ENG-2002 — Page 345

THE ENVIRONMENT

Beach

water

Bathing season geometric means of

quality

E. coli count per

ranking

100 ml of beach water

Minor health risk cases per 1 000 swimmers

Number of beaches

2001

2002

Good

Up to 24

Undetectable

21

23

Fair

25 to 180

10 or less

13

10

Poor

181 to 610

11 to 15

5

2

Very Poor

More than 610

More than 15

2

6

Since 1998, beach water quality gradings for beaches have been made available weekly during the bathing season through the mass media and the EPD's home page.

Livestock Waste Pollution

Indiscriminate disposal of waste from the livestock industry was formerly one of the main causes of pollution in streams and rivers in the New Territories. Before the livestock waste control scheme began in 1987, a pollution load from livestock waste equivalent to raw sewage from more than 1.6 million people ended up in Hong Kong's rivers and eventually the sea. Since 1988, the Waste Disposal Ordinance has banned livestock-keeping in new towns and environmentally sensitive areas. Where they are allowed, livestock farms must have proper waste treatment systems.

Under the control scheme, livestock farmers who chose to continue in business applied for a grant and a loan to help pay for pollution-control facilities. Since the start of the scheme in 1987, about $63 million was paid out in capital grants. Farmers who chose to cease business applied for an allowance, and about $883 million has been paid. Livestock waste pollution has been reduced by 97 per cent since the inception of the control scheme.

The Government has been providing a livestock waste collection service since 1996. A monthly average of about 5 000 tonnes of livestock waste was collected in 2002.

Waste Management

Waste Reduction

In November 1998, the Government launched a 10-year Waste Reduction Framework Plan. This was a response to the rapid growth in the amount of waste being dumped in the landfills, leading to a significant reduction in their expected lifespan. Given the shortage of land in Hong Kong and the keen competition for any available space, it will be difficult to find sites for any new landfills. The plan aims to reduce the amount of waste produced, to encourage re-use and recycling, to promote greater efficiency and economy in the management of waste, and to prolong the usable life of Hong Kong's landfills.

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