The EPD aims to deter pollution offences through regulation (such as licensing specific polluting industries) and enforcement against offenders. It has also developed a partnership programme to improve operators’ understanding of the law and their compliance (see 5.4 Building Partnerships for details). The department has also strengthened its complaints response system to ensure complaints about pollution are dealt with promptly.

Licensing

The EPD has set up one-stop shops that accept applications for all types of pollution control licences. Applicants may either visit one of the nine one-stop offices in person or apply on-line.

Inspections

The EPD’s inspection system has undergone changes due to fewer resources. Previously, polluters were inspected a preset number of times per year. In 2003, a “beat” system was introduced in which officers patrolled areas and carried out routine inspections, with prioritised response to complaints. Targeted enforcement was also stepped up against known polluting activities, mainly illegal livestock waste and oil discharges. Although with fewer resources, Local Control Offices still maintained the same standard of service to the public and carried out a total of 64 309 targeted and routine inspections in 2003. The department is also trying to save time through greater use of portable digital assistants. These are somewhat limited in their application, for example in recording statements, so it is hoped mobile computing capabilities can be developed in 2004.

Photo of An EPD inspector tries out a palm-held device in enforcement work.

Complaints

In 2002 the EPD Customer Service Centre was set up to ensure callers can speak promptly to one of our trained telephone operators. In 2003 more than 95% of callers spoke to an operator before hanging up. The average waiting time was four seconds, as against a target of 12 seconds. 40% of complaints and 98% of enquiries were resolved over the phone. The complaints information database used by the Service Centre is based on a geographical information system and it received a Special Achievement in GIS Award at the 23rd Annual ESRI International User Conference held in July 2003 in San Diego, USA.

In 2003 the EPD investigated 19 889 complaints, similar to 2002 when 19 449 complaints were investigated. The Police investigated another 4 010 complaints. There was a major increase in complaints to the department about waste and water pollution due to heightened concerns during the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome. Noise complaints decreased as more operators complied; economic factors may have also had an influence as less construction work was carried out on Sundays. Air complaints were also up, with more complaints being aired through the media. Reports of smoky vehicles continued to drop due to the motor vehicle emissions control programme.

Prosecutions

The EPD published its Prosecution Policy on its website in 2003. This is not a requirement, but was carried out in the spirit of greater transparency and in pursuance of the cause of justice, and to make the prosecution process more understandable to the public.

Prosecutions are handled by a Central Prosecution Section (CPS), which was set up in 2001 under the leadership of a barrister who is also a chartered building surveyor and an Authorized Person. The section deals with not-guilty pleas and in 2003 this involved 74 cases.

The CPS trains in-house prosecutors and provides advice to enforcement staff on legal matters, case preparation and the gathering of evidence. In 2003, a Legal Information System (LIS) was introduced to enable local control officers to download information from a centralised source, including court judgements and legal circulars such as "The Disclosure of Material to the Defence in Legal Proceedings" and "How to be a prosecution witness in Magistrate's court".

The number of prosecutions has dropped since 2000 due to the success of the partnership programmes, better awareness of the legal requirements among operators and a downturn in economic activity. In 2003 there were 535 convictions, as against 1 689 convictions in 2000. Convictions were down for all four of our formal partners – the construction industry, restaurants, vehicle repair workshops and property management. An offender was jailed for exporting hazardous waste without a permit, and that was the only anti-pollution imprisonment sentence imposed during the year.

Other Work

Chart of Reducing Smiky Vehicles.

The EPD and the Police co-operate in enforcement against smoky vehicles. The Police have the authority to hand out $1,000 fixed-penalty tickets to offending vehicles. The number of offenders has dropped due to the EPD’s vehicle emission control programme.

The Sewerage Connection Programme involves connecting unsewered villages in the New Territories to a proper sewerage system. In 2003, 333 village houses and 2 800 villagers were connected. Since 1995, 3 675 village houses and 26 900 villagers have been connected.

Response to Emergency Incidents

The EPD works closely with other government departments such as the Fire Services Department, Marine Department and Government Laboratory to provide a speedy response to environmental incidents. Comprehensive response plans are in place for dealing with 36 different types of emergency situations on land and at sea, including oil and chemical spills.

The EPD provides dedicated support for all emergency situations and the Chemical Waste Treatment Centre contractor provides chemical waste collection and disposal services for incidents involving chemicals. In 2003 the EPD was involved in 26 land-based incidents and 4 marine-based incidents. Clean-up work was required in these incidents and was carried out satisfactorily.

An Emergency Response Drill team was set up in 1999 to enhance staff performance and readiness in emergency situations. In 2003 it conducted 2 drills.

We will actively encourage businesses and other organisations to adopt pollution control measures.

We have an emergency response system for handling environmental
incidents and are prepared to respond quickly to minimise the damage
to the environment.