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The Environment
may obtain updated information and advice on environmental compliance, pollution prevention and environmental management.
In 2012, EPD inspectors made over 60,400 visits to different locations around Hong Kong to enforce controls on air, noise, waste and water pollution and to deal with complaints about pollution, resulting in 389 prosecutions and more than $2.6 million in fines.
The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (the Stockholm Convention) and the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade (the Rotterdam Convention) are effective in Hong Kong. The Hazardous Chemicals Control Ordinance regulates via a permit system the import, export, manufacture and use of non-pesticide hazardous chemicals, including those subject to the regulation of the Stockholm Convention and the Rotterdam Convention.
Air Pollution
Emissions from power plants, vehicles, marine vessels and industrial operations affect Hong Kong's air quality. Government control measures target different emission sources and between 1997 and 2010, emissions of sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), respirable suspended particulates (RSP) and volatile organic compounds (VOC) have dropped by 30 per cent to 59 per cent.
The EPD operates a range of controls under the Air Pollution Control Ordinance (APCO) and its subsidiary regulations, including licensing of some large industrial facilities and specific controls. on fuel quality, furnace and chimney installations, dark smoke emissions, open burning, dust emissions from construction works, emissions from petrol filling stations, perchloroethylene emissions from dry-cleaning facilities, and VOC emissions from printing machines and the VOC contents in selected products. The APCO also bans the import and sale of the more dangerous types of asbestos, amosite and crocidolite. Moreover, anyone intending to remove asbestos must engage registered professionals, and submit asbestos investigation reports and plans to the department.
Power plants are a major source of emissions. To improve the local and regional air quality, the Government issued Technical Memoranda in 2008, 2010 and 2012 to progressively tighten the emission caps on the power sector starting from 2010, 2015 and 2017 respectively. The emission caps for the three key pollutants from 2017 onwards will be 39 per cent to 59 per cent lower than the 2010 levels.
To better protect public health, the Government announced in January 2012 the adoption of new air quality objectives (AQOs) drawn up with reference to the World Health Organisation (WHO)'s guidelines and overseas practices. The Government is working on legislative amendments to make the new AQOS statutory standards in 2014. The Government is also taking forward a package of air quality improvement measures targeted at power plants and energy efficiency, roadside air pollution, marine emissions, infrastructure development and planning.
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