ENG-1980 — Page 88

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PRIMARY PRODUCTION

Research programmes of the department cover crops, pest control, animal husbandry, and fisheries. On government farms, experiments are conducted to improve the quality and yield for each hectare of vegetables, flowers and fruit. The department advises livestock farmers on modern methods of animal production, helps them in the supply of improved and exotic breeds of pigs and poultry, and provides an artificial insemination service for pigs.

Fisheries research covers marine resources, aquaculture, hydrography and marine pollu- tion problems. In marine resources research, emphasis is placed on recommending new fish stocks for commercial exploitation within the range of the Hong Kong fleet, and on monitoring the performance of existing capture fisheries. To assist in the first objective, a new research vessel - the 36.6-metre long, locally-built Tai Shun - was commissioned in the latter part of the year. The multi-purpose vessel is capable of staying at sea for 30 days and was built to a stern trawler design at a cost of over $10 million. It has a cruising range of 8,000 miles.

The vessel will be used to conduct acoustic surveys of pelagic fish in the north part of the South China Sea to establish whether or not the stocks are capable of supporting commercial fishing. It will also carry out exploratory fishing on the edge of the northern continental shelf.

Of the other facets of fisheries research going on, aquaculture is concerned with de- veloping more efficient culture systems; hydrographic investigations are designed to supply environmental information for an assortment of biological programmes; and marine pollu- tion research is primarily aimed at identifying the level of pollution and the principal indicators of various forms of pollution.

Developing Farming and Fishing

Owing to the shortage of labour in Hong Kong and its rising cost, the main development in the agricultural industry in recent years has been the introduction of labour-saving devices. Farmers use pre-emergence herbicides for weed control in market garden crops, and there is widespread use of small farm machines and sprinkler irrigation. At the end of 1980, there were 3,150 rotary cultivators and 2,050 sprinkler units in use on vegetable farms.

The plastic net house, designed to aid vegetable growing in adverse weather, is the subject of an active development programme by the Agriculture and Fisheries Department. The net houses, which are particularly suited for leafy green vegetables, protect crops from bad weather, insects and birds. Technical assistance, agricultural loans and related services have been made available to farmers to promote their use.

Teams of agricultural development officers are posted throughout the New Territories to deal with farming and pollution problems, and with co-operative societies and rural associations. Both credit facilities and technical advice are available to farmers and the agricultural development officers also assist them in land development and rehabilitation. In the rural development programme in 1980, more than 4,750 farmers attended farm discussion groups led by professional and technical officers from the Agriculture and Fisheries Department. Some 88 field demonstrations of chemical weed control methods were conducted in the main vegetable-growing areas for the benefit of farmers. Officers also made more than 105,835 visits to farmers and co-operative societies, and many farmers visited government experimental farms and farming projects.

Fisheries development work involves modernising fishing craft and introducing more efficient fishing gear and navigational aids. An advisory service on hull design and deck