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A Conservation Strategy for Lantau
Green Lantau Association
The Conservancy Association
Friends Of The Earth
Green Power
Hong Kong Marine Conservation Society
World Wide Fund For Nature Hong Kong
Photo: Pang, Yiu Kai
Executive Summary
Lantau has long been an important ecological, scenic and recreational resource for Hong Kong people. This paper identifies priorities for conservation on Lantau and surrounding islands as a response to the development pressures facing the island following construction of the new airport and new towns. Since the Airport Core Projects have already destroyed nearly one quarter of the island’s coastline the remaining areas are much more valuable as a result. Lantau also has some of the best remaining stream habitat in the SAR, freshwater and brackish wetlands, forests, fung shui woodlands, shrublands, and also provides important marine habitat for fish and marine mammals. In short, Lantau is priceless and irreplaceable in conservation terms.
This paper identifies the main biodiversity resources of Lantau, based on existing data which are sparse. An ongoing biodiversity study at the University of Hong Kong is discovering new hotspots, species and habitats all the time, so this list is by no means definitive. This paper also describes the existing protected areas and planning controls on Lantau. Much of the upland areas of the island are protected as country park, although these are also at risk from hillfire. There is also a marine park north of Lantau designated to protect the Chinese White Dolphin’s habitat. Lantau’s rural areas are poorly covered by statutory landuse zoning plans, and the South Lantau Outline Zoning Plan is unenforceable due to a legal anomaly.
By undertaking a gap analysis of areas threatened by development and unprotected, the green groups have made a number of recommendations. These are as follows:
Irreplaceable areas
1. Tai Ho Stream, wetlands and mangroves
Any new town development at Tai Ho should be carefully planned to ensure that the natural stream banks, bed and mouth are retained. The stream and a designated buffer zone should be designated as an SSSI under OZP or DPA plans. There should be no further reclamation of the bay. For the first time there is an opportunity for the Government to adopt an environmentally-sound approach to stream management and integrate this with a new town development to provide a unique ecological and educational feature.
2. Tung Chung Stream and seagrass beds at San Tan
The extent and shape of reclamation planned for Tung Chung Bay should be realigned to ensure that the natural coastline and suitable hydrological conditions are retained. Both the stream mouth and existing mudflats should be retained. A buffer zone around the stream, seagrass beds and mangrove should be designated as an SSSI under OZP or DPA plans
3. North and South Lantau coastal waters
The marine park at Sha Chau and Lung Kwu Chau should be extended to cover the whole of South
Lantau waters (see Figure 3). Sewage treatment facilities at Siu Ho Wan, Urmston Road and Pillar
Point should be upgraded to at least secondary treatment in order to meet Water Quality Objectives
and protect marine mammals. There should be no more reclamation of the natural coastline.
Highly valuable areas
4. Tai 0 wetlands
These should be designated as an SSSI under an OZP or DPA plan. The extent of the SSSI should be subject to further study.
5. South Lantau coastline, including Shui Hau mudflats and Pui 0 wetlands
All Government dumping in South Lantau should be stopped by effective contractual and legal enforcement. The Chief Executive should issue a directive to prepare a new DPA plan for South Lantau to enable effective enforcement of landuses in this area.
6. Proposed North Lantau Country Park extension, including Pok To Yan, Por Kai Shan, Wong Lung Hang and other forests currently outside country park controls
The proposed North Lantau Country Park extension area should be implemented immediately before any further damage or encroachment can happen.
7. Tong Fuk and Luk Tei Tong Fung Shui woodland
These areas should be zoned as a conservation area under an OZP or DPA plan
Valuable areas
8. Corridor between Tung Chung and Sham Wat
The North Lantau Country Park should be extended to the coastline or designated as a Coastal Protection Area under a new OZP or DPA plan. The proposed highway between Tung Chung and Sham Wat should be blocked and any new development south of the airport should be prohibited on the grounds that it would be affected by unacceptably high noise levels from the new airport. There should be no further reclamation of this coastline.
9. Sunshine Island, Shek Kwu Chau, Hei Ling Chau, Soko Islands
These islands should be designated as Coastal Protection Areas and Conservation Areas under new
OZP or DPA plans
10. Tai Long Wan and Yi 0
These areas should be designated as Coastal Protection Areas under OZP or DPA plan
11. South Lantau waters
The marine park should be extended to the south of Chi Ma Wan peninsula
12. Ngong Ping and Keung Shan
These areas should be designated as conservation areas under OZP or DPA plans
Conservation management
13. Damaged habitats such as the wetlands at Tai 0 and Pui 0 should be enhanced
14. Fire breaks should be provided at all cemeteries and burial grounds on Lantau
15. Prevention of hillflres should be properly enforced at Ching Ming and Chung Yeung festivals
16. Proper funding should be provided to Agriculture & Fisheries Department and Planning Department to implement the above recommendations.
We have an opportunity to conserve much at little cost on Lantau. Development in many areas of Lantau would threaten the considerable biodiversity, recreational, educational, scenic, cultural and other values of the island.
