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The Secretary for the Environment, Mr Wong Kam-sing, concluded his duty visit to Berlin today (December 2, Berlin time) with visits to a high-technology park and a recyclables sorting plant. During his stay in Berlin, he also took the opportunity to meet with local officials to exchange views on various environmental issues.
In the morning, Mr Wong visited Adlershof, a leading science and technology park in Germany which hosts about 1 000 innovative businesses and 16 scientific institutes. He was briefed by the Chief Executive Officer of the park, Mr Hardy Rudolf Schmitz, on an energy-saving project which could help reduce the park's primary energy requirement by at least 30 per cent by 2020.
Afterwards, Mr Wong went to a recyclables sorting plant in Berlin to see for himself its high-tech recyclables separation and sorting methods.
On December 1 (Berlin time), Mr Wong met with the Chief Executive of the German Energy Agency, Mr Andreas Kuhlmann, and the Permanent Secretary for Transport and Environment of the Berlin Senate Department for Urban Development and the Environment, Mr Christian Gaebler, to exchange views on issues of mutual concern. He also paid a courtesy call on the Chinese Ambassador to Germany, Mr Shi Mingde.
That afternoon, Mr Wong visited a waste management centre in Berlin to know more about its work on recycling and waste management. He also met with the Director General for Climate Change Policy, European and International Affairs of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety, Mr Franzjosef Schafhausen, to share experience in tackling various environmental issues.
Mr Wong will depart today for his next stop in Paris, where he will attend the C40 Cities Leadership Group meetings and the 21st session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
Ends/Wednesday, December 2, 2015
Issued at HKT 21:40
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