- 15
Wednesday, October 16, 1974
The young people of Hong Kong are taking more and more
to picnicking, hiking and camping. Much of this has developed
on their own initiative.
But to help the movement gain
momentum funds have been channelled into the Outward Bound School
to expand it to have room to teach leaders from City Districts how the countryside can best be enjoyed. Similarly I was delighted to learn of the formation of a Youth Hostels Association in
Hong Kong, and the Government is giving all the assistance
it can in the provision of sites for hostels.
These are all comparatively small steps in the direction
we must.go, but they are already of some significance.
Such heavy use of the country-side brings with it its
problems of conservation. During the year additional Agriculture and Fisheries Department litter gangs and Urban Services cleansing gangs have been established, and also more fire-fighting crews and with its traditional civic spirit, the Civil Aid Services are now training to provide additional fire fighting coverage in the countryside this winter. While these services are steadily improving the cleanliness and reducing the fire hazards in the main points at which visitors congregate, there remains the litter and the bush fires left by the thoughtless and the careless who
roam further afield. Many members of the regular hiking and picnicking clubs and others who know and care for Hong Kong's countryside, are already acting as scavengers for the newcomers, the ignorant and the careless who still do not. Now that this
admirable trend to walking and picnicking is developing so fast, it is evident that in parallel there must be systematic education of all concerned about how to preserve the mountains and the beaches they visit.
I have emphasised these expanding uses of the countryside because they offer a natural balance to the lack of space for
/facilities