Tuesday, September 18, 2018 9

COMMENT CHINA DAILY HONG KONG EDITION

TO THE POINT Mangkhut highlighted STAFF WRITER resilience, preparedness Resuming work Monday justifi able move Super Typhoon Mangkhut, the most powerful day business closure under non-life threatening one since Typhoon Hope in 1979, brought the weather conditions. For instance, the cancella- city to a standstill with massive uprooting of tion of a work day would cost the local bourse as Paul Surtees says HK’s high level of ‘can-do’ spirit ensured trees across the city and serious fl ooding near much as HK$117.4 billion in securities turnover. the coastline and low-lying areas like Tai O and Given the normalization of weather conditions, that damage from the super typhoon was kept to a minimum Lei Yue Mun. While it is good news that no fatal- the partial suspension of public transportation ities were reported, the public did struggle with should not be a reason for work suspensions, ong Kong is lance o cers and other emergency the aftermath of Mangkhut on Monday when a which would come with an unnecessary cost no stranger personnel risked their own safety to large portion of bus services were still suspend- for the city. Acknowledging the paralysis in the to typhoons: handle all that was necessary during ed and the MTR was not able to accommodate a public transport, Chief Executive Carrie Lam We get sev- this very testing period. spike in commuters in certain train stations. Cheng Yuet-ngor urged all employers to take eral blowing There can be no doubt that the The government made a timely announce- considerate and fl exible measures and not to through every e ective early-warning system; the ment to call o classes on Monday followed punish workers for late arrival. This arrange- year. But the Paul Surtees sturdy and resilient way that our by a notice later in the afternoon to suspend ment indeed addressed the inconvenience The writer is a university lecturer recent Super Typhoon Mangkhut infrastructure is constructed; the o - lessons on Tuesday. The well-informed decision to employees while minimizing the fi nancial and veteran commentator on Hong cial provision of emergency shelters; wasH exceptional for its ferocity. It Kong a airs. has taken into account the substantial amount impact on the city. had earlier caused much damage on top of the brave, well-organized of time required to clear some 1,500 trees that The suspension of some bus routes, though and loss of life as it passed over and energetic e orts of the various have blocked 600 major sections of road in the imposing a severe burden on the railway ser- the Philippines en route to striking emergency services, all contributed city. In truth, it already helped reduce approxi- vice, is understandable as many arteries are still Hong Kong at the weekend. We cannot fail to feel to Hong Kong being able to come mately 1 million commuters — kindergarten, being blocked by fallen trees and other debris. Despite this all-out assault on the satisfi ed and deeply through this crisis in much better primary, secondary and university students — Nevertheless, it is noticeable that the post- city, with high winds, torrential rain shape than most other places buf- from using the burdened public transportation typhoon tra c arrangements have some room and dangerously high waves and sea proud of the way feted by similarly destructive forces system. for improvement. In particular, the MTR ought tides, for the most part the high level of nature. It’s all too easy to overlook But then, some have voiced grievances against to take a lesson from this experience by improv- of preparedness enabled it to come that our outstanding their contributions when all went the government for not also suspending work ing its notifi cation system, so that stranded through relatively unscathed. emergency services well because of their good work. for the public on Monday in view of the trans- passengers would not waste time waiting at That safe deliverance from the It is sometimes questioned what portation chaos. However, in reality, the admin- stations where there is no or reduced train and potential widespread damage, and were speedily de- more interactions with the general istration took the optimal move that minimized feeder bus services. Better crowd control and human casualties, from a terrify- ployed to address a public should be arranged for the disruption to tra c as well as fi nancial losses to tra c arrangements can also be made at some ing weather event was not won by soldiers of the People’s Liberation the city. Hong Kong, as an important fi nancial notably congested stations, such as Tai Wai, in chance, but rather it was achieved wide variety of emer- Army stationed in Hong Kong, who center, cannot a ord to have a mandate of full- future. through the excellent work of many are for the most part confi ned to in the public services, especially the gency situations, barracks. They could be e ectively emergency services. oftentimes at great deployed to assist with the clean-up To start with, the careful and operation on the streets of Hong accurate predictions from the Hong peril to themselves. Kong, helping to clear our roads Kong Observatory gave timely and and pavements of fallen trees and Hong Kong is losing ground detailed warnings of what was to the many other items blown around come, enabling emergency measures collapse of buildings is more com- during this gale. But they should be to be set up in good time, such as monplace elsewhere. Slope registra- mobilized only if the task of recovery opening the typhoon shelters. The tion and maintenance are also well- proved beyond the immediate capac- on solid waste management whole population was well-advised managed in Hong Kong to minimize ity of our various service disciplines, to stay at home while the typhoon’s deadly landslides — which took a as happened in Macao previously. ong Kong needs to step up its solid fury did its worst as it passed over number of lives in the Philippines Hong Kong people generally have waste management. The special Hong Kong. where Mangkhut unleashed its fury the well-earned reputation of being administrative region’s long list of Precautions, such as bringing earlier. hard workers. That quality was environmental legislation notwith- boats and ships into typhoon shel- While the rest of us cowered again demonstrated in the ceaseless standingH — including the Air Pollution Control ters and the harbor, stopping the at home, avoiding being near the toils (while soaking wet, and in high Ordinance, Waste Disposal Ordinance, Water more vulnerable public transport windows as the storm raged, numer- winds) of our emergency service Pollution Control Ordinance, Noise Control Ordi- services, closing schools, etc., were ous employees and volunteers of workers, overstretched hospital nance, Ozone Layer Protection Ordinance, Dump- Ho Lok-sang well-timed and of themselves helped the emergency services by contrast personnel and shopkeepers fi ghting ing at Sea Ordinance, Environmental Impact The author is dean of business, Chu Hai College protect the people in this densely went out into the storm as the winds valiantly to protect their property Assessment Ordinance, Hazardous Chemicals of Higher Education. built and densely populated city. picked up, to carry out evacuation, against the elements. There is clearly Control Ordinance, Product Eco-responsibility Because Hong Kong is situated in rescue and clearance operations. We still in Hong Kong an impressive Ordinance, and the Motor Vehicle Idling (Fixed a known typhoon zone, the system cannot fail to feel satisfi ed and deeply “can-do” spirit, and it has again been Penalty) Ordinance — the city is still far behind sorting, processing and preparing waste papers of adverse severe weather warnings proud of the way that our outstand- amply illustrated by the swift return the curve in solid waste management. for shipment to the mainland. Recycling bins are from the weather bureau works as ing emergency services were speedily to normal business on Monday morn- We still do not have a state-of-the-art incinera- also a familiar sight in Hong Kong. It has also set e ectively as a well-oiled machine, deployed to address a wide variety of ing when typhoon signal No 3 was tor and have to depend on landfi ll as the princi- up a Recycling Fund. Some $20 million has been and was promulgated widely, emergency situations, oftentimes at still being hoisted. O ce workers, pal method of waste disposal; and our recycling earmarked for assisting the recycling industry enabling our citizens to get home great peril to themselves. and service personnel in various rate is appallingly low. Whereas Germany and to upgrade its processing capability to meet the safe before the weather became an By helping to rescue local children industries all braved intermittent rain Singapore respectively recycle 65 percent and 61 requirements needed to export plastic waste to immediate danger. and older citizens from unsafe areas; and harsh winds as they competed percent of their solid waste, Hong Kong is report- the mainland. I believe, however, that there is a Also, as a typhoon-a ected city, by removing fallen trees; by help- for public transport to get to work edly recycling only about 35 percent. Moreover, compelling case to signifi cantly increase fund- most of our buildings, bridges, ing desperate villagers move to safer while our e cient cleaners picked up as Peter Kammerer noted in his South China ing for recycling, waste minimization, and waste roads and other infrastructure ground as waist-high water surround- the pieces of fallen trees, construc- Morning Post article last year, “fully 98 percent of treatment. The argument is based on the fact that have been especially designed to be ed them; by providing swift fi rst tion materials and even o ce docu- the city’s recycled solid waste is exported to the recycling, waste reduction, and waste treatment strong enough to withstand even aid and medical care to the injured; ments blown out of broken windows. mainland and elsewhere”. We therefore hardly contribute to sustainable development and benefi t the strongest hurricanes. Not all and by taking all the other measures It seems that our much vaunted have a recycling industry at home. Sadly, Hong all. Recycling and waste minimization do not have other typhoon-prone cities around made necessary by the ferocious “can-do” spirit, said to be the secret Kong prefers to dump its solid waste in landfi ll to generate profi t to be worthwhile. the world are as well-built, and as onslaught of Mangkhut, our fi re ser- of Hong Kong’s success, has never sites, literally just covering up the problem. In Sadly for Hong Kong and for the ecological a result property damage or even vice, police and hospital and ambu- deserted us, as some claim! contrast, Germany doesn’t rely on landfi lls at all. system, people are losing trust in the recycling Singapore does have one landfi ll, but because process. Even though recycling bins for plastics, only the ashes from incinerator plants — signifi - metal, and paper are a common sight in our city, Editor’s note: China Daily Hong Kong Edition has launched a photo-sharing campaign on Instagram. cantly shrunk from the original volumes — are it is not known who will empty and collect the You can share your photos by tagging #hk24hr, and we’ll choose the best ones to publish in the newspaper. dumped there, its landfi ll is both more e cient contents and how often the contents are col- and less of an environmental hazard compared lected. Recycling bins are often full, and they are Dizzying heights to Hong Kong’s. also often used as refuse bins, especially when It is noteworthy that Singapore aims to recycle the refuse bins next to them are full. In contrast, 70 percent of its solid waste by 2030, up from the in Singapore, licensed public waste and refuse current 61 percent, as set out in the Sustainable collectors serve designated areas with trucks car- Singapore Blueprint. It is also noteworthy that rying clear labels for refuse collection, recycling Singapore o ers “Cash for Trash” collections so collection, and garden waste collection. The residents can exchange recyclable items for cash. operations in Singapore are highly transparent. Even more noteworthy is that Singapore’s recy- I have seen advertising on the TV advising cling program is much more transparent than people to properly dispose of their used light ours. The recycling bins in Housing and Develop- bulbs and batteries. Unfortunately it is not clear ment Board estates are emptied and contents where these items are supposed to be returned. collected either thrice a week or daily, while the I looked up information about collection points private landed properties and condominiums in the Environmental Protection Department’s are served with weekly recycling collection and website, and discovered that there are two col- weekly or twice weekly garden waste collec- lection points in my street. I rang up the man- tion. Under the National Recycling Programme agement o ce of the apartment building that is launched in April 2001, the public waste col- supposed to be a collection point, but the people lectors licensed by the National Environmental who answered my call did not even seem to Agency are required to provide recycling bins know about it. I have a friend who lives in that and recycling collection services to all HDB apartment building. I was disappointed to learn estates. Private apartments typically would join that he was not aware of its management o ce the public waste collection scheme, as providing having been given such a role. for such service is mandatory but running the Hong Kong is falling behind badly in the use service requires economies of scale. of modern incinerators to reduce the volume and It would not be fair to say the SAR government the toxicity of solid waste. Singapore’s newest is not paying attention to boosting recycling and — and sixth — incinerator will start operations minimizing waste. The government has developed next year. Hong Kong has to wait until 2024 to a 20-hectare EcoPark for recyclers to lease at have its fi rst-ever modern incinerator-cum-power a ordable rent. The government has also made generation plant. Meanwhile, we have to put up available 16 berths in public cargo working areas with occasional leakage of toxic material from A boy looks down from his high perch on the spiral staircase at the Aviary Pagoda in Yuen Long Park. ROY LIU / CHINA DAILY for exclusive bidding by waste paper recyclers for our landfi ll sites.