[
    {
        "id": 209668,
        "series_id": 26,
        "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine",
        "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊",
        "series_use_hku_proxy": false,
        "document_key": "RAS-1982",
        "page_number": 325,
        "title": "RAS-1982",
        "content_text": "NOTES AND QUERIES \n\n303 \n\nIn recognition of their botanical significance and the rarity of the trees, the site where they are growing was listed as a “Site of Special Scientific Interest” (SSSI) in 1975. The SSSI concept is a planning device introduced to Hong Kong, to ensure that due account is taken of the scientific importance of particular sites when changes in land use or other development are being considered. Any site, on land or sea, which is of sufficient special scientific interest by reason of its flora, fauna, geographical or historic features may be registered and listed as an SSSI. However, listing as an SSSI does not impose any legal restriction on the owners, tenants or occupiers of the land and does not, by itself, ensure protection of the sites against unsympathetic activities or forms of development.\n\nIn this particular case, however, the villagers treasure the presence of these two 'historical trees' and go along with Government's effort to secure their conservation. With their consent and co-operation, the Agriculture and Fisheries Department has carried out certain maintenance work to sustain the growth of the trees by cutting away strangling creepers, trimming branches from nearby trees and clearing nearby dumps of rubbish.\n\nMeasurements made in 1982 showed that neither tree has made any appreciable growth since 1971, either in height or girth. This indicates that they are at an advanced stage of their natural lifespan.\n\nTowards the end of 1981, the condition of one of them was found to have deteriorated significantly. Careful inspection failed to detect any pest and it is believed that its advanced age together with a change in their environment (e.g., the dumping of building materials nearby) may be the causes. New leaves failed to appear in the spring of 1982 and 1983 and it has to be accepted that this tree is now dying.\n\nThe second tree is still in fairly healthy condition, although its branches and leaves are sparse. Unfortunately, it lies within the alignment of a major road works project, the New Territories Circular Route. After some negotiation, the Highways Office has agreed to a slight change in alignment in an attempt to save this tree. It has also been agreed that a stone protective wall will",
        "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1982.txt",
        "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/mk61z420p",
        "rank": 0
    },
    {
        "id": 213593,
        "series_id": 26,
        "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine",
        "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊",
        "series_use_hku_proxy": false,
        "document_key": "RAS-1995",
        "page_number": 189,
        "title": "RAS-1995",
        "content_text": "160\n\nmaintaining high productivity as outlined previously. However, the mangroves are also very important as mud stabilizers. As the pioneers grow out onto the mud, the band of vegetation becomes broader and the rear becomes drier. Eventually new land is created, which can be used for agricultural purposes. They also play a role as an important protective barrier against destructive storm waves, thus reducing the risk of flooding.\n\nMan's impact on the mangrove\n\nThe most significant impact by man has been the drainage and reclamation of the mangroves to provide sites for settlement and agriculture. This century alone about 1700 hectares of mangroves have been converted into deep fish ponds and vegetable growing areas and many of these, more recently, have been converted into container storage facilities and other industrial purposes. Many of Hong Kong's mangrove stands have already been totally destroyed; Mai Po's mangroves still survive to give an impression of what Deep Bay, indeed much of Hong Kong's shoreline would have looked like because they have been protected since 1976 as a Site of Special Scientific Interest. The effects of deep fish pond development, vegetable gardening, industrial usage and new town development can all now be seen in the Deep Bay area.\n\nThe likelihood of further major reclamation of Deep Bay for urban expansion poses new threats to the ecology of this mangrove area and to the life which it supports (Irving & Morton, 1988).\n\nHowever, at present, the biggest threat is pollution. The many streams and rivers that drain into Deep Bay carry an enormous load of agricultural, domestic and industrial waste. Increasing pollution loads have already been reflected in a changed use of the ponds in recent years. A marked decrease in shrimp harvest has led to the conversion of some gei wais and mangrove areas to freshwater ponds to protect them from marine pollution. If this trend continues, then extreme changes will result as more and more of the mangrove areas are turned into deep ponds and, as pollution has a greater effect on mudflat productivity, the whole area will eventually lose the ecological value which it now has as a multifaceted series of habitats supporting an enormous variety of flora and fauna. In particular, it will cease to be a",
        "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1995.txt",
        "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/95941j25g",
        "rank": 0
    }
]