lun said the government would commission a study into the issue. The study, which will be handled by the Civil Engineering and Development Department will look into the impact of extreme weather on low-lying... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2170047/holding-back-tide-hong-kong-government-commissions-study?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2170047/holding-back-tide-hong-kong-government-commissions-study?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 24 Oct 2018 11:34:40 +0000 What is the connection between dolphins, sails and Chinese knots? A ride across the world’s longest sea crossing, linking Hong Kong to Zhuhai and Macau, might reveal the answer. But only for those paying close attention. Three distinctive features mark the project’s navigation channel bridges, and together they set the mega project apart in the world, according to the award-winning designer behind the multibillion-dollar Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge launching on Wednesday. Naeem Hussain,... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/transport/article/2169481/unique-and-beautiful-design-hong-kong-zhuhai-macau-bridge?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/transport/article/2169481/unique-and-beautiful-design-hong-kong-zhuhai-macau-bridge?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 21 Oct 2018 01:34:43 +0000 At least 7,000 tonnes of trees felled by Typhoon Mangkhut and stored at the former Kai Tak airport have ended up in a landfill, the government has admitted. The Environmental Protection Department, struggling to cope with huge amounts of tree waste occupying 10 hectares of the runway following the monster storm on September 16, confirmed on Friday it was sending the wood to a landfill after three inquiries by the Post in the past week.   In previous replies to the Post, the department said only... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2169459/7000-tonnes-trees-felled-typhoon-mangkhut-have?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2169459/7000-tonnes-trees-felled-typhoon-mangkhut-have?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 20 Oct 2018 10:00:15 +0000 The destruction and loss of life due to landslides, water cascades and flooding during Typhoon Mangkhut throughout Asia needs no elaboration. Why then did Hong Kong not suffer this fate? Let’s celebrate our country parks, which have gained in strength since the 1950s, with natural forest, vegetation and watercourses that can resist such destructive assaults and protect us. Who then should take the blame in the future for trying to destroy our magnificent protector, which is being subjected to... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/2169336/typhoon-damage-hong-kong-limited-our-country-parks-how-long-will?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/2169336/typhoon-damage-hong-kong-limited-our-country-parks-how-long-will?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 20 Oct 2018 09:27:32 +0000