ENG-1963 — Page 138

PRIMARY PRODUCTION

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Natural topography largely decides the use which can be made of land in Hong Kong. From a farmer's viewpoint, all the readily cultivable land is already being exploited and what is left, apart from land alienated to industrial and urban use, is marginal. Pressure comes on the land from two directions-the continued and steady demand for land for industry and housing, and the need to meet the growing needs of the rural community. It is important to remember that 80.8 per cent of the total area of the territory is marginal land, in differing degrees of sub-grade character. The arable land and fish ponds already exploited com- prise only 13.7 per cent of the total area and the expanding urban areas (the remaining 5.5 per cent) tend to encroach more directly on arable rather than on marginal land. It is necessary to preserve a proper balance between these conflicting needs and, where possible, land is reclaimed from the sea for industry, as at Tsuen Wan. On the other hand market towns such as Yuen Long, Tai Po and Sha Tin must expand and it is unavoidable that fields will be lost to agriculture, or at least that agriculture in such areas will be confined to market gardens. This trend is, however, being offset by more intensive production and by development of marginal land.-

In 1937 it was estimated that the total forest cover was 22 square miles. There were a further 81 square miles of private forest lots, largely kept by villagers for grazing and grass cutting. During the Japanese occupation much of this timber was stripped from the hillsides and catchment areas. The afforestation policy is to replace these lost woodlands, not only to safeguard water catch- ments and ensure soil conservation, but also to take advantage of the opportunities it affords to make best use of the land. There are many limiting factors to the extension of arable land, but they can be overcome in some areas and much more attention is now paid to the principles of multiple land use in order to exploit underdeveloped areas. The establishment of pure forests tends to be restricted to areas incapable of more intensive development.

The compilation of information and data for the further ex- ploitation of available land resources for agricultural production is a continuing process. The Agriculture and Forestry Department is primarily concerned and has the changing pattern of land use