2021-10-06
[Press Release] Hong Kong Green Building Council Welcomes "The Chief Executive's 2021 Policy Address"
Hong Kong, 6 October 2021 - The Hong Kong Green Building Council (HKGBC) welcomes the Chief Executive’s 2021 Policy Address released today. The HKGBC shall continue to work in tandem with the Government and all the stakeholders on the following initiatives to further the commitment for a greener and more sustainable built environment, also to strive to achieve carbon neutrality before 2050.
Planning Northern Metropolis with Sustainable Development
The Council is delighted to see that the Government is developing the northern part of Hong Kong into a metropolitan area ideal for people to live, work and travel, balancing development and conservation. While the area creates the development capacity to meet the needs of our economy and our people’s livelihood, more green buildings are wished to be seen to foster a sustainable development.
Achieving Carbon Neutrality and Building a Liveable City
The Council supports the reiteration of striving to achieve carbon neutrality before 2050 and the target to reduce Hong Kong’s carbon emissions by 50% before 2035 as compared to the 2005 level. In the next 15 to 20 years, the Government will also devote about $240 billion to take forward various measures on climate change mitigation and adaptation. The ENB will set up the Office of Climate Change and Carbon Neutrality and a dedicated advisory committee. The Council will be happy to participate and provide advice.
The Council welcomes the Policy Address with specific plans for the three aspects as follows to meet the target of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.
Planning Northern Metropolis with Sustainable Development
The Council is delighted to see that the Government is developing the northern part of Hong Kong into a metropolitan area ideal for people to live, work and travel, balancing development and conservation. While the area creates the development capacity to meet the needs of our economy and our people’s livelihood, more green buildings are wished to be seen to foster a sustainable development.
Achieving Carbon Neutrality and Building a Liveable City
The Council supports the reiteration of striving to achieve carbon neutrality before 2050 and the target to reduce Hong Kong’s carbon emissions by 50% before 2035 as compared to the 2005 level. In the next 15 to 20 years, the Government will also devote about $240 billion to take forward various measures on climate change mitigation and adaptation. The ENB will set up the Office of Climate Change and Carbon Neutrality and a dedicated advisory committee. The Council will be happy to participate and provide advice.
The Council welcomes the Policy Address with specific plans for the three aspects as follows to meet the target of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.
1. Net-zero Carbon Emissions for Electricity Generation, and Green Buildings
The Council supports the Government on driving the development of renewable energy, and strive to increase its share in the fuel mix for electricity generation through facilitating local projects, regional collaboration and joint ventures, etc.
In terms of energy demand, buildings account for 90% of the electricity consumption in Hong Kong. The Council is delighted to see that the Government is further promoting green buildings and welcomes the Government’s goal to reduce the electricity consumption of commercial buildings by 30% to 40% and that of residential buildings by 20% to 30% from the 2015 level by 2050, and to achieve half of the above targets by 2035. The Council has been promoting Retro-commissioning (RCx) and various professional training and will continue to explore different energy saving and carbon reduction measures for new and existing buildings.
2. Popularisation of Electric Vehicles
The Council welcomes the Government to provide more suggestions on the popularisation of electric vehicles. The BEAM Plus certification has also included charging facilities for electric vehicles in buildings to promote the popularisation of electric vehicles.
3. Waste Management
The Council will fully cooperate with the government to step up our efforts in mobilising the entire community to practise waste reduction, developing waste-to-energy facilities and supporting the circular economy, especially in promoting the recycle of construction waste and the use of building products with reusable materials.
The Council supports the Government on driving the development of renewable energy, and strive to increase its share in the fuel mix for electricity generation through facilitating local projects, regional collaboration and joint ventures, etc.
In terms of energy demand, buildings account for 90% of the electricity consumption in Hong Kong. The Council is delighted to see that the Government is further promoting green buildings and welcomes the Government’s goal to reduce the electricity consumption of commercial buildings by 30% to 40% and that of residential buildings by 20% to 30% from the 2015 level by 2050, and to achieve half of the above targets by 2035. The Council has been promoting Retro-commissioning (RCx) and various professional training and will continue to explore different energy saving and carbon reduction measures for new and existing buildings.
2. Popularisation of Electric Vehicles
The Council welcomes the Government to provide more suggestions on the popularisation of electric vehicles. The BEAM Plus certification has also included charging facilities for electric vehicles in buildings to promote the popularisation of electric vehicles.
3. Waste Management
The Council will fully cooperate with the government to step up our efforts in mobilising the entire community to practise waste reduction, developing waste-to-energy facilities and supporting the circular economy, especially in promoting the recycle of construction waste and the use of building products with reusable materials.
Developing Hong Kong into a Green Finance Hub of the Greater Bay Area
The Council welcomes the government's continued development of green finance, and supports the HKEX to promote co-operation with the Guangzhou Futures Exchange, developing Hong Kong into a regional carbon trading centre and a premier financing platform for green enterprises and projects. As one of the green assessment and certification organisations, the Council will continue to promote the adoption of BEAM Plus certification among new and existing buildings.
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About the Hong Kong Green Building Council (HKGBC)
The Hong Kong Green Building Council Limited (HKGBC) is a non-profit, member-led organisation established in 2009 with the vision to aspire for quality and sustainability at every stage of the building life cycle and embrace these principles as a mark of excellence. The Founding Members of HKGBC include the Construction Industry Council (CIC), Business Environment Council (BEC), the BEAM Society Limited (BSL) and the Professional Green Building Council (PGBC). Its mission is to lead the market transformation to a sustainable built environment in Hong Kong by guiding the development of industry standards, best practices, education, and research in green building.
To learn more about the HKGBC, please visit www.hkgbc.org.hk.
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Hong Kong Green Building Council
Head of Marketing Heidi Hui Phone：(852) 3994 8833 Email：heidi.hui@hkgbc.org.hk |