I and Bimalka attended the Public Forum which was held in the Exhibition Hall of the Hong Kong Productivity Council in Kowloon Tong on Friday, 20 March 2009.
There were three principal elements in the Discussion
- The proposed new objectives.
- The measures and process for setting and reviewing Air quality objectives (AQOs).
- The likely benefit of certain emission reduction measures
More than 400 people joined the Forum, and extra seats were needed the day before Even though the Forum was during business hours . The Consultants presented the proposed revised AQOs, 33 proposals to reduce pollution and a cost-benefit analysis (CBA) of these proposals. Most of the Q&A session focused on the CBA and time table for new AQOs.
Although both the Government and Consultants have repeatedly expressed the priority of addressing public health in setting the new AQOs, the Consultant couldn’t give the explanation for how much current health impacts will be reduced by the proposed measures and how they gave the new standard in new AQOs. On the other hand the Government was unwilling to commit to a timeline for implementation full AQOs
The Public Forum widened my view about how the public reacted to the proposal from Government. Many people in many different social positions came to the Forum and contribute their comments with the strong desire to improve the air quality and the public health. Some people even wore the biological masks as one way to protest air pollution.
The Discussion was only within 2 hours, but recorded many valuable contributions for Consultant and Government in next steps.
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