Opening remarks of SEN at the Press Conference on "A Clean Air Plan for Hong Kong" (with photos/video)

Opening remarks of SEN at the Press Conference on "A Clean Air Plan for Hong Kong" (with photos/video)
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     Following is the opening remarks of the Secretary for the Environment, Mr Wong Kam-sing, at the press conference on "A Clean Air Plan for Hong Kong" held today (March 28):

     Air quality is a major environmental concern of the public and this Administration has accorded top priority to improving air quality. As stated in the 2013 Policy Address, our air quality policies are premised on the protection of public health. To address the issue, we must have closer cross-bureaux and inter-departmental collaboration to strengthen our measures in order to attain the goal of having cleaner air. I would like to express my appreciation to the Transport and Housing Bureau, the Food and Health Bureau, the Development Bureau, and other departments for their support and collaboration.

     Today, we launched the "Clean Air Plan for Hong Kong" to articulate more comprehensively and clearly the challenges we are facing with regard to air quality as well as the relevant policies, measures and future plans to tackle the issue. Our aspiration is for Hong Kong to be among the best in the world to understand air quality so that we can carry on to fight air pollution more aggressively and formulate a more effective blueprint.

     The Government has allocated substantial resources to improve air quality. In this year's Policy Address, for instance, we have earmarked $10 billion to support the early retirement of old diesel commercial vehicles. This underscores the importance the Government attaches to improving air quality.

     Government efforts alone are not sufficient to improve our air quality. It requires the collaboration of various sectors in the community, in particular, the transport sector, power companies and construction sector. We also need to collaborate with our Mainland counterparts to reduce regional emissions. You can see from the blueprint that representatives from different sectors strongly support the work of fighting air pollution. It is also highly essential to have public support. If every one of us chooses environmental-friendly transport, for instance, take public means of transport, support bus route rationalisation, and step up efforts to save energy at home and in the work place and green our city, we can see quicker results. At the same time, we will step up our efforts in education and publicity. We also appeal to everyone in Hong Kong to contribute to cleaning the air.

     Overall, we seek to achieve the new Air Quality Objectives largely by 2020, and realising this target will not be an easy task. Improving air quality is our common vision. Let's work together for a healthier living in Hong Kong. Thank you.

Ends/Thursday, March 28, 2013
Issued at HKT 15:44

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