As the main Sea Shepherd fleet make final preparations on Operation Relentless in Melbourne Australia to head to the Southern Oceans to confront the illegal whale poachers from Japan, here in Hong Kong Sea Shepherd are engaged in stopping development plans that threaten to destroy marine ecosystems within Hong Kong's country parks.
Currently a proposal sits in front of the Town Planning Board, a proposal to allow development within the country park enclaves of Hong Kong. Whilst the proposal is a substantial document there are some very key components that have been either overlooked or deliberately left out.
In Hoi Ha Wan the proposal does not take into consideration the Marine Park that is adjacent to the proposed area of development, an area designated as an SSSI (Site of Specific Scientific Interest) and home to 64 of the 84 species of coral found in Hong Kong, and of course the diverse marine life that are found within such coral communities.
Prepared By Sea Shepherd Hong Kong. 2013
In Pak Lap Wan, the bay adjacent to the proposed development, the population of Amphioxus will be threatened from any sedimentation or pollution that may enter the water. The Amphioxus are one of three living fossils found within Hong Kong and is regarded as a link from the evolution of marine invertebrates to vertebrates, they date back over 500 million years. More can be read about them here: http://dspace.cityu.edu.hk/handle/2031/4884
These tiny eel like organisms live mostly buried in the sand. Results indicate that seawater at amphioxus habitats has two essential characters: firstly, oceanic; secondly, low content of suspended solids. Such findings were consistent with results obtained from laboratory observations: B. belcheri could not survive at low salinity (LC50 at 17.5‰); and high suspended solids in the water could induce physical damages on the oral cirri of B. belcheri. Thus, it can be concluded that clear oceanic water combined with sand sediment with low organic content are the most important habitat requirements for amphioxus.
The Oversight
What the Town Planning Board have completely failed to take into consideration is the underlying geology. Many of these enclaves are found in valleys with rivers entering the ocean. The geology found in these areas is mostly built up from deposits washed down from the hills over thousands of years. On many the highly porous Alluvium deposit is found.
Placing a septic tank soakaway system in ground comprising of (Qa) alluvium or other (Qb) beach deposits would be fatal for the nearby marine life, the ground would be as absorbent as a sieve allowing raw untreated sewage and gray waste-water to enter the environment.
What this would mean is that nitrogen and phosphorous would enter the bays at Hoi Ha Wan and Pak Lap Wan. Both nitrogen and phosphorus are destructive to coral communities and the organic matter will be fatal for the amphioxus.
It is for this reason why Sea Shepherd Hong Kong is getting involved with stopping the development plans for these enclaves, until a solution for responsible development is found that will not destroy marine life or the marine environment.
We have drawn a line in the sand..... anything crossing that line that has a negative effect on the marine environment is of concern to us.
We currently have two petitions running at the moment, please sign each. This will send an individual letter into the Town Planning Board and the Country & Marine Parks Board to let them know that development is not an option.
http://chn.ge/1cD47Xh
http://chn.ge/1fdrokG
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