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HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
MRS. E. ELLIOTT: Yes, I think they have been replaced anyhow, but I think it would be better to check them first.
DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS:-I agree, Mr. Chairman, but the trouble is when we try to work quickly we make mistakes and if we try to be very careful we are accused of procrastination. (Laughter).
(9) MR. H. M. G. FORSGATE asked the following question:-
(a) Because the Marine Department in a recent interview has stated that as a result of their efforts the harbour is cleaner than it has been for some time, will you please confirm that all necessary measures to keep our beaches free from refuse have been and will continue to be taken?
(b) Has the Gin Drinkers Bay dumping area been sealed off so that no further escapes of rubbish are possible either now or in typhoon conditions?
(c) Is supervision at public dumping areas for reclamation purposes effective enough to ensure that only rubble, earth etc. are dumped thereon so that the harbour and the public beaches are not polluted by rubbish floating off these dumps?
THE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS replied as follows:-
In reply to the first part of the question I am assured by the Director of Urban Services that measures have been taken and will continue to be taken to keep the beaches free from refuse.
Over the past two months the amount of seaborne refuse at New Territories Beaches has been about the same as during the corresponding period last year. In the case of the beaches on Hong Kong Island and at Lai Chi Kok, the amount of seaborne refuse has been considerably less than during the same period last year, and this is almost certainly due in part to the sealing off of Gin Drinkers Bay Refuse Dump.
The second part of the question concerns Gin Drinkers Bay. The Dump was sealed off from the sea by an earth bund which was completed on 23rd February. No further escape of rubbish is possible unless the bund is breached by seas during a typhoon, but as the bund is about 30 feet wide this is considered improbable. Sampans are employed daily at the off-loading wall to ensure that any small quantity of refuse falling into the water is picked up. Gin Drinkers Bay has in effect ceased to be the cause of any fouling of the harbour.
(10)
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The third part of the question concerns the dumping of refuse at reclamations. During the day, the Public Works Department staff are on duty at the reclamations and a number of dumping permits have been cancelled where vehicles have been caught attempting to dump rubbish. At night, the Public Works Department staff are not on duty, but police patrols visit the reclamations from time to time.
The main nuisance is caused by the dumping of timber mixed with rubble from demolished buildings. Building contractors are being advised of suitable places where timber can be dumped, i.e. at the incineration points on two reclamations at Sandy Bay and Chai Wan in Hong Kong, and at Gin Drinkers Bay Dump in Kowloon.
MR. H. M. G. FORSGATE asked the following question:
Can more effective efforts be made to improve cleanliness in the typhoon shelters of the Colony by the provision of adequate litter containers ashore and afloat, and also to persuade people living there to make greater use of such facilities?
THE CHAIRMAN replied as follows:-
There are two main shelters, at Yau Ma Tei and Causeway Bay. The shelter at Aberdeen is not yet completed, but this anchorage presents similar problems.
19 litter containers and 4 communal dustbins are provided on the waterfront in these areas, but these facilities are used less by the floating population than by pedestrians on shore. There are also a number of collection stops served by refuse collection vehicles on the waterfront in these shelters, to which boat people can bring their refuse. These are not used to any marked extent. At the end of last year the Director of Marine undertook a pilot scheme for the collection of refuse from boats in the Yau Ma Tei Shelter. 7 scavenging sampans and a motor junk were employed to collect refuse from some 2,600 boats and to off-load it at the French Street dust-boat station. An average of 1,465 lbs. of refuse was collected each day. It was found that the cost of this scheme was high,
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