Government will not appeal against judgment regarding environmental impact assessment report for development at former Fanling Golf Course Site
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The spokesperson added that the judgment had clarified a number of important legal principles under Hong Kong’s EIA regime, including that not all additional information outside an EIA report is required to be included in the statutory public consultation process; rather, this depends on the circumstances of each case. In respect of this judicial review case, the Court considered that the original EIA report contained deficiencies which could have been cured by the additional information. Based on the principle of fairness, it was necessary to conduct a further but limited public consultation on the additional information. The Environmental Protection Department will carefully study the legal guidance set out in the judgment and will strictly adhere to the Ordinance and the legal principles established by the Court in carrying out EIA approval work in the future, thereby maintaining the reasonableness, legality, transparency and credibility of Hong Kong's EIA regime.
The spokesperson pointed out that, as the judgment had in effect overturned the approval granted by the Director for the EIA report for the proposed public housing development project, the Government shall review the way forward for the proposed development plan for public housing, including factors such as the impacts on the scale and timing of the development resulting from the non-approval of the EIA report. The Government will announce the way forward at an appropriate time.
Ends/Thursday, September 24, 2026
Issued at HKT 16:00
Issued at HKT 16:00
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