No Incinerator at Shek Kwu Chau

Submitted by admin on Sep 25th 2012, 12:00am

Business

LAI SEE

Howard Winn

No Incinerator at Shek Kwu Chau
We hear that the previous government’s proposed monster incinerator – which it suggested siting near the scenic island of Shek Kwu Chau – will not go ahead. It will be recalled that this controversial project involved building the incinerator on reclaimed land next to the island which is off south Lantau. The total project was expected to cost about HK$23 billion and was anticipated to handle a daily capacity of 3,000 tonnes of municipal solid waste.

When the Environmental Protection Department sought funding from the Legislative Council earlier this year, the project was shelved. However, there are a number of outstanding judicial reviews with respect to the project to be heard later this year. The original preferred site for the project was Tang Tsui near the landfill in Tuen Mun.

The project raised controversy after Donald Tsang’s government decided that the political cost of locating it in Heung Yee Kuk leader Lau Wong Fat’s fief was too great and Shek Kwu Chau “emerged” as the government’s favoured location. Although it has been shelved, mysterious forces have been at work to advance the project. Groups such as the Hong Kong Islands District Association, a United Front organisation, was able to access government environmental funds to organise subsidised trips to Singapore and Taiwan to study incinerators. It is not known how the government proposes to deal with the problem of waste disposal.

Green groups spar with AAHK
The sparring between the green groups and the Airport Authority over a study to consider the social return on investment (SROI) of the third runway rumbles on. The green groups and the legislative council want the authority to carry out this study. The authority, which talks of wanting to become the greenest airport in the world, is prevaricating by saying that it, too, wants to study the social and environmental impact of the runway, but says it has yet to find the best method. It has so far ignored the SROI that was conducted for a third runway at London’s Heathrow airport which contributed to the shelving of the project. This is not the outcome the authority is seeking. The green groups intend to hold their own meeting to discuss the carbon emission audit and the SROI, and to invite the authority to attend.

Contact Us Have you got any stories that Lai See should know about? E-mail them to howard.winn@scmp.com [1]

Topics:

Director of Public Prosecutions

Shek Kwu Chau

Waste disposal

Environmental Protection Department

Airport Authority

Social return on investment

Links:
[1] mailto:howard.winn@scmp.com