1 Residents on march for greener Kwun Tong
GRACE TSOI, SCMP 28 July 2008

More than 200 Kwun Tong residents took to the streets yesterday to express discontent over their deteriorating environment and the lack of consultation on redevelopments plans.

Composed of children and the elderly, the protesters marched from Laguna Park to the Kwun Tong pier where they tied green ribbons around its fences to express their hopes for a better living environment.

"The living environment is very important for our children," said a housewife surnamed Chui who marched with her husband and eight-year-old son. They have been Laguna City residents for 10 years.

Chui said noise, water and air pollution have all become part of the daily lives of residents, pointing out that a sewage treatment plant, two cargo working areas and a metal-recycling plant are located along the coast from Kwun Tong to Cha Kwo Ling.

Residents have been pressing for the demolition of the cargo loading areas, where around 40 barges dock regularly.

Their contract, scheduled to expire on July 31, was extended by the government to 2011 without allegedly consulting the residents as there were no other suitable site for cargo-handling.

"The government is siding with the developers," Kwun Tong district councillor Cliff Tang Wing-chun said.

 

2 Delta bridge design wins ministerial approval
Cary Huang in Beijing, SCMP 28 July 2008

The design of the long-awaited Hong Kong-Zhuhai -Macau Bridge has been approved by the Ministry of Transport, an official said yesterday.

Song Dexing , director general of the ministry's water transport department, said the bridge would strengthen Hong Kong's  status as a world shipping centre.

"The Ministry of Transport has approved [the design of] the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge in  regard to shipping," Mr Song said.

He Jianzhong , director general of the ministry's department of economic restructuring and legislation, said the ministry had completed its approval procedures for the project.

The high-profile project has been under discussion for several years. The governments of Hong Kong, Guangdong and Macau endorsed the financing scheme for the bridge this year. Under the agreement, Hong Kong would meet just over half the total cost, 50.2 per cent, with Guangdong contributing 35.1 per cent and Macau 14.7 per cent.

The final documents are awaiting approval from the central government and the State Council's National Development and Reform Commission.

Mr Song said: "I believe that [the project] will further boost the development of Hong Kong's transport and logistics, and its status as a shipping centre."

He dismissed fears that the fast development of shipping and port facilities in Shenzhen and the Pearl River Delta would weaken Hong Kong's status, saying the city still had competitive advantages in finance, insurance and information technology.

"I believe that Hong Kong will play its role as a shipping centre in the long term with its core competitive advantages," Mr Song said.

A recent report delivered by a consultant said the bridge would only bring Hong Kong limited cargo growth. The report warned that competition among different terminals in the region would become fierce and Hong Kong was likely to face even greater pressure.

In a visit to Hong Kong this month, Vice-President Xi Jinping , Beijing's top official in charge of Hong Kong affairs, said construction of infrastructure facilities was of great importance for Hong Kong to maintain its status as an  international financial, trade and shipping centre.

China News Service reported last month that the bridge proposal would go to the National Development and Reform Commission for approval next month. Experts responsible for the feasibility study pledged to speed up the project after a meeting in Zhuhai, it said.

The Legislative Council last month approved HK$133.5 million for studies, preliminary design and preconstruction work on the bridge. Director of Highways Wai Chi-sing said the preconstruction work was expected to create at least 10,000 jobs for local construction workers.

 

3 Energy audits likely for existing buildings
Cheung Chi-fai, SCMP 28 July 2008

Energy audits for existing commercial buildings may be phased in as a requirement under the proposed law on mandatory building energy codes, a senior official has said.

A grace period of at least a year is also likely to be granted to ensure a smooth transition to the compulsory requirements.

Alfred Sit Wing-hang, assistant director of the Electrical and Mechanical Engineering Department, said a bill making the codes compulsory was being drafted for tabling next year.

A taskforce of professionals has also been formed to advise on technical details of the bill.

The law will require new buildings to meet the codes specifying energy use requirements in areas such as lifts, lighting and air conditioning. The codes are now voluntary.

Under the proposal, all existing commercial buildings will also need to undergo energy audits, proposed at 10-year intervals, to find ways to improve energy consumption.

"It will be done in phases. But the old buildings will not necessarily be in the first phase as they tend to have fewer installations and consume less energy than newer ones," Mr Sit said.

It was necessary to strike a balance between the age and energy consumption of the buildings when coming up with a feasible plan on energy audits, he said.

There are about 40,000 buildings in Hong Kong, of which about 8,000 are commercial. It was estimated nearly 90 per cent of the city's electricity was consumed by buildings.

If the audit rules were required of all buildings, there might not be enough auditing professionals to carry out the task, Mr Sit said.

Mr Sit said the law would not  include demands for a carbon audit as it was a new concept while energy  audits were an established practice.

There would also be no rule regulating light pollution, as officials believed building owners would know the energy consumption level of exterior lighting installations and could make changes if they wished.

Ho Sai-king, chief engineer of the department, said building management companies should be able to find plenty of room for energy saving.

At the Housing Society managed Prosperous Garden in Yau Ma Tei, one of the towers had its power bill cut by about HK$130,000 a year by having its electrical installations changed in line with the codes at a one-off cost of HK$2 million.