1989 — Page 27

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HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL

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MR. HILTON CHEONG-LEEN (in English):- Mr. Chairman, although Mr. BERNACCHI is Councillor for Chai Wan I would like to take this opportunity to mention to him that I do have a soft heart for Chai Wan because I saw it grow from a village area into virtually a township. But I have said in my last answer that until a suitable reprovisioned site is available, it will be necessary to retain the Chai Wan Temporary Market both to provide market facilities to the population in the area and to accommodate existing lessees therein. So may I assure Mr. BERNACCHI that we all would like to improve the market facilities along the lines he suggested as soon as possible.

7. MR. B. A. BERNACCHI asked the following question (in English):— The Eastern District Board has the money to build a pathway from Tsui Wan Estate direct to the MTR station. However, they have a policy whereby they only expend money on paths if the pathway is to remain for a minimum of three years. As the pathway passes over land intended for Chai Wan Park extension, please could I be informed when work on the project is to commence and if within three years, could the extension be so designed as to leave this path intact?

MR. SAMUEL P. W. WONG, Chairman of the RECREATION SELECT COMMITTEE, replied to the question (in English):-- Mr. BERNACCHI asks when construction of the Chai Wan Park Extension will commence as the Eastern District Board has the money to build a pathway through the project site from Tsui Wan Estate direct to the MTR station but they have a policy whereby they only expend money on paths if the pathway is to remain for a minimum of three years; also: if the Park Extension project is to start within three years, could the extension be so designed as to leave the path intact?

Tenders for the Chai Wan Park Extension project will be gazetted in November this year for works to commence in January 1990. Construction is expected to be completed in mid-1992.

The Architectural Services Department considers it impracticable to retain the proposed pathway during the construction period as it will have to be dug up for the laying of cables and many other underground facilities for the Park. The Park has been designed in such a way that there will be three main pedestrianways leading to the MTR station through the Park from various directions. One of these pedestrianways will lead from the Tsui Wan Estate to the MTR station. In order to facilitate local residents of the estate, there will also be stipulations in the contract documents which require the contractor to provide temporary pedestrian access to the MTR station throughout the whole construction period.

MR. B. A. BERNACCHI (in English):- You say the final design will provide pedestrian pathways in particular from Tsui Wan Estate but you do not say this in respect of providing necessary temporary pedestrian access to the MTR Station. Is there any temporary access from Tsui Wan Estate?

MR. SAMUEL P. W. WONG (in English): It is not directly from Tsui Wan Estate; it will be in a slightly roundabout way. There will be a main access for all the residents to use to go to the MTR Station. However, this could be looked into at a later stage.

8.

(a)

(b)

MR. JASON YUEN KING-YUK asked the following question (in Cantonese):— May I ask what measures the Council has taken or intend to take this year to draw to the attention of the public that they should maintain their air-conditioners properly this summer to prevent dripping? Furthermore, may I know the penalties which will be imposed upon conviction of a person guilty of having a dripping air-conditioner?

May I also ask the Council whether there are already some monitoring or inspection systems to ensure that all the projecting air-conditioners at high levels have been properly and securely fixed, especially those in the high-density but low-income housing areas?

DR. RONALD D. B. LEUNG, CHAIRMAN OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH SELECT COMMITTEE, replied to the question (in English):- Mr. YUEN's two questions are about air-conditioners. They mainly cover three points:

(a) what measures have the Council taken or intend to take to alert the public to maintain their air-conditioners properly to avoid dripping;

(b) what are the penalties for a conviction on failing to abate the nuisance of a dripping air-conditioner; and

(c) do we have a monitoring or inspection system to ensure that air-conditioners projecting at high levels are properly and securely fixed?

For point (a), Members may be aware that since two years ago, the Department in conjunction with the Health Education Unit of the Municipal Services Branch had launched a campaign every year around April to May under the theme of 'Get Your Air-conditioners Ready For the Summer'. The purpose of this campaign is to alert the public to check their air-conditioners mainly against dripping and other nuisances before these air-conditioners are put to use in the following hot summer months as an annual exercise. This year such a campaign has been launched in May. Posters and educational leaflets about the causes of a dripping offence were distributed to Mutual Aid Committees and Owners Corporations for posting up at common areas of buildings. Publicities were also made through the mass media and T.V. broadcast. Apart from the educational campaign, our health staff also take enforcement actions. In the past 12 months, a total of 3,300 cases have been investigated and 992 nuisance notices issued. These nuisance notices normally give offender owners 7-14 days (depending on seriousness of defects) to abate the dripping nuisance. According to our record, they were all complied with. No prosecution was made. The same enforcement exercise will be carried out this year.

As regards point (b), any person who fails to comply with a notice to abate a dripping nuisance from his air-conditioner is liable to a fine of $5,000 and an additional fine of $100 for each day that such a nuisance continues.

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