Dear all
The Hong Kong Bird Watching Society has since December last year mounted
a campaign to stop a planned railway to run through Long Valley in the
New Territories of Hong Kong. We would like to seek your kindly
support.
Long Valley is the last example of the once extensive flood plains in
the northern New Territories. The area contains a diversity of
micro-habitats which allow it support a diversity of birds. More than
200 bird species have been recorded here. In the draft IBA (Important
Bird Area) plan for Hong Kong, Long Valley has been made part of the
"Deep Bay - Shenzhen River Catchment Area".
The area is effectively the last place where wet agriculture is
practised in Hong Kong and so carries a particular heritage value in
addition to its biodiversity value.
The Hong Kong Bird Watching Society raised formal objection under local
law in December 1999. However, recent indications are that the
government and the railway company are determined to proceed with the
planned route which bisects the most valuable habitat into two halves,
in spite of alternative routes being proposed by the Hong Kong Bird
Watching Society. Another railway route on the drawing board will also
run into the plain in a few years' time, fragmenting the habitat further
and totally destroying the ecological value of the habitat.
One thing we have achieved so far is that a highway originally going
into Long Valley has been diverted to its periphery. We are asking the
government why the railway could not do the same.
You could visit our website at http://www.hkbws.org.hk where you would
find a special section on "SAVE LONG VALLEY". You might like to note
that this was only the second objection raised by the Society in its
forty three years of existence; the last time being against real estate
development destroying wetland in the Deep Bay - Mai Po area which has
now been designated as a Ramsar Site. We see Long Valley as the inland
equivalent of Mai Po.
We would like to seek your kind support in the form of e-mail through
the "SEND" icon at the page http://www.hkbws.org.hk/lvalley/index.html
to the Hon. Tung Chee-hwa, the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region, China. (his e-mail address is:
ceo@ceo.gcn.gov.hk). You may also enter your
opinion in the message box. Please ask him to stop the railway from
going in Long Valley and further ask him to promote active government
management of the habitat with conservation as the primary objective,
with side benefits in terms of heritage preservation, education for the
younger generation and eco-tourism opportunities.
Please forward this message to your friends and colleagues, and ask them
to help saving this precious wetland.
Thank you for your support.
Yours sincerely
Carrie Ma
Project Officer
Hong Kong Bird Watching Society