Yesterdays SCMP article
Dear DB Green,
This article really struck me as something everyone should be aware of. Take a look. http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1230183/plight-hong-kongs-pink-dolphins
Suggestions on action?
Kate
Beach Cleanup Sunday for an EXTRA green St Paddy’s Day!
Hi DB Greenies,
Just in case you haven’t quite got round to marking the years beach cleanups into your diary, here’s a little reminder that we have a beach cleanup Sunday at 1-4 pm at Nim Shue Wan- the beach on the way to the Marina Club. Hope you can make it!
Don’t forget to wear some green today for St Patricks Day!
See you there!
Kate
Community event
Do you have a few hours spare a month?
Are you keen to give something back to the community?
Discovery Bay’s local non-profit environmental group, DB Green, is meeting in Hemingway’s on February 20 at 7.30pm to discuss activities & events planned for 2013.
We invite all members of the community to come along to this open evening and hear how you can make a positive difference in your community, share ideas you may have for environmental activities in DB, and find out how to make DB a greener place to live!
We need people to join the team and help with recycling projects, beach cleanup, tree planting, website & social media, flea markets, school projects, admin and more.
DB Green for our community
Wednesday 20th February, Hemingway’s 7.30 pm
Wine by Barefoot
Snacks by Hemingway’s
Other giveaways
Find us on Facebook
CAN network msg: Government earmarks $10 billion to get polluting vehicles off the roads…
Government earmarks $10 billion for “carrot and stick” measures to get commercial diesel vehicles off roads
| The announcement that $10 billion will be earmarked to facilitate measures to eliminate the oldest, polluting vehicles is a clear sign of the current administration’s determination and commitment to tackling roadside pollution. CAN sees the Government’s “carrot and stick” approach as a welcome and reasonable first step – the tiered ex-gratia payments, with progressively smaller subsidies given to owners of older vehicles, reflect the “polluter pays” principle, a stance that CAN strongly supports.
However, a point of concern is that the dates of implementation to ban the most polluting vehicles are rather delayed. The earliest date will be 2016. According to the Hedley Environmental Index, from 2005 to 2011, air pollution killed, on average, 3,200 people per year. The public’s health is under dire threat and cannot wait another three years for roadside air quality to show improvement.
CAN recommends that the schedule for banning polluting vehicles be moved up by one year and regulations for vehicle inspection and maintenance be tightened. Long term solutions are also needed and CAN hopes that the Environmental Bureau, the Transport and Housing Bureau and the Council for Sustainable Development will work together to put forth specific measures for smart urban planning soon. |
You can read the press release here.
Trawling Ban in effect! A msg from WWF….
Dear Supporter,
I am pleased to inform you that as of 31 December 2012, the territory-wide trawling ban came into full effect. This legislation provides a solid foundation on which to build a sustainable fishery in Hong Kong. This ban, applicable to all forms of trawling in the entirety of Hong Kong waters, was one of our key conservation achievements in 2012 and it was your support that made it happen. Since 2005, WWF has been tirelessly campaigning for a ban on trawling in Hong Kong waters, and has been advocating that the government implement further measures to preserve the city’s near-collapsed marine ecology. This groundbreaking fisheries management measure will safeguard the diversity of marine life and ecological integrity of our marine environment. WWF hopes that the Hong Kong government will continue to provide support to the affected fishers and help them make the switch to other livelihoods like marine eco-tourism. We are also urging the government to implement the concept of Marine Spatial Planning, which will allow Hong Kong to allocate marine resources more efficiently, to balance ecological, social and economic objectives.
These gains aside, we are disappointed to have to inform you that another marine species in Hong Kong – the Chinese white dolphin – is also under threat. Over 1,700 hectares of the sea in western Hong Kong waters has been reclaimed in past decades, causing great disturbance and the direct loss of the habitat of this precious marine mammal. Compounding the problem, this reclamation has also removed the habitat of the fish on which these dolphins feed. WWF is urging the government to ensure that any possible impacts to the dolphins are kept to a minimum by putting in place sufficient environmental protection measures. We firmly believe a balance has to be struck between development and the survival of this unique species. Your support will help us improve the situation for the dolphins. Everyone in Hong Kong enjoys life in the ocean’s embrace, but our marine environment is under great pressure and the sea needs everyone’s support to restore its health and beauty. Your charitable contribution will make a big difference by ensuring the continued success of our marine conservation programs. Show your support by making a donation today. With every donation of HK$500 or above, you will receive a FREE dolphin key ring and a one-year WWF membership.
Yours Faithfully,
Samantha Lee
Senior Conservation Officer, Marine
WWF-Hong Kong
Please sign petition…..
Hi DB Green,
Please sign and pass on the petition below from Kevin Laurie.
And big thanks to those of you at the beach today!
Have a great week and sign sign sign!
Cheers,
Kate
Hi,
The Government is currently seeking input on the 2013 Policy Address, so we have initiated a petition asking for the establishment of four Marine/Country Parks which were previously proposed, but never designated.
Background
In 2001, the South West New Territories Development Strategy Review recommended a mix of development balanced with important conservation measures, to protect critical habitat for a number of marine and land species. In terms of conservation, the strategy recommended creating SW Lantau Marine Park, Soko Islands Marine Park, South Lamma Country and Marine Park, and Po Toi Country Park. Whilst much of the development in the Strategy Review has been undertaken, the conservation action has not been completed, therefore none of these important conservation areas have been established. Despite this, neither the science, nor the need for creating these parks has changed.
Petition
To address the imbalance that has arisen between development and conservation, in the 2012-2013 Policy Address, we have asked the Chief Executive to commit to establishing these areas as either parks or reserves. Details of the campaign can be found on Facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/MarineParksHongKong
The online petition can be found at:
https://www.change.org/petitions/we-want-marine-parks-in-the-2013-hong-kong-policy-address
Request
Can you PLEASE PROMOTE THIS CAMPAIGN to your members via Email, through Facebook or whatever other means you have. The more signatures the petition receives, the more likely the government is to create these parks.
Please note
The government are not the enemy in this case, so we do not want to make this a “public campaign”, but believe through reason, sensible advocacy and by quietly garnering public support, we can achieve these objectives.
Regards Kevin.
International Coastal Cleanup Sept 15 – Nim Shue Wan (1-5pm)
DB Green has a very SPECIAL beach cleanup event organized for this Saturday the 15th at Nim Shue Wan (1-5pm). This is the Annual International Coastal Cleanup.
At this event we will be recording data on all of the debris and rubbish collected by participants. This information is sent to Ocean Conservancy along with data from thousands of Coastal Cleanup events around the world and they will compile this data to provide a compelling global snapshot of marine debris collected during the International Coastal Cleanup.
Participants will be rewarded with a sausage sizzle and Barefoot wine (for the adults) and of course cold drinks for all compliments of our sponsors: Hemingway’s, Barefoot Wines and Hoi Yu
What to bring – a water bottle, sturdy shoes, hat, sunscreen and bug spra. We want to make this the GREENEST event yet so please bring only refillable water bottles.
DB Green will supply water for refills, gloves, rubbish bags, and various tools required for collecting the smaller bits like plastic pellets.
Please visit our FB page and let us know if you are coming: http://www.facebook.com/events/316256921806527/
See you on the beach!
Beach Cleanup Sunday 9am till 5pm
Hi DB Green,
This weekend we are concentrating our efforts on Sam Pak Wan. That is where you’ll find a DB green person at most times of the day- so if you are looking for guidance please go to that beach near the North Plaza.
HOWEVER Nim Shue Wan could also do with some work so if you are happy to work without us you will still find all the equipment, gloves and bags you might need at the central part of the beach near the concrete house opposite the pier.
Just a little note I would like to add- we see many people collecting nurdles for recycling- I think this was wrongly advised on tv and newspapers as the correct way to deal with the nurdles. While this might be the case for large quantities found together, at this stage of the beach cleanups, it is very VERY VVEERRRYYY time consuming to separate the nurdles from the rest of the beach debris and is a really inefficient use of your time. It would be much more effective to use a brush and dustpan to pick them up and place them either in the large cylinder sifters with handles situated at some of the beaches (see plastic cleaner facebook page on right) or into a sieve and then wet with the beach water to get rid of the sand. Whatever you are left with can go straight into the rubbish (feel free to rescue some shells from the leftovers and throw them back on to the beach before you throw in the bin.) To individually pick out each nurdle will be much slower. In fact on Sunday I might conduct an experiment: 10 mins of each method and see which one picks up the greatest quantity! IT IS QUANTITY NOT QUALITY OF THE NURDLES WE WANT! Of course if you are having fun picking them up individually or want to save them as a souvenir/top up your bean bag then please continue on!
Have a great weekend and hope to see you Sunday!
Cheers,
Kate
Beach Cleanups this weekend 25/26 Aug
Hi DB Green,
Apologies for not getting the information out to you about this weekends cleanups. Hopefully you’ve been keeping up on Facebook…
So beach cleanups will be going on Saturday and Sunday, 9am till 5pm, on Nim Shue Wan/Cheung Sha Wan and Sam Pak Wan- (see previous posts for directions to those beaches.) We will have a representative at each beach (Dana, Tracey, Stella, Angie and myself) will be distributed amongst the three beaches definitely in the morning period with a few of us in the afternoon. We will help you with the most economical methods of nurdle and rubbish collection however the bags and gloves will be there and limited equipment (first in) will be available all day at the beaches if you arrive and can’t find us.
Look forward to seeing you then!
Kate
Beach cleanups today 12Aug’12
Awesome effort today! Big thanks to all the volunteers! What a great day- perfect weather and working with great people just makes it all worthwhile. Every muscle in my body is aching but when you do this kind of work it is so uplifting. I completed a survey once that said that people who do environmental work are happier with life and have more satisfaction then those who don’t. I totally believe it! Another reason to keep up all your good work throughout your life! Heres’ some photos from today:
Peng Chau this morning:http://www.flickr.com/photos/30630752@N08/sets/72157631032330568/
Sam Pak Wan this afternoon:http://www.flickr.com/photos/30630752@N08/sets/72157631033168154/
Sam Pak Wan this afternoon:http://www.flickr.com/photos/30630752@N08/sets/72157631033168154/
Thanks again for all your hard work. And so nice to meet so many new beach cleaners today!
Remember to keep up to date with the latest news on our Facebook pg http://www.facebook.com/DBGreenHK
Kate