ENG-1983 — Page 310

THE ENVIRONMENT:

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Electrical and Mechanical Services Department, while the remainder, as well as the incinerator residue, was disposed of at the controlled tips operated under contract to the Director of Engineering Development. Products of the composting plant are now being used by various authorities to condition soil used in landscaping. During the year, a new controlled tip at Pillar Point Valley was brought into operation to replace the Siu Lang Shui tip which had been filled to capacity. Work started on the preparation of a tip at Jordan Valley to replace the Ma Yau Tong tip when this is full. The restored land that becomes available following the completion of a controlled tip is assigned for recreation purposes or some other beneficial use.

As Hong Kong is party to a number of international maritime conventions concerned with oil and other forms of pollution, the Pollution Control Unit of the Marine Department is responsible for dealing with offshore oil pollution, the control of marine dumping activities and the surveillance of oil transfer to and from ships. It is also responsible for the collection of floating refuse. Since the unit was set up, many pollution offenders have been successfully prosecuted. The maximum penalty on conviction is a fine of $200,000 and costs incurred in clearing or dispersing oil pollution are recoverable from offenders.

To combat oil pollution, the unit has a purpose-built pollution control vessel, stocks of low toxicity chemical dispersants, and more than 2 400 metres of large and medium-sized oil containment booms. A substantial inventory of oil pollution equipment within the government and oil companies can be deployed at short notice in an emergency.

Floating refuse is a perennial problem and during the year some 5 693 tonnes of refuse were scavenged from the sea surface. Additionally, 2 498 tonnes of refuse were collected from source by the ship-to-ship service which serves ocean-going ships in Victoria Harbour, and by the boat-to-boat service which collects refuse from dwelling boats in the typhoon shelters at Tuen Mun, Aberdeen, Yau Ma Tei, Causeway Bay and Aldrich Bay.

The New Territories Services Department now carries by barge all refuse collected on the island of Cheung Chau to the mainland for disposal, a scheme which may be extended to other outlying islands. Small village refuse incinerators which are a source of environmental nuisance were being replaced during the year by collection vehicle services or, where access is not practical, by new purpose-designed incinerators.

Because of the heavy annual rainfall and the very high intensity of storms during the summer months, the provision of adequate stormwater drainage systems, particularly in the flat and low-lying areas of reclaimed land, is an important and continuing task of the Civil Engineering Office of the Engineering Development Department. During the year, major stormwater drainage schemes were completed at the new reclamations at Cheung Sha Wan in northwest Kowloon and at Chai Wan on Hong Kong Island. Similar schemes were started at Sham Shui Po and To Kwa Wan. Work also began on a river training scheme on the Ng Tung River at Lo Wu in order to reduce the risk of flooding in the upstream areas.

Monitoring and Investigation

It is important that public and private sector resources for controlling pollution or improving the environment are used effectively and efficiently and to achieve this it is essential to recognise the nature and extent of the problems in Hong Kong. This requirement, together with the need to check on the effectiveness of newly-introduced control measures and to identify new adverse trends, has led to various monitoring schemes and investigational projects.