"In the News" (pdf)

By Jacqueline Weir, Sukh Mantel and Jasmine Ng

Reuters News Service stories can be accessed at www.planetark.org

	Hong Kong News
	China News
	International News

HONG KONG NEWS

Hong Kong government will not buy sites of ecological importance from land owners, according to a consultation paper to be released. Additionally, a proposal on land-swap, which allows private landlords to give up development rights on ecologically important land for compensatory land elsewhere, is also not expected to pass. Instead public-private partnerships between non-governmental organisations (NGO) and private landowners will be introduced. Under this scheme, government will provide subsidies to the NGOs and the owners. The areas where this will occur includes wetlands of Mai Po and around Deep bay, Sha Lo Tung, Tai Ho, Wu Kau Tang, Yung Shue O, Luk Keng, Long Valley and Ho Sheung Heung. Green groups cautiously welcomed the proposal suggesting that it will work only if landowners, villagers and developers cooperate. (SCMP 14 July 2003)

A survey of 2000 Hong Kong people, including environmental specialists and students, highlighted the need for including marine parks in the government’s proposed scoring system for potential conservation sites. The new scoring system by the government as part of its new conservation policy will only include privately owned land outside country parks and does not include marine parks. Three sites out of 20 that were recognized by the people surveyed as having highest conservation value were Tung Ping Chau, Hoi Ha Wan, and islands of Sha Chau and Lung Kwu Chau. Activities of littering by tourists, illegal fishing and disturbance to marine animals, such as dolphins, continue even in marine parks (SCMP 26 July 2003).

Greenpeace China has highlighted the issue of waste incineration in Hong Kong with a representative interrupting Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa’s opening speech at a tourism conference with slogan "Support tourism, no incineration". The government proposes to build world’s largest incinerator in Hong Kong. (SCMP 15 July 2003)

Snorkelers disturbed coral communities in the Tung Ping Chau Marine Park, drawing attention of conservationists to the negative impacts of city-dwellers on natural ecosystems. (Apple Daily 28 May 2003)

Calm and warm weather trapped pollutants in the air and pushed the air pollution index (API) up in Hong Kong. (SCMP 19 June 2003)

With the coronavirus found in civets, monkeys, snakes and bats, the mainland was considering banning snake trade so as to control the spread of SARS. This might affect 70 local snake shops and 600 employees in Hong Kong. (SCMP 29 May 2003)

Reclamation work proposed by the SAR government at the Western District, Tsuen Wan Bay and Sham Tseng was put on hold due to the state of the property market and budget deficit. Environmentalists welcomed the moves. (SCMP 29 May 2003)

A retrospective environmental impact assessment (EIA) on the World Wide Fund for Nature’s Marine Life Centre was urged by Hoi Ha Wan residents to protect the fragile Marine Park area where visitor numbers have increased dramatically. (SCMP 2 June 2003)

Dioxin contamination at the Cheoy Lee Shipyard boosted cleanup cost for the Disney project, with uncertainty in whether the former shipyard operator would pay the extras. (SCMP 2 June 2003)

The government failed to stop illegal dumping of hundreds of tonnes of soil from two government projects, threatening 200 bird species in a conservation zone in Shuen Wan. (SCMP 23 May 2003)

Considering both the ecology and health issues, mainland and Hong Kong green groups demanded a ban on eating of wild animals. (SCMP 23 May 2003)

Proposed by the Green Island Cement, Hong Kong’s first large-scale waste incinerator that turns waste into cement at Lung Kwu Tan was facing public consultation. Green groups, politicians and residents feared that with carcinogenic dioxin emission, the cement plant would pose serious health hazards. (SCMP 6 June 2003)

The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) received reports of giant lizards – probably water monitors and endangered Bengal monitors – in New Territories villages. They were suspected to be escapes which were originally being smuggled to mainland restaurants. (SCMP 13 April 2003)

Gloria Chau expressed concern on using mixed fish-feed to feed maricultured fish in Hong Kong waters, fearing that massive removal of these small fishes might affect ecosystem structure. (SCMP 28 June 2003)

Hoi Ha residents protested against the World Wide Fund for Nature’s (WWF) Marine Centre during a charity walk raising funds for the Centre in the area, criticizing WWF’s ignorance on the vulnerable marine populations and impacts of visitors in the Marine Park area. (SCMP 28 April 2003)

Once thought to colonise only islands off Sai Kung, long-missed re-visitors Roseate Terns set new homes around Po Toi waters. Over 200 individuals of this rare tern species, which has a population of only around 60 000 worldwide, were found breeding on these southern-most islands of Hong Kong. The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) urged tern-watching organizations and the public to reduce disturbance to this vulnerable species. (Mingpao Daily 3 August 2003)

The Housing Authority (HA) developed a new technique which need not remove natural plantations to stabilise slopes. (Oriental Daily 6 July 2003)

To improve cross-border efforts in tackling air pollution, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol, which control the emission of greenhouse gases, were extended from the Mainland to Hong Kong. Although the protocol has not yet come into effect, it was anticipated that it would bring far-reaching social and economical implications. (SCMP 29 May 2003)

Greenpeace campaigned for the introduction of mandatory labeling of genetically-modified (GM) ingredients in baby-food. However the government insisted that safety reviews on GM products could be taken into account prior to their release into the market and such labeling should be voluntary. (SCMP 28 April 2003)

Three, including the alpha-male which is the leader, from a pack of wild monkeys were trapped by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) in Tai Wai after complaints from the neighbourhood were received. It was pointed out that the monkey population in Hong Kong grew by about 5.5 % to 7.8 % a year, and the Department was testing contraceptive injections to control the monkey population. (SCMP 2 June 2003)

Over ten thousand reptiles – 10,260 Malaysian box turtles and 17 box tortoises – were seized by Customs officers at Kwai Chung. With only four surviving reptiles, they had been intended for live sale in Guangdong. (SCMP 11 July 2003)

Hong Kong SARS experts questioned why forestry officials in Guangdong decided to lift the ban on trade and transportation of wild animals, even though microbiologists detected SARS virus in civets and nearly 90 % of Guangdong residents were in favour of such legislation. (SCMP)

To find cleaner fuels and to improve air quality, Cheung Kong Infrastructure (CKI) and a Canadian-based company, Stuart Energy, invested in a one-year trial of a hydrogen-powered bus. Over the test period, the cost effectiveness of the vehicle and the technical feasibility of using the potential clean fuel, hydrogen, will be reviewed, and if it proves successful, this technology might be applied to buses in Hong Kong and on the mainland. (SCMP 12 July 2003)

Pre-dawn raids in Guangdong swept away more than 10,000 wild animals, including pheasants, foxes, night cranes, sparrows, turtledoves, snakes and martens, destined for wildlife trade in southern China. (SCMP 29 May 2003)

Under the operation "Spring Thunder" Chinese forestry police have confiscated 838,500 endangered animals and arrested 1,428 people as a show of action following the outbreak of SARS epidemic (Reuters New Service, 1 May 2003).

The SARS outbreak brought business down in a Fujian zoo; underfed big cats attacked the weakest in the pen. (SCMP 27 May 2003)

Following the ban of the trade and consumption of wild animals in Guangzhou, local peacock and emu farms were suffering poor business. (Sunday Morning Post 20 July 2003)

Better husbandry of wild animals was suggested by a Guangdong wildlife expert to protect cross-transmission of diseases between humans and animals. Before new laws on wildlife trade were designed trading and consumption of wild animals should be suspended. (SCMP 27 May 2003)

Following the SARS outbreak, and release of research findings that civets carry a form of the coronavirus that is almost identical to that which resulted in SARS, Guangdong authorities have banned the breeding, consumption and trading of wild animals. However, domestic animals such as cats and dogs are free of the ban. Licenses for hunting, trading, transportation, importing and exporting of wild animals have been withdrawn. Even performances with animals (with the exception of fixed zoos and circuses) have been stopped and animals have been quarantined. Inspection of restaurants, hotels, markets, road and rail transport terminals, airports and custom checkpoints are to be conducted, and any wildlife found infected with the virus will be destroyed. Others will be set free. Animals Asia Foundation would like the authorities to go further and close down the markets completely. (SCMP, 28 May 2003)

Mainland legislators are drafting a bill to ban the sale of 1800 species, including sparrows, monkeys, bats, tortoises and snakes. The quantity of snakes eaten each year exceeds 10,000 tonnes of meat, with over 100,000 snakes imported a year to meet the demand for snake meat. The new law will make the serving of any animal not bred by humans, illegal. This is expected to affect the serving of snake meat since most snakes are captured from the wild, according to an official, although many snake sellers claim the snakes are bred. Breeding centres for animals used in traditional Chinese medicine will be established. Local authorities have also started handing out fines of 2,000 yuan to those caught eating snake dishes. (SCMP, 7 July 2003)

The ban on trading wild animals, which was imposed by the mainland after civets were named as a possible source of SARS, has been lifted. Eating wild-caught animals remains against the law. Domestication of wild animals for sale is being encouraged rather than hunting. (SCMP 12 July 03)

The ban imposed on trading civets and wild animals during the SARS outbreak has been lifted on 40 species according to the forestry officials in Guangdong. The criteria for lifting the ban was that the species had been domesticated, the techniques for domestication were well developed, and a large demand for the species existed. Consumption of species of snake, pangolins and black bear are still banned. (SCMP 18 July 2003)

A senior veterinary expert from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) will be sent to investigate the role of animals in transmission of SARS. (Agence France-Presse, SCMP 12 July 03)

A 300 km² red tide, that appeared last week, is killing a large number of fish in the Pearl River estuary. Guangdong authorities believe it will stay for a minimum of several months, since previous data indicates that red tides during the wet season are a good predictor of a severe drought in the region, according a Guangdong water resource official. The cause of the red tide is pollutants, a total of 1.2 million tonnes, originating from industrial discharge, farming waste and fertiliser runoff. There is a trend of increased frequency of red tides in the northern Bohal Sea, the East China Sea and the South China Sea near the Pearl River estuary. Solving the problem requires building of waste-water treatment plants, which involves money that is lacking. (SCMP 6 May 2003)

Beginning two weeks after the closing of the sluice gates of the Three Gorges dam, 30 truckloads of rubbish have to be hauled away each day. Critics of the dam had warned about such problems for the 120 million yuan project. The dam has also resulted in relocation of 1.13 million residents and loss of historical temples and relics. Sewage treatment plants costing 20 billion yuan are being constructed to reduce deterioration of water quality. (SCMP 13 June 2003)

Summer in China has repeated its usual pattern of sweltering temperatures and drought in some provinces (such as northeastern Heilongjiang) while floods ravage other areas (e.g. southeastern provinces of Fujian). The government response has been to continue launching huge civil engineering projects, whose benefits are controversial. Instead environmentalists recommend encouragement of conservation and water re-use policies. Representatives of China Institute of Water Resources & Hydropower Research and Harbin Water Resource Office agree that water use exceeds necessity. (SCMP 15 July 2003)

The first ever release of a captive-bred Giant Panda into the wild took place in Sichuan on July 7^th. It will initially be restricted to a two-hectare area near a panda research centre in Wolong. (SCMP 11 July 03)

World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) will co-operate with Guangdong authorities in radio-tracking Chinese White Dolphins in Chinese waters. It is hoped this will be a great leap in dolphin conservation in the region. (SCMP 3 June 2003)

The Australian government has drafted a plan to expand ‘green zones’ of the Great Barrier Reef, where shipping and fishing are banned, from 5% to around 33% of the area. The plan is now open to public comment and has already faced criticism from the fishing community. (SCMP 3 June 03)

A study by Canadian and German scientists, featured on the cover of ‘Nature’ in May, found that 90 percent of all large fish in the world’s oceans have already disappeared since the onset of industrialised fisheries around 1950. Findings were based on 10 years of data from all major fisheries in the world. Actions to prevent extinctions should include reduced quotas, subsidies and overall fishing effort, reduced bycatch and creation of networks of marine reserves. Approximately 44 billion pounds of fish (~25% of world catch) is wasted by commercial fishing. (Environment News Service 14 May 03

Wild apes in equatorial Western Africa are being rapidly killed off by hunting and the Ebola virus. Numbers of gorillas and common chimpanzees in Gabon and the Republic of Congo dropped by more than half between 1983 and 2000. Their plight has been under-appreciated as the forests they inhabit are largely intact. However loggers and hunters are now penetrating deep into remote areas. There are calls for these apes to be elevated by the IUCN to critically endangered status. (Reuters News Service 8 April 03)

Canada has put an end to its Atlantic cod fishing industry after a rapid decline in cod populations. The industry was already hugely reduced in 1992 to try and allow recovery of stocks, but stocks remain low. The latest move has sparked anger among those who rely on the industry, who often blame seals for keeping fish stocks at a low level. (Reuters News Service 28 April 03)

Two banteng (a species of wild cattle found in Asia) calves have been cloned using DNA from an individual that died in 1980, in a collaboration including San Diego Zoo. Domestic cows were used as surrogate mothers, with two out of sixteen pregnancies running to term. (Reuters News Service 9 April 03)

A study in Britain has shown contrary to some previous claims that fish are able to feel pain. Fish responded to potential sources of pain by showing ‘adverse behavioural and physiological changes’. Animal activists are using this to argue against sport fishing. (Reuters News Service 2 April 03)

Authorities in Cameroon have announced new measures against the lucrative ‘bushmeat’ trade. Fines for restaurants caught serving meat from endangered animals will exceed $16 000, and jail sentences will be up to three years. (Reuters News Service 15 April 03)

Japan stopped short of a walk-out on the International Whaling Commission after its bids to restart commercial whaling of minke and Bryde’s whales were blocked. Anti-whaling nations voted to form a conservation committee, but Japan may consider withdrawing from the commission or refusing to pay its fees. (Reuters News Service 19 June 03)

A Chinese-funded project is blasting rocky reefs on the Mekong River to allow large ships to pass from Southern China to Northern Laos, through the "golden triangle" where the borders of Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet. The region is currently sustained by traditional fishing and farming. The reefs are breeding grounds for migratory fish and close to the home of the biggest freshwater fish in the world, the Mekong catfish. It is claimed that fish stocks are being reduced, and faster currents and wakes from large boats are starting to erode river banks. Cheap Chinese goods are flooding local markets, however Myanmar, Laos and Thai governments hope that increased trade will help them share in China’s economic growth. (Reuters News Service 29 April 03)

United States president George W. Bush urged the European Union to drop its opposition to genetically modified (GM) crops, during the Bio 2003 convention in Washington this June. The European Commission objected to his claim that blocking European GM imports contributes to African famine. (SCMP 25 June 03)

Mosambique and South Africa are struggling to control illegal fishing in their waters. Tuna and sharks are major target species and the shark fin trade has led to triad gang wars there. Turtles, dugongs, dolphins, albatrosses and other species are also threatened as by-catch. (Sunday Morning Post, 13 July 03)

Shark Pass at Bikini in the Marshall Islands (Pacific Ocean) is being plundered by illegal fishing vessels. The area is home to the world's largest concentration of sharks. Hunting is mainly for sharks fins for the lucrative Asian shark fin market. A 50 - 60% drop in the shark population has been estimated. Earlier this month authorities in Palau held a public burning of shark fins seized from a Taiwanese vessel. (Agence France-Presse, SCMP 22 May 03)