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HEALTH
and poultry and the requisite amendments to the Imported Meat and Poultry Regula- tions are expected to be completed shortly. In addition, this unit deals with inspection and certification of animal products for export under veterinary certificates and food- stuffs destined for export. During the year, the Preservatives in Food Regulations were brought up to date to enable better control to be exercised over the use of preservatives in food. Continued effort is maintained in regular surveys and sampling for chemical and bacteriological analysis to enable composition and purity of food and beverages to be maintained and food additives and contaminants checked.
Pest control staff render advice and carry out measures for the control of rodents, nuisance mosquitoes, flies, cockroaches, fleas, ticks, bedbugs, wasps and other pests. Clearing, training and regular weekly larvicidal oiling of streams to prevent breed- ing of malarial mosquitoes on Hong Kong Island, in Kowloon, and at Kwai Chung, Rennie's Mill Village and Cheung Chau in the New Territories, is also a pest control function.
The health education section continued to organise publicity campaigns on various aspects of environmental health and also assisted other government depart- ments and voluntary agencies in their campaigns on various aspects of health and hygiene.
Training courses on various topics of environmental health were held for specific groups of the public, such as personnel in the catering trade, cadets of the Red Cross Society and the St John Ambulance Association, Boy Scouts, management personnel in multi-storey buildings, and caretakers and supervisory staff in building sites.
To disseminate health knowledge and promote health education among the young, various activities in the form of schoolchildren's contests and competitions were organised jointly with the Education Department and voluntary agencies.
Public markets serve as convenient centres where fresh meat, fish, poultry, vegetables and fruit are available. There are altogether 61 public retail markets- 41 in the urban areas and 20 in the New Territories-many built decades ago and now too small and badly equipped to cope with the heavy demands from a rapidly growing population. Therefore, the Urban Council has launched an extensive pro- gramme for the reconstruction of old markets as well as the construction of new ones. The new markets are built not only to modern standards with larger, brighter stalls and improved facilities, but are also provided with mini-stalls to accommodate hawkers who formerly traded on the streets.
Other facilities, including roof-top children's playgrounds, libraries and reading rooms are also provided above new markets. Particular emphasis is also placed on the provision of adequate market facilities for public housing estates, where lack of facilities has resulted in a considerable hawker problem.
Implementation of the Hawker By-laws (1972) made under the Public Health and Urban Services Ordinance has started. The initial steps required the physical delineation of all fixed pitch hawker stalls and this has now been completed. The next stage will be to compile lists of hawker permitted streets in the urban area for