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High Court Decision on Wanchai Reclamation Since the recent pronouncement of the High Court Judgment of Madam Justice Chu in the Judicial Review of the Wanchai Reclamation instituted by our Harbour Society against the Town Planning Board, there has been misleading comments and unwarranted and unjustified criticism of the effect of the Judgment. Our Society has therefore found it necessary to publish this Position Statement to explain the Judgment itself and the effect thereof. In her Judgment, the Learned Judge substantially agreed with our Society and ruled that:- “In my view, the purpose and extent of each
proposed reclamation
Furthermore the Learned Judge decided that, in arriving at a decision to reclaim, “the decision should be founded upon objective and cogent evidence before the statutory duty can be said to be properly discharged”. Therefore according to the Judgment, reclamation is only permitted where there is a genuine necessity to satisfy a present need which is more important than the harbour. The need must be one that cannot be provided by any other means and the damage caused to the harbour must be kept to a minimum. Hopefully this Judgment will save Victoria Harbour from certain destruction through excessive and unnecessary reclamation. This Judgment represents a sensible and sensitive balance between the urgent need to protect what is left of the harbour and the necessity to provide essential infrastructural facilities for the development of Hong Kong as a world-class city and for the enjoyment of the harbour by the community. It condemns excessive and unnecessary reclamation, such that our unique harbour can be preserved as an invaluable natural heritage for the benefit of our future generations. In the Wanchai Reclamation, the Government’s proposal was to reclaim 26 hectares for the following purposes :-
We instituted the Judicial Review because we objected to reclamation for the last two purposes, that is, the 10 hectares for commercial and other uses which the Government intended to sell for private development as well as the 3 hectares for the totally unnecessary Harbour Park which no one, not even the Government, supported. The High Court found that the Board had erroneously adopted the wrong interpretation of the Protection of the Harbour Ordinance based on the flawed legal advice submitted by the Government that, as long as the Board considered there were sufficient public benefits, the Board could approve the reclamation. In her Judgment, the Learned Judge decided against the Board's interpretation as being contrary to the intention of the Harbour Ordinance which requires all public officers and public bodies “to protect and preserve the harbour as a special public asset and a natural heritage of Hong Kong people”, and ruled that as “the waters in the Harbour is becoming precious in the present time”, “it is incumbent upon public officials and authorities to treasure what is now left of the Harbour”. By this court case, our Society has been accused of causing delay in the construction of the Central-Wanchai By-pass. This is untrue. Our Society has always supported a public promenade and the Central Wanchai By-pass which runs underground and is essential for traffic relief. Our Society has been making this clear since more than three years ago when the Government first consulted the public regarding this Wanchai Reclamation scheme. In the Objection Hearings, we had also repeatedly warned the Government and the Board of the consequences of the wrong decisions they were making, but our protestations were simply ignored. Therefore they must bear the blame for the present unfortunate results in the waste of time and public moneys as well as the legal costs of the court case that both sides have to bear. A member of the Board has publicly claimed recently that the Judgment would prevent future development of the harbour for enjoyment by the public. That is also untrue. As he well knows, our Society has always supported enjoyment of the harbour by the public, for example, the provision of public promenades along the harbourfront. What we object to is the Government using that as an excuse for massive reclamation for the production of land for sale to private developers as is being proposed in the Wanchai Reclamation. Only 13 hectares, half of the approved 26 hectares, are needed both for the By-pass and a public promenade as essential infrastructure. That was why the Judge pronounced that “What the Board appeared to have done is to make use of the opportunity of reclaiming land for essential infrastructure to make zoning and planning provisions for developing the Harbour”. By now over 3,000 hectares (11.5 square miles), almost half of the harbour, have already been reclaimed but the Government still plans to reclaim more than 600 hectares (2.5 square miles) of the harbour as set out below. Our Society hopes that, in the light of the Judgment, the Government and the Board will urgently review these on-going and proposed reclamations.
This Judgment is very important for the people of Hong Kong, not only for the present but also for future generations. It affirms the principle established by the Harbour Ordinance that the harbour is a special public asset and a natural heritage of Hong Kong people. Therefore by law, the harbour belongs to you and every one in Hong Kong. As part of your property and assets, you have a duty to look after it and a right to decide whether it should be damaged and diminished through reclamation. It is for you to stand up and speak out for the harbour. Our Society has done as much as we can in defending and protecting the harbour for you and all the citizens of Hong Kong up to now. We have been doing this for the past eight years. It is time for us to pass the torch to you. Dated 11 August, 2003
Background Proposed Reclamation in Victoria Harbour Projects Undertaken by the Society Presentation by Mr. Lester Huang (Downloadable PowerPoint File - 1 MB) Detailed Presentation on Background of Reclamation (Downloadable PowerPoint Slideshow - 10 MB) The Pros and Cons on Government's OZP and SPH Proposal(Downloadable PDF File - 1.5 MB) Read the Harbour Primer Online
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