XN000022-1985-11-18 — Page 8

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1985

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UPDATE ON AIR QUALITY IN HONG KONG

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THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (EPA) HAS REPORTED ON THE FIRST MEASUREMENTS OF ACID RAIN UNDERTAKEN IN HONG KONG. THIS FORM OF POLLUTION HAD BEEN SAMPLED DURING 1984-85 AT KWUN TONG, CENTRAL- WESTERN AND JUNK BAY.

INITIAL RESULTS FROM THIS WORK HAD DEMONSTRATED THAT THE TERRITORY'S RAINFALL COULD BE HIGHLY ACIDIC ON OCCASIONS. ACID RAIN APPEARED TO BE A TERRITORY-WIDE PROBLEM WHICH WAS RELATIVELY INDEPENDENT OF LOCALISED POLLUTANT EMISSIONS. IT WAS FOSSIBLE THAT LONG-RANGE TRANSPORT OF POLLUTANTS FROM OUTSIDE THE TERRITORY MIGHT BE INVOLVED.

THE RESULTS OF ACID RAIN AND FINE PARTICULATE MEASUREMENTS ARE CONTAINED IN A MAJOR UPDATE REPORT ON THE AIR QUALITY SITUATION IN HONG KONG, RELEASED TODAY BY THE EPA.

THE REPORT PROVIDES AN IN-DEPTH ANALYSIS OF MEASUREMENTS DURING 1984-85 FROM THE EPA'S NETWORK OF ADVANCED POLLUTION MONITORING STATIONS.

DURING THE YEAR, A NEW MONITORING STATION WAS ESTABLISHED IN SHAM SHUI PO, BRINGING THE NUMBER OF SITES IN THE NETWORK TO SIX, EXISTING STATIONS AT KWUN TONG, TSIM SHA TSUI, CAUSEWAY BAY, CENTRAL-WESTERN AND JUNK BAY CONTINUED IN OPERATION.

THE GOVERNMENT'S AIR QUALITY MONITORING EFFORT PROVID COMPREHENSIVE DATA ON POLLUTION LEVELS IN AND AROUND URBAN CORE AREAS OF THE TERRITORY. THIS INFORMATION IS USED TO AS SS POPULATION EXPOSURE AND POSSIBLE EFFECTS OF MAJOR AIR POLLUT..NTS.

AIR QUALITY DATA PRODUCED BY THE EPA'S NETWORK OF MON" "OR ING STATIONS ALSO PROVIDE A SOUND BASIS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF R QUALITY CONTROL POLICY AND REGULATORY ACTION.

ACCORDING TO THE REPORT, CORRESPONDING SULPHATE AND NET ACIDITY DEPOSITION RATES FROM RAINFALL WERE ALSO HIGH.

IN VIEW OF THE POTENTIAL FOR HARMFUL EFFECTS ON THE ECOSYSTEM AND DAMAGE TO EXPOSED MAN-MADE SURFACES, MATERIALS AND BUILDINGS, ACID RAIN LEVELS IN HONG KONG WILL NEED TO BE KEPT UNDER CLOSE REVIEW IN THE FUTURE, THE REPORT NOTED.

ANOTHER FORM OF AIR POLLUTION MEASURED FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HONG KONG WAS RESPIRABLE PARTICULATE MATTER. MEASUREMENTS SHOWED THAT FINE RESPIRABLE SIZE FRACTIONS, WHICH POSED THE GREATEST RISK TO HUMAN HEALTH, REPRESENTED AN UNUSALLY HIGH PROPORTION (60-70 PER CENT) OF TOTAL PARTICULATES IN URBAN AREAS.

THE EPA'S LATEST AIR QUALITY REPORT ALSO SHOWED THAT AMBIENT CONCENTRATIONS OF SULPHUR DIOXIDE AND OXIDES OF NITROGEN WERE GENERALLY LOW THROUGHOUT HONG KONG.

/IN FACT,