John Lee needs to take Hong Kong down a greener path
- Voices demanding more vigorous measures on environmental protection and climate change deserve to be heard
The growing extreme weather in recent years has made tackling climate change a priority rather than an option.
However, policies in this area are still woefully lagging, if not lacking, among governments across the world. Without clear goals and resolute efforts, damage to the environment and society will only worsen.
Ahead of Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu’s annual policy address next week, 17 green groups have joined forces to call for more vigorous measures on environmental protection.
They include developing green and sustainable finance, increasing the city’s resilience to natural disasters and instilling an environmentally conscious mindset among officials when formulating public policies.
The joint appeal comes at a time when the city has been hit by more unusual weather over the past two months, including two strong typhoons and a rainstorm that officials described as “once in 500 years”. Even though they did not result in serious casualties, disruptions to economic and social activities were beyond calculation.
The government’s emphasis on post-Covid economic recovery and livelihood improvements over the past year may have given the public the impression that environmental protection has not been given high priority.
Sectoral interests and political resistance mean any new measure will have to pass many hurdles before being implemented. A case in point is the much-touted waste charge to help reduce municipal garbage.
Barring further unforeseeable changes, the scheme will finally be launched in April after repeated delays.
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However, the first phase of a ban on the sale and distribution of disposable plastic tableware at restaurants is to be pushed back to at least the second quarter of next year.
The typical outcome of “two steps forward, one step back” underlines the difficulties in making Hong Kong a greener city.
The setbacks do nothing for confidence in the government being determined to protect the environment.
The city will only pay more, both economically and socially, when extreme weather wreaks havoc more often. Lee must show stronger will on this front and table more measures against environmental damage and climate change.
