Hong Kong rail company proposes tunnel under wetlands for train to China
Copyright 2001 Associated Press
September 19, 2001
By Margaret Wong, Associated Press
HONG KONG — Hong Kong rail officials said Tuesday that they want to build a tunnel under wetlands for a new train line after conservationists stopped plans to run the tracks above ground.
The government-owned Kowloon-Canton Railway Corp. had planned to build a new train line on a viaduct between Hong Kong and mainland China in Long Valley, home to four endangered bird species.
Environmental regulators refused a permit last year, and the rail company lost its appeal in July.
Rail officials said Tuesday that the proposed 2.7-mile tunnel will raise the cost of the project by $180 million, to $1.28 billion. It will also delay the opening of the train line by two years, until about 2007.
Critics said they were still studying the proposal. "We appreciate the government's effort to try an alternative," said Ng Cho-nam, a university professor and president of The Conservancy Association.
Hau Kam-lam, a district council member and an indigenous resident of a 700-year-old village near the valley called Ho Sheung Heung, said he was happy with the new plan. Hau said it would not destroy the natural habitat and more important, it would not disturb the feng shui of the valley. Feng shui is the ancient Chinese system of managing luck by aligning buildings and furniture with natural elements.
Planners say the rail line is needed to handle the surge in travel between Hong Kong and the mainland since Britain returned the territory to China in 1997.