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(a) 150 Workman II will be recruited in the current financial year and it is expected that this recruitment exercise will be completed by November 1989; (b) The contracting out exercise of some of our cleansing services now in progress for the public toilets and bathhouses and some of the toilets in public playgrounds and so on and this will produce a phased redundancy of 238 Workman II posts between September this year to March next year;
(c) The Value for Money Study and the proposed re-scheduling of the street sweeping beats by the Department's Management Services Unit is likely to result in a saving of about 480 Workman II posts in late 89–90 to 90–91; and (d) The privatization of the Kennedy Town Abattoir in mid 1990 would release 132 Workman II to fill vacancies in cleansing and other Sections. As regards the last part of the question, the Department controls pests, including rats, through regular surveys of all potential places for breeding of mosquitoes and flies and harbourage of rats, disinfestation by means of pesticides and trapping upon identification of the source of infestation, and period anti-pests campaigns. All major public places and old tenement buildings susceptible to pests, infestations are regularly and systematically inspected and disinfested by pest control unit. These include lanes, refuse collection points, amenity areas etc. Premises licensed by the Council, particularly the restaurants, are monitored for pest or rat infestation by Health Inspectors during their regular visits. Health Education talks or advice on anti-pest measures are given freely and periodically by Health Inspectors to private sectors, such as school children, house-hold members and restaurant operators. Furthermore, territory-wide anti-pest campaigns are launched annually by the Department to promote the participation of the general public in pest control work. Health educational material is distributed during these campaigns and the pest control staff visit buildings and premises to give advice on pest prevention.
Rats are one of the most numerous groups of mammals in the world and this problem of rats coming out from sewage is not unique in Hong Kong. As the sewers here are modernized and laid in closed culverts, the frequent torrential rain prevents rats from using them as a permanent harbourage except as a means of transit. With the control measures mentioned above currently taken by our Department and together with the efficient maintenance of sewage system by the new Sewage Department recently established, the size of rat problem in Hong Kong is being kept under control.
MR. DANIEL K. T. WONG (in English): Mr. Chairman, just one point I would like to clarify. It is admitted in the paper that there is a shortage of around 11% of manpower to clean the street, I wonder if this percentage has been increasing or decreasing in the past several months? I also realize that the Department expects to recruit 150 Workmen to supplement those vacancies. I just wonder what is the opportunity to recruit such persons because recently I have received many complaints from the Yau Tsim Area that so many places which have been swept twice a day have been reduced to sweep once a day?
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DR. RONALD D. B. LEUNG (in English): To improve the manpower shortage we do not just depend on the recruitment of the new forces because it has been mentioned in the paper there are three different other measures such as the redundancy from the abattoir and the improved efficiency of each sweeping beat and also the contracting out of some of our cleansing services. As regards the ratio of 11.8%, I think with these four different measures now being employed to solve the problem, I think this ratio will be improved and it is going to be decreased. Secondly, about some of the frequency of street sweeping in Yau Ma Tei areas, the frequency depends on a special group within the department to decide how frequent should a certain street be washed or swept. All depends on this in-house departmental group to decide the frequency on the necessity basis.
CHAIRMAN (in English): Presumably Dr. LEUNG would bring Mr. WONG'S complaint to the attention of this special section of the department.
DR. D. B. LEUNG (in English): Yes, indeed, Mr. Chairman, I think they have regular meetings and I am also very concerned about the cleanliness of some of the streets in Yau Mai Tei. Sometimes I went and asked informally the senior departmental staff, how was this frequency of a street sweeping decided. The answer came to me was that they had a special group to decide on a frequency of street sweeping of any particular area.
MR. B. A. BERNACCHI (in English): Mr. Chairman, I would like to ask Dr. LEUNG: are cockroaches also considered as pests and if not, why not?
DR. RONALD D. B. LEUNG (in English): Cockroaches are definitely considered as pests. Cockroaches are very common and that is why in my answer I use the word 'pests' but the question in particular asks about rats and that is why I use a generic term including rats as specific terms. Actually cockroaches are definitely pests and it is a very common problem and even more common than rats.
5.
MR. MA LEE-WO asked the following question (in Cantonese): Discussion has been carried out for years on the construction of a public market on a site under the Mei Foo Lai Chi Kok flyover. It is understood that the Urban Services Department has conducted a survey on the matter and consulted related departments on problems of environmental pollution and sewerage which construction of a public market under a flyover may cause. In April this year, the USD has submitted a draft plan of the proposed market to the Area Committee of the Sham Shui Po District for consultation of the district residents on the project. I would like to know:
(a) the results of the survey in regard to the construction of a public market built under a flyover;
(b) the solutions to the problems of environmental pollution and sewerage; and (c) when will the Council know about and discuss the project?
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