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Author's personal copy
Cities 29 (2012) 88–98
Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect
Cities
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/cities
A critical review of Hong Kong’s proposed climate change strategy and
action agenda
Mee Kam Ng ⇑
Department of Geography and Resource Management, 2/F Wong Foo Yuan Building, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong
a r t i c l e
i n f o
Article history:
Received 13 March 2011
Received in revised form 4 August 2011
Accepted 7 August 2011
Available online 1 September 2011
Keywords:
Climate change
Evaluation framework
Carbon intensity
Hong Kong
a b s t r a c t
Climate change was not on the policy agenda in Hong Kong before 2007. In 2010, a consultation document, Hong Kong’s Climate Change Strategy and Action Agenda, was published proposing a voluntary carbon intensity reduction target of 50–60% by 2020 (from the 2005 level). This review attempts to
understand why there was a sudden shift to climate issues and whether the proposed strategy, actions
and targets are appropriate to the climate change challenges faced by the city. Through synthesizing
existing literature on climate change at the city level, a framework outlining possible actions at the strategic, knowledge accumulation and implementation phases is developed to position Hong Kong’s experience. It is found that Hong Kong’s move towards climate change is strongly affected by China’s
efforts. The city is facing some real climate change threats. However, while the carbon intensity reduction
target looks impressive, it is actually too modest for the city’s developed economy. The city needs to
reflect critically on its economics-first strategy and undertake more refined vulnerability studies and risk
assessments to identify spatially and sectorally-specific adaptation measures. To be a responsible global
citizen and to pursue sustainable development, Hong Kong needs more concerted and comprehensive
efforts to combat climate change.
Ó 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Introduction
In September 2010, the government of Hong Kong published
Hong Kong’s Climate Change Strategy and Action Agenda: Consultation Document (henceforth Consultation Document), proposing a
target of reducing carbon intensity by 50–60% by 2020 (2005 as
the baseline) as well as other measures related to mitigation and
adaption to climate change (p. 7). This document was published
when the city was moving at full gear with 10 major infrastructure
projects underway including the controversial dual three-lane
Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge. The government’s response to
a recent court case related to this Bridge, however, raises doubt
on its commitment to combat climate change. In April 2011, when
the court overturned the environmental assessment of the Bridge,
the Chief Executive alleged that ‘‘a certain political party and politicians make use of legal proceedings or other means, under the
excuse of environmental protection or conservatism, to block
large-scale projects. . . they would rather harm Hong Kong’s. . .
interests’’ and warned that more than 70 other projects would be
held up because of the ruling (Ng & Cheung, 2011).
The government’s ‘‘awakening’’ to climate change is extremely
recent because even in Hong Kong 2030 (HKDB and PD, 2007),
⇑ Tel.: +852 2609 6645; fax: +852 2603 5006.
E-mail address: [email protected]
0264-2751/$ - see front matter Ó 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.cities.2011.08.001
the city’s latest long-term territorial development strategy promulgated in 2007, the words ‘‘climate change’’ appear only once
in the 371-page document. Hong Kong has a longer history of tackling air pollution but the concern is always about poor air quality
driving out investors and the global elite, lowering the city’s competitiveness (Chu, 2010). Social equity and health concerns related
to air pollution have been raised by the civil society organisations
(Hedley et al., 2006; Ng, 2007) but they are not acknowledged by
the government.1 During the annual 1 July march2 in 2009, the Hong
Kong Special Administrative Region Chief Executive was ‘‘wanted’’
by Greenpeace as ‘‘a climate fugitive’’ (Plates 1 and 2). However,
aside from the green groups and some concerned professionals,
people in Hong Kong have paid relatively little interest to ‘‘climate
1
The Chief Executive in his speech at the ‘‘Business for Clean Air’’ Joint Conference
on 27 November 2006 argued that people’s health was measured by their life span. As
‘‘life expectancy in Hong Kong is among the highest in the world. . . you can come to
only one conclusion – we have the most environmentally friendly place for people, for
executives, for Hong Kong people, to live’’ (Tsang, 2006).
2
The date marked the return of Hong Kong to Chinese rule and human rights
activists have organised a protest rally on this date on an annual basis. In 2003 when
Hong Kong was hard hit by SARS and to protest against the introduction of Basic Law
Article 23 on national security, 500,000 people marched on the street on 1 July and
eventually brought down the first Chief Executive and the Minister of Health (Cheng,
2005). Since then, the 1 July march has become a carnival-like event with different
groups bringing various issues to the attention of the city when the government
celebrates Hong Kong’s return to Chinese rule.
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M. K. Ng / Cities 29 (2012) 88–98
89
Plate 1. Hong Kong’s Chief Executive, Donald Tsang: the wanted ‘‘climate fugitive’’.
change’’ issues. In fact, some even argue that Hong Kong qualifies as
a sustainable city as only 25% of its land area is developed (HKSAR,
2009, p. 480, chap. 3), that over 85% of its work trips are carried
by public transport (Transport Department, 2003) and the car ownership rate of 55 per 1000 is extremely low by developed world standards (EIU, 2010). Is it true that Hong Kong is a sustainable society
free of climate change threats? What accounts for the sudden shift
of the government with a reputation of favouring economic growth
over environmental concerns, to climate change issues? How can
one assess whether the proposed climate change strategy and action
agenda are adequate to tackle climate change challenges in the city?
In order to answer the above questions, we need to understand
how climate change can be understood and tackled at the city level. This paper tries to synthesise the published work and develop
a framework for understanding the spectra of local responses to
climate change. The framework will be used to understand and
assess the proposed strategy and action agenda set out in the Consultation Document. In order to ascertain the appropriateness of
the proposed carbon-intensity reduction target in Hong Kong, the
target will be benchmarked against the case of London, a world city
with slightly larger land area and population size. The proposed
mitigation and adaptation measures are critically reviewed and it
is argued that the pro-economic growth government needs to
adopt more integrated and stringent policy measures to tackle real
climate change challenges in the city.
Climate change at the city level: Committed? Tokenistic?
Indifferent?
The Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change (IPCC) concludes that ‘‘[m]ost of the observed
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M. K. Ng / Cities 29 (2012) 88–98
Plate 2. Hong Kong’s Chief Executive, Donald Tsang: the wanted ‘‘climate fugitive’’.
increase in global average temperature since the mid-20th century
is very likely [i.e., >90% probability] due to the observed increase in
anthropogenic greenhouse gases concentration’’ (IPCC, 2007, p.
39). As more than half of the world’s population is now residing
in urban areas, cities play an increasingly important role in
addressing climate change issues (Betsill & Bulkeley, 2007; Dhakal
& Betsill, 2007, p. 551; Hunt & Wartkiss, 2007; Kousky & Schmeider,
2003; Mills, 2007; Ruth & Coelho, 2007). Tibaijuka, former Executive Director of UN-Habitat, suggested that ‘‘cities were
responsible for 75% of global energy consumption and 80% of
greenhouse gas emissions’’.3 Another estimate is that the built
environment contributes to almost 50% of carbon dioxide emission
(Ove Arup, 2007, p. 3). In the latest UN-Habitat Global Report on
Human Settlement, human-induced greenhouse gas emissions
amount to 40–70%, using production-based methods and 60–70%,
using consumption-based method (2011, p. iv). Nevertheless,
Satterthwaite argues that the per capita greenhouse gas emission
in many cities in rich nations is lower than their national averages,
suggesting that cities, when well-planned and governed, play a key
role in delinking high quality of life from massive consumption
and hence greenhouse gas emissions (2008, p. 547). In order to
develop a better understanding of how cities are tackling climate
change, existing literature is reviewed and synthesized into a
framework to identify possible spectra of actions at the strategic,
knowledge accumulation and policy formation, as well as action
phases (Fig. 1). The following paragraphs discuss the synthesized
framework which is then used to examine work done by Hong Kong
in tackling climate change.
3
Tibaijuka, Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements
Programme (UN-Habitat), in a speech to the United Nations, 62nd General Assembly,
Second Committee, 30 October 2007, available on the internet at http://www.un.org/
News/Press/docs/2007/gaef3190.doc.htm, (last accessed on 30 September 2010).
Strategic phase
The strategic phase is extremely important. Without it, it is
hard to imagine how cities would begin tackling climate change.
Many reasons account for climate change strategizing in cities.
In a study to investigate cities’ actions on climate change in
the USA, Wheeler finds that as of 2008, more than 170 local governments have joined the Cities for Climate Protection (CCP)
campaign4 but ‘‘emission-reduction goals vary widely, many proposed actions are voluntary, few resources have been allocated,
and implementation of most measures has not yet taken place’’
(2008, p. 481). Studies in Britain, Germany, Japan and China illustrate that national commitments to reducing greenhouse gas emissions are instrumental in influencing local authorities to take
climate change actions (Allman, Fleming, & Wallace, 2004; Bulkeley & Kern, 2006; Ove Arup & Partners Ltd., 2007; Qi, Ma, Zhang,
& Li, 2008; Schreurs, 2008; Sugiyama & Takeuchi, 2008). In the
States, it is found that state mandate is the most important predictor of the existence of higher quality climate change action
plans (Tang, Brody, Quinn, Chang, & Wei, 2010, p. 56).
In general, a city’s strategic commitment to climate change actions is a function of national commitment to greenhouse gas
reduction, local impacts of climate change, local vulnerabilities
and levels of risks, local needs to save energy and control pollution,
visionary leadership, and strong civil and environmental capacity
to initiate and implement climate change policies (Bulkeley,
2010; Meadowcroft, 2009; Qi et al., 2008; Sugiyama et al., 2008;
4
CCP was a result of the First Municipal Leaders’ Summit on Climate Change held
in New York in 1993, after the adoption of the United Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 1992. CCP has since been an active instrument to
initiate city level mitigation and adaptation actions in both developed and developing
countries. Information available on internet at ICLEI Climate Program, http://
www.iclei.org/index.php?id=800 (accessed in October 2010).
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M. K. Ng / Cities 29 (2012) 88–98
91
Fig. 1. Tackling climate change at the city level: spectra of actions.
USCOM, 2009; Zahran, Grover, Brody, & Vedlitz, 2008). The
motivation of national and city level commitment to climate
change initiatives and their adopted rationalities will determine
the scope for policy intervention. Cities with strong commitment
at the policy level will probably develop integrated policy initiatives to tackle climate change. Liberal rationalities favouring market-based solutions will probably use cost-benefit analysis rather
than any other moral imperatives to determine practicable actions
(Oels, 2005, quoted in Pidgeon & Butler (2009), p. 676); and economic interests resistant to mitigation policies coupled with scientific uncertainty would lead to delayed or less ambitious
government actions (Meadowcroft, 2009, p. 27). Worse still, cities
may remain indifferent to their responsibilities towards climate
change. The type of commitment at the strategic level in turn affects how the city approaches and accumulates knowledge on climate change that will in turn dictate the contents of consequent
climate change policies and measures.
Knowledge accumulation and policy formulation phase
Ideally, city governments have to understand the sources of
greenhouse gas emissions and their respective reduction potentials
(Bader & Bleischwitz, 2009, p. 2; Dodman, 2009). Yet, the methodologies and assumptions in developing greenhouse gas inventories
for cities are not standardized and they vary with questions such
as: Whose emissions are measured? What is measured? And
how are emissions measured? (Bader & Bleischwitz, 2009) For instance, should greenhouse gas emissions be assigned to places of
production or consumption (Satterthwaite, 2008)? Where should
emissions arising from international and domestic tourists who
are increasing in great numbers for world cities, be recorded
(UN-Habitat, 2011)? What kind of tools should be used to calculate
the emissions (Bader & Bleischwitz, 2009; Kennedy et al., 2010)?
Hence, a transparent account of greenhouse gas emissions is
important for a community to have a full picture of the emission
position and develop appropriate mitigation actions (Bader & Bleischwitz, 2009, p. 3; Bloomberg, 2007; Corburn, 2009). Mitigation
policies ideally should be integrated and cover various sectors
including energy, transport, infrastructure, buildings, industry
and waste etc. (IPCC, 2007; Meadowcroft, 2009; UN-Habitat, 2011).
Besides mitigation, measuring vulnerabilities is a crucial step in
coping with climate change. A city’s vulnerability is a function of
its exposure and sensitivity to climate changes and the related
adaptive capacity conditioned by its physical as well as underlying
socio-economic setting (IPCC, 2007; Mehrotra et al., 2009). Climate
related changes include temperature increases leading to warm
spells or heat waves, extreme rainfall, drought frequency, wind
speed, sea-level rise and intense tropical cycles. These may create
varying direct and indirect impacts on different sectors, groups of
people or geographical locations, depending on a host of factors
such as location of the city, proximity to the sea, physical relief,
population size and density, size of the city, quality of the governance structure, regulations, land uses and the consequent built
environment, etc. (Mehrotra et al., 2009). Together with risk
assessment, that is, appraising the consequence of an impact that
could be quantitative or qualitative and its probability or likelihood
(high, medium or low), priority planning areas can be identified for
adaptation actions embracing no- or low-regret options that can
boost a city’s resilience to climate change (Hunt & Wartkiss,
2007; CSES, King County and ICLEI, 2007; Mehrotra et al., 2009).
Typical examples include water, infrastructure or settlement, human health, tourism, transport and energy policies (IPCC, 2007;
UN-habitat, 2011).
These data would be indispensable for developing appropriate
climate change strategies and policies. The greenhouse gas inventory helps a city to develop realistic mitigation targets and relevant
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M. K. Ng / Cities 29 (2012) 88–98
policies ‘‘to reduce greenhouse gas emissions or enhance sinks’’
whereas the vulnerability and risk assessment provide clues to
adopting adaptation measures that aim at countering possible
damages of the physical and built environments against real or expected climate change impacts (Birkmann, Garschagen, Kraas, &
Quang, 2010; Gough et al., 2008, p. 328; CSES et al., 2007; Usher,
2000). These two aspects are interrelated: ‘‘if mitigation can hold
impacts at a certain level; adaptation can handle the impacts’’
(Saavedra & Budd, 2009, p. 249) and effective adaptation measures
will also reinforce mitigation strategies (Hunt & Wartkiss, 2007, p.
9). The suggested actions for various sectors all point to the need
for long term planning and the inclusion of climate and environmental concerns into all branches of government and in the course
of spatial planning (Giddens, 2009, p. 8; Meadowcroft, 2009). It is
also important to bear in mind the needs of vulnerable groups such
as the poor and the elderly in undertaking these policies or measures (Bartlett, 2008, p. 515). In fact, climate change policies should
be leveraged to help achieve other policy goals and to rally crossparty and cross-jurisdiction support in society (Compston, 2009,
p. 661).
However, as can be seen in Fig. 1, short of strategic commitment
to combating climate change due to a lack of national support or a
liberal approach adopted by local governments, some cities may be
paying only tokenistic attention to greenhouse gas emissions, failing to set meaningful emissions targets or to develop thoughtful
mitigation and adaptation policies and measures.
Action phase
Mitigation and adaptation strategies will not be successful
without the active involvement of various actors (Aylett, 2010;
Burch, 2010; Kithiia & Dowling, 2010; Lidskog & Elander, 2007).
This would require a clear and effective communication strategy
developed by the government and the bringing on board of stakeholders in the business and third sectors in carrying out and monitoring climate change policies with the long term goal of
promoting the sustainability of the city (Birkmann et al., 2010, p.
201; Compston, 2009, p. 661). Birkmann et al. argue that adaptive
governance should achieve integration between different geographical scales; between everyday and expert knowledge; and between different norm systems in the formal and informal sectors
(2010, p. 203). It is about mobilizing all actors in society to exercise
their wisdom to tackle climate change issues at different stages for
long term sustainability. Again, depending on the context of the
city at the strategic, knowledge accumulation and policy formulation phases, actions combating climate change could range from an
integrated tripartite-partnership among the government, private
sector and civil society, to fragmented un-coordinated and ad hoc
initiatives undertaken by the three sets of stakeholders.
Using this synthesized framework, the following section tries to
position the performance of Hong Kong, ‘‘Asia’s world city’’, at the
strategic, knowledge accumulation and policy formulation as well
as action phases, in its efforts to combat climate change.
Performance of Hong Kong in tackling climate change
Country Two Systems’’ arrangement allows Hong Kong autonomy
on all policy areas except diplomatic relations and foreign defence.
Critics at that time had lamented such lack of action by Hong Kong
as the city ranked 15th globally in terms of per capita gross domestic product (Harris, 2007). Instead of climate change, most of the
actions undertaken by the local government5 had been targeted towards combating air pollution, identified by different stakeholders
as the most serious problem in the city’s first sustainability report
(Ng, 2007), and was seen as a threat to Hong Kong’s appeal to international investment and talents.
Similar to experiences elsewhere (Allman et al., 2004; Bulkeley
et al., 2006; Qi et al., 2008; Schreurs, 2008; Sugiyama et al., 2008),
Hong Kong’s recent awakening to climate change has to do with
the national government. As the world’s emerging economy heavily dependent on coal and facing the problem of low energy efficiency, China has been a keen player in the international arena in
issues related to sustainable development and climate change.
Though China is only a non-Annex I Party under the Kyoto Protocol
and is only required to gather and share information on greenhouse gas emissions, national policies and best practices on mitigation and adaptation to climate change, it published a national plan
on climate change response in 2007. The formulation of this plan
relates to actions undertaken at the Central Government level. In
the 1990s, a National Coordination Group on Climate Change
(NCGCC) was set up within the China Meteorological Administration and was later moved to the National Development and Reform
Commission (the most powerful agency in the Chinese Central
Government) in 1998. In 2003, the NCGCC was renamed as the National Coordination Group on Climate Change Strategy (NCGCCS)
and was led by a vice premier to coordinate the implementation
of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC) (Qi et al., 2008, pp. 381–382). In 2007, the NCGCCS
was re-created as the National Leading Group on Climate Change
(NLGCC) and has been led by the premier with twenty-seven agencies, representing almost all agencies of the Central Government,
and is responsible for making major decisions and coordinating national actions on climate change (Qi et al., 2008, p. 381–382).
According to the research team led by Qi, NLGCC’s membership
coincides with the National Leading Group on Energy Saving and
Pollution Reduction which is also led by the premier, showing that
the Chinese Central Government has considered the close link between climate change and energy saving (op. cit., 2008, p. 381–
382).
The consolidation of the NCGCCS into the NLGCC and the promulgation of a national plan on climate change in 2007 help explain Hong Kong’s ‘‘sudden’’ shift to the challenge of climate
change in 2007. It is interesting to note that similar to other provinces and local authorities, an Inter-Departmental Working Group
on Climate Change led by the Environment Bureau was created in
2007, after the setting up of the NLGCC by the Chinese Central Government (Environment Bureau, 2010, p. 5). And after the
announcement of the voluntary national greenhouse gas reduction
target by the Central Government in 2009, a Framework Agreement on Hong Kong/Guangdong Cooperation was signed in 2010
and the Consultation Document was published in September
2010.6 These coincidences help explain Hong Kong’s abrupt shift
to climate change issues.
Strategic level: at the behest of central ‘‘instruction’’?
The government of Hong Kong did not join the first Earth Summit in 1992. And it was not until 2003 that China notified the United Nations that the Kyoto Protocol be extended to Hong Kong
(Environment Bureau, 2010, p. 18). Yet, as China is only a non-Annex I Party, Hong Kong has no obligation to cut its greenhouse gas
emissions. This, however, does not mean that Hong Kong cannot
develop its own strategies to combat climate change. The ‘‘One
5
In the 1990s, polluting power plants were closed; measures were developed to
green the transport and energy sectors; air pollution index and building energy codes
etc. were introduced to monitor and improve air quality.
6
The author had asked about the origin of the drafting of the Consultation
Document during a consultation session in October 2010 and the Minister for the
Environment mentioned that it was an initiative of the Chief Executive. One could
assume that the Central Government might have instructed the Chief Executive to
play a part in combating climate change as a response to the national policy.
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M. K. Ng / Cities 29 (2012) 88–98
Table 1
Greenhouse gas emission trends of Hong Kong from 1990 to 2008. Source: Environmental Protection Department, Climate Change Resources., available on the internet at http://
www.epd.gov.hk/epd/english/climate_change/files/HKGHG_Sectors_201009.pdf> (accessed in October 2010).
Year
Electricity
generation (%)
Transport
(%)
Other end use of
fuel (%)
Waste
(%)
Industrial processes and product
use (%)
Agriculture, forestry and
others (%)
Total (in kilotonnes
CO2-e)
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
64.9
66.0
67.9
68.3
61.0
62.4
61.3
60.0
62.3
60.3
62.4
62.4
64.7
66.9
66.3
68.2
67.4
68.4
66.7
16.8
16.7
16.0
16.0
20.3
19.5
20.2
22.0
20.9
22.7
23.2
22.1
21.8
19.7
19.2
17.8
17.7
17.1
17.5
12.9
11.2
10.5
9.7
11.2
10.1
10.2
10.1
9.5
10.3
8.3
9.1
7.8
7.3
7.7
6.5
6.5
6.3
6.8
4.4
4.1
3.9
4.0
4.9
5.3
5.3
4.7
4.4
3.4
4.4
3.6
4.1
4.5
5.0
5.3
5.1
5.0
5.1
0.6
1.6
1.5
1.7
2.3
2.5
2.7
2.9
2.8
3.1
1.5
2.5
1.4
1.4
1.6
2.1
3.3
3.1
3.8
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.2
0.2
0.2
0.2
0.2
0.2
0.3
0.2
0.2
0.2
0.2
0.2
0.2
0.1
0.1
0.1
35,300
38,800
43,000
43,400
35,900
36,900
35,600
34,100
35,500
33,300
34,600
34,700
36,200
39,600
39,800
42,000
42,300
43,300
42,000
Table 2
Proposed changes to fuel mix in the consultation document. Source: Environment
Bureau, Hong Kong’s Climate Change Strategy And Action Agenda: Consultation document
(Hong Kong: Government Printer, 2010), at 43.
Coal
Gas
Nuclear
Renewable energy
2009 (%)
2020 (%)
54
23
23
0
<10
40
50
3–4
Knowledge accumulation and policy formulation phase: ‘‘marginal’’
concern in a pro-growth city
Unlike air quality and pollution concerns, the ‘‘climate change’’
agenda did not feature in the Chief Executive’s annual Policy Address before 2007, reinforcing the suggestion that Hong Kong, similar to many other provincial and local authorities in the mainland,
has had to respond actively to the work of the NLGCC in 2007. In
2007, the Asia–Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) Leader’s Declaration on Climate Change, Energy Security and Clean Development adopted in Sydney pledged to reduce at least 25% of energy
intensity by 2030, with 2005 as the base year, and as a member
of APEC, the Hong Kong government honoured the target and also
proposed a number of initiatives to meet this target (Chief Executive, 2007, p. 18). The government’s responses from 2007 onwards
focus on enhancing efficiency of energy consumption related to
buildings and greening the fuel mix as coal produces over half of
the energy consumed in the city. This is because 66.7% of the
2008’s total greenhouse emissions in the city was related to electricity generation (Table 1) and 90% of this was consumed by buildings, that is, electricity consumed by buildings amounts to about
60% of Hong Kong’s greenhouse emissions (Environment Bureau,
2010, p. 15). In fact, according to Wan, Li, and Lam (2011, p.
1404), the average annual building energy use in the 21st century
would be increased by 6.6–8.1%.
According to the Consultation Document (Environment Bureau,
2010, p. 14), the city’s per capita greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
(Co2-d) was 6 tonnes in 2008. In order to tackle climate change, the
government proposed to adopt a voluntary carbon intensity reduction target of 50–60% by 2020 as compared with 2005 level (op cit.,
2010, p. 46). This would amount to a reduction of GHG emissions
by 19–33% or a ‘‘per capita GHG emissions’’ of 3.6–4.5 tonnes
CO2-e by 2020 (op cit., 2010, p. 46). In terms of mitigating GHG
emissions, the government has proposed a two-pronged strategy:
improving energy efficiency and greening the fuel mix. The government has proposed to implement a set of statutory Building Energy
Codes to introduce the Energy Efficiency Labelling Scheme in
phases and to encourage the carrying out of carbon audit in buildings. As the transport sector contributed to a sizable amount of
greenhouse gas emissions (17.5% in 2008) in Hong Kong, the government has also encouraged the consumption of cleaner fuel
and the use of electric vehicles etc. District water cooling will be
introduced to cut down emissions in the redevelopment of the
old Kai Tak international airport site and will before 2020 utilise
landfill gas as a source of energy (Environment Bureau, 2010). At
the regional level, the government has tried to encourage Hong
Kong owned factories to adopt clean production technologies.
The government has also signed an agreement framework to secure the supply of nuclear energy and liquefied natural gas etc.
from Guangdong. This latter initiative is related to the government’s efforts in greening the fuel mix. In order to encourage the
power companies to switch to clean fuels, in 2008 the government
introduced a new regulatory regime allowing the companies a
higher rate of return for investment in renewable energy facilities
(11% vs. other assets at 9.99%) (Leung, Yung, Ng, Leung, & Chan,
2009, p. 98). A more controversial proposal, especially after the
March 2011 Fukushima nuclear plant disaster in Sendai, Japan, is
increasing the share of nuclear energy from 23% to 50% (Table 2).
Amidst protests launched by environmental groups, the government has promised a rethink its plan to expand the supply of nuclear energy from Guangdong where several more nuclear
reactors will be constructed (Siu, 2011).
Is Hong Kong doing enough? Civic Exchange, a local think tank,
questioned the government’s figure on per capita carbon emissions
and argued that it should be two to five times higher because the
official emissions inventory omits pollution arising from air travel
and consumption of imported goods (Wong, 2010). Others argue
that a target of reducing energy intensity is simply not good enough for a maturing economy such as Hong Kong. In any case, is
a reduction of 50–60% of carbon intensity an ambitious target for
the city? To answer this question, the target is benchmarked
against another world city, London in Table 3. While London is only
marginally bigger than Hong Kong in terms of population size and
land area, its urban development is much more extensive, with 95%
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M. K. Ng / Cities 29 (2012) 88–98
Table 3
Climate change in London and Hong Kong—current situation and proposed targets.
Current status
City area (km2)
Built-up landb
Populationc (mid-2008)
GDP/GVAa (USD billion) (2008)
GDP (HKD billion)d (2008)
Per capita GDP (2008)
Carbon dioxide emissionse (million tonnes)
1990
2006
2008
Per capital carbon dioxide emissions (tonnes)
Carbon intensity (kgCO2-e/HKD of GDP)
(2008)
Proposed targetsf
Carbon intensity
Reduction of carbon emission
Others:
Hong Kong
London
1104
23.7%
6.98
216.146
1675.3
240,096
1572
95%
7.60
413.838
3207.6
418,295
35.3
42.3
42.0
6.03 (2008)
0.025
45
50
46
6.05 (2008)
0.014
Reduce by 50–60% below the 2005 level by 2020 (0.012–
0.015)
19–33% (reference year 2005)
Per capita GHG emissions: 3.6–4.5 tonnes
–
60% by 2025 (reference year 1990)
25% decentralised energy by 2025.
Improving energy efficiency of
buildings.
Reducing transport emissions.
homes
and
a
GVA means Gross Value Added and measures the contribution to the economy of each individual producer, industry or sector in the United Kingdom. The relationship
between GVA and GDP is as follows: GVA + taxes on products – subsidies on products = GDP. Source: Office for National Statistics, Gross Value Added (GVA), available on
internet at http://www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=254 (accessed in October 2010).
b
Sources: Built-up land: (a) Hong Kong: Planning Department of the HKSAR (2010), Information Services: Planning Statistics: Broad Land Usage Distribution, available on
the internet at http://www.pland.gov.hk/pland_en/info_serv/statistic/landu.html Accessed 05.05.10 (Last revised 23.03.10). (b) London: Office for Nation Statistics, Regional
Trends: Directory of Online Tables – Table 5.10 Previous use of land changing to residential use, 2005–2008, available on the internet at http://www.statistics.gov.uk/
downloads/theme_compendia/RegionalSnapshot/directory.pdf (accessed on 21 September, 2010).
c
Population: (a) Hong Kong: The data [Mid-population] is obtained from Census and Statistics Department of the HK SAR (2009), HK Statistic-Table 001: Population by Sex,
available on the internet at http://www.censtatd.gov.hk/hong_kong_statistics/statistical_tables/index.jsp?charsetID=1&tableID=001 (accessed on 12 May 2010, Last updated
on February 11, 2010). (b) Office for National Statistics (2010), Regional Profile: London Summary, available on the internet at http://www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=1132 (accessed in February 2011).
d
GDP: Exchange rate between USD and HKD is assumed to be 7.8. (a) Hong Kong: The data [GDP] is obtained from Census and Statistics Department of the HK SAR (2009),
HK Statistic-Table 031: GDP and its main expenditure components at current market prices, Table 030: Gross Domestic Product (GDP), implicit price deflator of GDP and per
capita GDP, available on the internet at http://www.censtatd.gov.hk/hong_kong_statistics/statistical_tables/index.jsp?charsetID=1&tableID=001 (accessed on 12 May 2010,
Last updated on 12 November 2010). (b) Office for National Statistics (2009), Regional GVA December 2010, Table NUTS1.1, available online at http://www.statistics.gov.uk/
downloads/theme_economy/RegionalGVA2009.pdf (Accessed in February 2011). Exchange rates used: 1USD to 7.75085 HKD (December 2008); 1 HKD to 0.08391 GBP
(December 2008); 1 USD to 0.65039 GBP (December 2008), Source: Currency convertor http://www.oanda.com/currency/converter/ (accessed in October 2010).
e
Carbon dioxide emissions: (a) Hong Kong: Environmental Protection Department, Climate Change Resources, available on the internet at http://www.epd.gov.hk/epd/
english/climate_change/files/HKGHG_Sectors_201009.pdf (accessed in October 2010). (b) Figure for 1990: London Energy Partnership (2006), London Carbon Scenarios to
2026, Page 6, available at http://www.lep.org.uk/uploads/london_carbon_scenarios.pdf, viewed on February 17, 2011. Figure for 2006: Department of Environment, Food and
Rural Affairs (2008), Local Authority CO2 emissions estimates 2006: Statistical Summary, available at http://www.decc.gov.uk/assets/decc/statistics/climate_change/archive/
131-LA-co2-emissions-estimates-2006.pdf, viewed on February 17, 2011. Figure for 2008: Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (2010), Local Authority CO2
emissions estimates 2008: Statistical Summary, available at http://www.decc.gov.uk/assets/decc/Statistics/climate_change/localAuthorityCO2/465-local-authority-co22008-stat-summary.pdf.
f
Emissions reduction target: (a) Hong Kong: Environment Bureau, Hong Kong’s Climate Change Strategy and Action Agenda: Consultation Document (Hong Kong: Government
Printer, 2010), at 44. (b) London: Greater London Authority, Aiming for Big Reductions in Carbon Emissions, available on the internet at http://www.london.gov.uk/priorities/
environment/climate-change (accessed in October 2010).
of the city being built up. Hong Kong’s urban form is much more
compact. The city’s population is ‘‘cramped’’ in less than 25% of
the land area with small per capita domestic and working space,
short community distance, low percentage of car ownership etc.
(Leung & Lee, 2000, p. 4490). So, it is rather surprising to see that
the per capita carbon emission figures are almost the same in the
two cities. The discrepancies between the existing emission figures
and the proposed reduction targets between London and Hong
Kong cannot be more different. Hong Kong’s carbon intensity
(0.025 tonnes in 2008) is almost double the figure in London
(0.014 tonnes in 2008). While London is planning to cut 60% of
its greenhouse gas emissions by 2025, Hong Kong’s target is only
19–33% (Environment Bureau, 2010, p. 40). Hence, while our emission reduction target looks rather ambitious, this target even if
achieved, would only be about the current carbon intensity figure
of London today!
Criticisms are not only directed towards the fuel mix proposal
and carbon intensity reduction targets. Environmental groups in
the business as well as the non-government sectors have urged
the government to legislate for a compulsory carbon audit and demand disclosure of energy consumption figures for buildings in
general and the commercial ones in particular as the latter category accounts for 65% of the GHG emissions of all the buildings
in Hong Kong which in turn consumed about 90% of electricity produced in the city (Wong, 2011). Others have urged the government
to adopt a more stringent regulatory regime setting higher and
compulsory standards for building energy efficiency codes, energy
labelling and area cooling and to embed carbon cost in setting electricity prices.7 Efforts at the regional level have also not been
impressive. For the 5-year Cleaner Production Partnership Programme launched in April 2008 to facilitate Hong Kong-owned factories to adopt cleaner production technologies and practices, the
7
Some suggestions raised by participants in a focus group meeting, organised by
the Council for Sustainable Development on 19 May 2011, provide inputs to facilitate
a new round of public engagement in mid-2011 on the barriers, possible incentives
and action plans for maximising energy efficiency and minimizing carbon emissions
in buildings. The author was one of the participants.
Author's personal copy
M. K. Ng / Cities 29 (2012) 88–98
number of awardees in 2010 was only 115. This figure is rather
meaningless given the fact that there are 58,500 Hong Kong-owned
factories in China (Tsang, 2010).
To summarise, an absence of consumption-based emission figures, modest GHG emissions reduction targets, a rather weak regulatory regime in terms of identifying sources of carbon emissions
and developing strategically effective and mandatory measures to
reduce energy consumption and the proposed expanded use of nuclear power to meet growing demand all suggest that Hong Kong is
taking a rather tokenistic approach in combating climate change.
The absence of integrative responses to reduce GHG emissions is
also shown in the lack of climate change considerations in its
building, land use and infrastructure development planning or design regulations. In fact, many of its planning proposals run counter to the objective of mitigating carbon emission. For instance, one
of the government’s ‘‘Conserving Central [Business District]’’ proposals is to demolish a government building and remove half of
the Government Hill, a site for the seat of government since the
1850s, to make room for a commercial building with Grade A offices and shopping facilities totalling a floor space of 42,000 m2
(Development Bureau, 2011). The carbon footprint involved in
the redevelopment and the consequent carbon emission as a result
of increased traffic flow are not even mentioned in the proposal.
In the area of climate adaptation, what the government has
done in the Consultation Document is to only list the vulnerable
areas, possible major impacts and adaptation options. The major
vulnerable areas, including biodiversity and nature conservation,
built environment and infrastructure, business and industry, energy supply, financial services, food resources, and human health
and water resources are identified, and their general impacts are
outlined in the document (Environment Bureau, 2010, p. 52–53).
However, as no risk assessments including probability and consequences have been done, the spatial and sectoral distributions of
95
the various impacts cannot be ascertained. As a result, the proposed adaptation options and measures are rather skeletal including only very broad directions such as monitoring, institutional
strengthening and capacity building, disaster management and
emergency planning, research and investigation and education
and public awareness (Environment Bureau, 2010, pp. 50–51).
Local scientists have confirmed the impacts of climate change
on the various vulnerable areas (Table 4). Decadal mean annual
temperature is expected to rise from 23.1 °C (1971–2000) to
24.5–32.3 °C in the decade of 2090–2099. The number of hot nights
is expected to be 22.0–68.7 for the decade 2090–2099 (compared
with the increase of only 3.5 nights from 1947 to 2009). This could
be exacerbated by the urban heat island (UHI) effect. The 2004 UHI
value for the city was 2.17 °C (Fung, Lam, & Hung, 2004, p. 12); and
according to research findings of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the UHI effect could go up to ‘‘over 9 °C with a range of
10.4–19.8 °C between the core urban area and the most rural sites’’
(Nichol, 2009, p. 280). Unless the urban form is radically restructured, heat waves and hot nights will definitely increase in the
coming decades (Ng, Yuan, Chen, Ren, & Fung, 2011). According
to the government’s Consultation Document, the mean sea level
has risen by 26 mm from 1954 to 2009 but this figure differs from
the one given by scientists at the Hong Kong Observatory: 14.3 cm
or an average rate of about 2.6 mm per year (2010). The most conservative estimate indicates that by 2030 the mean sea level rise in
Hong Kong will exceed 5.7 cm (Fung, Lam, & Hung, 2004, p. 112).
These somewhat worrying figures show that Hong Kong government should carry out more systematic vulnerability and risk
assessments to identify vulnerable social groups and spatial locations that may be affected by climate change and develop an integrated strategy to carry out appropriate adaptation measures. The
approach adopted in the Consultation Document is too broadbrush and therefore rather disappointing.
Table 4
Direct and indirect impacts of climate change in Hong Kong.
Trends in Hong Kong
a
Temperature
From 1885 to 2009, the annual average temperature increased by about 0.12 °C per decadea
From 1947 to 2008, the average rise amounts to 0.16 °C per decade, accelerating to 0.27 °C during 1979–2008b
From 1885 to 2003, at the Hong Kong Observatory Headquarters in the heart of the urban area, the annual average temperature
increased by about 0.6 °C per decade, much higher than the figures recorded in the rural stationb
Decadal mean annual temperature from 1971–2000 was 23.1 °C and it is projected to become 24.5–32.3 in the decade of 2090–2099a
Rainfall
Annual rainfall increased by 51 mm from 1947 to 2009a
From 1900 to 2000, the occurrence of hourly rainfall of 100 mm or above has nearly doubledc
Extreme weather
Hot nights
From 1947 to 2009, the number of hot nights (minimum temperature more than or equal to 28 °C) in June–August had increased by 3.5
nightsa
Number of hot nights expected for the decade 2090–2099 is 22.0–68.7a
Very hot days
Number of very hot days (i.e. maximum temperature of 33 °C or above) in June–August from 1971–2000 was 8.2 but this would increase
to 9.6–23.5 in the decade of 2090–2099a
Cold days
Number of days with minimum temperature of less than or equal to 12 °C in December to February had been decreasing from 1948 to
2009 by 2.3 daysa
From 1971 to 2000, the number of cold days was 16.3a
By the decade 2090–2099, the number of cold days would be less than 1a
Heavy rainfall
From 1947–2009, heavy rainfall days (hourly rainfall more than 30 mm) had increased by 0.4 daysa
From 1947–2009, thunderstorm days had increased by 1.8 daysa
Mean sea level (Victoria
Harbour)
From 1954 to 2009, rose by 26 mma
From 1954 to 2009, has risen about 14 cm (or an average rate of about 2.6 mm per year)c
A rise of 0.59 m in the sea level in Hong Kong would turn a 50-year storm surge (about 3.5 m above chart datum (mCD) into a biennial
event)c
Environment Bureau, Hong Kong’s Climate Change Strategy and Action Agenda: Consultation Document (Hong Kong: Government Printer, 2010), at 11.
Y.K. Leung, K.H. Yeung, E.W.L. Ginn and W.M. Leung, ‘‘Climate Change in Hong Kong’’, Hong Kong Observatory (2004) Technical Note No.107, at 21.
B.Y. Lee, W.T. Wong and T.C. Lee, ‘‘The Latest on Climate Change in Hong Kong’’, Conference 2010 Powerful Automation Technology, Control and Instrumentation System for
Environmental Protection (2010), at 7, 9.
b
c
Author's personal copy
96
M. K. Ng / Cities 29 (2012) 88–98
Fig. 2. Tackling climate change at the city level: the case of Hong Kong.
Action phase: in need of government-led concerted efforts
The steps towards addressing climate change described above
are rather halting and far from decisive and aggressive and this is
not unexpected given the government’s pro-growth stance in the
city’s development history. Compared with the government, the
business chambers have shown more resolve towards the challenge of climate change (Salter, Miles, & Tung, 2010; CCBF, 2009).
The Hong Kong Business Coalition for the Environment even calls
for transparent targets for GHG emissions reduction through international benchmarking and the development of strong long-term
policy framework through engaging the business and community
sectors (HKBCE, 2010, p. 1). Similarly, some NGOs have formed a
coalition to push for more vigorous strategies and policies to combat climate change (Greenpeace China, 2009; Loh, 2010; Oxfam
Hong Kong, 2010).8 Yet, the government’s actions until now are
far from comprehensive. The emphasis on the cost saving aspects
in the course of policy deliberation rather than the adoption of a
moral discourse on the city’s global obligation to cut emissions reveals the government’s conservative assessment of the public’s response (including the commercial sector) towards the challenge of
climate change. This contradicts the results of a recent survey which
finds that 96% of respondents considered Hong Kong had already
been affected by climate change and that 80% of them were ready
8
In 2009, Greenpeace China, Oxfam Hong Kong and WWF Hong Kong formed the
Combat Climate Change Coalition with 12 local NGOs. Other NGOs’ work can be found
in Christine Loh, Greenhouse Gas Emission How Hong Kong Compares Policy Recommendations (Hong Kong: Civil Exchange, 2010) 2p.; Greenpeace China, ‘‘The ‘Climate
Change Bill’: Economic Costs of Heavy Rainstorm in Hong Kong (Hong Kong:
Greenpeace China, 2009), available on internet at http://www.greenpeace.org/raw/
content/china/en/press/reports/black-rain-hong-kong.pdf (accessed in October
2010); Oxfam Hong Kong, Hong Kong’s Vulnerability to Global Climate Change Impacts:
An Oxfam Report on 2010 Public Survey and Policy Recommendations (Hong Kong: The
Kadoorie Institute and Public Opinion Programme, The University of Hong Kong,
2010), 65p.
to pay more to combat the problem (Oxfam Hong Kong, 2010, p.
14). However, 64% of respondents were not interested in participating in the formulation of climate change policies and indeed 81% did
not even know that the government was contemplating a climate
change strategy when the survey was done (op cit., 2010, p. 16). This
perhaps explains why Hong Kong society as a whole appears to be
rather indifferent in face of the challenges of climate change. So
there is relatively little pressure on the government to formulate climate change policies and measures that would achieve multiple
needs of different stakeholders.
Conclusions
This article has attempted to understand Hong Kong’s sudden
shift to climate change issues and examine whether the proposed
strategy and action plans are appropriate and adequate for the city.
In order to ascertain this, existing literature and practices have
been synthesized into a framework outlining the spectra of city-level actions at the strategic, knowledge accumulation and policy
formulation, and action phases. Fig. 2 captures Hong Kong’s performance against this framework. It becomes clear that national commitment to tackle climate change is crucial in ‘‘herding’’ Hong
Kong, among other provinces and cities, to commit and respond
to climate change. Although China’s non-Annex. I status under
the Kyoto Protocol means that she is not bound by the set emissions reduction target, the Central Government has been a keen
advocate of sustainable development to combat climate change
as energy conservation and efficiency are key concerns in China’s
rapidly growing economy. In 2009, the Chinese government announced a voluntary national target to reduce carbon dioxide
emissions produced for each yuan of national income by 40–45%
by 2020 with 2005 as the reference year, mainly through intensifying energy conservation, improving energy efficiency, developing
renewable and ‘‘nuclear’’ energy and a low-carbon economy
Author's personal copy
M. K. Ng / Cities 29 (2012) 88–98
(Environment Bureau, 2010, p. 18). Given China’s commitment towards emissions reduction, Hong Kong has no choice but to move
beyond the tackling of air pollution and poor air quality issues
brought about by its investments in the emerging world factory
of the Pearl River Delta, and to tackle climate change challenges.
This strategic move is uncharacteristic of the pro-growth city and
the passive and reactive response has consequences for the knowledge accumulation phase and helps explain the government’s lacklustre performance in formulating forceful policies or facilitating
partnership actions in combating climate change.
While scientists in Hong Kong have accumulated a wealth of
information on climate change over the years, the related concerns
seldom appear in the city’s policy agenda. The Consultation Document published by the Environment Bureau has only set a voluntary target of reducing carbon intensity by 50–60% by 2020 from
the 2005 level and instead of outlining integrated mitigation and
adaptation targets and actions and other policy measures to combat climate change, the Document has only repackaged on-going
measures with some sporadic new suggestions such as turning
waste to energy and boosting the use of natural gas and nuclear
power, both to be provided by the China mainland. The fact of relegating a multifaceted issue such as climate change to the Environment Bureau shows a general lack of understanding and perception
by the pro-growth government of how climate change impinges on
various policy areas. Unless Hong Kong tackles the challenge of climate change strategically in an integrated manner, not only focusing on the ways urban development take place and urban forms are
shaped, but addressing gender and social equity issues as well, the
current approach will not take Hong Kong very far in tackling climate change. While Hong Kong is much more compact, its carbon
intensity in 2008 was almost double that of London. Even if the
proposed target in the Consultation Document were achieved by
2020, Hong Kong would, at best, be only on a par with what London has achieved today. Hence, the seemingly ambitious target
(when compared with the China mainland) needs to be reconsidered. In fact, carbon intensity (energy efficiency) is considered to
be an inappropriate target for developed economies.
While the private and third sectors have developed initiatives to
educate the public on climate change issues and push for changes,
the pro-growth government’s lukewarm response to the central
government-imposed challenges means that a cross-jurisdiction
partnership has yet to emerge to lead the city towards tackling climate change. If Hong Kong is serious in adopting sustainable
development as the overarching principle to direct its future territorial development and retain its status as ‘‘Asia’s World City’’, a
more ambitious emission reduction target should be set after identifying and properly documenting GHG emissions and strong and
integrated mitigation and adaptation policy frameworks and actions should be formulated to combat the real threats of climate
change in the city.
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