ENG-1998 — Page 458

RECREATION, SPORTS AND THE ARTS

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Horticulture and Landscape Services

Provisional Urban Council

The Provisional Urban Council is committed to improving the urban environment with landscape and tree preservation. The services include landscape design and planting, plant production, horticultural research, tree maintenance and conservation. During the year, the council completed 40 landscape projects and planted about 6900 trees, 20 000 seedlings and 1.2 million flowering shrubs and annuals. About 90 per cent of these plants were supplied by the council's nurseries, with the balance coming from commercial nurseries.

The Landscape Improvement Programme is an on-going programme to upgrade existing roadside amenities. In 1998, 10 sites were upgraded to enhance the streetscape and environment.

Provisional Regional Council

The Provisional Regional Council maintains 1011 hectares of greenery in parks, gardens, sports grounds, soccer pitches, games areas and children's playgrounds in the New Territories. It also manages amenity plots and soft landscape along highways and roads. In 1998, more than 650 000 plants were planted in parks, playgrounds and roadside amenities.

Hong Kong Flower Show

Since 1987, the municipal councils have jointly organised the annual Hong Kong Flower Show, which has grown in size and popularity each year. The show is held in alternate years in the New Territories and the urban areas. It provides many interesting activities such as horticultural talks, floral arrangement demonstrations, photographic competitions and children's games. More than 70 local and overseas horticultural organisations took part in the 1998 show held at Victoria Park. It attracted more than 460 000 visitors over a 10-day period.

Green Hong Kong Campaign

The Provisional Urban Council Green Hong Kong Campaign is in its fifth year and continues to focus on three elements: community involvement, education and tree- planting. The highlight of this year's education programme was the Learn More About Greening project. Four publications and one CD-ROM on urban trees and other green knowledge were produced for all ages. All these educational materials. were well received by the public.

Under the community involvement programme, the Green Hong Kong Ambassador Scheme continued to expand with services covering street trees maintenance and steward duties in campaign activities. Other programmes such as the District Community Planting Days, Children Green Song Competition, Green Carnival and Green Hong Kong Camp also attracted a high level of public support. The biennial Green Project Award Scheme was organised in December with eligibility for entry broadened to cover all development projects in Hong Kong. The activity was well received by landscape and horticultural professionals. To complement the major annual planting programme in parks and highways, some 1 500 standard trees