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Improving Hong Kong's Environment |
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Building Partnerships and Encouraging Compliance |
Mission:
To serve the community through enforcing pollution control laws to safeguard people’s health and welfare, to work with others and continue to build partnerships, and to promote corporate environmental management in both public and private sectors, in pursuance of sustainable development objectives.
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The toasting ceremony of the 10th Anniversary of the "Vehicle Repair Workshop Trade Partnership Programme". |
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The 2010 Environmental Seminar under the Vehicle Repair Workshop Trade Partnership Programme. |
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The Green Restaurants & Retailers Seminar in June 2010. |
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10.2 To assist the local restaurant trade to go beyond compliance, we have provided advice to the Environment and Conservation Fund Project entitled “Quality Restaurant Environmental Management Scheme” run by the Hong Kong Federation of Restaurants and Related Trades and the HKPC. The Scheme promotes environmental measures and recognition of good performance through training and accreditation.
10.3 We carried out over 100 environmental site audits at construction sites and existing buildings in regard to the Development Bureau’s Considerate Contractor Site Award Scheme and the District Councils’ Quality Building Management Competitions.
10.4 We are working closely with the construction and property management industry to help improve the environmental performance of buildings. In 2010 two additional courses of Environmental Officer for the construction sector were launched and a set of contents on environmental protection aspect were completed, jointly with the Hong Kong Construction Association for incorporation by training institutions. In addition we established communication channels with renovators’ trade association for distributing green advisory packages for conducting renovation works via the trade association to their members and collaborated with HKU SPACE to incorporate environmental protection content into Professional Diploma in Housing Management. Finally we published poster and delivered talks to promote good environmental practices in managing refuse rooms. |
Compliance assistance
10.5 The Compliance Assistance Centre (CAC) is a one-stop shop where individual operators can get information, advice and face-to-face help in applying for EPD-related licences, thus making it easier for them to comply with environmental requirements. In 2010 we handled about 525 cases each month.
10.6 Information about environmental licences for about 600 trades is also available on the Government’s Business Licence Information Service (BLIS), which provides information on setting up new businesses in Hong Kong. In 2010 it was further updated and the BLIS was linked to our CAC web site to facilitate the setting up of new businesses in Hong Kong. |
Corporate Environmental Management
10.7 We encourage organisations in both the public and private sector to conduct environmental audits, set up environmental management systems and report regularly on their environmental performance. Within Government, all bureaux and departments have appointed Green Managers and published annual reports of their environmental performance (see Appendix III). We have also established a website where listed companies in Hong Kong are urged to share their environmental reports and thus inspire others to follow suit. |
Case Study 8 - Quality Restaurant Environmental Management Scheme (QREMS) |
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"Quality Restaurant Environmental Management Scheme" kick-off ceremony. |
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The “Quality Restaurant Environmental Management Scheme” was kicked off in 2010 to uplift environmental performance and competitiveness of the local restaurant trade. The project was proposed by the Hong Kong Federation of Restaurants and Related Trades (HKFORT) and the Hong Kong Productivity Council (HKPC) and is funded by the Environment and Conservation Fund. It aims to establish an accreditation scheme and a training programme for local restaurants to implement environmental management and resources conservation. It is the first accreditation scheme of its kind in Hong Kong, and a good example of the local trade being able to demonstrate corporate social responsibility to exceed beyond legislative compliance. |
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See also: Targets - Our Progress and 2011 Aims.