BEC Monthly Features
BEC Issued Publication on Green Achievements of BEC Headquarters
The BEC Headquarters has been recently upgraded to include a number of green features, including an oil-free variable speed air-cooled chiller, a weather station, LED panels, light and motion sensors, and a rainwater collection system. The building achieved the Platinum rating of Provisional Assessment under the BEAM Plus Existing Buildings (version 1.2) of Hong Kong Green Building Council on 13 August 2014. It is the first commercial building in Hong Kong which has achieved the highest level of recognition under the BEAM Plus assessment for existing buildings.
To celebrate this achievement and share the details about green features of the building, BEC organised an unveiling ceremony for BEC Headquarters Transformation Project and a building tour at BEC Headquarters on 11 December 2014. BEC issued a publication titled “Commemorative Case Sharing: BEC Headquarters – First Commercial Building to achieve BEAM Plus Provisional Platinum Rating (Existing Buildings)” on the same day to celebrate the achievements of the project, and acknowledge the support of sponsors and companies that provided technical support and professional advice. The publication is also available in BEC website.
11 December 2014: BEC Seasonal Cocktail 2014
About 170 business leaders and executives, government officials, sustainability professionals and academics joined BEC’s Seasonal Cocktail held at BEC Headquarters on 11 December 2014 to celebrate the festive season together.
Ms Anissa Wong, Permanent Secretary for the Environment and Director of Environmental Protection, Ms Ada Leung, Director of Intellectual Property, Mr Enoch Lam, Director of Water Supplies and Mr Elvis Au, Assistant Director (Nature Conservation and Infrastructure Planning) of Environmental Protection Department joined BEC Chairman, Board Directors and CEO in a toast to a joyful festive season and a rewarding year ahead. Looking forward, BEC will continue to engage various stakeholders in promoting and supporting the development of Hong Kong’s environmental sustainability.
BEC Events
4 November 2014: Industry Visit to District Cooling System Plant at Kai Tak
The District Cooling System (“DCS”) supplies chilled water to centralised air-conditioning system for commercial buildings in Kai Tak new development area. 40 participants visited the chiller plant room, central control room and other facilities of the DCS.
14 November 2014: Industry Visit to Chemical Waste Treatment Facilities in Tsing Yi
35 participants visited the Chemical Waste Treatment Facilities in Tsing Yi, one of the most comprehensive and sophisticated hazardous waste treatment facilities in Asia. The group listened to a presentation about an integrated system for the treatment of chemical and clinical waste, followed by a tour of various facilities, including waste reception centre, storage tank farm and central control room. Participants were impressed by a mercury waste treatment facility which performed a series of specialised processes to separate and distill mercury.
21 November 2014: BEC EnviroSeries Conference
The BEC Enviroseries Conference, entitled “Connectivity and Sustainable Urban Transportation: Strategies and Solutions”, was held successfully at JW Marriott on 21 November 2014. 18 expert speakers shared their insights on the challenges and strategies on connectivity for urban sustainable development, low carbon transportation and the development of renewable fuels. The Conference attracted over 150 participants, including business leaders, industry experts, government officials and academics.
Mr. Frankie Yick, BEC Board Director, delivered the opening remarks, followed by a keynote presentation by Mr. Joseph Lai, JP, Permanent Secretary for Transport and Housing (Transport) of the HKSAR Government, on the Government’s policies to promote connectivity and sustainability.
27 November 2014: BEC Leadership Networking Series
About 40 BEC members and guests joined the November's Series to learn more about the glass bottle recycling programme currently implemented in Hong Kong, as well as a research about the impact of plastic usage on the business sector.
Mr. Stephen Siu, Senior Environmental Protection Officer of the Environmental Protection Department, shared the latest development of the Producer Responsibility Scheme on glass bottles. Mr. Doug Woodring, Founder of Ocean Alliance Recovery and Co-Founder of Plastic Disclosure Project, shared Plastic Disclosure Project’s recent research on plastic usage in the consumer goods industry and the benefits of good plastic management.
12 December 2014: Industry Visit to Ngau Tam Mei Animal Waste Composting Plant
BEC organised an industry visit to Ngau Tam Mei Animal Waste Composting Plant (“AWCP”) in Yuen Long to learn more about the composting technology and its contribution to waste management.
AWCP was originally built to treat horse stable waste generated during the 2008 Olympic and Paralympic Equestrian Events. The AWCP now turns horse stable waste, together with other organic waste, into organic compost by in-vessel composting technology with a maximum treatment capacity of 40 tonnes per day.
BEC Upcoming Events
8 January 2015: Industry Visit to Shatin Sewage Treatment Works
Shatin Sewage Treatment Works is the largest secondary sewage treatment plant in Hong Kong. It occupies 28 hectares of land and treats 250,000m³ of sewage produced by about 600,000 residents in Shatin and Ma On Shan every day.
Participants will visit the primary sedimentation tanks, aeration tanks and final sedimentation tanks, as well as to learn more about the sewage treatment process and its contribution to environmental protection.
For registration and enquiry, please contact Ms. Amy Ma (T 2784 3960 | E amy@bec.org.hk).
BEC Partnership Programmes
The Second Roving Exhibition of the "Up-cycling the Tai Po Community"
Over 2,000 people visited the second roving exhibition of the "Upcycling the Tai Po Community” Project, a community outreach programme jointly organised by BEC and the Hong Kong Federation of Women's Centres, at Mikiki in San Po Kong from 14 to 16 November 2014. The exhibition showcased up-cycling masterpieces of pet clothes that were made from used garment materials by designers and women in Tai Po district.
For more details about the programme, please visit http://www.womensd.hk or Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/womensd.hk.
HSBC Living Business Awards Presentation Ceremony 2014
The HSBC Living Business Awards Presentation Ceremony 2014 was held on 28 November 2014 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. Entering its tenth year, the HSBC Living Business Programme 2014 was launched with the theme “Connect to Sustainability, Connect to Success”. With reference to the global trend of sustainability, the programme has encouraged and helped small and medium-sized enterprises to gauge their success and achieve business sustainability in the areas of environmental protection, community engagement and employees caring.
This year, the Awards received over 1,300 applications in showcasing contributions of the business sector to the Hong Kong community and environment. BEC has been acting as one of the partners for the programme in the last 10 years. BEC would like to congratulate all the awardees and certificate winners for operating their businesses with the community, the environment and their employees in mind.
For more details about the Awards, please visit http://www.hsbc.com.hk/livingbusiness.
EPD Territory-wide Glass Bottle Recycling Programme for Housing Estates
To promote glass bottle recycling in Hong Kong, the Environmental Protection Department has commissioned BEC to coordinate the implementation of the glass bottle recycling programmes in Hong Kong. As of November 2014, over 500 private housing estates and over 150 public housing estates have already participated in this programme.
All housing estates and residential buildings with property management offices are welcome to participate in this programme. To learn more, please contact Mr. Jonathan Li (T 2784 3921 | E em_admin@bec.org.hk).
BEC IEE Training Courses
BEC Institute for Environmental Education ("IEE") will organise various environmental training courses during January to February 2015 as follows:
Indoor Air Quality (“IAQ”) Management & Improvement (4th Intake) (15 January 2015) – Participant can have an overview of IAQ, learn different chemical and biological components that affect IAQ, as well as know the ways to manage and improve IAQ.
BEAM Plus Familiarisation Training for Site Supervisors (22 January 2015) – BEAM Plus for New Buildings, an environmental assessment scheme for buildings, requires site supervisors to oversee the implementation of a series of good site practices. This course offers comprehensive training that enables site supervisors to know how to manage BEAM Plus responsibilities in order to fulfill pre-requisite requirements and attain credits for site management, supervision, testing and commissioning.
BEAM Plus Familiarisation Training for Contractors (4th Intake) (5 February 2015) – This course offers a wide range of training that enables contractors to better manage their BEAM Plus responsibilities, including preparation of the necessary documentations to demonstrate compliance.
Please visit BEC website to view more details and schedules of BEC IEE programmes. For registration and enquiry, please contact Dr. Veronica Chan (T 2784 3937 | E beciee@bec.org.hk).
Information for BEC Members
BEAM Plus Platinum Project Public Exhibition
The BEAM Plus Platinum Project Public Exhibition is held by the Hong Kong Green Building Council at Central Star Ferry Pier 7 from 2 to 14 December 2014. Visitors can know more about green buildings in Hong Kong with outstanding environmental performance. BEC Headquarters, which is the first commercial building in Hong Kong that has achieved BEAM Plus Existing Buildings Platinum rating, is also featured in the Exhibition.
You are welcome to visit the Exhibition to discover the benefits of green buildings. For more details, please visit https://www.hkgbc.org.hk/eng/events/BEAMPlusExhibition.aspx.
Briefing Session on the Proposed Establishment of a Harbourfront Authority
The Harbourfront Commission (“HC”) and Development Bureau (“DEVB”) have jointly launched Phase II Public Engagement Exercise on the proposed establishment of a Harbourfront Authority (“HFA”) on 25 September 2014. In this regard, HC and DEVB will conduct a briefing session to collect feedback from BEC members on the proposed detailed arrangements for establishing a HFA. The briefing session will be held at 10:00am – 12:00pm on 13 December at City Gallery, Central. Details of the briefing session can be found here.
Green Technology Corner – Showcase at BEC Headquarters
BEC has launched the Green Technology Corner at BEC Headquarters to provide more opportunities for members to showcase their green technologies and products. For more details about the arrangements of the Green Technology Corner, please contact Ms. Kitty Wong (T 2787 3924 | E kitty@bec.org.hk).
BEC Members Corner
29-year-old Nick Wong Named Hong Kong’s Best Truck Driver
The “Scania Driver Competition 2014 – Hong Kong” attracted over 700 drivers to participate. After a theoretical test, 100 drivers were selected to take part in a fuel economy road test in the streets and the 30 drivers who drove in the most fuel-efficient manner were further professionally assessed by the Hong Kong School of Motoring.
The 10 drivers who stayed the calmest, drove most carefully, best fuel economy and showed the best road handling ability then entered the final stage. After rounds of competitions and assessments, 29-year-old Nick Wong proved himself to be Hong Kong’s best truck driver for his excellent road handling ability of Scania Trucks. For more details, please visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWhhDdtRdRc&feature=youtu.be.
Airport Authority Hong Kong Published its Second Annual Sustainability Report
Airport Authority Hong Kong ("AAHK") published its second annual sustainability report for fiscal year 2013/14 on 12 November 2014. The report explains how Hong Kong International Airport ("HKIA") continues to support the sustainable development of Hong Kong amidst the increasing pressure on the operating capacity of the existing two-runway system.
The report sets out AAHK’s approach and performance in four key areas of sustainability related to airport operations: economic contribution, operational and service excellence, environment, and people and the community. Highlights of AAHK’s sustainability performance in 2013/14 include:
- Reduced total electricity consumption by 4.2% despite passenger volume growing by 6.1%, which marks one of HKIA’s biggest environmental footprint reductions since its opening in 1998;
- Achieved the best-ever safety performance, with an Airport Composite Safety Index[1] of 5.32; and
- Collaboration with public transport operators and other stakeholders to improve transportation to and from the airport for HKIA staff.
The report fulfilled the Global Reporting Initiative Application Level A+ requirement and was externally verified, thereby providing greater transparency and accountability to AAHK’s stakeholders.
The Report is available at: http://www.hongkongairport.com/eng/media/publication/sustainability-report/SD-reports-2013_14.html.
"BEC Members Corner" is dedicated to BEC members for the purpose of introducing their recent achievements, success stories, innovative ideas or solutions on environmental sustainability. Members are invited to provide us with an English write-up with a maximum of 200 words, which BEC will reserve the rights of editing and publishing. The submission deadline for the next E-newsletter is 23 December 2014 (Tuesday).
To submit an article or enquire about this section, please contact Ms. Joey Hui (T 2784 3958 | E joey@bec.org.hk).
BEC Members Update
Please join BEC in welcoming the following members:
Corporate Member
KPMG
Sealed Air Hong Kong Limited
General Member
DSA Company Limited
Shangri-La Hotel (Kowloon) Ltd
BEC Supporting Events
| Date | Event | Organiser |
| 17 April 2015 | HKIE Environmental Division Annual Forum "The Future Directions and Breakthroughs of Hong Kong's Environmental Industry" http://bec.org.hk/events-current/the-hkie-environmental-division-annual-forum-the-future-directions-and-breakthroughs-of-hong-kongs-environmental-industry |
HKIE Environmental Division |
| 2014 | 5th Hong Kong Corporate Citizenship Program http://bec.org.hk/events-current/the-5th-hong-kong-corporate-citizenship-program |
Hong Kong Productivity Council |
| 2014 – 2015 | The "Let's Save 10L Water" Campaign http://www.waterconservation.hk/en/main.html |
Water Supplies Department |
| 2014 – 2015 | HSBC Water Programme for Industrial Water Management http://bec.org.hk/events-current/hsbc-water-programme-for-industrial-water-management |
Hong Kong Productivity Council |
| 2014 – 2015 | HKSTP Soft-landing Programme for Technology http://bec.org.hk/events-current/hkstp-soft-landing-programme-for-technology-and-innovation-collaboration |
Hong Kong Science & Technology Parks Corporation |