ENG-2005 — Page 342

296 The Environment

Another motor vehicle emission control strategy is to tighten control of smoky vehicles. Under the Smoky Vehicle Control Programme, all vehicles reported must be tested for smoke levels using a chassis dynamometer at designated vehicle emission testing centres to find out if the owners have rectified the smoke defects. Under this scheme, the number of smoky vehicles on roads has decreased by about 80 per cent since 1999.

Apart from having cleaner vehicles and cleaner fuels, it is essential to promote mass transit systems that are pollution-free at street level. The Government has adopted a policy that gives priority to rail over road and encourages innovation wherever practical.

Indoor Air Quality

To promote good indoor air quality (IAQ) and public awareness of its importance, the Government has introduced an IAQ Management Programme. One of the core elements of the programme is a voluntary IAQ Certification Scheme for Offices and Public Places. The certification scheme is for buildings or premises used as offices and public places that are served by mechanical ventilation and air-conditioning systems. It aims to recognise good indoor air quality management practices and to provide incentives for owners of buildings/premises or property management companies to pursue the best level of indoor air quality.

Noise

Road Traffic Noise

Hong Kong experiences various noise problems, one of which is road traffic noise. Under the existing policy, when planning new roads, the project proponent must ensure that traffic noise will stay below the established noise limits. If it is envisaged that traffic noise will exceed the limits, the project proponent must adopt all practicable direct measures such as adjusting the road alignment, surfacing the roads with low-noise material or erecting noise barriers to reduce the noise impact on the neighbourhood. Where direct measures are inadequate, indirect noise-reducing measures, such as good quality windows and air-conditioning, must be provided.

To address the noise impact of existing excessively noisy roads, noise barriers and resurfacing with low noise material are being used where practicable. The Government has identified over 30 existing road sections as targets for the retrofitting of noise barriers. The extensive retrofit programme is being carried out in phases as resources become available. So far, some 70 local roads have also been identified as possible targets for resurfacing with low-noise material. The resurfacing programme is in progress and will benefit about 40 000 residential units upon completion. In addition, all high-speed (70km/hr or above) roads have been resurfaced with low-noise material where technically feasible.

To ensure that an individual vehicle does not produce excessive noise, the Government tightened legislation in 2002 requiring all newly registered vehicles to comply with the latest internationally recognised noise standards. The noise standard will continue to be tightened in step with international developments.