ENG-2016 — Page 283

15

The Environment

environmental impact of energy usage and production. Its Sustainable Development Division promotes sustainable development in both the government and the community and provides secretariat support to the Council for Sustainable Development.

Government spending on the environment in 2016-17 was budgeted at $13.9 billion, or about 2.6 per cent of total public expenditure.

Sustainable Development

The Council for Sustainable Development, appointed by the Chief Executive, promotes sustainable development in Hong Kong. The Sustainable Development Fund provides grants for projects that enhance public awareness of sustainable development or encourage sustainable practices. Since 2003, 67 projects had been approved and 58 of those completed, involving grants totalling more than $69 million.

The Sustainable Development Division oversees the government's sustainability assessment system, which integrates sustainability considerations into the decision-making process. All bureaus and departments must conduct sustainability assessments of their major initiatives and set out the implications in their submissions to the Policy Committee and Executive Council.

Environmental Awareness

The EPD works closely with the government-appointed Environmental Campaign Committee to enhance public environmental awareness and encourage the public to contribute actively towards a better environment through campaigns and community programmes that promote waste reduction and recycling, energy conservation and other initiatives. The department's environmental resource and education centres provide the public with easy access to environmental information. It also administers the Environment and Conservation Fund, which promotes behavioural and lifestyle changes to protect the environment and promote sustainable development by providing funding to local non-profit-making organisations to implement educational, research and other projects relating to the environment and conservation.

Cross-boundary Cooperation

Hong Kong works with Guangdong and Macao on environmental matters. The Hong Kong and Guangdong governments are working on a mid-term review of emission reduction targets/ranges for the Pearl River Delta region that were endorsed in 2012, to conclude the emission reduction results for 2015 and finalise the targets for 2020. The three sides are also conducting the first regional air-quality study to understand the pollution characteristics of fine suspended particulates (PM25). This joint study, to be completed in 2017, will help in the formulation of appropriate and effective policies to combat PM25 pollution in the region. There are 23 air monitoring stations, including one in Macao. Results from the network showed a substantial reduction in the annual concentration levels of most pollutants in the region in recent years. From 2006 to 2015, the annual concentrations of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and respirable suspended particulates decreased 72 per cent, 28 per cent and 34 per cent respectively.

229