Hong Kong should join the Asia Pacific Partnership and collaborate with the Guangdong government to reduce emission and control pollution, said two groups.

 

The partnership would bring more economic benefits to Hong Kong, said the International Council for Capital Formation, an organization that works to improve global business conditions and World Growth, an organization that aims to explore how globalization can help reduce poverty.

 

Speaking at a media briefing yesterday, Alan Oxley, chairman for World Growth, noted that emission reduction in Hong Kong is unnecessary, as it will make no real difference to global emissions.

 

Any substantial reduction in Hong Kong's emissions would also require new policies, such as carbon tax, which would raise the price of electricity and drive businesses away from the territory.

 

To strike a balance between environmental benefits and economic gains, Oxley noted that Hong Kong should join the Asia Pacific Partnership and use some of its existing technological frameworks to collaborate with Guangdong on programs that will reduce emissions across the border.

 

The Asia-Pacific Partnership, signed in 2005 by India, China, South Korea, Japan, Australia and the US, provides a practical approach to reduction of air pollution, through the promotion of advance technology rather than reduction of electricity usage. "It would distinguish Hong Kong as an intellectual leader in the region," he said.

 

(China Daily October 27, 2006)