18
THURSDAY, APRIL 14, 1983
+1 MIGHT ADD THAT MR CHAN'S SUGGESTED SOURCE OF FILL, THAT IS, THE PO TO ISLAND GROUP COULD GENERATE APPROXIMATELY 500 MILLION CUBIC METRES OF FILL OR ABOUT ONE-EIGHTH OF THE REQUIREMENT, MR MCDONALD SAID.
HE SAID THAT A VERY ROUGH AND CONSERVATIVE ESTIMATE OF THE IN ADDITION, A COST OF THE WHOLE RECLAMATION WAS $206 BILLION. $2.4 BILLION HIGHWAY SCHEME WOULD BE REQUIRED AT THE EASTERN END OF HONG KONG TO PROVIDE ACCESS TO THE AIRPORT.
+GIVEN THE IMMENSITY OF THE ENGINEERING TASK INVOLVED, THE VAST QUANTITIES OF FILLING MATERIAL REQUIRED AND THE MULTI-BILLION DOLLAR PRICE TAG, I THINK WE MUST CONCLUDE THAT MR CHAN'S BOLD CONCEPT IS NOT ONE TO WHICH WE COULD GIVE FURTHER CONSIDERATION, EITHER AS A POTENTIAL SITE FOR A REPLACEMENT AIRPORT OR AS A LAND BANK,+ MR MCDONALD SAID.
HE THEN TOLD THE COUNCIL THAT HE SHOULD MENTION THE RANGE OF REGIONAL AND SUB-REGIONAL STUDIES WHICH HAD BEEN UNDERWAY SINCE 1980 TO SYSTEMATICALLY IDENTIFY MAIN FUTURE DEVELOPMENT OPTIONS AND TO RECONCILE THE DEMANDS OF HOUSING, INDUSTRY, DOMESTIC AND INTERNATIONAL TRANSPORT AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS IN A LONG-TERM DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY WITHIN THE LIMITS OF AVAILABLE RESOURCES.
+THE SUB-REGIONS WHICH HAVE BEEN OR ARE BEING STUDIED ARE THE NORTH-WEST NEW TERRITORIES, THE NORTH-EAST NEW TERRITORIES, JUNK BAY/SAI KUNG, NORTH-EAST LANTAU AND THE HARBOUR AREA. THẺ PRELIMINARY RESULTS OF THESE STUDIES INDICATE THAT THE TERRITORY HAS MORE THAN SUFFICIENT DEVELOPMENT POTENTIAL TO MEET ITS NEED WELL BEYOND THIS CENTURY AND FAR MORE COST EFFECTIVELY THAN IS LIKELY TO BE POSSIBLE WITH THE TYPE OF RECLAMATION SCHEME ENVISAGED BY MR CHAN,+ MR MCDONALD SAID,
+AS HAS BEEN STATED SEVERAL TIMES IN RECENT MONTHS, AND MOST RECENTLY IN THE FINANCIAL SECRETARY'S BUDGET SPEECH, THE WORK THAT HAS GONE INTO THESE STUDIES OVER THE PAST TWO-AND-A-HALF YEARS OR SO SHOULD BEAR FRUIT LATER THIS YEAR WHEN WE WILL BE ABLE TO ASSESS OUR DEVELOPMENT PRIORITIES AND CONSIDER NEW PROGRAMMES,+ HE ADDED.
IN RESPONSE TO ANOTHER POINT RAISED BY THE HON CHEUNG YAN-LUNG, MR MCDONALD SAID THAT HE WAS PLEASED TO SAY THAT GOVERNMENT HAD, IN THE PRESENT DEPRESSED STATE OF THE PROPERTY MARKET, CONSIDERED BUYING RATHER THAN BUILDING ACCOMMODATION.
+
THIS WAS EVIDENCED BY THE PURCHASE OF POLICE RANK-AND-FILE MARRIED QUARTERS AND NON-DEPARTMENTAL QUARTERS AT LAI CHI KOK AND SHA TIN IN RECENT MONTHS AND THE POSSIBILITY THAT PREMISES FOR THE PRINTING DEPARTMENT MAY ALSO BE PURCHASED RATHER THAN BEING SPECIALLY CONSTRUCTED.
/+UNDER PROCEDURES