1.       Sustainability is at the heart of the Environmental Protection Department's (EPD) work, as reflected in our vision and mission statements. We are the main Government body responsible for protecting the environment and our policies and programmes affect everyone in the community.

VISION

2.       Our Vision is of a Hong Kong which enjoys an environment that is both healthy and pleasant, in which the community places a premium on sustaining such an environment for both themselves and future generations.

3.       Our Mission is to contribute towards realising this vision by applying our professional knowledge and judgement and drawing on our experience in environmental protection and conservation

  • to formulate policies and plans on environmental protection and conservation;
  • to increase community awareness of environmental protection and conservation issues;
  • to implement environmental protection legislation and plans; and
  • to participate in the town planning process

with a view to achieving and maintaining a high standard of environmental quality and conservation.

STRATEGY

4.       The EPD's responsibilities are spread across six programme areas ¢w air, environmental assessment and planning, conservation, noise, waste and water (see Chapter 6 - Part A for details). We have adopted the following general strategies for carrying out our work.

STRATEGY ENVIRONMENTAL RESULT

Contribute to the formulation of major policies and plans within the Government, including town planning.
  • Minimise environmental impact of policies, strategies and planning proposals.
  • Incorporate sustainability in the decision-making process.
Develop and implement environmental improvement programmes, monitor environmental quality and handle pollution complaints and incidents.

Achieve direct improvements in:

  • Air quality
  • Noise mitigation
  • Water quality
  • Waste management
  • Ecology conservation
Plan and provide waste management facilities. Ensure waste is handled and disposed of in a sustainable and environmentally responsible manner.
Establish regulatory control framework and enforce environmental ordinances. Reduce air, water, waste and noise impacts from polluting activities.
Build partnerships and engage stakeholders. Secure better co-operation and build capacity amongst all sectors in improving the environment.
Deliver environmental education programmes to promote environmental awareness and public participation. Increase community awareness and support for programmes to enhance our environment.
Support research and professionalism in the environmental disciplines. Contribute to the development of environmental professionalism in Hong Kong.

Environmental Policy

5.       The EPD has adopted an Environmental Policy that lays out guiding principles for carrying out our services, programmes and internal operations. These principles cover:

  • compliance with the letter and spirit of environmental law;
  • pre-emption of environmental problems through planning and prevention;
  • preparedness for dealing with emergency environmental incidents;
  • minimisation of consumption;
  • communication of our goals to our staff and the public; and
  • training and professional development of our staff.

Please see Appendix I for details.

6.       The management of EPD will review this policy and our environmental objectives and targets in light of changing internal and external factors, and seek continual improvement in our environmental performance.