Policy Address

Land Restructuring and Enforcement

Agricultural Land

120. The New Agriculture Policy announced last year is making good progress. The engineering feasibility study of the Agricultural Park will be completed soon. The $500 million Sustainable Agricultural Development Fund started accepting applications from the end of last year. A study on Agricultural Priority Areas will commence later this year to identify relatively large areas of quality agricultural land and formulate policies and measures to promote the rehabilitation of fallow agricultural land and improve the rural environment.

Brownfield Sites

121. The aim of re-organising the land use of brownfield sites and releasing such sites for development is to optimise their use, improve the rural environment and provide suitable land for relevant industries. The priority is to develop areas concentrated with brownfield sites through comprehensive planning by way of large-scale new town development approach. The developments in Hung Shui Kiu, Yuen Long South and Kwu Tung North/ Fanling North NDAs currently underway cover about 340 hectares of brownfield sites. Moreover, the Planning Department will conduct a survey on the distribution and use of all brownfield sites in Hong Kong this year.

122. Many brownfield operations related to such industries as logistics, port back-up, recycling, vehicle maintenance, as well as construction, are performing social functions. Taking Hung Shui Kiu NDA as a pilot case, the Government is now exploring the consolidation of brownfield operations into multi-storey industrial buildings or through other efficient means of land use, so as to release the brownfield sites for development.

123. Meanwhile, the Government will continue to take stringent enforcement actions against illegal land uses, including unauthorised development under the Town Planning Ordinance and illegal occupation of government land, in the rural New Territories (including brownfield sites).

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