Page 178 of 485
Page 178 of 485
Page 178 of 485
154
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
To tackle this refuse problem, the Department makes a number of special arrangements in the area during holiday periods. In addition to normal provision, 80 or more additional litter containers with an increased capacity of 240 litres are strategically placed throughout the area and 2 large skips are provided for temporary storage of waste. These litter containers are emptied hourly by Cleansing staff. The skips are also replaced twice daily. Special clean-up operations are mounted in this area in the evening followed by thorough washing in order to ensure that these areas of Central District are clean and tidy well before the next working day.
To efficiently and effectively carry out the above cleansing work, a large force of 36 cleaning staff are deployed to the area on Sundays and public holidays. Furthermore, two teams each consisting of two Cleansing Foremen are deployed to patrol this area to book litter offenders in both day and night shifts.
The Department has co-operated with attempts to divert the overseas domestic helpers to other venues for the holding of leisure functions so as to alleviate the congested condition of the Central District during Sundays and public holidays. During 1993, community functions organised by the Asia Pacific Directories (APD) were carried out in Moreton Terrace Temporary Playground for participation by the Filipino community on 3 consecutive Sundays in May that year. In June 1993, approval was again given to the APD to stage a series of community functions in the Western Park for a trial period of 6 months. The functions were held on alternate Sundays. Although the events were aimed at attracting overseas domestic helpers, the trial lasted for only 2 months because of low attendance rate. However, the Home Affairs Department has now set up 5 Overseas Domestic Helper Centres in various districts for gathering and organising activities by interested parties. All these efforts to reduce over-crowding in these popular areas of Central District during Sundays and Public Holidays and to provide alternative venues for overseas domestic helpers do of course also help to reduce the scale of littering and often environmental problems at these locations.
With the available resources, the Department will maintain its efforts to upkeep the environmental and sanitary conditions of the area and to more tightly control incidents of littering and illegal hawking.
MR. DANIEL TO BOON-MAN (in Cantonese):—I thank the Department for taking actions, but there is illegal hawking right at the entrance of our Chambers. That is most ludicrous. We must take more positive action. The quantity of some 13 tonnes of litter and refuse collected and also 514 prosecutions made are astonishing figures and are of concern to us. We don't want to see the problem going from bad to worse. I would like to make an earnest request to the Department for stepping up education and publicity. It is hoped that through the Filipino Consul General in Hong Kong, some leaflets can be translated into Filipino languages, including Tagalog, to boost education for the Filipino maids, to show that the Urban Council can communicate with them and show them that we are concerned about this problem.
£185
Page 178 of 485
Page 178 of 485
Page 178 of 485
154
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
To tackle this refuse problem, the Department makes a number of special arrangements in the area during holiday periods. In addition to normal provision, 80 or more additional litter containers with an increased capacity of 240 litres are strategically placed throughout the area and 2 large skips are provided for temporary storage of waste. These litter containers are emptied hourly by Cleansing staff. The skips are also replaced twice daily. Special clean-up operations are mounted in this area in the evening followed by thorough washing in order to ensure that these areas of Central District are clean and tidy well before the next working day.
To efficiently and effectively carry out the above cleansing work, a large force of 36 cleaning staff are deployed to the area on Sundays and public holidays. Furthermore, two teams each consisting of two Cleansing Foremen are deployed to patrol this area to book litter offenders in both day and night shifts.
The Department has co-operated with attempts to divert the overseas domestic helpers to other venues for the holding of leisure functions so as to alleviate the congested condition of the Central District during Sundays and public holidays. During 1993, community functions organised by the Asia Pacific Directories (APD) were carried out in Moreton Terrace Temporary Playground for participation by the Filipino community on 3 consecutive Sundays in May that year. In June 1993, approval was again given to the APD to stage a series of community functions in the Western Park for a trial period of 6 months. The functions were held on alternate Sundays. Although the events were aimed at attracting overseas domestic helpers, the trial lasted for only 2 months because of low attendance rate. However, the Home Affairs Department has now set up 5 Overseas Domestic Helper Centres in various districts for gathering and organising activities by interested parties. All these efforts to reduce over-crowding in these popular areas of Central District during Sundays and Public Holidays and to provide alternative venues for overseas domestic helpers do of course also help to reduce the scale of littering and often environmental problems at these locations.
With the available resources, the Department will maintain its efforts to upkeep the environmental and sanitary conditions of the area and to more tightly control incidents of littering and illegal hawking.
MR. DANIEL TO BOON-MAN (in Cantonese):—I thank the Department for taking actions, but there is illegal hawking right at the entrance of our Chambers. That is most ludicrous. We must take more positive action. The quantity of some 13 tonnes of litter and refuse collected and also 514 prosecutions made are astonishing figures and are of concern to us. We don't want to see the problem going from bad to worse. I would like to make an carnest request to the Department for stepping up education and publicity. It is hoped that through the Filipino Consul General in Hong Kong, some leaflets can be translated into Filipino languages, including Tagalog, to boost education for the Filipino maids, to show that the Urban Council can communicate with them and show them that we are concerned about this problem.
£185
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