Hong Kong has long had a Smoky Vehicle Spotter Cadre, a dedicated group of 1000 or so active citizen volunteers who, after basic training from the Environmental Protection Department, routinely report polluting vehicles to the Environmental Protection Department. These vehicles are then called in for testing and, if they fail, their owners are fined and the vehicles removed from Hong Kong’s roads.

With this in mind, Clear the Air, a leading Hong Kong NGO dedicated to persuading the Government, commerce and industry and citizens alike to take all possible steps to improve the quality of the air we all have to breath, re-focused its attention on Marine smoke pollution, an ever increasing, worldwide problem.

In October 2006, Clear The Air wrote to all Government Departments operating launches and aircraft (Police, Immigration, Customs & Excise and Government Flying Service) requesting them to encourage their staff to report offending vessels observed by their patrol crews to the Marine Department for action. This received a mixed response……

Following this, at a meeting with the Director of Marine, Mr. Roger Tupper, in December 2006, Clear The Air proposed that the Marine Department consider setting up a Smoky Vessel Spotter Cadre (SVSC) and that the Environmental Protection Department could initially be requested to contact their trained smoky vehicle spotters to recruit volunteers. This proposal was readily adopted and by mid 2007, 220 or so smoky vehicle spotters had volunteered to join the new Marine Department Smoky Vessel Spotter Cadre.

The first Marine Department Smoky Vessel Spotter Cadre training course for English speaking volunteers was held on 12 November 2007 with the second and third courses for Cantonese speaking volunteers being completed by mid December 2007. A total of 71 volunteers have so far been trained and further courses for the remaining 150 or so volunteers will be arranged during 2008.

The courses, run by the Marine Department and assisted by the Environmental Protection Department, were held at the Marine Department Training Centre and involved lectures on the law, vessel identification and reporting procedures and concluded with a trip around the harbour in a Marine Department launch to observe vessel types and problem areas. During the first trip, three polluting vessels were photographed and reported for follow-up action by the Marine Department:

It is to be hoped that, with increased reporting of offending vessels by Smoky Vessel Spotter Cadre members, (particularly ferries, lighters and river-traders), augmenting the Marine Departments own enforcement action and reports from other government departments, combined with newly introduced Hong Kong legislation to combat the problem, International Maritime Organisation (IMO) plans* and Marine Department initiatives with neighbouring provinces**, there will be a continuing improvement in the Marine air pollution situation within Hong Kong waters at least.

*Specifically, the Merchant Shipping (Prevention of Air Pollution) Regulation, Cap. 413, passed Legislative Council negative vetting in November 2007. Pending completion of the ratification formality with the International Maritime Organization (IMO), this regulation is expected to enter into force around mid 2008. This is local legislation to give effect to Annex VI of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL Convention), which imposes standards and control on the emission of ozone-depleting substances, NOx, Sox and volatile organic compounds from ships, and regulates fuel oil quality as well as the use of shipboard incinerators.

**At present the Marine Department's discussions with PRC authorities in Guandong and other nearby provinces is mainly in respect of the implementation of the new Merchant Shipping (Prevention of Air Pollution) Regulation on mainland river-trade ships trading to Hong Kong. Although it may take some time, a positive result is nevertheless expected. However, taking the Hong Kong Government as a whole, in 2002 the Hong Kong SAR Government reached a consensus with the Guangdong Provincial Government to reduce the emission levels of 4 major air pollutants by 20%-55% by 2010, using 1997 as the base year. To ensure delivery of the emission reduction targets, both sides have jointly developed the Pearl River Delta Regional Air Quality Management Plan setting out a series of comprehensive measures to reduce air emissions in the region. The Environmental Protection Department is the lead government department in this respect.

Clear The Air would, however, also like to see the speedy introduction of clean marine fuel, the replacement of old ferry engines (but not the Star Ferries themselves!), better education of and incentives for coxswains to avoid the production of unburned fuel as smoke and the introduction of “cold ironing” i.e. a requirement for all vessels docking in Hong Kong to shut down their engines and “plug” in to the local electricity grid to run essential systems.

Anyone interested in becoming a Smoky Vessel Spotter should e-mail marine@cleartheair.org.hk

Marine & Aviation, Clear the Air 18 December 2007