Newly Elected District Council Members Show Commitment on Environment
96% Respondents Support MSW Charging
The 2019 District Council Election was held successfully. In order to encourage the public to monitor the green commitments of the 452 newly elected District Council members and to facilitate the implementation of environmental policies in communities, Friends of the Earth (HK) has consolidated and analysed their relevant information. They have shown an overall good level of awareness to environmental issues. Voters in various districts should monitor and build a green community together after the District Council members are elected.
FoE (HK) has conducted a survey consulting a total of 1,089 candidates from 18 districts about their views on environmental protection and sustainable development. We have sent out questionnaires to candidates by email, Facebook and Whatsapp. At the same time, we have also gathered electoral messages on environmental issues, if any, from the official website of "District Council Election 2019”.
40% District Council Members Answer the Questions
Among the 452 elected District Council members, we have received a total of 183 (40%) questionnaire responses, which is higher than the overall candidates’ response rate of 23%. Four questions were included in the questionnaire to understand their support for electronic road pricing, municipal solid waste charging scheme, feed-in tariffs, and tree planting.
100% of Respondents Support Tree Planting
Among the four questions, "tree planting" is well supported by the District Council members, with 100% in favour of the measure. It is believed that if the Government introduces greening policies in different districts in the future, it will receive full support from the District Councils.
96% of Respondents Support MSW Charging
As for the supposedly controversial municipal solid waste charging scheme, 96% of the respondents (175) were also in favour, that is, 39% of the elected District Council members in total. FoE (HK) urges the Government to seize the opportunity to submit the municipal solid waste charging plan to the Legislative Council for discussion as soon as possible, which will be a bold step towards waste reduction in Hong Kong.
Overwhelming Response on Electronic Road Pricing from Central and Western District
As for the response to the electronic road pricing scheme, the response is rather dynamic. The scheme was discussed in the meetings of Central and Western District Council before. 60% of the Central and Western District Council members (9 people) answered the questionnaire, and all were supportive. It is believed that the policy will have a greater chance of successful implementation in the Central and Western District in the future. However, the support for the Wan Chai District and Sham Shui Po District is as low as half or less. Overall, 77% of the responses were in favour. It is believed that the government should promote electronic road pricing with extensive consultation and research in the future.
Questionnaire questions and statistical results from the elected District Council members’ response are as follows:
Questions
|
Yes
|
No |
1. Do you support electronic road pricing in busy areas to reduce roadside air pollution and carbon emission?
|
77% |
23% |
2. Do you support the government’s municipal solid waste charging scheme to reduce waste at source, alleviate pressure on landfills, and promote the sustainable development of the recycling industry?
|
96% |
4% |
3. Do you support distributed renewable energy development at the district-level through the "feed-in tariff” scheme to mitigate climate change?
|
98% |
2% |
4. Do you support planting trees to increase the district’s green space, for relieving heat island effect, improving air quality, and enhancing liveability?
|
100% |
0% |
|
Qt 1
(Ans:Yes) |
Qt 2
(Ans:Yes) |
Qt 3
(Ans:Yes) |
Qt 4
(Ans:Yes) |
Central & Western District |
100% |
100% |
100% |
100% |
Wan Chai District |
50% |
50% |
100% |
100% |
Eastern District |
57% |
86% |
100% |
100% |
Southern District |
88% |
100% |
100% |
100% |
Yau Tsim Mong District |
89% |
100% |
100% |
100% |
Sham Shui Po District |
44% |
89% |
89% |
100% |
Kowloon City District |
92% |
100% |
100% |
100% |
Wong Tai Sin District |
78% |
100% |
100% |
100% |
Kwun Tong District |
72% |
94% |
94% |
100% |
Tsuen Wan District |
63% |
100% |
100% |
100% |
Tuen Mun District |
92% |
92% |
92% |
100% |
Yuen Long District |
100% |
100% |
100% |
100% |
North District |
100% |
100% |
100% |
100% |
Tai Po District |
100% |
100% |
100% |
100% |
Sai Kung District |
71% |
100% |
100% |
100% |
Sha Tin District |
56% |
100% |
100% |
100% |
Kwai Tsing District |
79% |
100% |
100% |
100% |
Islands District |
60% |
80% |
100% |
100% |
Environmental protection commitments of the 452 newly elected District Council members from 18 districts:

Central & Western District
|

Wan Chai District
|

Eastern District
|

Southern District
|

Yau Tsim Mong District
|

Sham Shui Po District
|

Kowloon City District
|

Wong Tai Sin District
|

Kwun Tong District
|

Tsuen Wan District
|

Tuen Mun District
|

Yuen Long District
|

North District
|

Tai Po District
|

Sai Kung District
|

Sha Tin District
|

Kwai Tsing District
|

Islands District
|