HEALTH
In the urban areas, a regular workforce of 6 132 is employed in cleansing duties. This cleansing force is equipped with a fleet of 403 vehicles, including specialised refuse collection vehicles, street-washers, mechanical sweepers, nightsoil collectors and gully emptiers. All streets are swept at least once daily, either mechanically or manually, while busier thoroughfares are swept from four to eight times a day. A daily refuse collection service is provided to all built-up areas in the territory and about 2 600 tonnes of refuse and junk are collected every day. There is also a free nightsoil collection service for the few remaining areas which do not have a water-borne sewage disposal system.
Although the Keep Hong Kong Clean had formally ended in December 1982, the government continued to maintain the higher standard of cleanliness the campaign had achieved. In 1985, a programme in six phases was put into operation covering public housing estates, block-to-block cleansing, villages, squatter areas, beaches, countryside and a general beautification programme. In addition to education, publicity and community involvement, law enforcement remained the major tactic in the fight against littering. During the year, a total of 49 798 people were fined $8,757,093 for litter offences.
The Regional Services Department is responsible for similar environmental hygiene work in the non-urban areas. Cleansing duties are carried out by a regular workforce of 3 540 equipped with a fleet of 217 specialised vehicles. The daily refuse collection service collects an average of 960 tonnes of refuse and junk every day. Law enforcement remained the major tactic in combatting littering, and, in 1985, 6 100 people were convicted of litter offences in the non-urban areas.
Controls
In maintaining and improving standards of hygiene through the enforcement of the Public Health and Urban Services Ordinance and its subsidiary legislation, health inspectors of the Urban Services Department regularly inspect licensed and permitted premises, common parts of residential and commercial buildings, construction and vacant sites and squatter areas in the urban areas. They also carry out special inspections to deal with complaints on sanitation and vermin infestation. Such controls in the non-urban areas are the responsibility of the Regional Services Department. The staff of the Urban Services Department and Regional Services Department also work closely with the staff of the Medical and Health Department in the investigation and control of food poisoning outbreaks and infectious diseases.
Pest control staff continued to employ integrated programmes to control rodents, mosquitoes, flies and other public health pests. Preventive action included environmental improvement and health education. These measures were supplemented by the destruction of breeding places, use of pesticides and law enforcement. Prompt and effective focal control measures were taken to arrest outbreaks of vector-borne diseases. Particular attention is paid to the control of malaria vectors in the non-urban areas.
General health educational strategies in environmental hygiene were employed with particular emphasis being placed on educating the younger generation. The Health Education Unit manned by health inspectors organised talks, instruction courses, contests and competitions for students and youth groups to stimulate their awareness of and concern for public health matters. During the year, a number of educational campaigns on environmental and food hygiene were launched. Lectures, seminars and courses on topics of public health were conducted for the food trade, members of voluntary welfare agencies, elderly people and Vietnamese refugees. Efforts were also made to educate special groups, including immigrants from China and Filipina maids, chiefly through mobile broadcasting.