Long-term conservation of Sha Lo Tung through non-in-situ land exchange 非原址換地長遠保育沙羅洞

Sha Lo Tung 沙羅洞
On 22 Apr, the Earth Day, the Hong Kong Countryside Foundation congratulated the Government for securing the ownership of ecologically important land in Sha Lo Tung by reaching an agreement with the Sha Lo Tung Development Company Limited on the terms of a non-in-situ land exchange.

The idea of the non-in-situ land exchange for the conservation of Sha Lo Tung was initiated by @the Hong Kong Countryside Foundation. It was first brought to the attention of the government when HKCF representatives met Carrie Lam, then Secretary for Development in May 2012, shortly before she became Chief Secretary.

HKCF sustained its lobbying effort over the years, culminating in the Exco decision in June 2017 to proceed with the negotiation with the private landowner, shortly before the term of CY Leung as CE ended. It has taken the energy of yet another CE to bring the difficult negotiation to a close as her term is about to end too.

The success in the protection of Sha Lo Tung is attributed to the effort of numerous people and many green groups since the 1980s. Without them, Sha Lo Tung could have been turned into a golf course or even a columbarium, and numerous dragonflies and other freshwater species would have become history. The land exchange marks a new era of hope. However, the conservation and protection of Sha Lo Tung do not end here. A lot remains to be done to revitalise culture and nature which used to reside in Sha Lo Tung.

Those wishing to know more about how the efforts of HKCF on Sha Lo Tung started may go to the 2012 chronology of HKCF website via this link: https://www.hkcountryside.org/?cat=22

4月22日(地球日),政府宣布與沙羅洞發展有限公司就非原址換地條款達成協議,我們恭賀政府取得沙羅洞(又名沙螺洞)有高度生態價值的土地業權。

沙羅洞「非原址换地」概念最早由香港鄉郊基金提出,2012年5月本會代表向時任發展局局長(很快就成為政務司司長)林鄭月娥會面陳述。

本會持續多年進行游說工作,最終行政會議在2017年6月梁振英行政長官任期完結前決定展開與相關公司的談判,最後需要多一位行政長官的努力,才能夠在任期即將結束時完成艱巨談判。

保育沙羅洞之成功,全頼眾多個人及環保團體由八十年代至今的不懈努力,否則沙羅洞早已成為哥爾夫球場或骨灰龕場,大量蜻蜓和淡水生態物種或早就消失和變成歴史,今次的土地交換標記新的有希望時代,不過沙羅洞的保育並未完成,仍然要做大量工作,才能復育這裡的自然及文化。

要了解更多鄉郊基金保育沙羅洞的工作,可参閲網頁記事2012年連結:https://www.hkcountryside.org/?cat=22

2022年4月22日政府新聞稿全文