ENG-1996 — Page 266

LAND, PUBLIC WORKS AND UTILITIES

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During the year, the government announced additional safety initiatives to promote safety and health on public works construction sites. To this end, a Pay for Safety Scheme and an Independent Safety Audit Scheme, together with a system of sanctions, are being progressively introduced into capital works contracts to encourage contractors to give site safety a high priority. To help promote safety, basic safety training courses are being organised jointly by the government, the Hong Kong Construction Association and local institutes such as the Construction Industry Training Authority and the Occupational Safety and Health Council.

The government also took steps to improve building safety in the private sector through the setting up of a special task force to inspect construction/demolition sites; and through legislative amendments to improve the registration of building professionals and contractors and to enhance the safety of building and demolition works. The outcome of an on-going consultancy on older buildings will provide useful information for mapping out a strategy to ensure proper building repair and

maintenance.

After conducting a comprehensive review on slope safety in 1995, the government increased manpower resources and funding for the Geotechnical Engineering Office (GEO) in order to accelerate the Landslip Preventive Measures (LPM) Programme. The GEO stepped up its publicity campaign on slope maintenance, published guides on the subject and set up a hotline. In 1996, a consultancy was commissioned to identify the maintenance responsibility of all man-made slopes throughout Hong Kong. A standing committee was set up in the Works Branch to take forward proposals on legislative control of private slopes and on maintenance of public slopes. The government has also made substantial progress in implementing all five of the recommendations made by the Canadian geotechnical expert, Professor N. R. Morgenstern, after his investigation of the Kwun Lung Lau landslide in late 1994.

The Electrical and Mechanical Services Trading Fund was set up in August 1996. With the exception of regulatory services, all major operations in the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department were put under the Trading Fund. The fund will enable the department to operate more flexibly, efficiently and responsively and hence provide better services to its clients.

Improvements were made to the Water Supplies Department's operations and efficiency after a management review was completed in October 1995, and other measures are being considered. Meanwhile, work has started on digitally mapping all of the department's underground assets, to assess their condition and to evaluate the capital and recurrent costs of operating and maintaining them in an efficient manner. The Sewage Services Trading Fund was set up in March 1994 to operate and maintain Hong Kong's sewage services and also to collect sewage charges in accordance with the 'polluter pays' principle. The sewage charging scheme started in April 1995. A proposal to increase sewage charges to meet the rising costs of the expanding sewage services was not approved by the Legislative Council in July 1996 and, as a result, the Trading Fund is projected to run into deficit beginning in 1997-98.

The Organisational Framework

The main objectives of the government's lands and works policies are to ensure an adequate supply of land to meet the needs of the public and private sectors, to