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Following is a question by the Hon Starry Lee and a written reply by the Secretary for Transport and Housing, Ms Eva Cheng, at the Legislative Council meeting today (March 11):
Question:
It is learnt that parts of the related works of quite a number of major infrastructural projects (including the Kai Tak Development, Central Kowloon Route and Shatin to Central Link) will commence consecutively in the To Kwa Wan and Ma Tau Kok districts. As the project sites concerned are in close proximity to residential areas and the works will involve reclamation, it is anticipated that a large number of dump trucks will enter and leave the districts during the construction period, and that the noise and air pollution problems arising from the works will have great impact on the residents of Grand Waterfront and Wyler Gardens, as well as the schools and the residential area nearby. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the measures the authorities will put in place to mitigate the noise problem arising from the works;
(b) whether it knows the average daily number of works vehicles entering and leaving the sites concerned during the construction period of the works concerned; and whether diversion of traffic is necessary to facilitate the construction works; if so, of the details; and
(c) whether it is necessary to relocate the bus terminus at Kowloon City Ferry Pier to facilitate the construction works; if so, which bus routes will be affected and when the diversion of the bus routes will be implemented?
Reply:
President,
The Administration has all along been concerned about the impact of infrastructure projects on the surrounding environment and residents, and has been stepping up efforts in implementing effective measures to reduce the nuisances. In addition, if a project is a designated project under Schedule 2 or Schedule 3 of the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance (EIAO) (Cap. 499), the Administration would assess the possible impacts of the project on the environment and propose necessary mitigation measures in line with the requirements of the EIAO. The environmental impact assessment (EIA) report should be submitted to the Director of Environmental Protection (DEP) for approval.
As the question involves the Kai Tak Development (KTD) under the Development Bureau and the Central Kowloon Route (CKR) and the Shatin to Central Link (SCL) under the Transport and Housing Bureau, the coordinated reply from the two bureaux is set out below:
(a) KTD has entered the implementation stage. The EIA report for the whole KTD prepared under Schedule 3 of the EIAO was approved on March 4, 2009. As most works of KTD will be carried out within the Kai Tak site, the report indicated that with the implementation of certain mitigation measures (such as using low-noise machinery and mobile noise barriers), noise impacts on To Kwa Wan and Ma Tau Kok would be minimal. Some projects under the KTD are designated projects under Schedule 2 of the EIAO. The Administration will implement the necessary mitigation measures in accordance with the EIAO requirements.
Still in the preliminary design stage, CKR and SCL are designated projects under Schedule 2 of the EIAO. In accordance with the EIAO, the Highways Department (HyD) and the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL) are now conducting EIA studies, which will include the examination of necessary noise mitigation measures during construction, for the two projects separately. HyD and MTRCL will respectively submit the EIA reports to DEP later, and discuss with the concerned District Councils (DCs) and the local communities with a view to coordinating and improving the relevant project proposals and works arrangements.
The central section of CKR will be built in the form of a deep bored tunnel to avoid affecting the buildings at the ground level. The noise impact brought about would be limited. At the eastern end, as the tunnel is shallower and situated mainly in soil stratum, it will be constructed by the "cut-and-cover" method. For this section of the tunnel, HyD is now studying the feasibility of using the cut-and-cover method with the tunnel top part constructed first, so that the constructed tunnel top part will be able to screen out as much as possible the construction noise from constructing the remaining parts. As for SCL, most parts of the project will be constructed below ground. Except for the stations and the associated entrances and exits, the tunnelling method will be adopted for construction. In gist, we will work to minimise the site area of the cut-and-cover method to reduce the noise impact.
(b) For KTD, the Administration will examine in detail the flow of works vehicles. As most works of KTD will be carried out in the old Kai Tak Airport, initial assessments indicate that the majority of works vehicles will route through main roads such as Price Edward Road East and Kai Fuk Road to gain access to the works sites. As such, the impact on the To Kwa Wan and Ma Tau Kok areas will be minimal.
As mentioned above, HyD is currently conducting preliminary designs and EIA studies for CKR and SCL, including a study on the flow of works vehicles. HyD will consider transporting works materials for the tunnels by sea with a view to reducing the number of works vehicles required.
During the construction of the above three infrastructure projects, it is inevitable that different temporary traffic arrangements (TTAs) will be implemented at different stages. The Administration will carry out traffic impact assessments before formulating the detailed arrangements of the TTAs and will maintain close liaison with the concerned DCs and the local communities so as to minimise the impact on the surrounding areas.
(c) During the construction of the eastern end of CKR, the existing public transport interchange (PTI) near the Kowloon City Ferry Pier will be temporarily closed. A temporary PTI will be provided next to the current PTI for accommodating the existing bus routes. Upon the completion of the tunnel construction works at the eastern end, the PTI will be reinstated at its original location where the concerned bus routes will continue to operate.
According to the present project planning, KTD and SCL will not affect the PTI.
Ends/Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Issued at HKT 16:56
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