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WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 1978
REFUSE COLLECTION SERVICES IN THE NEW TERRITORIES
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ABOUT 90 PER CENT OF ALL VILLAGES IN THE NEW TERRITORIES ARE PROVIDED WITH A DAILY REFUSE COLLECTION SERVICE, THE SECRETARY FOR THE NEW TERRITORIES, THE HON. DAVID AKERS-JONES, SAID TODAY.
AND ABOUT 90 VILLAGES, SOME SMALL, SOME DESERTED AND LOCATED IN AREAS DIFFICULT OF ACCESS ARE SERVICED AT A REDUCED FREQUENCY, RANGING FROM TWICE WEEKLY TO ONCE A MONTH, BY MOBILE CLEANSING GANGS.
REPLYING TO A QUESTION FROM MR. CHARLES YEUNG IN THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL, MR. AKERS-JONES ADDED THE PROBLEM OF REFUSE COLLECTION IN THESE AREAS WAS FURTHER AGGRAVATED BY THE LITTER LEFT BEHIND BY PICNICKERS AND CAMPERS.
+BOTH THE DIRECTOR OF URBAN SERVICES AND MYSELF REGARD THIS SITUATION AS UNSATISFACTORY, MR. AKERS-JONES SAID.
+PROPOSALS ARE UNDER CONSIDERATION AT PRESENT IN THE GOVERNMENT SECRETARIAT FOR A VERY SUBSTANTIAL REINFORCEMENT OF MOBILE CLEANSING GANGS AND VEHICLES FOR LITTER COLLECTION THROUGHOUT THE NEW TERRITORIES.
+THE SERVICE CAN THEREFORE BE EXPECTED TO IMPROVE CONSIDERABLY IN ALL AREAS ONCE THE ADDITIONAL RESOURCES REQUIRED ARE AVAILABLE AND DEPLOYED ON THE GROUND.+
IN REPLY TO AN EARLIER QUESTION FROM MR. YEUNG, MR. AKERS-JONES SAID THERE WERE NOT YET ENOUGH PROPERLY BUILT REFUSÉ COLLECTION POINTS IN OR AROUND VILLAGES IN THE NEW TERRITORIES.
HE ADDED: +THERE IS A BUILDING PROGRAMME, AND 255 HAVE BEEN BUILT SINCE 1973 MAINLY IN VILLAGES WITH VEHICULAR ACCESS.
+SOME OF THE OLDER REFUSE COLLECTION POINTS ARE INADEQUATE IN SIZE AND METHOD OF CONSTRUCTION.
+AN IMPROVED DESIGN IS BEING DEVELOPED AND WILL BE USED IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF NEW REFUSE COLLECTION POINTS.+
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