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Press
Releases - 1998
Motorists
urged to adopt healthy living practice
Motorists
were urged to help reduce vehicle emissions by keeping their
vehicles properly maintained and to stop their vehicle engines
while waiting.
The appeal
came from Director of Environmental Protection, Mr Rob Law,
when he called on motorists to adopt environmental-friendly
motoring practices in support of the Government's Healthy
Living Campaign.
"Pollution
from motor vehicle is a major contributing factor to our air
pollution problems. If motorists would adopt an environmental
friendly attitude, our air quality would improve and Hong
Kong would be a better place to live and work in," he said.
Mr Law
said EPD inspections with the support of the police had been
cracking down on smoky vehicles in recent months.
"We have
conducted 6,244 emission tests on smoky vehicles in the last
two months alone.
"This
has resulted in many fines for motorists and more than 170
vehicle licenses have been recommended to be cancelled due
to a failure to pass subsequent emission tests or to turn
up for a re-check," he said.
Mr Law
said the Government was determined to curb air pollution,
and had already taken many steps in a comprehensive plan to
tackle pollution from motor vehicles.
"We have
raised our vehicle fuel and emission standards several times
in the past few years. Today our automobile fuel and emission
standards are equivalent to those in Europe which are among
the most stringent in the world.
"The
main problem is pollution from diesel vehicles," Mr Law said,
"and the Government is working hard to reduce their use in
Hong Kong.
"To show
the trade that LPG taxis will work cost effectively under
Hong Kong conditions, we have been running a trial scheme
for almost a year now. We believe the trial has been a success
and are planning to require all new taxis to use LPG from
the end of 2000.
"If all
the diesel taxis can be replaced by LPG taxis, the amount
of respirable suspended particulates emitted from the entire
vehicle fleet can be reduced by 30%. This will help tremendously
in tackling our air pollution problems," he said.
"We would
obviously like to replace all the polluting diesel taxis with
clean LPG vehicles as soon as possible," he added, "but we
do have some practical problems to tackle, such as finding
enough sites for LPG filling stations and the oil companies
have to have time to build them. Unfortunately, most existing
petrol filling stations cannot be used for selling LPG due
to site constraints."
The public
were urged to express their views on the Government's LPG
taxi replacement scheme during the current public consultation
exercise.
Copies
of the consultation document may be obtained from the following
officers :
-
Planning,
Environment and Lands Bureau, ninth floor, Murray Building,
Garden Road, Central;
-
Environmental
Protection Department (EPD)
Headquarters, 28th floor, Southorn Centre,
130 Hennessy Road, Wan Chai;
-
All
EPD Local Control Offices;
-
All
Licensing Offices of the Transport Department; and
-
All
District Offices.
The document
is also uploaded on the Bureau's website at http://www.pelb.gov.hk
and EPD's website at http://www.info.gov.hk/epd/.
Comments
on the proposals can be sent to the Planning, Environment
and Lands Bureau (Environment Division), ninth floor, Murray
Building, Garden Road, or the above websites before December
31, 1998.
End/Saturday,
November 21, 1998
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