ENG-1998 — Page 259

LAND, PUBLIC WORKS AND UTILITIES

A safe and healthy working environment will be promoted in public works project construction sites. Public works contractors have been encouraged to set up more efficient safety management systems through the Pay for Safety Scheme (PFSS) and the Independent Safety Audit Scheme (ISAS). By the end of 1998, 213 capital works contracts had been included in the PFSS and 36 contracts in the first stage of the ISAS.

Enhanced safety training was provided to construction workers. Safety Advisory Units of seven works departments continued to provide support to staff in maintaining safety and health on public works sites. With the implementation of these safety initiatives, the overall accident rate of public works sites in the year ending December 1998 was reduced to about 50 accidents per 1 000 workers, which is less than 25 per cent of the average accident rate for the construction industry as a whole.

The government is committed to promoting quality project management. To improve value for money in the delivery of public works, guidelines have been promulgated among the works group of departments to promote the use of value management studies in the planning and implementation of major projects. The departments have already obtained a total of 12 ISO 9000 certificates for their major activities. During 1998, the Architectural Services Department became the first government department to obtain the ISO 14001 certificate on its environmental management system. All consultants and contractors undertaking major public works projects have established their own quality management systems and obtained ISO 9000 certificates.

The Organisational Framework

The Secretary for Works is responsible for the cost-effective delivery of public works projects and for the formulation of policies on flood control, construction site safety, slope safety and water supply. He oversees, and has policy responsibility for, the activities of the Architectural Services Department, Civil Engineering Department, Drainage Services Department, Electrical and Mechanical Services Department, Highways Department, Territory Development Department and Water Supplies Department. He also oversees the operations of the Electrical and Mechanical Services Trading Fund and the New Airport Project Co-ordination Office set up in 1991 to co-ordinate the overall implementation of the ACP.

The government's primary lands and works policy objectives are to ensure an adequate supply of land to meet the short-term and long-term needs of the public and private sectors, to optimise the use of land within the framework of land use zoning and development strategies, and to ensure co-ordinated development in infrastructure and buildings.

The Secretary for Planning, Environment and Lands is chairman of the Planning and Land Development Committee, which is responsible for monitoring the general progress of the physical development of Hong Kong, as well as considering and endorsing detailed planning briefs, layouts and development plans. He is also chairman of the Town Planning Board, and has policy responsibility for conservation.

Besides his policy functions, the Secretary for Planning, Environment and Lands oversees the operation of the Buildings Department, Environmental Protection

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