A proposed artificial island, called East Lantau Metropolis, is set to be built in Hong Kong. However, according to environmental specialists, its proposed budget could at least be doubled so it could stand the worsening climate change and extreme weather.
According to the South China Morning Post, scholars and environmentalists alike advised the proposed East Lantau Metropolis should at least double its budget to be able to fend off extreme weather conditions in Hong Kong. It should be specially designed to withstand super typhoons and heat waves that would hit the country.
Environmental specialists revealed at the launch of a climate change education program on Saturday, September 8, that the already extreme natural disasters could become worse because of the worsening climate change. So the proposed 1,000-hectare island should be built higher to endure the rising sea levels and storm surges brought by super typhoons.
"If you want to minimize the chance of flooding, of course, the higher [above sea level], the better," Chinese University's Institute of Environment, Energy and Sustainability director Gabriel Lau Ngar-cheung said. However, it has a higher price to pay.
The climate change concern group 350 Hong Kong co-founder Ringo Mak Wing-hoi, on the other hand, cited a 2012 Dutch study that revealed the costs of infrastructures that could stand sea level that rose between 24 centimeters to 1.5 meters ranged from 9 billion Euros (US$10.4 billion) to 46 billion Euros.
It just proved that the costs of infrastructure increase as the sea level rises. So the government-proposed East Lantau Metropolis could probably cost over HK$1,000 billion.
The government has yet to reveal an official estimation of East Lantau Metropolis' budget, but non-government groups predicted it could be around HK$400 billion (US$51.3 billion) to HK$500 billion. These figures are given based on past reclamation projects.
Environmental groups claimed on Wednesday, September 5, extreme weather conditions could flood East Lantau Metropolis, as Typhoon Jebi managed to shut down Osaka airport. This warning came as the public consultation about "how to boost land supply" continued in the city.
There were 18 options built in the discussion that included the building of the proposed artificial island, East Lantau Metropolis. Hong Kong Observatory former assistant director Leung Wing-mo said the sea level in the country could probably rise by more than "one meter from 2000 levels" by the end of the century.
The weather in Hong Kong also became more extreme caused by the climate change. So there is a big possibility East Lantau Metropolis could be flooded just like Kansai International Airport. "The consequences can be dire if [the Hong Kong government] also fails to consider all scenarios in building the artificial island," he said.
