| (1) | Motion on "Vigorously reducing air pollution", moved by Hon James TIEN Pei-chun as amended by Hon Emily LAU Wai-hing, Hon CHOY So-yuk, Hon LEE Wing-tat and Hon Andrew LEUNG Kwan-yuen
"That, since air pollution remains severe in Hong Kong in recent days, which not only poses a health hazard to Hong Kong people, but also discourages foreign businesses from investing in Hong Kong, this Council urges the Government to expeditiously discuss with the Guangdong authorities to jointly draw up a definite timetable for various work items and adopting vigorous tackling measures to improve the situation, including:
|
| (a) | strengthening co-operation with the Guangdong authorities to tighten the emission standards for factories, power plants and motor vehicles, etc, setting the mid-term targets and an interim review timetable in this regard, and achieving the emission reduction targets for 2010 at an earlier date;
|
| (b) | endeavouring to unify the emission standards and regulatory systems in Hong Kong and Guangdong;
|
| (c) | expeditiously implementing the emissions trading pilot scheme in collaboration with the Guangdong authorities;
|
| (d) | providing Hong Kong business operators in the Pearl River Delta who have installed air pollution control systems in their plants with tax relief on depreciation of the relevant machinery;
|
| (e) | striving to reduce pollutants such as sulphur dioxide emitted in the process of power generation by the two power companies in Hong Kong, and increasing the use of more environmentally friendly energy;
|
| (f) | further promoting the incentive scheme for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) light buses and extending it to light goods vehicles;
|
| (g) | considering the provision of additional sites for setting up LPG filling stations;
|
| (h) | actively engaging in research and development on the utilization of renewable energy, formulating a policy on renewable energy, requesting the two power companies to follow this policy, and stipulating in the Scheme of Control Agreements with the power companies the proportion of renewable energy to be used in electricity generation;
|
| (i) | expediting the introduction of a registration system for vehicle repair technicians and garages;
|
| (j) | vigorously introducing other types of environmentally friendly vehicles and related incentive measures, and offering relief on the first registration tax and licence fee to environmentally friendly vehicles, such as hybrid electric-petroleum vehicles;
|
| (k) | vigorously introducing other types of environmentally friendly fuels and related incentive measures;
|
| (l) | setting higher utilization targets for renewable energy;
|
| (m) | requesting franchised bus companies to expeditiously renew their fleets, deploy buses that comply with Euro III emission standards to serve routes along busy roads and introduce additional bus-bus interchange discount schemes;
|
| (n) | actively studying the feasibility of increasing the fines for smoky vehicles;
|
| (o) | using such high-technology equipment as satellite imaging and remote surveillance devices to enhance monitoring of air pollution sources and changes in pollution conditions;
|
| (p) | the HKSAR Government taking the lead in implementing energy conservation measures in various departments, and promoting community-wide involvement in energy conservation;
|
| (q) | adopting suitable methods to regulate products for industrial and commercial use that may emit volatile organic compounds;
|
| (r) | stepping up the testing of vehicle emissions and introducing road-side remote sensors to check emissions from vehicles on the roads in the territory and from cross-boundary vehicles, so as to ensure their compliance with Hong Kong's emission standards;
|
| (s) | establishing a safe and convenient network of pedestrian walkway systems, which should include pedestrian precincts, footbridge networks and automatic escalators, etc, in densely populated areas that have a high pedestrian flow, so as to develop Hong Kong into a 'city of elevated corridors', which will enable vehicle-pedestrian segregation, improve the environment for walking and encourage people to walk; and
|
| (t) | further promoting the 'Indoor Air Quality Management Programme' and enacting relevant legislation, as well as joining hands with the industrial and commercial sectors in actively promoting the programme, in order to prevent poor indoor air quality from harming the public's health,
|
| with a view to minimizing emissions, thereby enabling residents of the whole Pearl River Delta to enjoy clean fresh air."
|
| (2) | Motion on "Formulating a sustainable policy on agriculture and fisheries", moved by Hon WONG Yung-kan as amended by Hon Emily LAU Wai-hing
"That, as Article 119 of the Basic Law provides that the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region shall formulate appropriate policies to promote and co-ordinate the development of various trades including agriculture and fisheries, and pay regard to the protection of the environment, this Council urges the Government to comprehensively consult members of the industries, green groups and the public to formulate a sustainable policy on agriculture and fisheries, including developing offshore fishing, deep-sea purse-seine fishing, leisure agriculture and fisheries, and mariculture, as well as studying the impact of sustainable development measures on bottom-trawling fishing as well as shallow-water and deep-water purse-seine fishing; setting up a priority zone for agriculture, and developing quality livestock farming and organic farming; assisting the development of the agricultural and fishery products processing industries, establishing a monitoring system for green agricultural and fishery food products, as well as reviewing the monitoring system for marine works involving sand dredging and mud disposal, so as to enable the local agriculture and fisheries industries to develop through further restructuring and to supply quality agricultural and fishery foods to the people of Hong Kong."
|
