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A study of Hong Kong reclamation policy and its environmental impact

Reclamation plays an important role in land supply of Hong Kong in various parts of territory to meet the demand for business, housing, infrastructural facilities, and ever increasing populations. Since 1852, Hong Kong has successfully expanded 6,824 hectares of the land since the first reclamation project, with about 6% of land in Hong Kong came from reclamation. Major reclamation projects in Hong Kong included Victoria Harbour Reclamation, Hong Kong International Airport Core Development Programme, and the present largest infrastructural facilities Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge. The government policy for reclamation in the colonial period was regarded as executive-led and lack of public participation. The situation has a significant change after the resumption of sovereignty by China in 1997. Public engagement, such as district forum has been the usual practice for the government to involve the public in reclamation and planning projects. Environmental issues brought by reclamation include the release of contaminants from dredging process, disruption of marine environment and ecosystem, polluting the surrounding water and air, and irreversible damage on the coastline and harbour. The study aims at (1)examining the reason for Hong Kong being so dependent on reclaiming land to increase the land supply for development; and the policy making and implementation process in the Hong Kong Government before and after 1997 in face of the changing political environment;(2) describing the major reclamation projects in the Hong Kong history; (3) studying the environmental impact brought by reclamation in Hong Kong and the related law and governing ordinances; and (4) suggesting alternative ways to increase the land supply in Hong Kong in the near future under the concept of sustainable development. It is concluded that reclamation will still be the easiest option adopted by the government to obtain land resources outside the Victoria Harbour. Community- based urban planning should be continued in land use planning policy for allowing people to engage in the process so that harmonious and sustainability can be achieved. / published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:HKU/oai:hub.hku.hk:10722/207670
Date January 2014
CreatorsMa, Kin-wing, 馬建榮
PublisherThe University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong)
Source SetsHong Kong University Theses
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypePG_Thesis
RightsThe author retains all proprietary rights, (such as patent rights) and the right to use in future works., Creative Commons: Attribution 3.0 Hong Kong License
RelationHKU Theses Online (HKUTO)

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