XN000022-1992-07-01 — Page 26

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WEDNESDAY, JULY 1, 1992

RESETTLEMENT COUNTRIES

THE NUMBERS OF VIETNAMESE REFUGEES FROM HONG KONG FROM JULY 1, MENTIONED ARE AS FOLLOWS:

ACCEPTED FOR

1989 TO MAY 31 THIS YEAR BY THE

USA

4,224

AUSTRALIA

CANADA

UK

2,884

4,183

-

1,800

USE OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES

ADVANCES INTRODUCING

THE GOVERNMENT WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR TECHNOLOGICAL AIMED AT REDUCING EMISSIONS FROM CONVENTIONAL ENGINES AND NEW TYPES OF LOW-POLLUTION VEHICLE ENGINES.

IN

THIS WAS STATED BY THE SECRETARY FOR TRANSPORT, MR MICHAEL LEUNG, IN A WRITTEN REPLY TO A QUESTION BY DR THE HON LAM KUI-CHUN THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL TODAY (WEDNESDAY).

MR LEUNG SAID ALTHOUGH TRIALS HAD BEEN CONDUCTED IN RECENT YEARS USING BATTERY POWERED PASSENGER VEHICLES, SUCH VEHICLES HAD NOT BEEN INTRODUCED PERMANENTLY BECAUSE OF HIGH CAPITAL COST, THE NEED FOR FREQUENT BATTERY RECHARGING AND THE DIFFICULTIES IN OPERATING THEM IN LOCAL TRAFFIC AND TOPOGRAPHICAL CONDITIONS.

"THE

WIDER USE OF SUCH ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLES IN FUTURE WOULD THEREFORE DEPEND ON MANUFACTURERS' ABILITY TO DEVELOP MODELS THAT HAVE HIGH CAPACITY AND YET ARE TECHNOLOGICALLY EFFICIENT AND COMMERCIALLY VIABLE," HE SAID.

AT PRESENT, THERE ARE 48 ELECTRICALLY POWERED VEHICLES LICENSED IN HONG KONG, MOST OF WHICH ARE FOR SPECIAL PURPOSES SUCH AS FORK LIFT TRUCKS AND INDUSTRIAL TRACTORS.

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