Feel strongly about these letters, or any other aspects of the news? Share your views by emailing us your Letter to the Editor at [email protected] or filling in this Google form. Submissions should not exceed 400 words, and must include your full name and address, plus a phone number for verification. The financial secretary
expects the Hong Kong economy to have shrunk last year. This is not the only challenge Hong Kong faces.
Climate change, air pollution and waste also threaten us.
Surrounded by the sea, Hong Kong is susceptible to more extreme weather due to worsening climate change. The government must strengthen flood control infrastructure to enhance climate resilience. It must also actively develop renewable energy locally and cooperate regionally to import clean energy and decarbonise the grid. In addition, carbon emissions need to be priced through carbon tax and carbon trading mechanisms to accelerate the low-carbon transition and develop Hong Kong into an international carbon market.
Given that 90 per cent of roadside emissions are from public and commercial vehicles, the government must accelerate the electrification of the transport grid and explore the development of hydrogen vehicles. Hong Kong can also consider the successful experience of Singapore in implementing
electronic road pricing and introducing a vehicle quota system to curb private cars. In the longer run, Hong Kong needs to become a more accessible and bicycle-friendly city.
Hong Kong’s per capita waste disposal rate hit 1.53kg per day in 2021, tying for a
record high with the rate in 2018. This reflects the failure of the government’s waste reduction policy.
The government must implement municipal solid waste charging by this year to spur waste reduction at source with an economic tool. Instead of relying on end-of-pipe treatment like incineration, it needs to invest more resources in upgrading and transforming the recycling industry to turn waste into treasure. The government should also expand the scope of producer responsibility and speed up legislation on
single-use plastics to protect the natural environment.
With green finance recognised as an essential tool in addressing climate change, Hong Kong – as an international financial centre with robust financial infrastructure, a liquid capital market and a business-friendly environment – should seize opportunities in the Greater Bay Area to promote the city as a regional green finance hub. Moreover, the government must commit more resources to nurturing local talent and enhancing Hong Kong’s competitiveness in the low-carbon transformation.
Dr Jeffrey Hung, chief executive, Friends of the Earth (HK)
Solar power needs a bigger push
While studying in Australia, I noticed that many households had installed rooftop solar panels. Roughly one in three homes there are equipped with solar panels.
Meanwhile, climate analysts expect China to achieve its 2030 target of installing wind and solar power capacity about five years
ahead of schedule.
In contrast, Hong Kong seems to be lagging behind in solar energy development. The city has a feed-in tariff scheme to encourage residents to install renewable energy generation systems. The scheme is under the current Scheme of Control Agreements signed between the government and the two power companies, CLP and HK Electric, a few years ago. However, last year, the government
reduced by about 20 per cent the tariff rates at which residents can sell renewable energy to the power companies, which would mean less income for late joiners to the scheme. This could affect citizens’ willingness to participate in the development of renewable energy, and thus the city’s progress towards the emissions reduction target.
Still, I hope environmental awareness will increase, and environmental protection will become a habit. Let’s promote green living in every corner of the world, and hold up the blue sky together.
Jeff Lee, Central
