Page 407 of 654
HONG KONG PROVISIONAL URBAN COUNCIL
403
If my motion today meets with support, I hope the Council will carry it out wholeheartedly and provide a concrete solution to the community. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
The question was put.
The motion was carried unanimously.
MR. LI WAH-MING moved the following motion:—
**RESOLVED** that the Urban Services Department (USD) should strengthen coordination and cooperation with the Housing Department (HD) so that at the design stage of public housing estates, HD can make reference to USD's experience in the construction of refuse collection points (RCPs), with a view to ensuring conformity with the following standards when refuse is collected at RCPs in public housing estates. Firstly, refuse should be collected in an enclosed environment; secondly, RCPs should be located at an appropriate distance from residential buildings; and thirdly, sufficient passage should be reserved for the ingress and egress of refuse collection vehicles. Besides, USD should also strengthen its manpower, deploy staff to inspect RCPs in all public housing estates, and prosecute contractors who violate the regulations to ensure that the hygiene condition can be maintained up to standard.
He said (in Cantonese):—Mr. Chairman, concerning the liaison between the Department and HD and the hygiene conditions of RCPs in housing estates, in general, environmental cleanliness and hygiene are mainly the responsibility of the two municipal councils. From street cleaning, refuse collection, launching of the Keep Hong Kong Clean Campaign to public health education, the two municipal councils are responsible. However, as soon as we step into public housing estates, most cleaning responsibilities lie with the HD and the Urban Services Department is only responsible for sending refuse collection vehicles to collect refuse at RCPs. Given that the population of public housing estates is 60% of our total population, the HD has a definite unshiftable role in cleaning no less important than that of the USD.
The Democratic Party conducted a site survey last month to gather information about the design of public estate RCPs and their management. Mr. LEE Kwok-keung will go into the details later on. There are several points worth paying attention to as a result of the survey:
1. The designs of RCPs in housing estates are not uniform and most of them are not enclosed.
2. A large proportion of RCPs are less than 10 metres from the estates.
3. The facilities provided at RCPs are different and for some, there are no drains or water taps.
Page 407 of 654
Page 407 of 654
Page 407 of 654