HK Electric has just launched a new campaign, based on the former Green Lamma Green campaign: Green Hong Kong Green:

Lamma-zine: Sep 7: 'Green Lamma Green' Goes HK-Wide

They're "Hunting for Eco-Heritage Hotspots on HK Island".

So this leaves us with one important question:
What and where are the "Eco-Heritage Hotspots" of Lamma?

Any suggestions?

_________________
Click here for Lamma-zine stories and recent Lamma Spotlights of the Week:
Photo, Video, Person, Wildlife, Bird, Artwork.

1) Sham Wan: still sometimes a hatching site for green turtles.
At risk from our own "Disco Bay" developer.

2) Yung Shue Long: home of the extremely rare Romer's Tree Frog.
At risk from the Drainage Department's concrete and developer's dumping construction waste.

3) Banyan tree, next to police box.
Safely enclosed in strong steel fence to prevent it wandering away.

But looking the the HEC release, they mention "To allow a better understanding of eco-heritage hotspots, eco-tours were organised for about 100 local citizens to tour around Stanley after the ceremony, visiting Blake Pier, Murray House, old Stanley Police Station, Tin Hau Temple, Indian Rubber Trees and Chinese Banyan, etc."
I don't really see the "eco" aspect of things like piers, temples, police stations. None of them seem like parts of the native ecology, except the banyan.

_________________
Click here for Lamma-zine stories and recent Lamma Spotlights of the Week:
Photo, Video, Person, Wildlife, Bird, Artwork.

_________________
My eyes are up here

Alan wrote: 'I think (and hope) they mean by "making trails" to designate routes and perhaps put up signboards on existing tracks, not actually creating new pathways."

Again, from the GHKG link:

"All sites nominated must fall within or close to the Lung Fu Shan Country Park, Aberdeen Country Park or Tai Tam Country Park, but those already listed on the educational panels of the nature trails will not be accepted."

How much clearer could the wording be? The Central and Western districts,are not forested nor do they have streams meandering about, well not the last time I visited anyway!


LG wrote: They'll probably only put up some signs describing that particular "eco-hotspot", make another eco-routes map, train some "eco-leaders" amongst their volunteers and organise occasional tours walking along these routes, same as on Lamma. Harmless, educational fun and actually good, positive PR, I think.

LG, It can't be easy being objective when HK Electric pay you money every month as one of the sponsors of this website. Hope you've increased the rates, inflation 'n all...

This is not some harmless PR exercise. The public are being asked to help "explore" HK' Country Parks with the express aim of designating and building new trails through them. Ask yourselves this... when was the last time any developer in HK did anything that did not involve tons of cement?

_________________
Click here for Lamma-zine stories and recent Lamma Spotlights of the Week:
Photo, Video, Person, Wildlife, Bird, Artwork.

The attitude which I hold regarding development in HK (or anywhere on the planet),is a sceptical one...to assume the worst and hope that I am wrong. Better that than the opposite, methinks.

Here in HK, there are government bodies, laws, regulations, punitive measures(fines and custodial sentences), which are suppossed to act as deterrents to environmental destruction. However, the system is far from foolproof. Sometimes the government's own measures to "enhance' the environment are themselves highly destructive, never mind property developers'! Too often, they (gov. bureaucrats) just " pass the buck", resulting in cases such as the one in Yun Shue Long valley. A crime if ever there were.

I am very wary of power generating companies here. The Lantau greenies had to fight a long and protracted campaign to prevent CLP from building an LNG staiton on one of the Soko island's. It was a very close run thing.

Once a pristine, natural sight is developed, it is gone forever. Hunter's beach in Yung Shue wan comes to mind. Wanton environmental destruction is an unconscious mental impetus amongst Chinese.

The "Green Lamma Green" / "Green Hong Kong Green" campaign by The Conservancy Association and HK Electric is organising an Eco-Tour Festival in the Aberdeen Country Park on Sat, Feb 23.

They'll be promoting their 8 eco-tours, expanding their currently long-running Lamma-based eco-tours to 5, including a new night safari in Sok Kwu Wan.
Here's a Chin. description of the 5 Lamma-based eco-tours.

http://www.cahk.org.hk/ghkg/lamma.htm
http://www.cahk.org.hk/ghkg/eco-tour.htm

There are 150 (?) unpaid volunteer eco-tour guides trained so far, but not a single English tour guide yet. I volunteered to the Conservancy Association at their last Green Lamma Green tree caring event, but no more feedback from them so far. So all their info is all in Cantonese only.
Some more bilingual details coming soon in their press releases next week, hopefully...

Anybody wants to come along to this probably all-Cantonese event? Call me at 6151 5408 (my new phone number is also at the top of the home page).
I'll be on the noon ferry to Aberdeen, probably, walking up from the ferry pier.
I'll go if I won't be guiding a group of students into the ex-Lamma Quarry today (tbc). They're doing a study project, including a Social Impact Study. Another Lamma-zine story is in preparation...

詳情可瀏覽：http://www.cahk.org.hk/ghkg/recruitment.htm

Facebook 專頁: http://www.facebook.com/greenhkgreen

查詢： 2728 6781(長春社)

_________________
Click here for Lamma-zine stories and recent Lamma Spotlights of the Week:
Photo, Video, Person, Wildlife, Bird, Artwork.