Building Hong Kong: Environmental Considerations

2. Town Planning And The Environment: Role And Tools Of Private Consulting Planners

J Town Planning And The Environment: Role And ToolsOf Private Consulting Planners Bo-sin Tang and Andrew Siu-lo Lam I INTRODUCTIO N Hong Kon g i s bot h a beneficiar y an d victi m o f it s incessan t development . Rapid economi c growt h bring s wit h i t significan t improvemen t i n materia l wealth that is enviable by many developing countries. However, our remarkable success also leaves noticeable traits of environmental damage s (se e Table 1). Some peopl e sa y that , a s ther e i s n o suc h thin g a s a fre e lunch , poo r environmental qualit y is the price we pay for our actively growing economy . This is definitely incorrect. Development and environment are not necessarily at tw o opposin g ends . Specifically , th e relationshi p betwee n propert y development an d environmen t ca n b e i n th e for m o f a virtuous cycl e (se e Cairncross, 1993). Property development creates value to society. Such wealth can then be fed back into various environmental improvement provisions that farther enhance the property development values. As such, it is not justified to 44 I B.S . Tang and A.S.L. Lam regard environmenta l measure s a s simply a waste o f resources that doe s no t generate returns in the end . Table 1 Pollutio n complaint cases in 1996 Type of pollutio n Numbe r o f complaint s Air 6 16 0 Noise 7 441 Liquid waste 1 164 Solid waste 53 5 Water 8 3 Miscellaneous 9 Source: Information Services Department, Hong Kong Special Administrative Regio n (SAR) government This chapte r wil l briefl y illustrat e th e rol e o f privat e consultin g tow n planners i n handlin g environmenta l issue s embodie d i n privat e secto r development. Plannin g i s th e ver y first tas k i n th e inceptio n stag e o f an y property development project. In Hong Kong, town planning control is at the forefront o f the government' s developmen t contro l system . Most ofte n tha n not, ther e i s a nee d t o first obtai n plannin g approva l fro m relevan t publi c authorities befor e th e developmen t schem e ca n proceed further . I n man y o f these schemes, private town planners play an important function , albei t fe w people may notice, in the application process. 1 TOWN PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT Private propert y developmen t usuall y start s of f wit h thi s question : Ho w t o make the bes t us e o f the subjec t sit e to obtai n th e highest possibl e returns ? Different professional s ma y approach this question from varying perspectives and com e up with differen t answers . For instance, a n architect ma y be mos t interested i n formulatin g a n aestheticall y attractiv e building desig n scheme . On the other hand, a property valuer may tell how much the space is currently worth and advise whether it is appropriate to sell, retain or develop the site. As far a s town planners ar e concerned, they are most interested i n the land use, density and layout design of the development o f the site. Within the profession, town planning (chengshi guihua), land use planning (tudi liyong guihua) o r simply planning (guihua) are often use d as equivalent Town Planning And The Environment I 4 5 terms. Nevertheless, i t mus t b e pointed ou t tha t plannin g ca n perfor m ver y diverse functions in different mode s of society. Planners in a socialist economy would obviousl y have a greater authority in many aspect s of social life tha n their counterparts working in a capitalist society . Hong Kong is often praise d a s a laissez-faire econom y i n which marke t decisions dominate. Within this context, town planning is primarily concerned with managin g th e use of land. The purpose o f planning i s to optimiz e lan d and propert y developmen t s o as to...