Show of public support for conservation of Hong Kong wetland after suspicious fires
Green groups carry out poll asking Hongkongers their views on area in New Territories, which is an important stopover site for migratory birds
More than 80 per cent of Hongkongers polled by a coalition of green groups support better conservation of a wetland in the New Territories that has been plagued by suspicious fires.
At least 62 per cent of the 1,003 adults interviewed also supported drastic measures to permanently protect the ecologically rich area from acts of eco-vandalism and lingering development pressures.
Roy Ng Hei-man of the Conservancy Association, one of the six groups involved in the study, said the results clearly reflected popular demand for the area to be preserved, and urged the government to review its conservation plan.
“Most residents support protecting Nam Sang Wai’s natural environment and [the results] fully indicate that the government should intervene to protect it,” he said.
Fourth suspicious fire breaks out at Hong Kong wetland conservation area Nam Sang Wai
The site, a patchwork of fish ponds, mudflats and tidal belts in Yuen Long – 80 per cent of which is privately owned – is home to the second-largest reed bed in the city and is an important stopover site for migratory birds, such as the globally endangered black-faced spoonbill and great cormorant.
