Tag Archives: China

     Three charities have been issued Public Subscription Permits to hold flag sales from 7am to 12.30pm today (February 24). They are, on Hong Kong Island, Hans Andersen Club Limited; in Kowloon, Hong Kong Sea Cadet Corps; and in the New Territories, Against Child Abuse Limited, a spokesman for the Social Welfare Department (SWD) said.

     Arrangements have been made with the charities to help people to distinguish among the three flag-selling activities.

     Information on the three flag-selling organisations on February 24 is as follows:
 

Region	Name of organisation	Colour of collection bag	Colour of flag
Hong Kong Island	Hans Andersen Club Limited	Orange	Blue
Kowloon	Hong Kong Sea Cadet Corps	Green	Blue
New Territories	Against Child Abuse Limited	Red	Green

     Details of the charitable fund-raising activities, including any updated information, covered by the issued Public Subscription Permits have been published on the GovHK website (www.gov.hk/en/theme/fundraising/search). Permits for flag days containing information on contact methods of the flag-selling organisations and the approved flag-selling activities have also been uploaded to the SWD’s website (www.swd.gov.hk/en/ngo/controlofc/flagdays) for reference. For enquiries, please call the SWD’s hotline at 2343 2255, or the designated hotline of the 1823 Call Centre at 3142 2678.

     In the case of suspected fraudulent flag day activities, people should not make any donation and should immediately report the matter to the Police, the spokesman added. read more

     The Town Planning Board (the Board) yesterday (February 23) agreed to gazette the new draft San Tin Technopole Outline Zoning Plan (OZP) (replacing the prevailing approved San Tin OZP), and the proposed amendments to the approved Ngau Tam Mei OZP and the approved Mai Po and Fairview Park OZP for public consultation in accordance with the Town Planning Ordinance (the Ordinance).
      
     The Board noted that the OZPs provided statutory planning framework for the development of the San Tin Technopole (the Technopole) and the Sam Po Shue Wetland Conservation Park (SPS WCP). The OZP for the Technopole also covered the area near the proposed San Tin Station of the Northern Link. The overall development would provide about 50 000 residential units and about 165 000 employment opportunities. Members considered that the Technopole would be particularly important for the implementation of Hong Kong’s role as an international innovation and technology (I&T) hub and the development of the I&T industry. Members also opined that the I&T land should be of significant scale to achieve efficiency, and noted that together with the Lok Ma Chau Loop (the Loop), there would be 300 hectares of I&T land. Members generally agreed with the planning layout that I&T land should be located in the north as an extension of the Loop while San Tin Town Centre, which was mainly a residential community, should be located in the south.
      
     At the meeting, Members enquired and discussed in detail the positioning of the Technopole, permitted uses of I&T land, urban-rural integration, urban design, the implementation programme and mechanism, etc. Ecological conservation and wetland compensation were also major concerns of Members.
      
     Members agreed to the establishment of the 338-hectare SPS WCP to achieve the dual goals of strengthening wetland conservation and making wetland compensation. Given about 90 hectares of fishponds would be filled for the development of the Technopole, Members noted that the environmental impact assessment report being published recommended increasing the ecological value of the wetlands in the SPS WCP through active conservation measures so that there would be no net loss in the ecological function or carrying capacity of the fishponds.
      
     Whilst acknowledging the concerns of some members of the public on the proposed development, majority of Members considered that the land use planning of the OZPs had already struck a balance between development and conservation. Some Members considered that the Government should formulate the implementation and management details of the SPS WCP as soon as possible, and suggested that a monitoring mechanism should be in place to ensure that the future operation of the wetland park could achieve no net loss of ecological function.
      
     Regarding the proposed consequential amendments to the boundaries of wetland conservation area and wetland buffer area demarcated in the Town Planning Board Guidelines No. 12C, the Board considered that it could be considered upon completion of the statutory planning procedures of the relevant OZPs.
      
     The draft San Tin Technopole OZP, the draft Ngau Tam Mei OZP and the draft Mai Po and Fairview Park OZP will be exhibited in accordance with the Ordinance. Members of the public can submit representations during the two-month exhibition period. read more

     â€‹In response to the claim made by the Hong Kong Bird Watching Society that the environmental impact assessment (EIA) report for the San Tin/Lok Ma Chau Development Node misidentified various bird species, the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) said that it has communicated with the Civil Engineering and Development Department (CEDD) to follow up on the incident.
      
     The CEDD hired a professional environmental consultant to conduct an EIA study for the San Tin/Lok Ma Chau Development Node, which includes an ecological impact assessment. When drafting the EIA report, the consultant has submitted the ecological baseline survey results to the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) and the EPD for review. A total of 152 species of birds were recorded in the ecological baseline survey, with 68 of which are species of conservation importance. After reviewing the survey results and relevant data, the AFCD and the EPD confirmed that the birds recorded in the ecological baseline survey had covered the four bird species identified by the Hong Kong Bird Watching Society (including the Marsh Sandpiper, Little Stint, Wood Sandpiper and Long-toed Stint), and the ecological impact assessment under the EIA study has been conducted based on the ecological survey results.
      
     A spokesman for the EPD said: “According to our preliminary understanding from the CEDD, the mismatch of photos and names of birds pointed out by the Hong Kong Bird Watching Society was an editing issue during compilation of an appendix of the EIA report by the CEDD’s consultant team. The consultant misplaced the photos for the Marsh Sandpiper and Little Stint. Regarding the above issue, the CEDD will submit a revised Appendix 10.2 to the EPD. As for the question about the Crested Goshawk, the CEDD’s consultant confirmed that the recorded bird species was the Crested Goshawk. We have requested the CEDD to submit a report within one week to explain in detail the cause of the incident and its follow-up action. According to paragraph 4.5.2 of the Technical Memorandum (TM), in case the EIA report requires certain amendments but such amendments will not affect the validity of the assessment and the overall results and conclusions of the report, there is no need to resubmit the EIA report.”
      
     The spokesman stressed that the statutory EIA process is a professional, objective and open system. The operation of the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance (EIAO) is open and transparent. The TM under the EIAO stipulates in details the principles, procedures, guidelines, requirements and criteria for handling various EIA matters. All EIA reports will be submitted to the EPD and relevant authorities (including the AFCD) for review in strict accordance with the requirements of the TM. The EIAO also stipulates statutory procedures for consulting the public and the Advisory Council on the Environment (ACE) on the project profiles and EIA reports, and requiring the EPD to take into account comments of the public and the ACE when approving EIA reports.
      
     Regarding the application submitted by the CEDD for approval of the EIA report for San Tin/Lok Ma Chau Development Node, the EPD will review the application in strict accordance with the EIAO requirements, which include making the report available for public inspection and consultation with the ACE. All EIA reports must fully comply with the provisions and requirements of the EIAO, relevant study briefs and the TM before they are approved.
      
     The EIA report for the San Tin/Lok Ma Chau Development Node is being exhibited for public inspection in accordance with the EIAO, and it has been uploaded to the EIAO website (www.info.gov.hk/epd/eia). Members of the public can submit comments on the EIA report in writing to the Director of Environmental Protection between February 2 and March 2, 2024 by post to the EIAO Register Office at the EPD, 27th Floor, Southorn Centre, 130 Hennessy Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong; by fax at 2147 0894, or by email to eiaocomment@epd.gov.hk.
      
     Before making the final decision on the EIA report, the Director of Environmental Protection will fully consider all comments related to environment submitted by the public and the ACE during the public inspection period in accordance with the EIAO. read more

     The Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, Mr Xia Baolong, continued his inspection visit to Hong Kong today (February 23).

     Mr Xia, accompanied by the Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, had an engagement session with all Non-official Members of the Executive Council in the morning.

     In the company of Mr Lee and the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki, Mr Xia later had another engagement session with the President of the Legislative Council (LegCo), Mr Andrew Leung, and LegCo Members. Those who attended the session included the chairmen and deputy chairmen of the House Committee, the Finance Committee and its two subcommittees, as well as the 18 panels of the LegCo.

     In the afternoon, Mr Xia inspected the International Organization for Mediation Preparatory Office in the company of the Secretary for Justice, Mr Paul Lam, SC, and the Deputy Secretary for Justice, Mr Cheung Kwok-kwan, and was briefed by the preparatory office’s Director-General, Dr Sun Jin, on the preparatory work and progress of the office.

     Mr Xia then had an exchange session with over 20 Hong Kong entrepreneurs to share views on topics such as Hong Kong’s economic developments. Also in attendance were Mr Lee; the Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan; the Deputy Financial Secretary, Mr Michael Wong; the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Christopher Hui; the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Algernon Yau; and the Secretary for Development, Ms Bernadette Linn.

     Mr Xia will continue his inspection visit to Hong Kong tomorrow (February 24). read more

     Hong Kong Customs today (February 23) appealed to members of the public to stay alert to a fraudulent Hong Kong Customs’ WeChat official account to avoid being scammed.
      
     Official Facebook page, Instagram account, Douyin account and WeChat account launched by Customs all bears a blue tick verification badge (as shown in the attachment), through which Customs will disseminate information on the department’s work and the latest information, allowing members of the public to better grasp useful Customs information.
      
     These official accounts are not designated for reports, enquiry or complaints. Members of the public may make crime reports through Customs’ 24-hour hotline (+852) 2545 6182 or email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk) or online form (eform.cefs.gov.hk/form/ced002/). For general enquiries or complaints, please call at (+852) 2815 7711 or email to customsenquiry@customs.gov.hk. read more