These criteria are largely duplicated in work from the Planning Development Study on North East New Territories (Maunsell 1999) which identified a number of landscape components for building up the landscape character. The following elements from that study may be considered as supplementary to the EIAO criteria:

• patterns of settlement;
• land use, particularly areas of prime agricultural land and fish ponds;
• prominent watercourses.

Similar criteria have been adopted for other sub-regional studies such as the Metroplan Landscape Strategy for the Urban Fringe and Coastal Areas (Strategic Planning Unit 1989). Overall, however, there is currently no comprehensive territory-wide strategic classification or mapping of landscape in Hong Kong. Some initial work in 1992 was undertaken by Planning Department (PlanD 1992) although no formal strategy which was anticipated in this Foundation for a Landscape Conservation Strategy was produced. This report defined four key landscape types as follows:

Taking into account these landscape types and certain landscape features (eg attractive views, cultural features, clean air and wildlife habitats), two categories of high quality landscape were proposed as:

• unique areas, which were limited to Mai Po Marshes and mudflats in NWNT and the upland landscapes of the Pat Sin Range, Plover Cove peninsula and Sai Kung peninsula in NENT; and
• other areas of significance which are suitable for conservation which were wider in extent, covering many upland parts of the Country Parks plus a number of unspecified beaches and inland water areas.

The report also characterised the landscapes of Hong Kong into six zones covering the Central Harbour, Hong Kong South & Islands, Tolo Harbour and Port Shelter, Shatin, Central Uplands Valleys and Basin, and Tuen Mun and Yuen Long. However, there is no formal or detailed valuation of landscape quality as part of an overall strategy and this is still required in Hong Kong in order to assist in the recognition and protection of the landscape resource.

The SUSDEV 21 Habitat Mapping Baseline Survey also noted the presence of certain landscape features considered by the surveyors (on an opportunistic basis) to be of landscape value. Key habitats and features of landscape importance included natural coastline, forests, hillsides and hilltops, stillwaters (eg reservoirs) and wetlands (including fish ponds), waterfalls and valleys.

Planning Department intends commissioning a study to more fully assess landscape and scenic areas in Hong Kong. The results of such a study would contribute greatly to the current deficit of information.