Comments on lowland conservation for 2025 Hong Kong policy address
Can but try, I figured, after seeing government is open to comments for the forthcoming policy address by Chief Executive John Lee:
Wild About Hong Kong - hiking, wildlife, conservation and more
Wild About Hong Kong - hiking, wildlife, conservation and more
News and Views
HK Government Promotes Nature Tourism in Geopark with no Plans for When Tourists Arrive
There have been quite a few reports lately about many people heading to the Hong Kong Geopark areas near the East Dam of High Island Reservoir, which has been promoted by the government yet with inadequate transport, and woeful facilities…
Lantau Eco-recreation Corridor Plans are Eco in Name Only
Given the Hong Kong government espouses a policy of “conservation in the south” of Lantau[1], and at the beginning of April 2025 a body called the Sustainable Lantau Office invited expressions of interest for “South Lantau Eco-recreation Corridor”[2], you might…
Ideas for Nature Tourism at Pui O, Lantau
Nature Tourism at Pui O Has Potential, But Needs Government Support Nature tourism – in a very wide sense – might be one way of bringing some extra revenue to Pui O, and helping to reduce pressure for destruction of…
Sustainable Lantau Office talks of but doesn’t implement nature conservation measures
The Sustainable Lantau Office (SLO) was established by Hong Kong’s Civil Engineering and Development Department; given its origins perhaps hardly surprising that it has failed to achieve much regarding sustainability, but perhaps must keep hoping. I’ve had quite some correspondence…
Careless slope vegetation clearance on Cheung Chau but improvements underway
While slopes in Hong Kong may receive intensive management – especially given the history of severe landslides during rainstorms – there has in recent decades been something of a shift from purely concreting them, to cultivating and allowing more greenery.…
WWF Report on Hong Kong Biodiversity 2025 – deja vu all over again
In March 2025, WWF Hong Kong published a report, The State of Hong Kong Biodiversity 2025, and an accompanying Hong Kong Terrestrial Biodiversity Hotspot Map; you can download them via Hong Kong Biodiversity. This entailed considerable work; as a press…
The Saga of Nam Sang Wai, Deep Bay: development plans repeatedly rejected and resurfacing
Suppose you were ageing and with various ailments, yet still attractive to many; and you were in the care of someone who is doing nothing to help, but says they could make your body much better. Just one thing, though…
Issues impacting biodiversity in Hong Kong plus ideas to boost conservation
After I posted in a birding whatsapp group about issues with the Long Valley Nature Park, I was surprised at a response, sent to the whole group of over 200 members so hardly private. Well, perhaps complaints about conservation issues…
Concerns re Work Creating Long Valley Nature Park in 2021
In another post, I’ve put email correspondence regarding my belief Long Valley Nature Park is far worse for bird diversity than it could or should be: Long Valley Nature Park initially poor for biodiversity yet improvements underway. Here, partly to…
Long Valley Nature Park initially poor for biodiversity yet improvements underway
In the movie The Blues Brothers, an enthusiastic live music bar owner is asked about the kinds of music played there. “Oh we got both kinds of music,” he replies. “Country … and western.” And after my recent first visit…
School outings to hidden Hong Kong experiencing wild places and wildlife
I have organised and led several outings to the Hong Kong countryside for school groups, chiefly for one school, for which I developed a “Hidden Hong Kong” week covering Mai Po Marshes, Kadoorie Farm, Cheung Chau, the northeast New Territories,…
Excessive Mosquito Control Devastating Cheung Chau Wildlife
Here’s an email I sent to Hong Kong’s Food and Environmental Hygiene Department in November 2024, regarding excessive spraying of anti-mosquito pesticides, and apparent devastation of local wildlife as a result: Further to various emails. I saw this patch of…
World Green Organisation only Hong Kong and not so green
Some years ago, I was asked to meet two or three people who were starting a new “environmental” ngo in Hong Kong, the World Green Organisation. Didn’t seem quite right to me – hardly ecowarrior type stuff, not up to…
Objection to proposed road tunnel to Mui Wo on Lantau island
While the Hong Kong government has touted ideas for “development in the north” and “conservation in the south” of Lantau, it seems more hell-bent on development: even an “eco-corridor” for the south seems to involve only development, zero boost for…
Waste Incineration Still Sucks and Appalling for Shek Kwu Chau
Table of Contents Policy framework ideas mostly ignored as incineration emphasised Presentation I gave to legco: No environmental impact assessment focused on Shek Kwu Chau site Email to me a few days ago: My name is Steven Chan. I am…
Green Groups’ Responses to the Public Consultation for the South Lantau Eco-Recreation Corridor
Conservation not a slogan South Lantau Biodiversity and Ecosystems Beach Water Quality as Indicator of Development Table 1. Beach water quality of bathing beaches in proposed South Lantau Eco-recreation Corridor in 2023: Bathing Beach Annual Grading Annual Ranking Weekly Grading…
South Lantau Eco-Recreation Corridor is “Eco” in Name Only
A response to the South Lantau Eco-Recreation Corridor public consultation The Hong Kong Government’s latest wheeze for developing south Lantau is a proposed “South Lantau Eco-Recreation Corridor” – which seems eco in name only. As noted by the Sustainable Lantau…
Deep Bay including Mai Po in Hong Kong: Wetland Under Siege with Typically Timid Conservation
If you’re among the privileged few with access to the inner sanctum of Deep Bay in northwest Hong Kong – a viewing hide at the seaward edge of the mangroves, you can experience one of the finest bird spectacles in…
San Tin Fish Ponds a Key Part of Deep Bay wetlands and Can Help Flood Control
If you’re unfamiliar with the Deep Bay wetland shared by Hong Kong and Shenzhen, you might wonder about the significance of the expanse of fish ponds in the area of north Hong Kong that will be the site of a…
Nature-based Solutions for Hong Kong – corporatese jargon or worthwhile? Or both!
I’ve lately noticed mention of nature-based solutions, abbreviated to NbS, regarding conservation ideas for Hong Kong. It seems all very well as an idea, but can it widely catch on – or is it fancypants jargon, which won’t appeal to…
Build San Tin Technopole on Solid Ground and Create a Wetland Park that Reduces Floods in nw Hong Kong and Shenzhen
One of the best arguments for protecting the San Tin fish ponds area – rather than destroying a large area to build the San Tin Technopole – should be mitigating flooding risk, including in downtown Shenzhen, which is also on…
Comment on Environmental Impact Assessment on San Tin Technopole Project that will Destroy a Substantial Area of Deep Bay Fish Ponds
The period for commenting on the EIA for Agreement No. CE 20/2021 (CE) First Phase Development of the New Territories North – San Tin / Lok Ma Chau Development Node – Investigation – to give it the official name – ends tomorrow,…
Renewal for Shalotung, Hong Kong’s conservation battlefield
Though Shalotung is less than 4km from the hustle and bustle of Tai Po Market – around the same distance as Central to Causeway, should a kite care to fly direct – it seems a remote place, hidden away in…
Plans to develop area of San Tin fishponds threaten biodiversity for perhaps fanciful project
I’ve just emailed views re government’s recently announced plan to create San Tin Technopole, including by destroying a substantial area of San Tin fishponds: I’m emailing to object to plans to destroy an area of San Tin fishponds to make…
Utilise urban parks equitably, mitigate Hong Kong’s climate hazards now
Hong Kong will face more intense heat, flood, storm surges and biodiversity depletion under climate change. Healing Parks, an advocacy group, says that urban parks can help to mitigate these hazards – but current park design guidelines fail to consider…
Kau Yi Chau Artificial Islands project off east Lantau Hong Kong not sustainable?
Hong Kong government has plans for a massive reclamation, in waters between Lantau and Victoria Harbour, for something like a new mini city with central business district. First named East Lantau Metropolis, then Lantau Tomorrow Vision – even though not…
Kau Yi Chau Islands Reclamation aka Lantau Tomorrow Vision utterly unsustainable
The project that started as East Lantau Metropolis, became Lantau Tomorrow Vision, and now called Kau Yi Chau Islands Reclamation could be the most disastrous infrastructure project in Hong Kong’s history – costing huge sums of money, unsustainable, and ultimately…
Masterplan for a More Sustainable Future for Mai Po, Deep Bay Wetland and Beyond
Yes, this is may seem impossible, ridiculous; but continuing with current state of affairs doesn’t look good for long term future of Deep Bay wetlands. The government is currently planning to establish “a system of wetland conservation parks for the…
Where have all the Hong Kong Barn Swallows gone?
I live on Cheung Chau, a small island in southwest Hong Kong – and became very used to it hosting many nesting pairs of Barn Swallows, which start arriving around mid-February, and stay till late summer. Been this way since…
Sai Wan included in Sai Kung Country Park: nothing is better
Visit Sai Wan on a hot sunny Sunday, and it can seem like the type of tropical “paradise” that many seek, yet few find. In this bay on the eastern Sai Kung Peninsula, tens of people unwind on beaches and…
Alarming silting of Deep Bay mudflats by early 2000s
Last decade, the future looked bright for the Deep Bay wetland, in northwest Hong Kong. [I wrote this for the South China Morning Post in late 2004; it seems the mudflat level has about stabilised since, but still with issues including…
With Few Visitors, Mai Po Marshes reserve tries for some outrageous entry fees
The WWF Hong Kong managed Mai Po Marshes Nature Reserve has undergone an infrastructure upgrade, with a HK$347 million grant from the Hong Kong Jockey Club – Hooray! [tiny update, now the upgrade is complete, 11 Feb 2025] But the…
Mai Po Marshes Nature Reserve – needing help in 2014, needs help still
With the apartment blocks of Yuen Long and Tin Shui Wai to the southwest, Fairview Park estate to the south, and the urban sprawl of Shenzhen fringing the north coast, Deep Bay may seem an unlikely location for one of…
Mai Po Marshes Upgrade Project: Big Money, Few Visitors
There is a Mai Po upgrade project underway [spring 2023], funded by a HK$347.86 million grant from the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust. This seems a substantial sum, especially as it is for infrastructure only, and chiefly a new visitor…
Sunnyville scheme prompts battle over Deep Bay fishponds in Hong Kong
A “battle of the ponds” is underway in Hong Kong’s northwest corner. It focuses on Deep Bay, a wetlands area that borders on China, near Shenzhen. Developers who want to build here are tussling with conservationists who want to see…
History of Hong Kong’s Deep Bay wetland including Mai Po Marshes to 1990
“If you look at satellite photos of the Pearl River delta, Deep Bay really shows up. There is nothing else like it.” David Melville Published in Asia Magazine (South China Morning Post), November 1990 An estuary shared by North-West Hong…
Birding and Conservation at Fung Lok Wai Fishponds Near Mai Po
Though Mai Po Marshes is at the heart of Hong Kong’s internationally important Deep Bay wetland, there are other important sites in the area – including the fishponds at Fung Lok Wai. These have been in the news at times…
Climate Change and Hong Kong Ecology
With climate changing, there are changes underway, including in Hong Kong’s ecosystems, that indicate there is an urgent need for action.
As World Warms Hong Kong Remains Climate Unready
So here we are. The heating is on. No longer are we at a stage of predicting global warming may occur, with experts cautiously saying this or that weather event just might be attributable to climate change, in turn due…
Fewer Ferries, More Dolphins Near Southwest Lantau
WWF calls for urgent ferry traffic mitigation measures before cross-border traffic resumes Hong Kong, 21 July 2022 – Acoustic and visual monitoring conducted by WWF-Hong Kong (WWF) has revealed dramatic increases in Chinese white dolphin occurrences and more diverse dolphin behaviours since…
Typhoon Chaba set for landfall west of Hong Kong
Chaba has recently intensified to typhoon strength. Has a large eye on radar images, with rainbands across wide area – inc passing over Hong Kong (though rain here not so intense just now). The track is not as much to…