‘Layman’s manual’ on Hong Kong’s green roofs hopes to allay public fears
The group behind the plans, which includes professionals and environmentalists, hope it will avoid a mass removal of green spaces which have already been installed.
A “layman’s manual” is being drafted to ease public fears over the safety of green roof projects following the collapse at City University last month.
The group behind the plans, which includes professionals and environmentalists, hope it will avoid a mass removal of green spaces which have already been installed.
Led by Chinese University associate professor Edward Yiu Chung-yim, the group has also called on the government to set up a taskforce so industry practitioners and building owners can be given clear guidelines on when and how regulations should be followed when undertaking greening work.
Issuing a petition letter on Wednesday, which was endorsed by WWF Hong Kong and Greenpeace, Yiu said society should not only learn from the CityU incident, but also take it as an opportunity to step up promotion and development of greening projects in Hong Kong.
One of the suggestions is to implement a categorised surveillance system so individual owners can gauge whether further action should be taken after assessing the age, design, loading limit, and condition and maintenance levels of the building.
Asked why owners should take matters into their own hands and bear the risk, Yiu said ownership of buildings in Hong Kong is often split between multiple parties, and owners’ corporations were often reluctant to shell out money to hire professionals.