Asia/Pacific News
Hong Kong Group Renews Call for ECA
Saying that Hong Kong ozone pollution is at its highest level in almost 10 years, the environmental group Clean Air Network renewed a call for an emissions control area (ECA) in the region, the South China Morning Post reports.
"We would like the government to strengthen collaboration with the mainland and do more studies to find the sources" of ozone, and stop them, said Kwong Sum-yin, the group's chief executive.
Kwong called for quicker action to force ships to switch to less-polluting fuels while berthed, as well as coordination with Guangdong province on the Chinese mainland to create an ECA.
An Environmental Protection Department spokeswoman said the government is making moves to reduce emissions.
"To improve the regional air pollution, including the ozone problem, we have reached an agreement with Guangdong to achieve the emission reduction targets by 2015 and 2020," she said.
Despite the rise in ozone, there was a slight improvement in levels of nitrogen dioxide (NOx), sulfur dioxide (SOx), and particulate matter (PM) in the first half of 2014 compared with the same period last year.
A consultant with TRI-ZEN said last month that the concept of ECAs is attracting increasing interest in Asia, including in Hong Kong.
