Table of Contents
11 LANDSCAPE AND VISUAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT
11.2 Environmental
Legislation, Standards and Guidelines
11.4 Review of
Planning & Development Control Framework
11.5 Methodology -
Landscape Impact Assessment
11.6 Methodology -
Visual Impact Assessment
11.7 Landscape
Baseline Conditions
11.8 Visual Baseline
Conditions
11.9 Identification
of Potential Sources of Landscape and Visual Impacts
11.10 Landscape
Impact Assessment
11.11 Visual Impact
Assessment
This section
reports on the study to assess the potential landscape and visual impacts
arising from construction and operation of any above ground structures and
works areas associated with the Desalination Plant at Tseung
Kwan O.
In accordance
with the criteria as stated in Annexes 10 and 18 of the Technical Memorandum on
Environmental Impact Assessment Process (EIAO-TM), the landscape and visual
impact assessment (LVIA) for this Project includes:
-
landscape
impact assessment methodology;
-
a
landscape baseline study providing a description of the baseline landscape resources
(LRs) and landscape character areas (LCAs) within the Study Area;
-
identification
of potential landscape impacts (these are similar to the potential visual
impacts and hence all potential landscape and visual impacts are contained
within one section);
-
prediction
of the nature of landscape impacts and the potential magnitude of change they
will cause as well as the potential significance of impacts before the
implementation of mitigation measures;
-
recommendation
of appropriate mitigation measures and associated implementation programmes;
and
-
prediction
of the significance of residual landscape impacts after the implementation of
the suggested mitigation measures.
-
visual
impact assessment methodology;
-
a
visual baseline study, providing details of visual elements surrounding the
Project and key Visually Sensitive Receivers (VSRs);
-
prediction
of the nature of visual impacts and the potential magnitude of change they will
cause, as well as the potential significance of impacts before the
implementation of mitigation measures;
-
recommendation
of appropriate mitigation measures and associated implementation programmes;
and
-
prediction
of the significance of residual visual impacts after implementation of the suggested
mitigation measures.
The following
legislation, standards and guidelines are applicable to this LVIA associated
with the construction and operation of the Project:
·
Environmental
Impact Assessment Ordinance (Cap. 499. S16) and the Technical Memorandum on EIA
Process (EIAO-TM), particularly Annexes 10 (Criteria for Evaluating Visual and
Landscape Impact, and Impact on Sites of Cultural Heritage) and 18 (Guidelines
for Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment);
·
Environmental
Impact Assessment Ordinance Guidance Note 8/2010 (Preparation of Landscape and
Visual Impact Assessment under the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance);
·
Hong
Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines (HKPSG) issued by the Planning Department,
in particular Chapters 4, 10, 11 and Section 7 in Chapter 12 (As at August
2011);
·
Land
Administration Office Instruction (LAOI) Section D-12 Tree Preservation;
·
Town
Planning Ordinance (Cap. 131);
·
Country Park Ordinance (Cap. 208);
·
Protection of Endangered Species and Plants Ordinance
(Cap. 586);
·
ETWB
TCW No. 2/2004 – Maintenance of Vegetation and Hard Landscape Features;
·
ETWB
TCW No. 29/2004 – Registration of Old and Valuable Trees, and Guidelines for
their Preservation;
·
ETWB
TCW No. 5/2005 – Protection of Natural Streams/Rivers from Adverse Impacts
Arising from Construction Works;
·
DEVB
TCW No. 3/2012 – Site Coverage of Greenery for Government Building Projects;
·
DEVB TCW No. 10/2013 – Tree Preservation;
·
Urban
Design Guidelines for Hong Kong issued by the Planning Department (2003);
·
Study
on Landscape Value Mapping of Hong Kong (1);
·
GEO
I /2011 – Technical Guidelines
on Landscaping Treatment for Slopes;
·
GEO I/2012 – Surface Protection and Appearance of
Slope.
The Study
Area, as shown in aerial photographs in Figure 11.1,
is located to the south of Southeast New Territories (SENT) Landfill and the Tseung Kwan O (TKO) Industrial Estate. It faces Clearwater Bay Country Park to the
north-east, Joss House Bay to its east and the Tathong
Channel to the west and south. The
proposed site for desalination plant has an area of approximately 10 ha.
There are two concurrent projects within the study area which should be
assessed for cumulative impacts as listed below:
·
South East New Territories (SENT) Landfill
Extension
·
Development in TKO Area 137
Note
that a Fresh Water Main will connect the existing Tseung
Kwan O Primary Fresh Water Service Reservoir and the proposed Desalination
Plant. As outlined in Chapter 1, this
will all be laid along an existing road and no trees will be felled. The road will be reconstructed after laying
the main and no change in this Landscape is anticipated. The new Fresh Water Main will therefore be
underground and not visible. Since no
Landscape or Visual impact is anticipated as a result of these works, LVIA for
laying for the Fresh Water Main are hence not addressed further in the
assessment.
This section
provides an overview of the HKSAR Government’s development intentions,
statutory land-use and planning within the Study Area, specifically from
landscape and visual standpoints. The
existing Outline Zoning Plans (OZPs) are considered in relation to the Project
Layout Plans, with the aim of assessing whether the Project can fit with the
planning intention.
The statutory
designations in the Draft Tseung Kwan O Outline Zoning Plan (OZP) No. S/TKO/21 for the Study Area, are
shown in Figure 11.2.
The Project
site is located in Planning Area 137, which is the reclaimed land formed between 1998 and 2000.
The site is on land zoned as “Other Specified
Uses” annotated “Deep Waterfront Industry” “OU(DWI)”
which is ‘intended primarily for special industrial
which require marine access, access to deep water berths or water frontage. ’ It is considered that amendment
to the OZP is required to rezone the site to an appropriate zone under Town Planning Ordinance.
Table 11.1 summarises
the areas of existing zoning types designated in OZP No. S/TKO/21, within the
Study Area and how they are affected by the Project.
Table 11.1 Project footprint on Draft Tseung Kwan O Outline Zoning Plan No. S/TKO/21
Zoning Type |
Existing Area within Study Area (ha) |
Area within Project Site Boundary
(ha) (Approx
% of area within Study Area) |
Comments
on key land use changes |
“Open Space” (2) (“O(2)”) |
12.08 |
0 (0%) |
No change
required. |
“Other Specified Uses” annotated “Deep
Waterfront Industry” (“OU(DWI)”) |
59.84 |
10.08 (16.8%) |
According
to the draft Tseung Kwan O Outline Zoning Plan (OZP)
S/TKO/21, “OU (DWI)” is intended for special industries which require marine
access, access to deep water berths or water frontage. It is
considered that amendment to the OZP is required to rezone the site to an
appropriate zone under Town Planning Ordinance. |
In addition
the Project includes a study area for slope mitigation works where
investigation regarding natural terrain
hazards are being carried out and some areas of soil nailing and rock slope
stabilization are proposed to address this hazard. These areas fall partly within the existing
Clearwater Bay Country Park (CWBCP), as illustrated in Figure 11.2. The purpose of Country Parks is stated in Section 4 of the Country Parks Ordinance (Cap.208) as being inter alia:
· To encourage recreation and tourism;
·
To
protect vegetation and wildlife;
·
To
preserve and maintain buildings and sites of historic or cultural significance;
and,
·
To
provide facilities and services for the public enjoyment.
The planning
intention for Country Parks is set out in the Para 3.3.2 of Section 10 (Conservation) of the Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines as being:
“for the
purposes of nature conservation, countryside recreation and nature
education…criteria for determining whether or not a particular location is
suitable for designation as a Country Park…include landscape quality,
recreation potential…”
The necessary
area to cover slope mitigation works for natural terrain hazards will
principally consist of soil and rock stabilization works and provision of
flexible debris barriers to protect the new desalination plant from landslide
and boulder hazards from this slope.
With reference
to Figure 11.12,
approximately 0.49 ha of the
lower ridge to the east of TKO Area 137 fall within this slope mitigation works
area inside CWBCP. The slope mitigation
works comprise of soil nailing, flexible barriers and rock slope stabilization
and Figure 11.13
illustrates some of the potential elements of these works. However the exact area necessary and location
of specific elements of the slope mitigation works will be reviewed at a later
date based on the finalized layout of the Project. The slope mitigation works will be minimized
to lessen any potential environmental impact to the Country Park and no
significant change to the topography is anticipated as any works will look to
avoid trees.
According to
the Study Brief (No. ESB-266/2013) requirement, the Study Area for the
landscape impact assessment shall include all areas within 500 m from each
Project site boundary as described in Section
11.3
and indicated in the aerial photograph of the Study Area in Figure 11.1. Firstly a
baseline study has been conducted within the Study Area, followed by an impact
assessment, and each step is described below.
-
Quality
and maturity, condition and value of LRs/ LCAs, taking into account information
from general quality, maturity and condition of other types of vegetation.
(Ranked as high, medium or low)
-
Important
/ rarity of LRs/ LCAs (Ranked as high, medium or low)
-
Whether
a LR/ LCA is considered to be of local, regional, national or global importance
(Taken into account and included in the descriptive text only if relevant)
-
Whether
there are any statutory or regulatory limitations / requirements relating to
the LRs/ LCAs (Taken into account and included in the descriptive text only if
relevant)
-
Ability
of the LRs/ LCAs to accommodate change without compromising their essential
nature. (Ranked high, medium or low)
The sensitivity of each LR and LCA is based on the
values of all the above factors in totality and classified as follows:
High: Important landscape or
landscape resources of particularly distinctive character of high importance,
sensitive to relatively small changes.
Medium: Landscape
or landscape resources of moderately valued landscape characteristics
reasonably tolerant to change.
Low: Landscape or landscape
resources of relatively unimportant landscape characteristics largely tolerant
to change.
Landscape
impacts have been assessed for the construction and operational phases of the
Project as follows.
-
The
physical extent of the impact. This is
assessed using a number of factors, including: absolute area/length within the
Project Site; relative area/length within the Project Site compared to the
Study Area; and the current land use compared to the proposed land use i.e.
taking into account some land, even though within the Project Site, may not be
directly impacted. (Ranked as small,
medium or large)
-
Compatibility
of the Project and associated works with the existing and planned landscape in
the vicinity. (Ranked as good, fair, or poor)
-
Duration
of impacts i.e. whether it is temporary or permanent, under construction and
operational phases.
-
Reversibility
of change (ranked as reversible or irreversible).
The magnitude of landscape change
on each LR/LCA is based on the values of all the above factors in totality and
classified as follows:
Large: LRs
or LCAs would incur a major change.
Intermediate: LRs or LCAs
would incur moderate change.
Small: LRs
or LCAs would incur slight or barely perceptible change.
Negligible: LRs
or LCAs would incur no discernible change.
Table 11.2 Relationship between
receptor sensitivity and magnitude of change in defining impact significance
|
|
Receptor Sensitivity (e.g. LR/LCA or VSR) |
||
|
|
Low |
Medium |
High |
Magnitude of Change |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
Small |
Slight |
Slight/
Moderate |
Moderate |
|
Intermediate |
Slight/
Moderate |
Moderate |
Moderate/
Substantial |
|
Large |
Moderate |
Moderate/
Substantial |
Substantial |
The four thresholds for the
degree of significance are explained below.
All impacts are assumed to be adverse
in the text of the Report, unless specifically identified otherwise.
Substantial: Adverse
/ beneficial impact where the proposed Project will cause significant
deterioration or improvement in existing landscape quality
Moderate: Adverse
/ beneficial impact where the proposed Project will cause a noticeable
deterioration or improvement in existing landscape quality
Slight: Adverse
/ beneficial impact where the proposed Project will cause barely perceptible
deterioration or improvement in existing landscape quality
Insignificant: No
discernible change in the existing landscape quality.
-
Adopting
alternative design or revising the basic engineering and / or architectural
design, to prevent and / or minimize adverse impacts. Alternative alignment(s),
design(s) and construction methods that avoid or reduce the identified
landscape impacts have been evaluated for comparison before adopting other
mitigation or compensatory measures to alleviate the impacts.
-
Remedial
measures such as colour and textural treatment of physical, engineering and
building features; and
-
Compensatory
measures such as the implementation of landscape design measures (e.g. tree
planting, creation of new open space etc.) to compensate for unavoidable
adverse impacts and to attempt to generate potentially beneficial long-term
impacts.
To ensure their effectiveness throughout the
construction and operational phases of the Project and associated works, the
relevant responsible parties for the on-going management and maintenance of the
proposed mitigation measures have been identified. Approval-in-principle to the funding,
implementation, management and maintenance of the proposed mitigation measures
is being sought from the appropriate authorities, according to the principles
in ETWB TCW No. 2/2004.
According to
the Study Brief (No. ESB-266/2013) requirement, the Study Area for the area for
the visual impact assessment (VIA) shall be defined by the visual envelope of
the Project. Within the defined visual envelope, key groups of visually
sensitive receivers (VSRs) have been identified, with regard to views from
ground level and elevated vantage points.
The views of these VSRs are described and the sensitivity of each VSR
evaluated. The overall visual character
of the Project Site has also been broadly defined before considering the visual
compatibility of the Project within its surroundings. An assessment of the visual impact of the
Project on the identified VSRs has then been undertaken for both construction
and operational phases of the Project.
Further details on the visual impact methodology are found as follows.
As
VSRs are located further away from the Project, the visual impact on the VSRs
will decrease, until the Project is no longer visible. However, before the point of non-visibility
is reached, the Project structures will have reduced in scale such that they no
longer exert a significant visual impact and they are essentially
indistinguishable within their surroundings. The ZVI is therefore an area that
is most likely to be visually impacted by the Project. Figure 11.9 illustrates the ZVI for this
Project.
Vantage
Points or Viewpoints (VPs) were selected from key VSRs within the ZVI, from
which to help illustrate the visual change that would be brought about by the
proposed Project ensuring in combination they give a good overall
representation of how the Project will appear to different VSRs. Photomontages have been prepared from the VPs
to conceptually illustrate the visual impacts, both unmitigated and mitigated
at Day 1 and mitigated at Year 10 of operation and supplement the visual
changes described in the text. The photomontages are presented in Figure 11.16a&b, Figure 11.17 a&b,
Figure 11.18a&b, Figure 11.19a&b and Figure 11.20a&b.
- Type of VSR. VSRs are categorized according to whether the
viewer is at home, at work or school, at play or leisure, or travelling.
(Ranked by the major VSR types, as described below)
Residential
VSRs – These
VSRs are people living in the area and who view the proposed Project from their
homes. They are considered the most sensitive VSRs due to the character of the
view from their homes having a substantial effect on their perception of
quality and acceptability of their home environment and general quality of
life.
Occupational
VSRs – These
VSRs are people working or in education in the area, who view the proposed Project
from their workplace or education centre.
Visual amenity is in general not considered a top priority within the
average workplace and these VSRs are considered to be relatively less sensitive
than residential VSRs as their view will have a less important, although still
material, effect on their perception of quality of life. The degree to which this applies to workers
depends on whether their location is industrial, retail or commercial. The VSRs in industrial areas, such as
factories, are generally considered to be the least sensitive, due to the
relatively low quality of their existing view in an industrial area.
Recreational
VSRs – These
VSRs are people engaging in recreational activities such as hikers on
established trails and footpaths, people participating in team sports at
recreation grounds or at leisure. Sensitivity of these VSRs depends on duration
of stay, nature of the activity and how enclosed the location is.
Travelling
VSRs – These
VSRs are people travelling on public roads and railways, both in public and
private vehicles and on foot. They have
varying sensitivity depending on the speed, nature and frequency of travel, but
are generally considered to be transitory to the area with less regard for the
surrounding views and with low sensitivity.
-
Number
of individuals. (Ranked as very many, many, few or very few)
-
Quality
of existing view (Ranked as good, fair or poor)
-
Availability
of alternative views. (Ranked as yes or no)
-
Degree
of visibility. (Ranked as full, partial or glimpse)
-
Duration
of view. (Ranked as long, medium or short)
-
Frequency
of view. (Ranked as frequent, occasional or rare)
The sensitivity of each VSR is
based on the values of all the above factors in totality and classified as
follows:
High: The
VSR is highly sensitive to any change in their viewing experience.
Medium: The VSR is moderately sensitive to any change in
their viewing experience.
Low: The
VSR is only slightly sensitive to any change in their viewing experience.
Visual impacts
have been assessed for the construction and operational phases of the Project
as follows.
-
Distance
between the closest source of impact and the VSR (Given in meters)
-
Scale
of the development. This is assessed using a number of factors, including:
absolute dimensions of new built structures visible to the VSR; relative
dimensions of the new built structures compared to other structures visible to
the VSRs in their existing view (Ranked as small, medium or large)
-
Potential
blockage of view. (Ranked as full, partial or nil)
-
Duration
of the impacts. (Ranked as temporary [short/medium term] or permanent)
-
Compatibility
of the Project and associated works with the existing and planned landscape in
the vicinity. (Ranked as good, fair or poor)
-
Reversibility
of change (ranked as reversible or irreversible).
The magnitude of change caused by
visual impacts on each VSR is based on the values of all the above factors in
totality and classified as follows:
Large: VSRs
would incur a major change in their viewing experience.
Intermediate: VSRs would
incur a moderate change in their viewing
experience.
Small: VSRs
would incur a small change in their viewing experience.
Negligible: VSRs
would incur no discernible change in their viewing experience.
The four thresholds for the
degree of significance are explained below.
All impacts are assumed to be
adverse in the text of the Report, unless specifically identified otherwise.
Substantial: Adverse
/ beneficial impact where the proposed Project will cause significant
deterioration or improvement in existing landscape quality
Moderate: Adverse
/ beneficial impact where the proposed Project will cause a noticeable
deterioration or improvement in existing landscape quality
Slight: Adverse
/ beneficial impact where the proposed Project will cause barely perceptible
deterioration or improvement in existing landscape quality
Insignificant: No
discernible change in the existing landscape quality.
To help illustrate the
effectiveness of the proposed visual mitigation measures, photomontages from
selected Vantage Points (VPs) looking towards the Project have been prepared.
The photomontages illustrate:
-
Existing
conditions;
-
Day
1 of Operation Phase without Mitigation Measures;
-
Day
1 of Operation Phase with Mitigation Measures; and
-
Year
10 of Operation Phase with Mitigation Measures.
-
Adopting
alternative design or revising the basic engineering and / or architectural
design, to prevent and / or minimize adverse impacts. Alternative alignment(s),
design(s) and construction methods that avoid or reduce the identified impacts
have been evaluated for comparison before adopting other mitigation or
compensatory measures to alleviate the impacts.
-
Remedial
measures such as colour and textural treatment of physical, engineering and
building features; and
-
Compensatory
measures such as the implementation of landscape design measures (e.g. tree
planting, creation of new open space etc.) to compensate for unavoidable
adverse impacts and to attempt to generate potentially beneficial long-term
impacts.
To ensure their effectiveness throughout the
construction and operational phases of the Project and associated works, the
relevant responsible parties for the on-going management and maintenance of the
proposed mitigation measures have been identified. Approval-in-principle to the funding,
implementation, management and maintenance of the proposed mitigation measures
will be sought from the appropriate authorities, according to the principles in
ETWB TCW No. 2/2004.
The Landscape
Resources (LRs) of the Assessment are described below and shown in Figure 11.3. Figure 11.4
provides representative photographs of various LRs within the Assessment
Area.
Based on the broad brush tree survey, approximately
700 existing trees fall within the Mixed Woodland area (LR9) of the Study
Area. Figure 11.21a-j illustrates the landscape conditions and vegetation
where slope mitigation works will be carried out. There are no Old and Valuable
trees (OVT) or Champion Trees in the Assessment Area, and from the surveys, no
potential OVTs or trees with significant size were recorded either.
-
LR1–Shrubs
and Trees of TKO Area 137: This LR consists of around 11.15 ha of
scattered grass, shrubs and weedy species including the weedy
tree Leucaena leucocephala,
weedy creeper Mikania micrantha,
and grass Pueraria phaseoloides,
occupying distinct patches on the vacant reclamation of Area 137 as well
as at the foothills near where the slope meets the fill area. There are also occasional trees dominated by Acacia confusa, Ficus microcarpa, Homalium chochinchinensis and Litsea glutinosa. This
LR, given the weedy nature of most of its vegetation, has a moderate ability to
accommodate change and its sensitivity is “Low”.
-
LR2–
Shrubs and topography of Tit Cham Chau: This
LR consists of 2.47 ha of natural hillside with shrubs on the former island of
Tit Cham Chau (now joined to the Clear Water Bay Peninsula by reclamation) such
as Melastoma sanguineum, Bridelia tomentosa and
Rhodomyrtus tomentosa. This is an isolated natural green hill
amongst the low lying, highly modified fill area and has a low ability to
accommodate change. The sensitivity of
this LR is “High”.
-
LR3-
Rocky Shore: This
LR consists of rocky shore on the south of Tit Cham Chau as well as rocky shore
south of the ridge east of the TKO Area 137.
This LR covers an area of approximately 2.16 ha in total and
contrasts with the artificial seawalls adjacent to it. This LR has low ability to accommodate change
and its sensitivity is “High”.
-
LR4-Shrubs
and topography of Kwun Tsai Island: This LR consists of a very small area of about
0.11 ha of natural low hillside with shrubs on KwunTsai
Island. This LR cannot easily
accommodate change. It is a very small
area and the sensitivity of this LR is “High”.
-
LR5-
Sandy shore: This LR consists of approximately
0.23 ha of sandy shore / beach near the southern end of the Project Site
and further round along the coast towards the north of Joss House Bay. This LR is a one of the basic coastal element
of Hong Kong and has low ability to accommodate change such that its
sensitivity is “High”.
-
LR6-
Grass, shrubs and trees east of TKO Area 137: This
LR consists of an area of about 39.24 ha of natural upper hillsides on the
south-west tip of the Clear water Bay Peninsula. The hillside is covered with grasses (such as
Ischaemum aristatum, Arundinella setosa, Cymbopogon goeringii,
and Lepidosperma chinense) and
the lower hillside is covered with a scattering of grass and common native
shrub species (eg Miscanthus floridulus, Rhaphiolepis indica, Rhodomyrtus
tomentosa and
Melastoma sanguineum)
as well as some trees including native Litsea glutinosa, Macaranga tanarius, Mallotus paniculatus, Phoenix hanceana
and the weed species Leucaena leucocephala. This LR also has some small rocky
outcrops and includes some protected herb and orchid species (including Pachystoma pubescens, Habenaria linguella, Platycodon
grandifloras, Pecteilis susannae,
Nepenthes nirabilis and Lilium brownie) as well as the protected climber Marsdenia Lachnostoma,as detailed in Section 9 – Ecology Chapter. This LR has low ability to accommodate
change. The sensitivity of this LR is “High”.
-
LR7-
Drainage Channel: This LR consists of the man-made channels
and ditches within the TKO Area 137 and at the base of the eastern hill that
borders the Project Site. There is
approximately 1.29 ha of this LR in total and it is highly modified with a
high ability to accommodate change. The
sensitivity of the LR is “Low”.
-
LR8-
Seascape of Joss House Bay and Tathong Channel:
This LR comprises the sea in the Study Area, making up approximately
62.89 ha. The area of this LR in
the Study Area is mainly outside the Tathong Channel
and used for recreational activities. It
has a medium ability to accommodate change and its sensitivity is considered to
be “Medium”.
-
LR9-
Mixed Woodland along lower hillside of Tin Hau Shan:
This LR consists of some trees lying on what appears to be re-graded lower
hillsides and is small (1.17 ha) in size with an estimated 700 trees. Vegetation includes native tree species of
which the following are commonly found: Ficus hispida, Ficus microcarpa, Macaranga tanarius, Mallotus paniculatus, as well as Bauhinia blakeana, Homalium cochinchinensis, Phoenix hanceana, Schefflera heptaphylla and Zanthoxylum avicennae. There are also some common exotic trees such
as Acacia confusa,
Delonix regia and Ficus benjamina as well as
weedy vegetation including the tree Leucaena leucocephala, and creepers Mikania micrantha,
and Pueraria phaseoloides. There are also some shrubs in the area. The ability of this LR to accommodate change
is lower due to the vegetation growing on it, but some of these are weedy
species. The sensitivity of this LR is
“Medium”.
-
LR10-
Site office area of SENT Landfill: This LR represents the
periphery of the SENT landfill offices and laboratories, covering approximately
0.16 ha within the Study Area. Soils in this area are fabricated, and not
of great sensitivity. The LR can
accommodate change and in addition, there is only a small area included in the
Study Area. The sensitivity of this LR
is “Low”.
-
LR11 – Fill Area:
This LR is the existing fill bank at Fat
Tong Chau, including seawall and pier, and has very limited vegetation outside
of that found in LR1, mainly consisting of weedy vegetation including Leucaena leucocephala. This LR is approximately 59.67 ha in
size, can readily accommodate change and
its sensitivity is “Low”.
-
LCA1
– Fat Tong O Reclamation: This landscape comprises an area of
completed and ongoing reclamation located at the south western tip of Clear
Water Bay Peninsula, between Junk Bay and Joss House Bay. The landscape
comprises a large, flat and lying area of reclamation on the south west tip of
the Clearwater Bay peninsula, adjoining the Tathong
Channel. To the north, it abuts the
former island of Fat Tong Chau and to the south it adjoins Tit Cham Chau. The reclaimed shorelines are constructed from
a straight alignment of armour stone seawall.
The area is currently reclaimed but undeveloped and there is a constant
flow of trucks of the area. There is
little or no vegetation in the landscape, except for occasional patches of
scrub. The result is an almost uniform
landscape of huge scale elements which has a character that is expansive and
visually incoherent and which has a “Low” sensitivity (see Figure 11.6a).
-
LCA2
– Clear Water Bay Peninsular Coastal Uplands: This
upland landscape forms the spine of the Clear Water Bay Peninsula. The rolling
uploads of Clear Water Bay Peninsula comprise a long ridgeline above steep
slopes running from Sheung Yeung Shan in the north to
Ha Shan Tuk and Tin Ha Shan in the south. The uplands are dominated by High Junk Peak,
an extremely steep and jagged peak rising to a height of 344mPD. The uplands fall to Clear Water Bay to the
east and include the small rocky headlands at Ngam Ha
Tong in the north and Tai Wong Kung in the South. In general, the coast comprises low cliffs
and rocky foreshore, but also beaches such a Clear Water Bay Second Beach. East facing slopes tend to be more smooth and
even than those to the west. The
landscape is larger undeveloped.
However, the Clear Water Bay Road runs along the east side of the ridge
and there is a footpath along the ridge itself.
A small road provides access to traditional finishing village houses and
a temple at the southern headland at Tai Wong Kung. Elsewhere, a small sheltered bay lies on the
north east coast of the headland at Po Toi O forming
a traditional fishing harbor for the village of the
same name. The village contains
traditional house, seafood restaurants, a temple and a small pier. There are numerous cut slopes along the Clear
Water Bay road. To the south of the LCA,
on the north shore of Joss House Bay, is the Tin Hau
Temple at Tai Miu which one of the largest and best
known Tin Hau temples in Hong Kong. Vegetation within the uplands comprises
grassland and emergent scrub to west facing slopes and scrub woodland to east
facing areas. The result is a simple
rural landscape of large scale elements which has a character that is open and
tranquil and which has a “High” sensitivity (see Figure 11.6a).
-
LCA3-
Tathong Channel and Joss House Bay:
This landscape comprises the areas of inshore water between Hong Kong Island
and Clearwater Bay Peninsula. The waters
extend from Junk Bay and Victoria Habour in the north
to the tip of Cape D’ Aguilar (Hong Kong Island) in the south. The landscape is fairly well contained by the
steep hills of eastern Hong Kong Island and those of the Clearwater Bay
Peninsula. To the south, the waters open
out to the open sea. The landscape
comprises primarily the waters themselves, as well as Ng Fan Chau, a small,
steep rocky island which lies within Island Bay to the immediate south of the Shek O Headland. The
island rises evenly from a low rocky coast to a rounded peak of 47mPD and its
vegetation comprises mainly scrub. Kau Pei Chau is a small double island at the southern tip
of the D’Aguilar Peninsula within Cape D’ Aguilar
Marine Reserve. The island rises gently
from the water to a twin peak 45mPD and is covered by scrub vegetation. Generally, this is an almost uniform
landscape of large scale elements, which has a character that is open and
tranquil and which has a “High” sensitivity (see Figure 11.6b).
-
LCA4
- SENT Landfill and future extension: This
landscape lies on reclaimed land on the west coast of Clear Water Bay
Peninsula, between the Clear Water Bay Peninsula central uplands and Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate. The Northern parts of the SENT Landfill are
still active while southern parts have been partly restored by soil capping and
have been hydroseeded and planted with woodland whips
and shrub species. The future extension part of the Landfill and the Landfill
site office lied within the Project Assessment Area and located at the north of
the Project Site. The future extension is reclamation land connected with LCA1
Fat Tong O Reclamation Land currently. The result is a complex landscape of
large scale elements which has a character that is open and visually incoherent
and which has a “Low” sensitivity (see Figure 11.6b).
On
the eastern side of Tai Miu Wan a small quartz
monzonite pluton(3) surrounded by a chilled
margin of quartz trachyte is exposed in coastal sections. Here, rounded monzonite corestones
stand out in the weathered cliff exposures (Figure 11.8). The rock is
essentially fine grained and pinkish grey, with abundant alkali feldspar
crystals which are often aligned to give it a characteristic texture (See Figure
11.8). Within this Group, the Che Kwu Shan Formation is the most extensively exposed
formation in the area. The formation comprises mainly welded crystal-bearing
fine ash vitric tuff and tuff breccia.
Running
east west across the southern slopes of Tin Ha Shan is a quartz monzonite dyke that
reaches 60 m in width and contains several long enclaves or screens of
coarse-grained granite. In places, the dyke appears to bulge, as for example at
the helicopter landing site above the Tin Hau Temple.
The
coastline around Joss House Bay will not be changed, particularly to the north
of the bay and south of Clear Water Bay Golf and Country Club will not be
affected by the Project and therefore impacts to the geology of the area are
predicted to be negligible.
The Project Site
is located in a coastal area, bordered by the SENT landfill to its immediate
north and ongoing development further north including the TKO industrial area
and high rise residential blocks. To its
east it is shielded by a prominent hillside covered by grass and shrub within
Clearwater Bay Country Park that provides a green backdrop. The site itself however is currently one of
the main fill sites in Hong Kong and has ongoing earthworks in progress. A large portion of the coastline around the
Project Site is reclaimed shoreline constructed from a straight alignment of
armour stone seawall.
Figure 11.9
shows the predicted Visual Envelope and Zone of Visual Influence of the Project
and illustrates that around Clear Water Bay Peninsula and Tseung
Kwan O, the area is relatively shielded by natural topography. To the north,
the ZVI will extend as far as Black Hill (281mPD) as well as high ground around
Devils Peak (221mPD). Taller buildings
within Po Lam and northern parts of Tseung Kwan O
(Metro City) will also fall within the Visual Envelope. Eastern parts of northern Tseung Kwan O (East Point City) will not fall within the
Visual Envelope as these areas will be screened by intervening landforms and
the restored SENT landfill. To the east,
the Visual Envelope is almost wholly contained by the ridge of hills along the
Clear Water Bay Peninsula but there are some direct views to the Project Site
along some stretches of the High Junk Peak trail from Tai O Mun
Road to the Peak (344mPD) and along the Tai O Mun
Road itself leading to the Clearwater Bay Golf and Country Club area. The Project Site will be visible from the Tathong shipping channel and nearby waters and across the
water eastern areas of Hong Kong Island will also be able to see the site
although they are all at least 2 km away.
The Project is likely to be visible to a number of different VSRs, not
only those close to the Study Site in and around Tseung
Kwan O (TKO) (e.g. LOHAS Park, TKO New Town, TKO Area 85 etc.), but also to
certain VSRs across the Tathong Channel at viewpoints
on Hong Kong Island, potentially including those at Siu Sai Wan, Heng Fa Chueng, and Shek O as well as VSRs on Tung Lung Chau. Vessels in the Tathong
Channel will also command a view of the proposed development.
Thirty one (31) nos. of VSRs have been identified within the ZVI, as
shown in Figure 11.10 with a lack of residential VSRs
close to the Project Site and general shielding of views by natural topography
and vegetation. VSRs are generally
described below together with their sensitivity.
Residential VSRs
Ten
(10) residential VSRs have been identified, most of which are considered to
have high sensitivity, although most
have partial views of the Project due to the natural topography and vegetation
shielding their views. This includes
VSRs H1 Future Residents at Pak Shing Kok, H2 Residents of TKO and TKO New
Town, H3 Residents of LOHAS Park, H4 Future Residents of TKO Area 85, H5 Residents
in Island Resort, Siu Sai Wan, H6, Residents in the Chai Wan Area, H7, Residents
in the Heung Fa Chuen Area, H8 Residents in the Shek O Village Area.
Exceptions to residential VSRs with high sensitivity are:
-
Residents/ Inmates and staff at Cape Collison
Correctional Institute (H9) are generally not considered to be sensitive to
changes in their view and therefore this VSR is considered to have low sensitivity; and
-
Residents in Full View Garden Siu Sai Wan
(H10). These flats are mainly hidden
behind the hill (Pottinger Peak) at Cape Collison
which shields views from most flats towards the Project Site (See Figure 11.11)
such that at best they could only get ‘glimpse’ views from some of the topmost
flats but the majority of residents cannot see the Project. Therefore this
residential VSR is considered to include very few to have medium sensitivity,
Occupational VSRS
Three
(3) occupational VSRs have been identified, which are generally considered to
have low sensitivity, with one
exception as described below.
-
VSR
O1- Workers in Existing TKO Industrial Estate: This VSR group is approximately 950 m
from the Project Site at its closest point with fair quality existing
views. Due to shielding by other
buildings as well as some of the natural topography views to the Project Site
are partial and this VSR is considered to have low sensitivity.
-
VSR
O2- Future Workers in TKO Area 137: Although occupational
VSRs are generally of lower sensitivity, given this VSR group will be right
next to the Project with direct views, it is considered to have medium sensitivity.
-
VSR
O3- Workers in Chai Wan Dock Area: This VSR group is across
the Tathong Channel, over 2,800 m away with only
partial views of the Project Site and good alternative views. It is considered to have low sensitivity.
Recreational VSRs
Sixteen
(16) recreational VSRs have been identified.
Four (4) are considered to have medium
sensitivity (VSRS R3 Users of Clear
Water Bay Country Park; R4 Hikers on High Junk Peak Trail and nearby; R5
Hikers/ Campers on Tung Long Chau and R9 Hikers in the Cape Collinson Area),
and the rest to have low sensitivity.
Further
explanation is given for the medium sensitivity ratings for R4 Hikers on High Junk Peak Trail. Much of the High Junk peak
trail falls outside the ZVI, with natural topography blocking views to the
Project Site (see Figure 11.10). In addition vegetation along the sides of the
path also shield views out and towards the Project Site (see Figure 11.11). Note the walking trail on the knoll
immediately to the east of the Project Site is a ‘difficult/ indistinct or
seasonally overgrown’ footpath and only very few people are considered to use
it, with the majority of this VSR being represented by High Junk Trail users
and walkers in the Clear Water Bay Country Park. Nevertheless a photomontage has been
developed from a VP on this pathway (VP4) to indicate a worst case scenario for
these VSRs and given an overall impression how the Project would appear from
this angle.
Recreational
VSRs with low sensitivity number
twelve (12) and include R1 Future users
of the Restored SENT Landfill, R2 Users of Clear Water Bay Golf and Country
Club, R6 Visitors to Shek O, R7 Users of Shek O Country Park including hikers on Dragon’s Back, R8
Hikers around Mount Parker, R10 Visitors to
Chai Wan Cemetery East and R11 Visitors to TKO Chinese Cemetery and
Devil’s Peak, R12 Hikers around Black Hill, R13 Users of Lei Yue Mun Park, R14 Future Users of the Restored TKO Landfill,
R15 Users of Heng Fa Chuen
Promenade and R16 Visitors to the Museum of Coastal Defence. Most have alternative views and only have partial
or glimpse views of the Project Site. (Most are 3 km or more from the
Project Site)
Further
explanation is given for the low sensitivity ratings for R1 Future users of the Restored SENT Landfill, R2 Users of Clear Water
Bay Golf and Country Club. It
is thought there will be relatively ‘very few’ future users of the Resorted
SENT Landfill (R1) and they will have only occasional, partial views to the
Project (Figure 11.11)
even at their closet point (650 m).
For Users of Clear Water Bay Gold and Country Club (R2), the main
facilities of the clubhouse do not face the Project Site. In addition there is a lot of planting within
the golf course meaning that views from the greens are mainly shielded in the
direction of the Project Site (Figure 11.11). Therefore the Project Site can only be glimpsed
and the sensitivity is low.
Travelling
VSRs
Two
(2) travelling VSRs have been identified as described below.
-
VSR
T1- Travellers on the Future Cross Bay Link. This VSR group has views across the Tathong Channel to the Project Site but the duration is
short and they will be at least 2,700 m from the Project Site. Views are also likely to be only glimpse
given other structures, topography and vegetation shielding it and therefore
the VSR has low sensitivity.
-
VSR
T2- Vessels in Tathong Channel & Joss House Bay. This VSR group can in theory come right next
to the Project Site and get a full view.
Although the majority of vessels will be in the Tathong
shipping channel with the Project Site less visible to them, the VSR is
considered to have medium sensitivity
as a worst case scenario.
The Project,
as described in detail in Section 3, will have various potential landscape and visual
impacts during construction and operation, as described below.
During the
construction phase of the Project, potential impacts could result from the
following:
·
Site
clearance for the civil works, including Removal of vegetation and tree felling
where necessary (e.g. of weedy species);
·
Open-cut
excavation and re-provision of surfaces within the reclamation area;
·
Clearance
for temporary access to construction site;
·
Landscaping
works;
·
Presence
and operation of construction vehicles and machinery;
·
Temporary
works area;
·
Stockpiling
areas;
·
Construction
of the new facilities;
·
Trenchless
technologies for construction of the proposed submarine outfall; and
·
Seabed
dredging for the installation of the intake structures and outfall diffuser.
In addition, some slope mitigation works
are proposed. Although the extent of
such works will be decided based on the finalized layout at later stage,
currently these are discussed fully in Section
2.3.1 and include:
·
Passive/
flexible debris barriers typically 4-5 m high, some soil
nailing at the lower section of the natural slope and stabilization of boulders
and rocks using local concrete infills dowelling. Figure 11.12 helps to indicate the
potential location of these works and Figure 11.13 helps to illustrate the
scheme of slope works.
During the
operation phase of the Project, potential impacts could result from the
following:
·
Operation
of new buildings, machinery and plant and new access road; and
·
Landscaping
works.
Of
the eleven (11) LR s and four (4) LCAs within the Assessment Area, three (3)
LRs and three (3) LCAs are affected by the main proposed development while an additional
two (2) LRs fall within the slope mitigation works area. Figure 11.14 and
11.15
help to illustrate the areas of LRs and LCAs affected and these impacts are
described below and summarised in Table 11.3.
All magnitudes of change are adverse unless stated otherwise.
The majority
of the Project Site (approximate 5.39 ha) falls on existing Fill Area
(LR11). The Project is fairly compatible
with this LR and although the magnitude of change is considered to be
intermediate given the medium scale, it is partly beneficial as the Plant will
enhance this currently barren earthworks area.
The study area for slope mitigation works covered an area of just under
6 ha on the western slope of the hill adjacent to the Project Site in
Clear Water Bay Country Park. Although
the majority of the Country Park will not be affected by the Project, the lower
portion of the natural slope within the Country Park will require soil nailing
works and rock slope stabilization as well as the erection of flexible barriers
to protect the Project Site from falling debris. Figure 11.12 indicates the
location of these works and the currently proposed soil nailing and rock slope
stabilization areas in total cover approximately 0.49 ha.
Two LRs at the
base of the hillside are also minimally affected by the Project Site. These include approximately 0.69 ha
(0.38 ha due to Desalination Plant site and 0.31 ha due to the slope mitigation
works) of Grass, shrubs and trees east of TKO Area 137 (LR6)
and 0.79 ha (0.61 ha due to Desalination Plant site and 0.18 ha due to
the slope mitigation works) of Mixed Woodland along lower hillside of Tin
Ha Shan (LR9). The civil works for the
Project Site here will require the loss/ removal of natural lower hillsides,
which are covered predominately with grass and also with some scattered shrubs
and possibly some trees. In addition the
slope mitigation works will affect these LRs as described below but the total
areas affected are small and the magnitude of change to these LRs will be
“Small”.
In
addition, the anticipated installation of the seawater intake and submarine
outfall will affect the seascape of Joss House Bay and Tathong
Channel (LR8). These pipes are
approximately 200-250 m and 300-350 m in length and will be constructed with trenchless technologies with
some localized dredging required for their construction and rock fill materials
used to provide support and protection along the seabed. During construction therefore the change to
this LR will be small and at operation when they are under water and no longer
visible, the change will be negligible.
Similar to impacts on
LRs, the main Project Site will principally affect the Fat Tong O Reclamation
(LCA1) (approximately 10.30 ha) with a small peripheral area of Clear
Water Bay Peninsular Coastal Upland (LCA2) (approximately 0.51 ha, in which
0.10 ha due to Desalination Plant site and 0.41 ha due to
the actual proposed area of soil nailing and rock slope stabilization) affected. The
changes to these LCAs will be intermediate and small respectively. The seawater intake and submarine outfall
with affect the Tathong Channel and Joss House Bay
LCA3, with the magnitude of change being small and negligible during
construction and operation respectively.
Overall impacts on Trees
Based on the broad brush tree
survey, approximately 700 existing trees fall within the Mixed Woodland area
(LR9) of the Study Area. Of these,
approximately 320 trees are located in the direct footprint of slope mitigation
works area, where careful design will seek to work around them and avoid any
tree felling. For the remaining 380
trees, 280 trees are either located outside the Project site or the slope
mitigation works, whilst approximately 100 of trees would require felling for
site formation of desalination plant. In
addition, approximately 100 trees under the corner of some facilities and the
perimeter road of the Project and occasional trees within the shrubs of TKO
Area 137 (LR1) that will require felling.
As a result, approximately 200 trees will require felling within the
Project site of desalination plant. None
of these trees are Registered Old and Valuable Trees or species of conservation
interest. A detailed tree survey and
removal application will be submitted in accordance with DEVB TCW No. 10/2013 – Tree Preservation separately, in which the
precise number of trees to be retained, transplanted, felled and compensated
will be determined and agreed with the relevant authorities. Trees of conservation importance, if any, are
proposed to be transplanted where possible.
Table 11.3 Magnitude of
Change of LRs and LCAs
LR/ LCA Code |
Name |
Approximate Area of LR/LCA
in Study Area (ha) |
Key Source of Impact |
Area of LR/ LCA within the
Project Site including Desalination Plant Site and anticipated Slope
Mitigation Works Area (ha) |
Physical extent of the
impact (Small/ Medium/ Large) |
Compatibility with Surrounding
Landscape |
Duration of Impact |
Reversibility of Change |
Magnitude of Change |
||||
|
|
Construction |
Operation |
Construction |
Operation |
Construction |
Operation |
Construction |
Operation |
||||
LR1 |
Shrubs and Trees of TKO Area 137 |
11.15 |
Whole Project Site |
3.78 |
Medium |
Poor |
Poor |
Permanent |
Permanent |
Irreversible |
Irreversible |
Intermediate |
Intermediate |
LR2 |
Shrub and topography of Tit Cham Chau |
2.47 |
None |
0 |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
Negligible |
Negligible |
LR3 |
Rocky Shore |
2.16 |
None |
0 |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
Negligible |
Negligible |
LR4 |
Shrub and topography of Kwun Tsai Island |
0.11 |
None |
0 |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
Negligible |
Negligible |
LR5 |
Sandy shore |
0.23 |
None |
0 |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
Negligible |
Negligible |
LR6 |
Grass, shrubs and trees east of TKO Area 137 |
39.24 |
Slope mitigation |
0.69 |
Small |
Fair |
Fair |
Permanent |
Permanent |
Irreversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
LR7 |
Drainage Channel |
1.29 |
Eastern and Southern boundary of Project Site |
0.18, 0.7km |
Small |
Poor |
Poor |
Permanent |
Permanent |
Irreversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
LR8 |
Seascape of Joss House Bay and Tathong
Channel |
62.89 |
Seawater intake & Submarine outfall |
~550m of seawater intake and submarine outfall falls
in LR8 |
n/a |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Irreversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Negligible |
LR9 |
Mixed Woodland along lower hillside of Tin Ha Shan |
1.17 |
North east Project Site & Slope mitigation |
0.79 |
Small |
Fair |
Fair |
Permanent |
Permanent |
Irreversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
LR10 |
Site office area of SENT Landfill |
0.16 |
None |
0 |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
Negligible |
Negligible |
LR11 |
Fill Area |
59.67 |
Whole Project Site |
5.39 |
Medium |
Fair |
Fair |
Permanent |
Permanent |
Irreversible |
Irreversible |
Intermediate |
Intermediate |
LCA 1 |
Fat Tong O Reclamation |
60.99 |
Whole Project Site |
10.30 |
Medium |
Good |
Good |
Permanent |
Permanent |
Irreversible |
Irreversible |
Intermediate |
Intermediate |
LCA 2 |
Clear Water Bay Peninsular Coastal Uplands |
43.25 |
Slope mitigation |
0.51 |
Small |
Fair |
Good |
Permanent |
Permanent |
Irreversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
LCA 3 |
Tathong Channel and Joss House Bay |
63.33 |
Seawater intake & Submarine outfall |
~550m of seawater intake and submarine outfall falls
in LCA3 |
n/a |
Fair |
Fair |
Permanent |
Permanent |
Irreversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Negligible |
LCA 4 |
SENT Landfill |
12.88 |
None |
0 |
n/a |
Fair |
Fair |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Using the
magnitude of change calculated for each LR and LCA and their sensitivity as
described in Section 11.7,
the significance of impact on each LR and LCA before mitigation has been
calculated in accordance with the matrix provided in Table 11.2
and is summarized in Table 11.4.
In summary,
three (3) LRs, LR1 (Shrubs and Trees of TKO
Area 137), LR6 (Grass, shrubs and trees east of TKO Area
137) and LR9 (Mixed Woodland along lower hillside of Tin Ha Shan) are
moderately affected by the proposed development at construction and operation
prior to mitigation. LR1 is of low sensitivity but does provide some greening
of the area which will be removed and therefore with an intermediate magnitude
of change, leads to a moderately significant impact. LR6 will be affected by the Desalination
plant and a flexible barrier within the site towards the south east and will
also be affected where slope mitigation works fall, but care is being taken to
plan the slope mitigation works such that as far as practical no trees will be
felled within the Country Park and vegetation clearance will be kept to a
minimum. Section 2.3.1 of the report provides full
details of the slope mitigation work and Figures 11.13 and 11.14 helps
illustrate how these works will affect the slope. Changes to this LR are considered minimal but
given the high sensitivity, the impact significance is moderate during
construction and operation prior to mitigation.
LR9 in this area will similarly be partly affected by the slope
mitigation works with an estimated 320 trees falling in the vicinity of the
works, however the slope mitigation works are being designed such that the
trees in the Country Park slope mitigation area will be retained. With regards to the other small area of this
LR affected, a road and corner of one building are located here but the areas
is very small and the impact to this LR overall is considered to be small. With a medium sensitive LR, this gives a
moderately significantly impact.
All other LRs
are slightly or insignificantly affected by the construction and operation with
the exception of LR11 which at operation is considered to be slightly
beneficially affected; the wasteland fill area will have been transformed into
a working plant which is a more amenable landscape.
For LCAs,
again only one (1) LCA, LCA2 (Clear Water Bay Peninsular Coastal Uplands), is
potentially moderately impacted by the slope mitigation work although the
Project Site itself will have little effect on it. Although LCA3 (Tathong
channel and Joss House Bay) is considered to undergo small changes due to the
installation of the seawater intake and submarine outfall and is a highly
sensitive LCA, the impact significance is rated as ‘Slight’ during construction
due to the relatively small area of the LCA affected and transient nature of
the works. At operation this LCA3 will
experience no perceptible change and therefore the impact drops to
Insignificant. Similar to the effect
on LR11, the effect on LCA1 (Fat Tong O Reclamation) are considered to be
slightly beneficial at operation.
The
significance of landscape impacts, before implementation of mitigation
measures, on LRs and LCAs is summarised in Table 11.4. All impacts are adverse unless stated
otherwise.
Table 11.4 Significance of Landscape Impacts
LR Code |
Name |
LR Sensitivity (High/ Medium/ Low) |
Magnitude of Change
(Large/ Intermediate/ Small/ Negligible |
Impact Significance BEFORE
Mitigation (Significant/ Moderate/ Slight/ Insignificant) |
||
Construction |
Operation |
Construction |
Operation |
|||
LR1 |
Shrubs and Trees of TKO Area 137 |
Low |
Intermediate |
Intermediate |
Moderate |
Moderate |
LR2 |
Shrubs and topography of Tit Cham Chau |
High |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
LR3 |
Rocky Shore |
High |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
LR4 |
Shrubs and topography of Kwun
Tsai Island |
High |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
LR5 |
Sandy shore |
High |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
LR6 |
Grass, shrubs and trees east of TKO Area 137 |
High |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
LR7 |
Drainage Channel |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
LR8 |
Seascape of Joss House Bay and Tathong
Channel |
Medium |
Small |
Negligible |
Slight |
Insignificant |
LR9 |
Mixed Woodland along lower hillside of Tin Ha Shan |
Medium |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
LR10 |
Site office area of SENT Landfill |
Low |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
LR11 |
Fill Area |
Low |
Intermediate |
Intermediate |
Slight |
Slight beneficial |
LCA 1 |
Fat Tong O Reclamation |
Low |
Intermediate |
Intermediate |
Slight |
Slight beneficial |
LCA 2 |
Clear Water Bay Peninsular Coastal Uplands |
High |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
LCA 3 |
Tathong Channel and Joss House
Bay |
High |
Small |
Negligible |
Slight |
Insignificant |
LCA 4 |
SENT Landfill |
Low |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
Mitigation measures follow the principle
of the mitigation pyramid, which is firstly to undertake all means to avoid impacts,
then reduce any unavoidable impacts to as low as practically possible and
finally to mitigate any remaining impacts.
The Project, however, will inevitably still cause some landscape (and
visual) impacts.
Many of the mitigation measures suggested
will also serve as visual mitigation measures (e.g. compensatory planting can
both compensate for trees lost as well as provide visual screening for VSRs)
and therefore landscape and visual mitigation measure have been grouped and are
referenced as appropriate in the LIA and VIA sections.
Mitigation measures are proposed to be
considered during planning, detailed design, construction and operation and
often one measure can be relevant to both construction and operation phases of
the proposed development. For example
detailed design measures will be implemented during construction but will aim
to reduce both construction and operation impacts. Equally soft landscape mitigation measures
such as compensatory planting may be implemented during construction, but their
full effect will often not be appreciated for up to 10 years. All measures
should be implemented at the earliest stage possible i.e. at or before
construction, particularly for soft landscaping.
With regards MM6, the Natural
Terrain Hazard Assessment carried out in accordance with GEO Report No. 138 for
the natural slope adjoining the plant area on the east side found that it
imposed a landslide risk on the development in the site and therefore landslide
hazard mitigation measures are necessary.
These are discussed fully in Section
2.3 and various alternatives have been considered. The option to use localized slope
stabilization, localized boulder stabilization, and localized flexible debris
barriers in the lower portion of the natural slope and in the plant site is
presented as the most suitable. It
confers the appropriate degree of safety and protection, using minimal land and
causing minimal impact to the Country Park, avoiding tree-felling by careful
design around existing trees and not needing extensive earthworks such that
vegetation clearance can be minimal, as well as meeting financial requirements
for set up and maintenance. For this
option, typical flexible barriers of 4 to 5m high tensioned steel meshes
supported by steel posts will be used for retaining the landslide debris. Soil nails to stabilize the hillside at the
lower section of the natural slope will consist of steel bars installed in
drill holes into the hillside and recessed soil nail heads with soil bags
allowing regrowth of vegetation on the hillside surface. The boulder and rock stabilization works will
involve the construction of local concrete infills and dowels to stop potential
boulder movements and after installation of soil nails, the affected soil the
slope will be restored with hydro-seeding and planting in order to provide a
greening effect. Figure 11.13a-d provide some
illustrations to help envisage the slope mitigation work. All the measures described below in Table 11.5 are suggested to mitigate
unavoidable impacts from the Project, and listed together with associated
funding and implementation agencies.
Table 11.5 Landscape
and Visual Mitigation Measures
ID No. |
Landscape and Visual
Mitigation Measure |
Funding
Agency |
Implementation
& Management Agency |
MM1 |
The construction area and area allowed for temporary
structures, such as the contractor’s office, will be minimized to a practical
minimum |
WSD |
WSD/ Contractor |
MM2 |
At the detailed design stage, the design team will
seek to minimize the landscape footprint of the Project and above ground
facilities, while satisfying all other requirements. |
WSD |
WSD/ Contractor |
MM3* |
Design principles will be
adopted to take into account the surrounding area, particularly Clear Water
Bay Country Park behind and the nearby waterfront, with due consideration
given to: - green roofs where
practical (ie without equipment on the roof); - roadside planting; - aesthetic treatment of
all structures; - vertical greening; - screen planting along
application site; and - landscape enhancement
with amenity planting where practical, including planting along the edge
(site boundary) fence with native shrubs where feasible, to reduce their visual
impact and blend them into the surrounding landscape. (Further details of
tree planting and greening are provided below) |
WSD |
WSD/ Contractor |
MM4 |
All trees within the Project Site or the slope mitigation
works area will be carefully protected during construction according to DEVB TCW No. 10/2013 – Tree
Preservation. |
WSD |
WSD/ Contractor |
MM5* |
No Tree within the Country Park will be felled. Trees within the Site unavoidably affected
by the works will be transplanted where practical. For trees that need to be felled,
compensatory planting will be provided to the satisfaction of relevant
Government departments. A compensatory tree planting proposal including
locations of tree compensation will be submitted to seek relevant government
department’s approval, in accordance with DEVB TC(W) No. 10/2013. |
WSD |
WSD/ Contractor |
MM6 |
Any slope mitigation works necessary to address natural
terrain hazards, will be minimized to minimize any potential environmental
impact to the Country Park e.g. soil nailing and rock stabilization will aim
to avoid existing trees e.g. should any restoration of vegetation be
necessary, the best planting matrix with native species will be established,
with the aim of resembling the existing vegetation. |
WSD |
WSD/ Contractor |
MM7 |
Dredging works for the
installation of intake structures and outfall diffusers should be minimized to
avoid or reduce any potential environmental impacts to as low as reasonably
practicable (ALARP). The intake and
outfall structures (e.g. intake openings and diffuser heads) will be
prefabricated and transferred to site for installation. |
WSD |
WSD/
Contractor |
MM8 |
All night-time lighting
will be reduced to a practical minimum both in terms of number of units and
lux level and will be hooded and directional. |
WSD |
WSD/
Contractor |
*Note:
Tree Planting and Greening (MM5, MM3) - Under the proposed scheme for the Project, opportunities for
compensatory tree planting within the project boundary have been fully
explored and incorporated in the proposed mitigation measures as much as
practicable. Considering the available space for tree planting
within the
project boundary, approximately a total of 300 nos. of heavy standard trees
and light standard trees are proposed to be planted on-site at the
desalination plant site to compensate for any trees that will be felled. If needed, off-site compensatory planting
at Siu Ho Wan water treatment works and other waterworks facilities
maintained by WSD would be undertaken.
The proposed compensation area on-site is illustrated in Figure 11.22. In addition to the compensated trees, as
outlined in MM3, new landscape resources such as green roof, vertical
greening, shrub planting and raised planters are proposed as
alternative complimentary planting within the project boundary to optimize
greening opportunities. In addition,
to soften and screen the flexible barrier for slope mitigation works, climber
planting will also be considered.
|
Given the proper implementation of the suggested
mitigation measures detailed in Table 11.5, the residual landscape impacts upon mitigation
are shown in Table 11.6, in which appropriate mitigation measures for each
LR/LCA are also suggested. No cumulative
impacts are considered to change the residual landscape impact ratings.
In summary all landscape impacts will be
insignificant by year 10 of operation, with the
exception of LR1 and LR7 which due to the loss of block greening and the
Drainage Channel respectively will remain ‘slight’, and LR11. LR11 is the Fill Area of TKO Area 137 and
this wasteland will have been transformed into a working plant which is a more
amenable landscape; in addition to compensatory tree planting, new landscape
resources are proposed for within the site, such as green roof, vertical
greening, shrub planting and raised planters as alternative complimentary
planting to optimize greening opportunities and overall this LR will slightly
benefit from the Project. In addition,
with the proposed compensatory trees and the proposed new landscaping of the
Project Site, the overall residual impact on existing trees and greenery is
considered to be reduced to an acceptable level.
Table 11.6 Residual Impact Significance for LRs and LCAs after
Mitigation
LR Code |
Name |
LR Sensitivity (High/
Medium/ Low) |
Magnitude of Change
(Large/ Intermediate/ Small/ Negligible |
Impact Significance
BEFORE Mitigation (Significant/ Moderate/ Slight/ Insignificant) |
Recommended Mitigation
Measures |
Residual Impact
Significance UPON Mitigation (Significant/ Moderate/ Slight/ Insignificant) |
|||||
Construction |
Operation |
Construction |
Operation |
Construction |
Operation |
Construction |
Operation (Day 1) |
Operation (Year 10) |
|||
LR1 |
Shrubs and Trees of TKO Area 137 |
Low |
Intermediate |
Intermediate |
Moderate |
Moderate |
MM1, MM2, MM3, MM4, MM5 |
MM3, MM4 |
Slight |
Slight |
Slight |
LR2 |
Shrubs and topography of Tit Cham Chau |
High |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
n/a |
n/a |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
LR3 |
Rocky Shore |
High |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
n/a |
n/a |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
LR4 |
Shrubs and topography of Kwun
Tsai Island |
High |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
n/a |
n/a |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
LR5 |
Sandy shore |
High |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
n/a |
n/a |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
LR6 |
Grass, shrubs and trees east of TKO Area 137 |
High |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
MM1, MM2, MM3. MM4, MM5,
MM6 |
MM3, MM5, MM6 |
Slight |
Slight |
Insignificant |
LR7 |
Drainage Channel |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM2 |
none |
Slight |
Slight |
Slight |
LR8 |
Seascape of Joss House Bay and Tathong
Channel |
Medium |
Small |
Negligible |
Slight |
Insignificant |
MM7 |
n/a |
Slight |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
LR9 |
Mixed Woodland along lower hillside of Tin Ha Shan |
Medium |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
MM1, MM2, MM3 MM4, MM5,
MM6 |
MM3, MM5, MM6 |
Slight |
Slight |
Insignificant |
LR10 |
Site office area of SENT Landfill |
Low |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
n/a |
n/a |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
LR11 |
Fill Area |
Low |
Intermediate |
Intermediate |
Slight |
Slight beneficial |
MM1, MM2 |
MM3, MM6 |
Slight |
Slight beneficial |
Slight beneficial |
LCA 1 |
Fat Tong O Reclamation |
Low |
Intermediate |
Intermediate |
Slight |
Slight beneficial |
MM1, MM2 |
MM3, MM6 |
Slight |
Slight beneficial |
Slight beneficial |
LCA 2 |
Clear Water Bay Peninsular Coastal Uplands |
High |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
MM1, MM2, MM4, MM5, MM6 |
MM5, MM6 |
Slight |
Slight |
Insignificant |
LCA 3 |
Tathong Channel and Joss House
Bay |
High |
Small |
Negligible |
Slight |
Insignificant |
MM7 |
n/a |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
LCA 4 |
SENT Landfill |
Low |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
n/a |
n/a |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
VSRs
closest to the Project Site, such as residents in LOHAS Park, TKO Area 85 and
TKO New Town are most likely to experience higher magnitudes of visual change,
in particular viewers at higher levels and with more open views to the Project
Site. In reality however, all the residential viewers are over 2,300 m
from the Project Site and none will experience large changes in their
views.
The
magnitudes of visual change on VSRs caused by the Project, before
implementation of mitigation measures, are described below and tabulated in Table 11.7. All changes are adverse unless stated
otherwise.
Overall no VSRs
will experience a large change to their views due to the Project at either construction or operation and just
two VSRs are considered to experience changes to their views of intermediate
magnitude;
-
the future workers in TKO Area 137 (O2) although not
affected during construction as they will not yet exist, will experience
intermediate changes at operation since they will be adjacent to the Plant, and
-
Hikers/Campers on Tung Lung Chau (R5) who, although
they are 1,300 m or more from the site, have direct views across the Tathong channel to the Project Site and are likely to
experience intermediate changes in their view during both construction and
operation.
Six (6) VSRs are
considered to experience negligible changes to their views, mainly due to being
far from the site (3,500 m or more) but also since the Project will blend
into the existing landscape well as the existing TKO industrial area is in the
foreground for many of these VSRs. They
include:
-
Future Residents at Pak Shing Kok (H1) who although
not affected during construction as they will not yet exist, even at operation
are over 3,600 m from the Project Site with the TKO industrial estate
in the foreground, very limited views and good alternative views, such that they
are considered to experience negligible change;
-
Residents of TKO & TKO New Town (H2), users of TKO
Chinese Cemetery and Devil's Peak (R11), and Hikers around Black Hill (R12) who
although they may all be able to see the Project, due its relatively small part
of their total view (with them being 3,500 m or more) and blending into their
view of the existing TKO industrial area, are considered to experience
negligible changes to their views at construction and operation; and
-
Residents of Shek O Village
Area (H8) and Visitors to the Museum of Coastal Defence
(R16), both of which are across the Tathong Channel
from the Project. The
residents in Shek O Village Area (H8) live in low
rise buildings, have good alternative views and are over 4,400 m from the
Project Site, separated by the Tathong Channel. For Visitors to the Museum of Coastal Defence
(R16) much of their experience will be focused on indoor exhibitions and while
the historical trail outside does have views out across Lei Yu Mun Pass, the Project Site is over 4000 m across the
water. For both these VSRs therefore, any changes during
construction and operation are considered negligible.
All remaining
VSRs are considered to experience small changes to their views due to the
Project at construction and operation.
While the visual
changes at construction (such as due to civil works including site clearance,
operation of construction machinery, construction of the actual buildings etc) are different to those at operation and are likely to
be slightly less at operation, the difference is not considered big enough to
warrant a drop in rating of magnitude of change in view, for any of the VSRs.
Table 11.7 Magnitude of Change for VSRs (C=Construction, O= Operation)
VSR Code* |
Name |
Closest
Distance1 (m) |
Scale2 |
Blockage
of View3 |
Compatibility4
|
Duration
of Impact5 |
Reversibility
of Change6 |
Magnitude
of Change7 |
||||
C |
O |
C |
O |
C |
O |
C |
O |
|||||
H1 |
Future Residents at Pak Shing Kok (Future) |
3600 |
Small |
Nil |
Fair |
Good |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
n/a |
Negligible |
H2 |
TKO & TKO New Town |
3700 |
Small |
Nil |
Fair |
Good |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Negligible |
Negligible |
H3 (VP3) |
LOHAS Park |
2300 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Good |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
H4 |
TKO Area 85 |
2455 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Good |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
H5 (VP2) |
Island Resort, Siu Sai Wan |
2300 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
H6 |
Chai Wan Area |
3200 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
H7 |
Heung Fa Chuen Area |
3400 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
H8 |
Shek O
Village Area |
4450 |
Small |
Nil |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Negligible |
Negligible |
H9 |
Cape Collison Correctional Institute |
2800 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
H10 |
Full View Garden, Siu Sai Wan |
2400 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
O1 |
Existing TKO Industrial Estate |
950 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Good |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
O2 |
TKO Area 137 (Future) |
0 |
Medium |
Partial |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
n/a |
Intermediate |
O3 |
Chai Wan Dock Area |
2800 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
R1 |
Restored SENT Landfill (Future) |
650 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
n/a |
Small |
R2 |
Clear Water Bay Golf and Country Club |
1500 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
R3 (VP1) |
Clear Water Bay Country Park |
750 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
R4 |
High Junk Peak Trail |
800 |
Small |
Minor |
Poor |
Poor |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
R5 |
Hikers/ Campers on Tung Lung Chau |
1300 |
Medium |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Intermediate |
Intermediate |
R6 |
Shek O
Country Club and Golf Course |
3700 |
Small |
Nil |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
R7 |
Shek O
Country Park including Hikers on Dragon's Back |
4000 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
R8 |
Hikers around Mount Parker |
4100 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
R9 |
Hikers in Cape Collinson Area |
2100 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
R10 |
Chai Wan Cemetery (East) |
3000 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
R11 |
TKO Chinese Cemetery and Devil's Peak |
3800 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Negligible |
Negligible |
R12 |
Hikers around Black Hill |
5100 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Negligible |
Negligible |
R13 |
Users of Lei Yue Mun Park |
3300 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
R14 |
Restored TKO Landfill (Future) |
3000 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
n/a |
Small |
R15 |
Heng Fa Chuen Promenade |
3300 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
R16 |
Visitors to the Museum of Coastal Defence |
4000 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Negligible |
Negligible |
T1 |
Future Cross Bay Link Bridge |
2700 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
T2 |
Vessels in Tathong Channel
& Joss House Bay |
0 |
Small |
Minor |
Fair |
Fair |
Temporary |
Permanent |
Partly Reversible |
Irreversible |
Small |
Small |
Type of VSR is denoted in the code: H = Residential; R
= Recreational; O = Occupational; T = Travelling
1 Closest Viewing Distance to Project Site (m)
2 Scale of Development (Large/ Medium/ Small)
3 Blockage of View (Dominant/ Partial/ Minor/ Nil)
4 Compatibility with Surrounding Landscape (Good /Fair /Poor)
5 Duration of Impact (Temporary/ Permanent)
6 Reversibility of Change (Reversible/ Irreversible)
7 Magnitude of Change (Large/ Intermediate/ Small/ Negligible)
Using
the sensitivity of each VSR described in Section 11.8
and noting the magnitude of the visual change each VSR will experience as
described in Section 11.8,
the significant of impact on each VSR before mitigation has been calculated in
accordance with the matrix provided in Table 11.2 The significance of visual impacts prior to mitigation
is described below and summarized in Table
11.8.
The
Project Site is situated in an area that is naturally fairly shielded by topography
to the north east and separated by at least 2 km from viewers across the Tathong Channel on Hong Kong Island. It is also located in an area that is
currently being used as a fill area with ongoing earthworks, near the TKO
Industrial area and the SENT Landfill such that, particularly during
construction, it will blend with the current general character of the area
reasonably well.
Overall
VSRs will experience moderate to insignificant visual impacts due to the
construction and operation of the Project and while no VSRs experience
substantial visual impacts, seven (7) VRSs are considered to experience
moderate visual impacts prior to mitigation (at construction, operation or
both), as explained below.
Given
the high sensitivity of residential VSRs, all of them are over 2,300 m
away from the Project at their closest point.
Although visual changes to residents are therefore only negligible or
small, five residential VSRs experience moderate impacts prior to mitigation at
both construction and operation (Residents in LOHAS Park, (H3 & VP3),
Residents in the TKO Area 85 (H4), Residents in Island Resort, Siu Sai Wan (H5
and VP2), Residents in Chai Wan Area (H6), Residents in Heung Fa Chuen Area (H7).
Future workers in the Project area, TKO Area 137 (O2), are considered to
be less sensitive since they are occupational VSRs and as they are considered
to experience intermediate changes in view with the Project compared to
without, they also experience moderate impacts prior to mitigation, but at
operation only. Finally Hikers/ Campers
on Tung Lung Chau (R5) are considered of medium sensitivity, mainly due to the
short duration and occasional nature of their views. At construction they can have direct views of
the southern end of the Project Site but are still approximately 1,300 m
from the site across the Tathong Channel and are
expected to experience intermediate changes in their view, such that impact
significance is moderate. Although the
impact at operation, when any earthworks and construction machinery are no
longer visible, is expected to be slightly less, it is still considered
moderate without mitigation.
Two
residential VSRs are expected to experience negligible change in their views
due to the Project at construction and operation and one future residential VSR
at operation only. These include the
residents in Shek O Village Area (H8) who live in low
rise buildings, have good alternative views and are over 4,400 m from the
Project Site, separated by the Tathong Channel. In addition, residents of TKO and TKO New
Town (H2) are 3,700 m or more from the Project Site across Junk Bay and
with the TKO Industrial estate in the foreground of any views in the direction
of the Project Site such that the Project Site will hardly be visible to them and
works there are not considered to change their view. This is similar for future residents at Pak
Shing Kok (H1) who are over 3,600 m from the Project Site with the TKO
industrial estate in the foreground, very limited views and good alternative
views such that again changes in their view, if any, are considered
negligible. Other VSRs expected to
experience negligible changes in their views mainly due to their distance from
the site, other buildings (such as TKO Industrial Estate) and topography
blocking views and how the Project will blend with existing views. These include visitors to the TKO Chinese
Cemetery and Devil's Peak (R11, over 3,800 m away), Hikers around Black
Hill (R12, over 5,200 m away) and Visitors to the Museum of Coastal
Defence (R16, over 3,800 m away).
All these VSRs who experience negligible change to their views will
experience insignificant impacts prior to mitigation.
All
remaining VSRs experience slight impacts prior to mitigation at both
construction and operation, or just at operation for future VSRs.
Table 11.8 Significant of Visual Impact prior to Mitigation
VSR Code |
Name |
VSR Sensitivity (High/
Medium/ Low) |
Magnitude of Change |
Impact Significance
BEFORE Mitigation (Substantial/ Moderate/ Slight/ Insignificant) |
||
Construction |
Operation |
Construction |
Operation |
|||
H1 |
Residents
at Pak Shing Kok (Future) |
High |
n/a |
Negligible |
n/a |
Insignificant |
H2 |
TKO
& TKO New Town |
High |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
H3 (VP3) |
LOHAS
Park |
High |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
H4 |
TKO
Area 85 |
High |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
H5 (VP2) |
Island
Resort, Siu Sai Wan |
High |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
H6 |
Chai
Wan Area |
High |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
H7 |
Heung
Fa Chuen Area |
High |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
H8 |
Shek O Village Area |
High |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
H9 |
Cape
Collison Correctional Institute |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
H10 |
Full
View Garden, Siu Sai Wan |
Medium |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
O1 |
Existing
TKO Industrial Estate |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
O2 |
TKO
Area 137 (Future) |
Medium |
n/a |
Intermediate |
n/a |
Moderate |
O3 |
Chai
Wan Dock Area |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
R1 |
Restored
SENT Landfill (Future) |
Low |
n/a |
Small |
n/a |
Slight |
R2 |
Clear
Water Bay Golf and Country Club |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
R3 |
Clear
Water Bay Country Park |
Medium |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
R4 |
High
Junk Peak Trail |
Medium |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
R5 |
Hikers/
Campers on Tung Lung Chau |
Medium |
Intermediate |
Intermediate |
Moderate |
Moderate |
R6 |
Shek O Country Club and Golf
Course |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
R7 |
Shek O Country Park including
Hikers on Dragon's Back |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
R8 |
Hikers
around Mount Parker |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
R9 |
Hikers
in Cape Collinson Area |
Medium |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
R10 |
Chai
Wan Cemetery (East) |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
R11 |
TKO
Chinese Cemetery and Devil's Peak |
Low |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
R12 |
Hikers
around Black Hill |
Low |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
R13 |
Users
of Lei Yue Mun Park |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
R14 |
Restored
TKO Landfill (Future) |
Low |
n/a |
Small |
n/a |
Slight |
R15 |
Heng Fa Chuen
Promenade |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
R16 |
Visitors
to the Museum of Coastal Defence |
Low |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
T1 |
Future
Cross Bay Link Bridge |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
T2 |
Vessels
in Tathong Channel & Joss House Bay |
Medium |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
* Type of VSR is denoted in the code |
||||||
H = Residential (Home) |
||||||
R = Recreational |
||||||
O = Occupational |
||||||
T = Travelling |
The majority
of VSRs are considered to experience slight or insignificant visual impacts
prior to mitigation, with the highest ratings being ‘moderate’ impacts
experienced by seven VSRs (H3, H4, H5, H6, H7 and R5 at both construction and
operation and O2 just at operation).
There is a limited need for extensive measures to mitigate visual
impacts, nevertheless, appropriate measures to enhance the Project visually and
minimise any potential visual impacts further are summarized in Section
11.10.3 (along with landscape mitigation
measures). Section 11.11.4 below
details the effectiveness of the suggested mitigation measures by describing
the residual visual impacts for all VSRs.
·
Photomontage
from VP1 High Junk Peak Trail, R3) (Figure 11.16a & b)
·
Photomontage
from VP2 Podium level at Island Resort , Siu Sai Wan, H5 (Figure 11.17a &b)
·
Photomontage
from VP3 LOHAS Park resident from 65th floor, H3 (Figure 11.18a &b)
·
Photomontage
from VP4 Trail on Knoll to the east of the Project Site (Figure 11.19a &b)
·
Photomontage
from VP5 in Joss House Bay, VSR R5 (Figure 11.20a &b)
Given the
proper implementation of the suggested mitigation measures detailed in Table
11.5,
the residual visual impacts upon mitigation are shown in Table
11.9, which also suggests
that mitigation measures are appropriate for each VSR. Although mitigation
measures will alleviate visual impacts for all VSRs, the table hopes to show
those most relevant to a particular VSR and therefore if the impact
significance prior to mitigation is considered insignificant, or the VSR does
not exist yet (during construction) then mitigation measures are not listed for
that VSR in the table and presented as ‘not applicable – n/a’. Despite mitigation measures at construction
such as minimising construction area, protection and preservation of existing
trees and vegetation etc, residual impacts ratings
are not considered to drop at construction.
However at operation, when design principles (such as aesthetic
treatments of buildings and any greening of the Project site) will be evident,
moderate impacts are all considered to drop in significance to ‘slight’. By year 10 of operation, with the maturing of
any planting works, for those VSRs far from the site with only partial or
glimpse views, impacts are will then all be slight or insignificant.
Table 11.9 Significant
of Residual of Visual Impacts (C=Construction,
O= Operation)
VSR Code |
Name |
VSR Sensitivity (High/
Medium/ Low) |
Magnitude of Change |
Impact Significance
BEFORE Mitigation (Substantial/ Moderate/ Slight/ Insignificant) |
Recommended Mitigation
Measures |
Residual Impact
Significance UPON Mitigation (Substantial/ Moderate/ Slight/ Insignificant) |
|||||
C |
O |
C |
O |
C |
O |
C |
O Day 1 |
O Year 10 |
|||
H1 |
Residents at Pak Shing Kok (Future) |
High |
n/a |
Negligible |
n/a |
Insignificant |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
H2 |
TKO & TKO New Town |
High |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
n/a |
n/a |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
H3 (VP3) |
LOHAS Park |
High |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Moderate |
Slight |
Slight |
H4 |
TKO Area 85 |
High |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Moderate |
Slight |
Slight |
H5 (VP2) |
Island Resort, Siu Sai Wan |
High |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Moderate |
Slight |
Slight |
H6 |
Chai Wan Area |
High |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Moderate |
Slight |
Insignificant |
H7 |
Heung Fa Chuen Area |
High |
Small |
Small |
Moderate |
Moderate |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Moderate |
Slight |
Insignificant |
H8 |
Shek O Village Area |
High |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
n/a |
n/a |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
H9 |
Cape Collison Correctional Institute |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Slight |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
H10 |
Full View Garden, Siu Sai Wan |
Medium |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Slight |
Slight |
Insignificant |
O1 |
Existing TKO Industrial Estate |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Slight |
Slight |
Slight |
O2 |
TKO Area 137 (Future) |
Medium |
n/a |
Intermediate |
n/a |
Moderate |
n/a |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
n/a |
Slight |
Slight |
O3 |
Chai Wan Dock Area |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Slight |
Slight |
Insignificant |
R1 |
Restored SENT Landfill (Future) |
Low |
n/a |
Small |
n/a |
Slight |
n/a |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
n/a |
Slight |
Slight |
R2 |
Clear Water Bay Golf and Country Club |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Slight |
Slight |
Slight |
R3 (VP1) |
Clear Water Bay Country Park |
Medium |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Slight |
Slight |
Slight |
R4 |
High Junk Peak Trail |
Medium |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Slight |
Slight |
Insignificant |
R5 |
Hikers/ Campers on Tung Lung Chau |
Medium |
Intermediate |
Intermediate |
Moderate |
Moderate |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Moderate |
Slight |
Slight |
R6 |
Shek O Country Club and Golf
Course |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
n/a |
n/a |
Slight |
Slight |
Slight |
R7 |
Shek O Country Park including
Hikers on Dragon's Back |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Slight |
Slight |
Insignificant |
R8 |
Hikers around Mount Parker |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Slight |
Slight |
Insignificant |
R9 |
Hikers in Cape Collinson Area |
Medium |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Slight |
Slight |
Insignificant |
R10 |
Chai Wan Cemetery (East) |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Slight |
Slight |
Insignificant |
R11 |
TKO Chinese Cemetery and Devil's Peak |
Low |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
n/a |
n/a |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
R12 |
Hikers around Black Hill |
Low |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
n/a |
n/a |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
R13 |
Users of Lei Yue Mun Park |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Slight |
Slight |
Insignificant |
R14 |
Restored TKO Landfill (Future) |
Low |
n/a |
Small |
n/a |
Slight |
n/a |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
n/a |
Slight |
Slight |
R15 |
Heng Fa Chuen
Promenade |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Slight |
Slight |
Insignificant |
R16 |
Visitors to the Museum of Coastal Defence |
Low |
Negligible |
Negligible |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
n/a |
n/a |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
Insignificant |
T1 |
Future Cross Bay Link Bridge |
Low |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Slight |
Slight |
Insignificant |
T2 |
Vessels in Tathong Channel
& Joss House Bay |
Medium |
Small |
Small |
Slight |
Slight |
MM1, MM3, MM4, MM6, MM8 |
MM3, MM4, MM8 |
Slight |
Slight |
Slight |
The majority
of the Project Site falls within the existing fill
bank at Fat Tong Chau (LR 11 Fill Area and LCA1 Fat Tong O Reclamation) which
is currently landscape of low quality with little valuable vegetation or amenity
value and therefore in general the Project at construction and operation is
considered to have little landscape impact.
The periphery of the main Project
Site may affect some of the lower adjoining hillside and its associated
vegetation, however, and as such LRs 6 (Grass, shrubs and trees east of TKO
Area 137) and 9 (Mixed Woodland along lower hillside of Tin Ha Shan) and LCA2
(Clear Water Bay Peninsular Coastal Uplands) may be slightly or moderately
affected at construction and with the loss of the block greening provided by
LR1 (Shrubs and Trees of TKO Area 137) this LR is also
moderate affected prior to mitigation. Slope mitigation works have been carefully
considered to ensure there is minimal disturbance to the landscape, as fully discussed in Section 2.3.1, and various alternatives
have been reviewed. The option to use
localized slope stabilization, localized boulder stabilization, and localized
flexible debris barriers in the lower portion of the natural slope and in the
plant site is presented as the most suitable and Figure 11.13 provides some
illustrations to help envisage the slope mitigation work. Notably there will be no tree felling as a
result of the slope mitigation within the Country Park as far as practical. In addition for any trees that do require
felling, as described in Section 11.10.3,
these will be compensated for with direct compensatory planting as well as the
optimization of greening opportunities within the project boundary, with the
proposed creation of new landscape resources using green roof, vertical
greening, shrub planting and raised planters. In addition, to soften and screen the
flexible barrier for slope mitigation works, climber planting will also be
considered. It is considered that given
the compensatory tree planting and the proposed careful greening of the Project
Site landscape, the overall residual impact on existing trees and greenery
would be reduced to an acceptable level.
It is therefore considered that by year 10 of operation all landscape
impacts on LRs and LCAs will be insignificant, with the exception of LR1 and
LR7 which due to the loss of block greening and the Drainage Channel
respectively will remain ‘slight’, and LR11 and LCA1 (both elements of Fat Tong
O fill area) which at operation are considered to be slightly beneficially
affected since the wasteland fill area will have been transformed into a working
plant with a more amenable landscape.
The Project
includes low rise buildings and is situated in an area that is naturally
shielded by topography to the north east and separated by at least 2 km
from viewers across the Tathong Channel on Hong Kong
Island to the south east. All
residential VSRs identified are at least 2 km from the Project Site and
those VSRs that are close are all workers or recreational VSRs which represent
low numbers of viewers. The Project will
also blend with existing character of the area, given it is located in an area
that is currently being used as a fill area with ongoing earthworks and is near
the TKO Industrial area and the SENT Landfill.
Given these factors the general assumption is that the Project will have
limited visual impact. The VIA confirms
that overall the majority of VSRs will experience small or insignificant visual
impacts due to the construction and operation of the Project without
mitigation.
Seven (7) VRSs
are considered to experience moderate visual impacts prior to mitigation (at
construction, operation or both): five residential VSRs (Residents in LOHAS
Park, (H3 & VP3), Residents in the TKO Area 85 (H4), Residents in Island
Resort, Siu Sai Wan (H5 and VP2), Residents in Chai Wan Area (H6), Residents in
Heung Fa Chuen Area (H7)), one occupational VSR at
operation only (Future workers in TKO Area 137 (O2)) and one recreational VSR
(Hikers/ Campers on Tung Lung Chau (R5)).
With mitigation measures centred around the principles of careful detailed
design of the facilities to blend with the existing landscape, conserving
existing greenery and providing some soft landscaping (e.g. roadside planting, etc), all visual impacts are considered to be slight or
insignificant by year 10 of operation.
Overall, it is
considered with reference to Annex 10 of the EIAO-TM, the landscape and visual
impacts of the Project are acceptable with mitigation measures.
1 PlanD. Landscape Value Mapping of Hong Kong Final
Report. Available at:
http://www.pland.gov.hk/pland_en/p_study/prog_s/landscape/landscape_final/index.html
[Accessed July 2014]
2 Strange, P.J., Shaw R., Addison R. (1990) Hong Kong Geological Survey Memoir No. 4.
Geology of Sai Kung and Clear Water Bay. Geotechnical Control Office, CEDD
3 Pluton – a deep-seated
intrusion of igneous rock, a body that made its way into pre-existing rocks in
a melted form (magma) several kilometres underground, in the Earth's
crust. If a pluton is exposed at the
Earth's surface, that means its top has been removed by erosion.