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Following is a question by the Dr Hon Chiang Lai-wan and a reply by the Secretary for Food and Health, Dr Ko Wing-man, in the Legislative Council today (October 30):
Question:
In reply to a question from a Member of this Council last year, the authorities stated that where necessary, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) would carry out pest control work in public places and promote concerted efforts of government departments. However, it has been recently reported that the numbers of complaints and requests for assistance concerning bedbugs received by FEHD and the Housing Department (HD) are on the rise, reflecting that bedbugs have caused nuisance to the public. I have received more than a hundred relevant complaints just from Tai Hang Tung Estate, Nam Shan Estate and Un Chau Estate in Sham Shui Po. According to the residents affected, HD indicated that there had been only individual sporadic cases of bedbug problems, and that HD would neither intervene nor provide assistance. On the other hand, private companies often charge fees ranging from several thousand to over ten thousand dollars for bedbug control services, which are hardly affordable to residents of public rental housing estates. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the respective numbers of complaints and requests for assistance concerning bedbugs received by various government departments as well as the numbers of bedbug control operations carried out by them in public places in response to such cases each year from January 2009 to August this year, with a breakdown by District Council district;
(b) of the names, nature and effectiveness of inter-departmental anti-mosquito, pest control or bedbug control operations carried out last year; if such information is not available, of the reasons for that; and
(c) given the recent surge in the numbers of complaints and requests for assistance concerning bedbugs, whether the authorities will reconsider setting up a mechanism to monitor the proliferation and distribution of bedbugs in the territory, implementing measures to control bedbugs and help households exterminate bedbugs, and carrying out a major territory-wide bedbug control operation to safeguard public health and environmental hygiene; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply:
President,
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States, there is at present no known evidence which shows that bedbugs spread diseases. That said, bedbug bites may cause skin allergy, itchiness and loss of sleep. I fully understand the nuisance of bedbugs caused to the public affected, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) has therefore been closely monitoring the relevant situation. In cases where bedbug infestation is found in public places, FEHD will conduct bedbug control work accordingly.
My reply to the various parts of the question is as follows:
(a) The number of complaints and requests for assistance related to bedbugs received by the Housing Department (HD) from 2009 to August 2013, and the number of bedbug control operations conducted at the public places in question are set out at Annex I and Annex II respectively.
The number of related complaints and requests for assistance received by FEHD over the same period is at Annex III. In handling these complaints and requests, FEHD officers have carried out on-site inspections. No bedbug infestation was found in nearby public places.
(b) FEHD has been engaged in coordinating inter-departmental anti-mosquito initiatives, maintaining close liaison with the relevant government departments and providing them with technical support to facilitate effective implementation of anti-mosquito measures within their respective purview.
FEHD launches territory-wide anti-mosquito campaigns in collaboration with other government departments annually, with a view to raising public awareness of the potential risk of mosquito-borne diseases and encouraging community participation in the promotion of anti-mosquito work. The anti-mosquito campaign launched this year was completed in October. Through the campaign, we sought to heighten public awareness of the potential risk of dengue fever, Japanese encephalitis (JE) and other mosquito-borne diseases, encourage community participation and forge close partnership between the government departments concerned in anti-mosquito work, and eliminate potential mosquito breeding sites.
During the campaign, FEHD officers stepped up inspection, preventive and control actions as well as publicity work. They focused their actions on potential breeding sites and trouble spots identified. The relevant government departments played an equally active role in the campaign by conducting anti-mosquito operations in places under their purview and enlisted community support for the campaign through their networks. District Councils were also invited to participate in the campaign through the organisation of various anti-mosquito activities at the district level. During Phases I and II of this year's campaign, a total of 115 099 mosquito breeding sites and potential breeding sites were eliminated, 63 warning letters issued and 34 prosecutions instituted.
Before the onset of the rainy season or where necessary, district environmental hygiene offices of FEHD will convene inter-departmental anti-mosquito task force meetings, tendering professional advice to the relevant departments on how to intensify their mosquito preventive and control work in places under their management. In addition, the Anti-Mosquito Steering Committee (AMSC), which comprises senior officers from various bureaux and departments, holds annual meetings to review the effectiveness of anti-mosquito measures and dengue vector surveillance work. In the light of two confirmed local cases of JE in July this year, the AMSC held a special meeting to discuss ways for further enhancing anti-mosquito measures, intensifying the preventive and control work of the relevant departments, as well as strengthening publicity and education. No local dengue fever cases have been reported so far this year, and no more local JE cases have been reported since the two confirmed cases in July this year. Nevertheless, all relevant departments will continue to monitor closely the effectiveness of the measures and make timely adjustment if necessary, so as to better control the mosquito problem and minimise the threat of JE and other mosquito-transmitted diseases.
As for bedbugs, their typical hiding places lie in the cracks, tufts, coils of springs and hollow posts of mattresses and bedsteads, as well as the upholstery of chairs and sofas. They are therefore more commonly found in private places indoor. As has been pointed out in part (a) of the reply, in handling complaints and requests for assistance last year, FEHD found no bedbug infestation in nearby public places. As such, the need to carry out bedbug control operations in public places did not arise. As bedbugs usually hide in furniture, they will not be found in public places unless there is abandoned furniture. In cases where public places are found heavily infested, FEHD will certainly conduct bedbug control work in those places.
(c) As has been pointed out in part (a) of the reply, since there is at present no known evidence which shows that bedbugs are disease vectors, FEHD has not put in place an independent monitoring mechanism to oversee this issue. That said, FEHD has been closely monitoring the relevant situation and keeping record of the complaints and requests for assistance received. In cases where public places are found heavily infested, FEHD will conduct bedbug control work accordingly.
For effective control of bedbug infestation, members of the public are well advised to take the following measures: maintaining a clean domestic environment, cleaning premises regularly, washing bedding and clothing thoroughly, making sure that second-hand wooden furniture is free from bedbugs before using it, replacing worn-out wallpapers, and sealing cracks/crevices on walls and the floor promptly, etc. To help the public better understand the bedbug problem, FEHD has uploaded information on bedbug control onto its website and published relevant leaflets for general reference. At present, a good number of private companies that provide pest control services are available on the market. As bedbugs are usually found in private places, FEHD can only play the role as coordinator to help the members of the public solve the problems. We are concerned about the significant increase in the number of bedbug reports in public housing estates and will coordinate and assist the parties concerned to conduct bedbug control work.
Ends/Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Issued at HKT 19:27
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