HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE
COUNCIL
19 July 1989
香港立法局————————————一九八九年七月十九日
114
control activities, I feel that steps should be taken at district level to promote better understanding of the relevant laws to secure due compliance.
The White Paper acknowledges that some of our legislations contain deficiencies, in fact anomalies. The most notable example is the Water Pollution Control Ordinance which provides for exemptions and allowances to be granted to existing polluters. These provisions which give undue preference and favouritism cannot be sustained and I am pleased that action will be taken in 1990 to remove them. Other areas in the law also require tightening or even toughening up, but in the course of doing so, I urge Government to fully consult and take into account the views expressed by all those who would be expected to comply with such laws. This will ensure that our laws will be strict but not unfair.
In regard to enforcement measures, our various anti-pollution laws have been enforced by a number of departments, including the Environmental Protection Department, the Royal Hong Kong Police Force and the Buildings and Lands Department. I believe that the police must of necessity place primary emphasis on maintenance of internal order and security and therefore only low priority can be accorded to enforcement of anti-pollution laws. The Building and Lands Department is already working to full capacity in enforcing the provisions of the Buildings Ordinance and dealing with illegal structures. How much of its staff resources can it allocate to pollution enforcement duties? In the past, enforcement action has essentially been taken in response to complaints. The result is that few prosecutions have been brought. Over the past three years, less than 200 prosecutions per year have been brought under the Air Pollution Control Ordinance. After declaration of the first water control zone under the Water Pollution Control Ordinance in April 1988, only four prosecutions under that Ordinance have been laid. Since implementation of livestock waste controls under the Waste Disposal Ordinance as from June 1988, 11 cases have been prosecuted. These prosecution figures serve to indicate one thing: the majority of polluters have not been brought to justice.
The White Paper acknowledges that successful enforcement of our anti- pollution legislation requires frequent inspection and regular investigation by the law enforcement units. The Environmental Protection Department has in its recent publication entitled "Environment Hong Kong 1989" laid down target performance measures for enforcement which include the nature and frequency of inspections and investigations required to effectively enforce the environmental legislations. I am disappointed that such target performance measures are not carried through to the White Paper so that there is no