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over this matter and hope that the situation will improve. Actually road works are a special characteristic of the United Kingdom. If you have been to England, you will have seen that almost all the roads are constantly being dug up, the same thing is happening in Hong Kong. Roads are dug up because there are lots of public facilities which need to be buried underground, say for instance, power supply lines, gas pipes, etc. and there is no concrete long-term plan because Hong Kong is developing very rapidly. So road works are inevitable. However, members' concern over the matter will certainly be referred to the Highways Office and we hope that we can improve the situation to make our road surfaces more sightly.
MR. FORSGATE (in English): Mr. Chairman, it seems you have effectively decided to disregard Standing Order 12 items 14 and 15. Perhaps I could join in the fun. Referring to part of the question raised by Mr. FUNG, the gigantic dust bowl, which, I think all of us who live in Hong Kong at this time of the year, regard as the greatest nuisance, as the dry weather is going to exacerbate this nuisance. What steps do the department propose to mitigate the dust nuisance from nearly all construction and redevelopment sites? Who is responsible? The Urban Services Department? The Highways Office? The Environmental Protection Agency? I wonder if Dr. HUANG can answer that. That is part of the original question, I think.
DR. HUANG (in Cantonese): I think that jurisdiction might lie with the Urban Council. However, the question now is whether we have got legislation which we can implement. I think it is about time that we start reviewing the situation. Now, we have had the Clean Hong Kong Campaign for so long, we should stop these situations occurring.
MR. FORSGATE (in English): If I may press a bit longer, I do know that contractors are supposed to dampen down all their lorries and cover them effectively. Who is responsible? Again expanding the answer a little bit, could Dr. HUANG indicate who is responsible for that, and what steps are taken? Can the Urban Council through the Urban Services Department take part in enforcing that restriction?
DR. HUANG (in Cantonese): I certainly hope to see the Urban Services Department working hand in hand with the Public Works Department to take out prosecutions and to ensure that the legislation is effectively implemented. I remember previously we talked about saw-mills, etc. which dumped their waste into the sea and this has caused concern among members of the Clean Hong Kong Campaign. However, it appears that Public Works Department is not so concerned about environmental hygiene as we are. So far, we haven't seen very good legislation being drawn up. However, as far as the Council is concerned, I can recall that if a lorry leaves a construction site with debris on the ground, then we could prosecute the driver.
STATEMENT
Page 62 of 142
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85
MR. KENNETH T. C. Lo, CHAIRMAN OF THE RECREATION SELECT COMMITTEE (in English): Mr. Chairman, the Urban Council has various responsibilities towards the urban population of Hong Kong. Not the least important of these is to look after their recreational needs both active and passive. For active recreation, we try to provide suitable facilities for all active games and sports for which there is a demand in Hong Kong.
One of the most popular of these activities is swimming. The Council's aim is to build one swimming pool complex for every district of about 250,000 people. So far, this aim has not been achieved entirely. In some districts, there is not enough land to spare for a full-sized complex which may consist of as many as eight pools.
We are now considering a new concept instead of building formal standard size pools only. We intend to build some fun and leisure pools with water slides and wave-making machines, etc. These may be built where there is not enough land for a full-sized complex.
In recent years, there has been an upsurge of activity in athletics due to the energetic organization of the Amateur Athletics Association. This has been made possible by the completion of the Wan Chai Sports Ground in February 1979. There has been some criticism that this Ground was not used enough, but statistics show that last year it was used up to 60% of the time for which it was available, and this is certainly not underutilization.
Towards the latter part of 1981, two new multi-purpose complexes were completed by the Urban Council. These are mainly market buildings but include recreational facilities which cater for a number of indoor games. Several more such complexes are planned, and the recreational facilities they provide will be a useful supplement to the larger, free-standing indoor games halls.
In addition to active recreation, the Council also tries to provide more greenery and to create a more pleasant environment for urban Hong Kong. Originally, Hong Kong was a place of natural beauty. However, over the years with intensive building development, the beautiful environment has been slowly destroyed. It is our duty to reverse this trend if possible.
The Council has a tree-planting programme every year, and this year, the month of May was designated as Tree Planting Month. Roadside amenities plots and beautification schemes have also been put in hand. The Council will be primarily responsible for creating these schemes, but to make them truly meaningful, they must be the work of the community as a whole. They must also be preserved from littering and vandalism. A more beautiful and well-ordered city is the aspiration of the community, but it can only come about by the combined effort of all concerned citizens.
Page 62 of 142
Page 62 of 142
84
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
over this matter and hope that the situation will improve. Actually road works are a special characteristic of the United Kingdom. If you have been to England, you will have seen that almost all the roads are constantly being dug up, the same thing is happening in Hong Kong. Roads are dug up because there are lots of public facilities which need to be buried underground, say for instance, power supply lines, gas pipes, etc. and there is no concrete long-term plan because Hong Kong is developing very rapidly. So road works are inevitable. However, members' concern over the matter will certainly be referred to the Highways Office and we hope that we can improve the situation to make our road surfaces more sightly.
MR. FORSGATE (in English): Mr. Chairman, it seems you have effectively decided to disregard Standing Order 12 items 14 and 15. Perhaps I could join in the fun. Referring to part of the question raised by Mr. FUNG, the gigantic dust bowl, which, I think all of us who live in Hong Kong at this time of the year, regard as the greatest nuisance, as the dry weather is going to exacerbate this nuisance. What steps do the department propose to mitigate the dust nuisance from nearly all construction and redevelopment sites? Who is responsible? The Urban Services Department? The Highways Office? The Environmental Protection Agency? I wonder if Dr. HUANG can answer that. That is part of the original question, I think.
DR. HUANG (in Cantonese):--I think that jurisdiction might lie with the Urban Council. However, the question now is whether we have got legislation which we can implement. I think it is about time that we start reviewing the situation. Now, we have had the Clean Hong Kong Campaign for so long, we should stop these situations occurring.
MR. FORSGATE (in English):-If I may press a bit longer, I do know that contractors are supposed to dampen down all their lorries and covered them effectively. Who is responsible? Again expanding the answer a little bit, could Dr. HUANG indicate who is responsible for that, and what steps are taken? Can the Urban Council through the Urban Services Department take the part in enforcing that restriction.
DR. HUANG (in Cantonese):--I certainly hope to see the Urban Services Department working hand in hand with the Public Works Department to take out prosecutions and to ensure that the legislation is effectively implemented. I remember previously we talked about saw-mills, etc. which dumped their waste into the sea and this has caused concern among members of the Clean Hong Kong Campaign. However, it appears that Public Works Department is not so concerned about environmental hygiene as we are. So far, we haven't seen very good legislation being drawn up. However, as far as the Council is concerned, I can recall that if a lorry leaves a construction site with debris on the ground, then we could prosecute the driver.
STATEMENT
Page 62 of 142
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
85
MR. KENNETH T. C. Lo, CHAIRMAN OF THE RECREATION SELECT COMMITTEE (in English):-Mr. Chairman, the Urban Council has various responsibilities towards the urban population of Hong Kong. Not the least important of these is to look after their recreational needs both active and passive. For active recreation, we try to provide suitable facilities for all active games and sports for which there is a demand in Hong Kong.
One of the most popular of these activities is swimming. The Council's aim is to build one swimming pool complex for every district of about 250 000 people. So far, this aim has not been achieved entirely. In some districts there is not enough land to spare for a full sized complex which may consist of as many as
eight pools.
We are now considering a new concept instead of building formal standard size pools only. We intend to build some fun and leisure pools with water slides and wave making machines etc. These may be built where there is not enough land for a full sized complex.
In recent years, there has been an upsurge of activity in athletics due to the energetic organization of the Amateur Athletics Association. This has been made possible by the completion of the Wan Chai Sports Ground in February 1979. There has been some criticism that this Ground was not used enough but statistics show that last year was used up to 60% of the time for which it was available and this is certainly not underutilization.
Towards the latter part of 1981, two new multi purpose complexes were completed by the Urban Council. These are mainly market buildings but include recreational facilities which cater for a number of indoor games. Several more such complexes are planned and the recreational facilities they provide will be a useful supplement to the larger, free standing indoor games halls.
In addition to active recreation, the Council also tries to provide more greenery and to create a more pleasant environment for urban Hong Kong. Originally Hong Kong was a place of natural beauty. However over the years with intensive building development, the beautiful environment has been slowly destroyed. It is our duty to reverse this trend if possible.
The Council has a tree planting programme every year and this year, the month of May was designated as Tree Planting Month. Road side amenities plots and beautification schemes have also been put in hand. The Council will be primarily responsible for creating these schemes, but to make them truly meaningful they must be the work of the community as a whole. They must also be preserved from littering and vandalism. A more beautiful and well ordered city is the aspiration of the community but it can only come about by the combined effort of all concerned citizens.
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