Air Pollution

in Hong Kong

• Guidelines • 1. Evidence of air pollution in HK • 2. Causes of air pollution in HK • 3. Solutions to the problems

Type Sulphur dioxide Nitrogen Dioxide Causes

-Coal burning power plant & heavy industry -Power plant -Vehicle emissions

Respirable suspended particulate

-Coal burning power plant -Diesel exhaust

Ozone

-Reaction in sunlight of volatile organic compounds (primarily come from cars)

Health risk

-Reduce lung function -Exacerbate asthma -Increase respiratory infections -Forming smog -Penetrate deep into lungs -Aggravate serious respiratory and cardiovascular diseases -Exacerbate asthma -Chest pain -Coughing

Negative impacts of air pollution

•

Long-term exposure to putrid & poisonous air

• esp. for factory workers • Irritate underlying respiratory conditions • Increase risk of pulmonary & heart disease • Reduce life-span

Evidence:

• According to the World Health Organization, • 2/3 of the 800,000 premature deaths is caused by air pollution (globally occur in Asia)

Negative impacts of air pollution

•

Environmental cost

• Deterioration of living environment • In April,2006,

human-resources consultancy ECA International

dropped HK 12 spots to No.32 on its annual list of the

most livable cities

for Asian expatriate ,chiefly on the basis of air pollution. (Singapore was No. 1.)

Negative impacts of air pollution

•

Social cost

• Respiratory illnesses • →Medical cost ↑ • →Productivity of labour↓ •

Evidence:

• According to brokerage firm CLSA, • the city's business community esp. HK ,loses more than $90 million a year in medical costs and lost of productivity due to air pollution

Descriptions on the situation in HK

•

Low visibility

• Declining visibility (below 8 km) • 16% in 2004 i.e. almost 60 days in 2004 saw HK shrouded in fog • Skyscrapers could be glimpsed only through a veil of noxious smog •

Effects:

• On 19 August 2004, 8 ships had minor collisions in smoggy Victoria Harbor due to low visibility • Affect the aesthetic value of city’s landmarks

Reasons for air pollution in HK

•

Power plants -

China Light and Power (CLP) & Hong Kong Electric Company (HEC) produce -90% of the local levels of SO 2, -60% of the local levels of NO X -45% of local RSP emissions and -less than 1% VOCs •

Vehicles

• 530,000 licensed vehicles in Hong Kong with total road length 1,900 km ---> the road traffic density one of the highest in the world (275 vehicles per kilometre of road) • About ¼ vehicles use diesel fuel --> 98% of the RSP --> 75% of the NOx from vehicular sources.

Reasons for air pollution in HK

•

Canyon effect

• Narrow streets & tall buildings • Traps pollutants along road • Increase health risk •

Traffic density

• Highest in the world • Roadside pollution has remained severe

Reasons for air pollution in HK

•

Chemicals

• VOCs – a major precursor to the formation of photochemical smog.

-activities in the PRD -vehicles -painting,printing inks -consumer products •

Industrial factor

• 90% of manufacturing plants in HK use… • Backup-electricity generator (more polluting) • Instead of grid power

Reasons for air pollution in HK

• Regional pollution in PRD • Relocation of industries in the 80s + economic growth of PRD (at 8-9% per annum) • Increasing demand for energy • Change in consumer behavior • Physical setting of PRD – Sheltered by hilly and mountainous ranges –  pollution in the region is localized – Urban Land Sea Breeze Circulation

Reasons for air pollution in HK

• Urban Land Sea Breeze Circulation Formation : • Temperature rises due to energy use • Leave an area of low pressure • Air rises about 1-2 kilometres • Spread out horizontally

Reasons for air pollution in HK

• Reasons that affected HK • Mix with pollutants from different emission sources around the PRD • Wind current do not change much -> increase air pollution level due to increase in urban and industrial development around the PRD

Different pollutant emission in PRD

Emission Approximate tonnes (1997) Energy Industry Motor vehicles VOC containing products Total VOCs 470,000 1% 11% 55% 23% 90% RPS 270,000 15% 60% 14% 0% 89% NOx 560,000 42% 13% 31% 0% 86% SO2 570,000 54% 39% 4% 0% 97%

Urban Land Sea Breeze Circulation

Urban Land Sea Breeze Circulation

HK

Worsening air pollution

• •

Source of pollutants:

•

China Light & Power

burns coal & reluctant to use more expensive natural gas esp. in 2003-2004 (Tsing Yi,Lung Kwu Tan) • •

80%

city pollution comes from

across the border

local winds by •

Air monitoring station recorded a "very high" reading

• 2003  53 days days with serious air pollution↑ 50.94% in a year • 2004  80 days

Suspended particulates in the air is up to twice the safety standard in the U.S.

Air Pollution index

hit a high of 149

Worsening air pollution

PRD

• In Guangzhou, fine-particulate levels are up to five times U.S. safety limits • From 1997-2010: Economy: increased by 150% Population: increased by 20% Electricity demand: increased by 130%  Vehicle mileage: increased by 180% Heavier air pollution

Solutions : Sustainable Development

•

Anti-air pollution work done by the Government since 1999

• i)

Diesel taxis → LPG taxis

Gas) (Liquefied Petroleum • ii) Provided

financial aid or electric vehicles

for

light buses → LPG

• iii) Introduced

ULSD

(ultra low sulphur diesel)

•

Anti-air pollution work done by the Government since 1999

• iv)Upgraded the motor petrol standard to

Euro IV

• v)

Fines $1,000

for

smoky vehicles

increase to • vi) Required power plants to

maximize

the

use of natural gas

• •

Anti-air pollution work done by the Government since 1999

• vii) Install

vapour recovery

systems at petrol stations

*vapour recovery

: recover the vapours of gasoline or other fuels so that they do not escape into the atmosphere Gas nozzle with vapour recovery

Sustainable Development

•

Achieving the 2010 emission reduction targets by:

• Require

power companies

to

↓ emissions

,

↑use of natural gas

in electricity generation • Control

VOC emissions

products from selected (VOC = volatile organic compounds)

Achieving the 2010 emission reduction targets by:

• Working with Guangdong Environmental Protection Bureau (GDEPB) on an

emissions trading pilot scheme

covering power plants in Hong Kong and PRD • restrict

vehicle use

on high-pollution days • impose

energy tax

power use during periods of peak

Co-operation between HK & PRD Government

• Help manufacturers to

source cleaner fuels

• Fast-track

low-polluting liquid natural gas

for power producers • Improve the city's inefficient energy use by turning down subarctic office air conditioning

Pressures to urge the PRC government to improve air quality

The 2008 Beijing Olympics: • The capital has spend $ 8.1 billion on

environmental-protection projects

from 1998 to 2003. • Switch highly polluting diesel buses to cleaner compressed natural gas (CNG) • Promised

stricter emissions standards by 2007

on cars

Difficulties to dampen air pollution by reducing energy consumption in China

•

Heavy reliance on coal

• Coal is cheap and abundant, it supplies 70-80% of the country's energy • coal use is still expected to nearly double by 2030 •

Large scale of power demand

• Industrial combustion • domestic consumption in boomtown like Shenzhen :

car boom

• No.of automobile per household↑31% from 2003 to 2004 • • China's Ministry of Communications estimates vehicles on the road • 2004 → 20 million • 2020 →140 million the no. of total no. of vehicles ↑ 600% within 16 years

energy shortage

in 2003 • coal mines and power plants that had been closed for environmental reasons were quickly reopened and sulfur dioxide emissions soared

Other difficulties

• People do not realise that they themselves are polluters. • Since there are many sources of air pollution, they tend to point the finger at others • No one is willing to pay the price to improve air quality

Failure of anti-pollution measures

•

Bureaucratic barriers

• Central government's best intentions are often not implemented on a local level •

Lack of financial support

• Central government provides just 10% of their budget •

Low Penalties

• Polluting factories keep paying fines rather than installing expensive cleaning equipment • Evidence: Just 5-6% China’s factories employ desulphurization technique no incentive or disincentive to change behavior

Conclusion

• A globalized problem • Government ought to cooperate and work together • Strike a balance between economic development and environmental protection • More education should be provided to arouse general awareness of the problem