An Assessment of The Agricultural Priority Area Scheme

Title
Author(s)
An assessment of the agricultural priority area scheme
Li, Hon-kwong, James.; .
Citation
Issue Date
URL
Rights
1991
http://hdl.handle.net/10722/27685
The author retains all proprietary rights, (such as patent

rights) and the right to use in future works.
AN ASSESSMENT OF THE AGRICULTURAL

PRIORITY AREA SCHEME
BY
James LI HON KWONG
Master of Public Administration Dissertation

University of Hong Kong
1991
Acknowledgements
This
work could not
have
been accomplished
Professor Ian Scott's patient and enlightening
without
guidance throughout.
While allowing me to preserve the

originality of the work to the largest extent, he read
every line, every page and every note and suggested many
For an amateur in agriculture
corrections to the draft.
and town planning, Professor Scott's guidance could not
been more useful.
Every mistake in this work however
is mine.
I
must
thank
the
Agriculture
and
Fisheries
Department which enabled me to have free access to the

materials contained in its library. (Thank you, Pinky!
knew I have created a lot of trouble to you).
would also like to thank Mrs. Betty Neoh who

I
It must be
made the whole thing possible at the outset.
God's blessing for a staff like me to have her support and
forbearance.
Last but not least, I have to thank Ling for

taking up the most monotonous and tiresome part of the
It required no
work by typing the whole draft for me.
less love and care than skill for her to have put up with
it so beautifully.
James H.K. LI
June 1991
Acknowledgements
Pages
Chapter
Introduction
15
Chapter
vegetable farming in
the New Territories
6-23
Chapter
Agricultural land-use
under urbanization
24-28
Chapter
Land policies in the

New Territories and the
effects on agricultural
land-use
39-64
Chapter
Land use planning in

Hong Kong
65-84
Chapter
Agricultural Priority Area

Schente - an assessment
85-114
Chapter
Towards a land-use policy

for agriculture
115-140
Appendix I
Hong Kong agricultural

land-use 1953-1980's
Appendix II
Hierarchy of land-use plans
Bibliography
Author's note:
Different scales of weights and square measure are used

throughout tMs dissertation.
The following conversions
are provided for readers' reference:-
i hectare
= 10,000 sq. meters (2.47 acres)
i acre
= 6 dau chung
J. picul
133 lbs (0.06 metrIc tons)
i kilogram = 2.20 lbs
To all the genuine

farmers in Hong Kong
T go to work when the sun comes up;

rest when it goes down.
I get water from the well I dig;
food from the field I plough.
To me, what's the use of power?
Anonymous,
'Song of Percussion",
in A Collection of Early Poems
1000 B.C., China.
Chapter 1 IntroductIon
The objective of this study is to discuss what and

how
land-use
planning
can
do
agriculture.
for
The
methodology used is to analyse, through the experience of
the Agricultural Priority Area Scheme,
the cause-effect
relationship between land-use planning and environmental

changes,
background
the
and
constraints
land-use
for
planning; and the political and soclo-economic elements of

land-use planning policies.
The
scope
this
of
therefore two-fold;
study is
agriculture and land-use planning.
Agriculture in this
study refers to market gardening with vegetable farming as
its main concern and flower farming playing a residual

There
part.
Quantitatively,
represented
74%
productlon.(1)
for
people
are
two
In
1989,
local
vegetable
the
value
of
of
justifications
the
for
this.
production
total
crop
Qualitatively, vegetable Is the main diet
and deserves
particular attention
for
that
reason.
Agriculture In the conmon sense includes livestock

rearing.
the
In this study, livestock farming is excluded for
following reasons.
Firstly,
livestock farming and
vegetable
farraing
problems.
Livestock farming produces animal waste which
if
not
properly
different
have
disposed
characteristics
will
of
cause
and
environmental
problem.
In contrast, vegetable farming is considered the
vanguard
of
producing
environmental
primary
Apart
protection.
products,
it
from
favoured
is
by
environmentalists as it has effective greening impact on

the environment.
vegetable
From another environmental perspective,
farming
considered
also
is
victim
of
environmental pollution in the forms of acid rain and soil
Secondly, government has different policies
erosion.(2)
for livestock farming and vegetable farming.
To control
the environmental impact caused by livestock farming, the

government adopted
Livestock Waste Control Scheme in
1988 which imposed strict measures to control the disposal
of livestock waste in all livestock farms in Hong Kong by

The
phases.
certain
Scheme
areas.
Po
farming is allowed,
Area is devised.
also banned
draw
up
livestock
farming
in
in which livestock
areas
the concept of Livestock Up-grading
This is a separate policy different from
the Agricultural Priority Area Scheme which is the target

of
this
farming
s.udy.
is
not
Thirdly, mixed livestock and vegetable
widely practiced
in
Hong
Kong.
The
separate modes of farming can be clearly delineated by the

two
different groups
allows
separate
of
academic
farmers
studies
practices.
and land used.

on
the
two
This
farming
Land-use planning Is about planning the uses of

1and.
Simple and clear as it sounds, it is sometimes used
interchangeably and jointly with town planning and urban

It is a deliberate government policy to change
planning.
the environment.
Agriculture and land-use planning are two separate
subjects which deserve scholarly research in their own

The attempt to put these two subjects together in
right.
one
piece
of
research
is
bound
be
to
means a lot particularly to agriculture.

the
of
lies
land
agricultural
In Hong Kong,
in
the
New
Due to rapid urbanization in the past three
Territories.
agricultural
decades,
without
Land being one of the factors of production,
limitations.
most
not
land
in
the New Territories was
encroached upon by urban development.
Coupled with the
historical background and the administrative practices of

land policies in the New Territories, the shrinkage of the
agricultural sector was accelerated.

and
Four,
we
shall
in Chapters Three
look at how agricultural
land was
forsaken in these circumstances.
In
land,
the
trying to
government
halt the decrease of agricultural

attempted
various
encourage cultivation of fallow land.
measures
to
One of these was
the Agricultural Priority Area Scheme which was a quasiland-use planning measure.
Due to its deficiencies, the
attempt tailed.
order to assess how the government
Iii
proceeded with the Scheme and why it failed, we shall in
Chapter Five analyse how land-use planning policies are

made and what these policies embrace.
shall
scrutinise
the
implementation and how

chapter,
agriculture
Scheme,
it
fell
venture
shall
In Chapter Six, we
to
origin,
Its
through.
In
establish
its
the
last
case
for
in land-use planning and see what land-use
planning can do for agriculture.
This study sees agriculture from the perspective

of land-use planning.
Problems facing agriculture which
are out of the realms of that perspective are not dealt

However, lt should be borne in mind
with in this study.
that these problems such as shortage of farming labour and
large gap
in prices between farm produce and consumer
products,
are
difficult.
of
same
the
urgency
and
are
no
less
This socio-economie aspect of agriculture will
need to be taken care of by other research which however

are scarce in Hong Kong.
that
the
Planning
Crie positive sign emerging is
Department
is
undertaking
socio-economic survey on agricultural undertakings In Hong
Kong which will serve as a base for sensible policy for

local agriculture.(3)
It is hoped that in the context of
a favourable land-use
planning policy, local agriculture
will one day be given an opportunity to take up a fair

share in the development of the society.
Notes
1)
Hong Kong 1990 (Government Printer, Hong Kong),

P.111.
2)
Acid rain is not consideied a culprit for crop

damages in Hong Kong.
Farming
At the 3rd meeting of the Crop
Sub-committee,
Protection
Environmental
Department and Agricu1ture and Fisheries Department

denied that acid rain occurred in the New Territories
and that it caused damages to crops.
(See minutes of
the 3rd Crop Farming Sub-committee of the Advisory

Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries on 3 January
1989,
unpublished.)
However,
lt
is widely claimed
that vegetable farming suffered badly from flooding

and
soil
erosion
caused
by
indiscriminate
and
uncontrolled use of land adjacent to the farmed land

for open storage of containers and abandoned vehicles
and by large scale public projects.
See Chapter
Three.
3)
See South China Morning Post, 20 April 1991.
Chapter 2 Vqgetable f arming
in the New Territories
"Up ta 1641, the whole area of Hong Kong, Kowloon

and
the
New Territories was
with
rural,
sorne
seven to eight hundred villages large and small,

on
hill
and
sometimes
the
subsistence
fishing,
plain,
sea
relying
for
economy was
based
but with commodites
the
on
land
livelihood.
on
such
farming
as
and
A
and
granite,
salt, saitfish, exported by sea to the populated

areas of the Pearl River Delta and Canton. S(l)
From
place
capable
of
exporting
raw
commodities, as Hayes reported, to one which imports 100%

of rice and 66% of vegetables, Hong Kong has gone through
dramatic and basic changes in agriculture in almost one

and
half
From
century.
1841-1941,
the
growing
urbanization of the northern shore of Hong Kong harbour

first took
over,
then required or
removal of old villages.
led to
the gradual
In this process, changes were
associated with a switch from rice farming to vegetable
farming and livestock rearing to meet the needs of the

urban population . (2 )
Urban expansion spread to Kowloon
after its cession in 1860 and gained momentum after 1900.

The
first decade
of the New Territories after it was
leased to Britain in 1899 was marked by great improvement
in communications through construction of roads, and o

the Kowloon Canton Railway.
After a decline of population
due to disease, reduced birth rate and the departure of

boys and adult males to work as manual labour overseas, a
modest expansion of the old market town in Then Long,

Fanling and Tsuen Wan followed.
population
of
the
From 1920s onward, the
Territories was
New
increased by a
steady flow of worker Immigrants from China, many of thera

agriculturists who stayed on.
growing
Rice
activity
the
until
was
the
late
1950s.
principal
Before
agricultural
the
Japanese
occupation, over 80% of the colony's agricultural land was

under rice cultivation.
The quantity
and quality of the
production was so high that part of it was exported to San
each year
Francisco
for
the
use
of
Chinese
residents
During the Japanese occupation period, there
there.(3)
was an acute shortage of food and a lack of employment

opportunities
for
the
New
Territories
villagers.
In
consequence, a majority of the irrigated land was used to

grow rice.
In
(1946-1953),
the
early
part
of
the
post-war
prices of paddy were relatively high.
years
The
price incentive
lured more people to agriculture.
In
addition, the colonial government was keen on encouraging

paddy cultivation.
in his agricultural policy
Biacide,
report in 1954 stated "Paddy is the most important grain

crop of the Colony and every endeavour should be made to
extend
improve yields
on
existing
It should not be supplemented by other crops'
areas.
(4)
cultivation and
its
Most of the resources of the Agriculture Department
which
was
up
set
experiments,
in
1946,
demonstrations
were
devoted
extension
and
to
during
paddy
this
period.
Despite
the
government's
promotion
of
rice
cultivation, a great change in agricultural land-use from
paddy to vegetable growing was taking place.

role
of
this
change was
The main
played by the refugees
from
mainland China after the Second World War and during the
Civil
War
in
China
(1915-1949).
Influx
of
refugees
increased local population from less than 600,000 in 1947
to 3,000,000 in 1961.
Most of them were from Guangdong
and Fujien Provinces who were skillful in cultivation.

(5)
For
these
refugees,
who
had
little capital
but
considerable skill and industriousness, vegetable farming

was the only profitable undertaking.
The rise of vegetable farming in Hong Kong
Paddy cultivation comprised the cultivation of

fresh-water paddy, brackish-water paddy and upland paddy.
Over 70% of the total agricultural land, or 23,352 acres

were
under
paddy
in
Except
1954.(6)
irrigated with brackish water,
for
the
lands
where only one crop was
obtained, most of the paddy fields produced two crops a

year.
Wong reported that in the early years, vegetables
were grown following the second rice crop and on drier

A
land. (7)
Department
of
Fisheries
Agriculture,
&
Forestry investigation in 1950 found that the increase in

acreage
under
vegetables
was
the
result
of
bringing
hillside land under cultivation and the reclamation of old
abandoned cultivation areas, the rice acreage being only

slightly decreased.(8)
The development of hillside area
and the re-cultivation of abandoned areas were efforts

mainly put
farming
orth by new immigrants . (9 )
showed
itself
became interested.
successful,
many
When vegetable
local
farmers
Instead of leaving the land fallow in
winter, between rice crops, whenever possible cash crops

or tomatoes or other winter vegetables were grown.
A few
of the less tradition-bound areas went over completely to

vegetables and allowed outsiders to rent some of the clan
land. (10)
In 1952/53, there were 21,700 acres of land which
were under paddy cultivation while 2,400 acres were under

vegetable cultivation.(11)
acres
of
land.(12)
paddy
land
In 1966/67, there were 12,380
and
8,660
acres
vegetable
of
In 1987, there was virtually no paddy land left
and under intensive encroachment of agricultural land by

urbanization,
acres.(13)
vegetable
Appendix
from 1953-1987.
land
shows
amounted
only
to
5,360
the agricultural land-use
The Agriculture and Fisheries Department
gave three reasons for the change of land-use from paddy

cultivation to vegetable farming.
Firstly, the short term
leafy type vegetables commonly grown in Hong Kong could be
harvested more frequently than paddy: six to eight crops

per annum was considered a normal yield.
The demand for
vegetables in local markets was great and therefore cash
Secondly, land owners who
was more readily available.
rented their paddy land to vegetable growers, demanded and
received a higher rental for their land.

normally rented for
chung
(1/6
acre)
1/2
Paddy land was
to 2 piculs of paddy per dou
per annum.
Whereas the saine
land if
rented for conversion to vegetable production was let for
two to four piculs of paddy per dou chung.

landowners
were
vegetable farming.
willing
to
let
out
Hence more
their
land
for
Lastly, many of the immigrants, who
had entered the colony after the end of the Second World
essentially vegetable growers.
These people
owned no land and had very little capital.
They therefore
War were
lo
needed
to
return.(14)
grow
crops
which
would
produce
quick
McGee and Drakkis-Smith considered that the
opening up of road transport in the New Territories was a
facilitating factor for the conversion of paddy land to

vegetable farrning.(15)
However,
to the list of factors
must be added the establishment of the Vegetable Marketing

Organization in 1946.
(See the following)
The 'vegetable revolution' brought about certain

important social effects in the New Territories.
farmer required at least
A rice
1.5 acres in order to make a
living for his family; but under an intensive system of

vegetable
farming,
family
can
make
comfortable
livelihood on the produce of 0.3 acres.(16)
Much of the
fertile and accessible agricultural land was bought or

rented for intensive vegetable farming.(17)
It shattered
the ancestral land held by powerful clans as Old Schedule

Lots.
Judith Strauch studied the impact of the growth of
market
gardening
Yuen.
She
land
on conventional
land pattern
in Fung
found that such disintegration of ancestral
encouraged
the proliferation
of
squatter huts
as
outsiders who were cultivators could rent land, but not

village houses.
peasants"
dreams
It also macle possible a lot of "middle

of
being
landlords
coming
true . ( 18)
Fragmentation of agricultural land became a phenomenon.
These outsiders do not form a community in any sense.
11
Social life for the most part is carried out in isolated

family units, linked only by networks of dyadic bonds of
personal friendship with other farailies.(19)
As far as land ownership is concerned, the rise

of
vegetable
farming.
farming
led
to
an
increase
in
tenancy
Based on the 1965 Farm Survey, it was found that
over 87% of vegetable land was rented,

permit.(20)
subrerited or on
This is a striking contrast to the indigenous
paddy farmers, most of whom were private or clan owners.

In Contrast with paddy farming in which rent was paid in
paddy grains, vegetable farmers preferred to pay rent in
money.
In recognition of the value of the vegetables that
were replacing the traditional rice crop, landowners also

preferred to accept rents in cash terms.
Vegetable Marketing Organization
When vegetable growing was relatively unimportant
in Hong Kong in the years prior to the Second World War,

the marketing of such vegetables was in the hands of laans
or
middlemen.
Nost
farmers
were
indebted
to
these
middlemen who, after giving advances of money on credit,
were then able to buy from the farmers at low prices and
sell
to
retailers
at
high profit margins.(21)
12
Goran
Mjmer described the
a constant information
as"
farmez
seeker, and the kind of knowledge he needs can be obtained
from friendly neighbours who have just returned from a

marketing
expedition,
or
the
front
general
tea-house
conversations during which much of the price negotiating

of
the
process
markets
local
can
take
regarded
be
as
place.1r(22)
The marketing
time-consuming,
unreliable,
uneconomical and unfair to the farmers.
After the Second
World War, the government, with a view to rehabilitating

the farming industry, "introduced a long needed reform by
taking the marketing of vegetables out of the hands of

middlemen which lead ultimately to co-operative marketing
by the farmers themselves."(23)
In 1946,
the Vegetable
Marketing Organization was established under the authority

vested
in
the
Director
of
Marketing.
It
was
first
established by an order made under the Defence Regulations

of
1940 which was replaced in 1952 by the Agricultural
Products (Marketing) Ordinance, Cap. 277.
By the order,
the movement and sale of vegetables in Kowloon and the New

Territories
Organization.
put
was
This
completely
meant
in
under
practice
control
that
of
the
all
the
vegetables grown in the N.T. or brought into the N.T. and
Kowloon for sale, were moved only by the Organization's

transport and brought to the Vegetable Wholesale Market in
Cheung Sha Wan where they were sold by open auction to

registered bidders.
better price
for
Phis practice was able to secure a

farmers
and
13
lower
price
for
the
public.
lorry
Hence, even though "the drivers and crews of the

fleet
the
of
Organization
often
rudely,'(24)
official
openly
show
Vegetable
Marketing
discontent
behave
and
the farmers preferred to make use of the
Organi zation s service.
The post of Director of Marketing has been filled
by a nominated governntent officer since it was created.

Since 1964 it has been held by the Director of Agriculture
and
Fisheries.
The
Organization
mainly
operates
to
provide services for the improvement of agriculture or of

the
marketing
collection,
storage,
agricultural
of
transportation,
adaptation
advertising
of
non-profit-making
products
sale,
for sale,
and
for
the
packing,
grading,
insurance and
processing,
agricultural
products.
concern with
the main source
It
is
of
its
revenue being the commission of 10% charged on the value

of all sales through the wholesale vegetable market.
the
very
beginning,
only
five
depots
manned
by
At
the
Organization staff and a number of collecting centres were

set
up
in
Territories.
vegetable
growing
districts
of
the
New
As the co-operative movement developed (see
the following part of the chapter), societies were founded

and
took
undertaking
over
the
most
work
of
of
the
collecting
collecting,
vegetables and the related documentary work.
14
centres
weighing
by
the
There are at
present
Two
marketing
vegetable
27
romain
depots
co-operative
providing an
functional,
societies.
alternative
service for growers who prefer to sell through agents.

The
Organization
Marketing
who
administered
assisted
is
by
by
the
Director
Assistant
the
of
Direct
The Marketing Advisory Board comprising
(Agriculture).
three members
Vice-chairmen
is
the public and the Chairman and two
of
the Federation
of
of Vegetable Marketing
Co-operative Societies Ltd., advises the Director who is

the ex-officio Chairman on any matters referred to it by
In 1947, the Organization
the Governor or the Director.
handled 19,427 tonnes of local vegetables and 7,658 tonnes

of
imported vegetables,
In
$7,348,690.(25)
local
the
$579,578,125.(26)
handled 63,256
it
1988,
and
vegetables
vegetables,
the total wholesale value being
128,900
tonnes
of
of
imported
value
wholesale
total
tonnes
being
This was an increase of about 8200% in
terms of value.
Financial assistance available to farmers
Increased capital
investment
is
required
farmer is to expand or intensify his farm business.
if
This
capital is needed to rent or purchase more land and to

provide
better
implements.
improved
fertilizers,
Since most
farmers
15
seeds
and
are operating at
new
the
extreme margin,
it would be very difficult for them to
save enough to meet immediate or long-term requirements.

More capita]. from outside should therefore be channelled
into agriculture.
To meet farm credit needs,
financial assistance
was made available from three loan funds administered by

the Agriculture
and Fisheries
Department;
the
Kadoorie
Agricultural Aid Loan Fund, the J.E. Joseph Trust Fund and
the
Vegetable
Marketing
Loan
Organization
Fund.
The
Kadoorie Agricultural Aid Loan Fund was established in
in
1968/69
The Fund
Lawrence and Horace Kadoorie.
1955 by Messrs.
made
of
loans
total
amount
of
$2 , 880,474 . (27)
In 1987/88, the loans granted amounted to
$7,023,000.(28)
Loans from this fund were granted for
development and working capital; and the purposes for whch
they were required included purchases of livestock and

fetilizers,
feed,
insecticides,
seeds
and
planting
material, land formation and development, water supplies;

construction cf buildings for livestock, and construction
and maintenance of fish ponds.
The J.E.
1954
to
societies
provide
for
Joseph
loans
Tr.ist
to
agricultural
Fund was established in
farmers
through co-operative
productive
purposes.
In
1968/69, the Fund granted $1,211,000 to farmers who were

members of co-operative societles.(29)
made
to
farmers
$2,446,000.(30)
the
under
In 1987/88, loans
amounted
Fund
to
The Vegetable Marketing Organization Loan
Fund was set up in 1953 to provide short term loans to

vegetable
farmers.
Since farmers got adequate credits
from the above two Funds, the 1MO Loan Fund came as a last
resort to farmers.
Fund
from
1964-1979
In fact, no loan was made under the

as
shown
in
the
Agriculture
and
Fisheries Department annua]. reports during this period.
There are other loan funds which assist farmers'

livihood. The World Refugee Year Loan Fund established in
1962
provides
loans
through co-operative
societies
for
purposes of relief from indebtedness, productive purpose,
the establishment of a revolving fund from which loans to
members could be nade to help them with such matters as

doctor's bills, school fees and burial expenses of close
relatives.
established
The Agricultural Products Scholarship Fund was

in
1978
to provide financial assistance to
farmers orXheir chiidrens to pursue education.
17
The co-operative movement
It has been generally accepted that the key to

agricultural development is improved productivity by the
family members.
The most practical method seems to be the
organization of such people in groups where they know each
other and join together voluntarily for the promotion of

social, economic and other benefits.
En 1950, a combined
Co-operative and Marketing Department was established to
encourage the co-operative movement in the agricultural

The vegetable collecting depots established by
sector.
the Vegetable Marketing Organization to collect vegetables
from farmers for sale at the market were the embryos of

early vegetable marketing co-operative
societies.
The
first co-operative society registered by the Registrar of
Co-operative Societies (the post held by the Director cf

Agriculture
and
was
Fisheries)
vegetable
marketing
society formed by the farmers in Fanhing in 1951.

there
present,
societies.
31
Marketing
Vegetable
vegetable marketing co-operative
29
The peak years were in late'GOs and early 'lOs
when there were
society
are
At
them
of
(31).
Co-operative
representing
26
of
its
The Federation of
Societies
is
apex
an
member-societies
furthering the benefits of the vegetable growers.
in
There
is also an Irrigation Co-operative Society which operates

a
mutually
beneficial
irrigation
18
scheme
including
the
naintenance of water pumps

Living
Co-operative
and channels
Societies
which
and
13
manage
Better
farming
members' villages or housing schemes and look after the

welfare of their members and families.
Conclusion
In this chapter,
have outlined the history of
vegetable revolution in Hong Kong's agricultural sector

which began after the Second World War.
brought about changes
land-use,
but
The revolution
in local agriculture not only in
also landowner-tenant relationship.
The
revolution was started off by the new tenants who mostly

were new immigrants from mainland China.
However it was
prompted by government's basically non-intevention policy

and supported by institutional establishments.
In Chapter
Three, we shall analyse the difficulties facing vegetable

farming and the new challenge it has to take up.
19
Notes
1)
James Hayes, "The nature of village 1ife in From

Vj11ace to city
studies in the traditional roots
of Hong Kong society edited by David Faure, James
Hayes and Alan Birch, (Hong Kong University Press,
:
1984).
2)
3)
Ibid.
some changes
C.T. Wong, "Uses of agricultural land
in New Territories farming patterns." in The
Proceedings of a
chafln2 face of Hong Kong
week-end syposium of the Royl Asiatic Society
(Ye Olde Printerie, Hong Kong, 1971).
:
4)
W.J. Black, "Agriculture in Hong Kong with policy

recommendations : " (Government Printer, 1954).
5)
the
of
development
"The
H.Y.
Lee
Lawrence,
agriculture and fishery industries in Hong Kong" in
60th Anniversary Publication of N.T.
Heung Yee Kuk (Chinese), 1986.

6)
Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry,

Annual Report, 1954/55, (Government Printer, 1956).
7)
C.T. Wong, op.cit.
8)
Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry,

Annual Report, 1950/51, (Government Printer, 1952).
20
9)
See Charles J.
The extension of the arable

area in Hong Kongu in symposium of land use and
mineral dposits in Hong Kong, Southern China and
South-east Asia edited by S.G. Davis, (Hong Kong
Grant,
University Press, 1964).

10)
Ibid.
11)
Department
of
Agriculture,
Fisheries
&
Forestry,
Annual Report, 1952/53. (Government Printer, 1954).

12)
Agriculture and Fisheries Department, Annual Report,

1966/67. (Government Printer, 1968).
13)
Aqricu1ture and Fisheries Department, CS Paper 5/88

"Supply
fresh
in
of
vegetables
Hong
Kong",
unpublished, 1988.
14)

1957/58, (Government Printer, 1959).
15)
T.G. McGee and DW. Drakakis, "Sap Pat Heung-Emigrant

Villages in Hong Kong." in Urban Hong Kong edited by
Victor Sit, (Summersofl Eastern Publisher Ltd . , 1981.)
16)
Charles J. Grant, op.cit.
17)
C.T. Wong, "Vegetable farming in Hong Kong

a study
geography."
unpublished
thesis
agricultural
in
submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in
the University of Hong Kong, 1971.
18)
Judith
Strauch,
gardeners,
the
"Middle
social
peasants
context
21
of
and
the
market
vegetable
revo1utio
in a small agricultural Community in the

New Territories, Hong Kong in From vill
to CityJ
studies in the traditional roots of Hong Kong society
edited by David Faure, James Iayes, Alan Birch, 1984.
(Hong Kong University Press, 1984).
19)
Ibid.
20)
C.T. Wong, 'tVegetable farming in Hong Kong

a study
in
agricultural
geography."
unpublished
thesis
submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in
the University of Hong Kong, 1971.
21)
R.R.
22)
Gcran
Vegetable Marketing
Organization Hong Kong 1946-48, unpublished.
Mason
and
uEconomic
Mjmer,
gardeners
in
Lung,
K.C.
Hong
Kong
Shatin-vegetable
Kong
Valley",
(Hong
j
University Press, 1980).

23)
Agricultural Department, Annual Report, 1946/47,

(Government Printer, 1948).
24)
Goran Aijmer, op.cit.
25)
vegetable Marketing Organization Hong Kong,
Annual
Report, 1947-48.
26)
Vegetable Marketing Organization Hong Kong, Annual

Report, 1988-89.
27)

1968/69 .
28)
(Governnient Printer, 1970).

22
29)
Agriculture and Fsheris Department, Annual Report,

30)
Agriculture and Fisherios Department, Annual Report,

31)

1968/69-1972/73, (Government Printer).
23
Chapter 3
gricu1tura1 land-use under urbanization
Urbanization
century.
proceeded
has
apace
in
this
By the year 2000, 52% of the worlcVs population,
compared with the 42% in developing countries will reside

in urban settlements .
(i)
In Hong Kong, the rapid growth
and expansion of the urban area during the post Second

World Wr period has revo1utionied the pattern of local
land use.
We have seen in Chapter two how vegetable
revolution took place because of the intensive use of land

as a result of urbanization.
In this chapter, we go on to
see how urbanization further changes the land-use rattern,

this tinte encroachntent on agricultural land.
Decrease in agricultural land
Urban
sprawl pressure generated
from continued
new town development and accompanied by land speculation

and the erection of temporary industrial and residential
structures have widespread adverse effects on agricultural
land utilization in the New Territories.
In Hong Kong, the first comprehensive survey of

all agricultural land was done by the staff of Agriculture
24
and Forestry Department
(now called the Agriculture and
Fisheries Department) in 1955.
In 1960, there was a total
of 13,660 ha. of cultivable land.(2)
In 1970, the amount
of land devoted to agriculture slightly dropped to 13,360

ha.(3)
However,
9,970 ha.(4)
in 1980,
it was drastically reduced to
It was a loss of 70.6% compared with 1960.
In 1987, it was further reduced to 9,270ha.
(5)
For the
trend of loss, see Appendix I.
Population increase in the past four decades had
a particularly large impact on the land-use pattern in a
In 1947, Hong Kong had a
small place like Hong Xong.

population of only 1,750,000.(6)
increased
3,174,700.(7)
to
In 1961, the population

In
1986,
Hong
Kong's
population
was
population,
the government initiated a ten-year housing
programme
in
5,395,997.(8)
1972.
To
house
large
this
A massive new town programme was
launched to identify land in the New Territories to house

the people.
Due to this programme population in the New
Territories increased from 675,582 in 1971 to 1,881,166 in

1986.(9)
With the increase in population, more houses,
shops, factories, schools and other public works have to

be built and a considerable amount of fertile agricultural
land has been lost to this vast urban development.
The
society
at
that
time was
agricultural land being exploited.
25
content
to
see
A Legislative Council
member suggested openly that a long range solution for

urbanization is
based
maximum
the
on
"opening up of the New Territories
the
use
land
of
even
by
diverting
agricultural land on the assumption that mainland China

will
the
be
main
supplier
Housing
products.'1(lO)
at
our
of
time
that
agricultural
was
such
an
overriding issue that when the governnent built a second

race-course in Shatin, it was criticised by Chung Sze-yuen
at
the
Legislative
Council
as
misuse
land
of
resources . (11)
Apart from housing, agricultural land in the New

Territories
was
also
forsaken
industrial
for
uses.
Industrialists in the Legislative Council wasted no time

in requesting industrial land in the New Territories when
the new town programme was announced.
Hilton Cheong-leen
made the following remarks in 1974:-
I!Related to the expansion of public housing in
the New Territories is the question of finding
more land for industrial growth.
It has recently
been mooted in the press that Tal. PO, Yuen Long
and Junk Bay be investigated as potential sites

for industrial estates.
that
Government
realization
has
....I am pleased to see
at
that we must
last woken up
to
the
act more quickly in
offering
land
to
medium-sized
large-sized
and
companies. "(12)
Bowing
willing
to
to
their
forsake
pressure,
agricultural
the
land
government
for
was
industries.
Speaking on the development of the New Territories, the

then
Secretary
Legislative
for
the
Territories
ew
told
the
Council in 1975 of the following:-
The magnitude and variety of development make lt
difficult to believe that there is a recession

elsewhere,
it is certainly boom-time in the New
Territories
acres
of
Since
land
have
spoke
been
sold
last
Noveniber
r granted
65
for
industry, realizing revenue of $82 milllon'(13)
Obviusly,
the
government
considered
the
blooming
of
industries in the New Territories a remarkable achievement.
The continued expansion of towns and industries

in the New Territories took up large amount of level and
fertile land.
The areas most affected were Shatin, Tsuen

In Yuen Long and Then Hun,
Wan, luen Long, aiid Tuen Mun.
there are still 4,400 ha. of agricultural land left.(].4)
There is almost no agricultural land In Shatin and Tsuen

Wan . C 15 )
Cheung Yan-lung, an indigenous villager and a
27
Legislative
Council
member
summarised
the
impact
of
urbanization On agriculture as follows:-
"We used to pray for rain to corne at the right

time, so that two crops of paddy instead of one
could be harvested from the saine patch of paddy
field.
We used to fetch water from the nearby
streams for cur
at the spot where our
kitchen1
women folk washed our clothing.
snails and catch frogs
We used to pick
in the padciy fields to
augment our inadequate diets, while clearing the
weeds amidst the budding young seedlings in the

paddy fields.
We used to make hay at harvest
time, so as to feed and fatten our cattle
these days are no more'

increased
population
Sadly
For the pressure of

consequent
upon
the
urbanization of the New Perritories, has forced

me and many others to move to
Other than direct
losses
of
Kowloon111(16)
agricultural
land
inflicted by urbanization and industrialization, there is

also a rising proportion of fallow or abandoned land.
1966, there were 1,680 ha.
of such land.(17)
In
In 1986,
fallow or un-cultivated land was 4,070 ha. but represented
43.06% of the total agricultural land at that time.(18)

In those early years,
fallowness could be attributed to
lack of water, fertilizer or remoteness from the market
28
and could be brought back to cultivation with Improved

Irrigation
and
cultivation
technique
and
with
establishment of the Wholesale Vegetable Market.
under rapid urbanization,
some
However,
abandoned
farmers
the
their
fields because of rising labour Costs and anticipation of

future resumption by Governnient
for development . ( 19 )
In
1967, wage differences between agricultural and industrial
workers were in the range of $2-5 a day to the latter's

In late 1970s and early 1980s, as a result of
advantage.
increase
substantial
in
the
Importation
of
fresh
vegetables from China, there was a 40% drop in real terms
of price level of vegetabLes(2O)
This severely affected

In a survey done
the profitability of vegetable farming.
on the rural exodus of villagers in Taj Po In 1979, 31.7%
said they
29.2%
left because they could not

there
said
outside.(21)
were
better
earn
job
living.
opportunities
The exodus of farmers led to a large portion
of agricultural land being left uncultivated.
While some farmers abandon farming as a way to

make a living, some land-owners reserve their own land in
anticipation of speculative profits from selling it for

urban development.
They think that land leased out to
farmers will be hard to retrieve.
According to a survey
done by the Agriculture and Fisheries Department on 560

farmers and landowners, 31.6% considered that landowners'
speculatiofl
Ofl
land was the main reason for fallowness.
Another 39.8% said that landowners were reluctant to rent

their
other people because they did not want
to
lanci
outsiders to reside In their village or they considered
the rent too low and the legal leasing arrangement too
tedious.(22) Many landowners instead lease their land for
open storage of containers and abandoned vehicles.
The
reluctance on the part of the landowners to lease out

their land for farming has a severe impact on agriculture
as more than 80% of the farmers in Hong Kong belong to the
tenant
sub-tenant
class,
class,
or part-Owner class
as
revealed in the same survey which also showed that over

60% were without a tenancy agreement.
Where there was an
agreement, the tenancy was for a period of five years or

less in two thirds of the cases.
The absence of security
of tenure discourages commitments on the part of tenant

farmers
long
to
capital
term
investment
to
up-grade
farming practices and improve productivity.
Another
agricultural
land
cause
major
is
the
for
the
proliferation
of
decrease
in
shacks
and
squatter settlements in the New Territories, in effect the

establishment
of
slums
on
agricultural
land.
Wong
estimated that if over 10% of the crop land is covered by

buildings,
the
capacity
for
gradually diminish. (23)
30
intensive
farming
will
The loss ot Agricultural land is also due to the
public and private construction works in the rural areas

which tend to pay little regard to the protection of the
rural environment, and may sometimes cause damages to the
existing
irrigation and drainage
proper and prompt reinstatement.
public works often lead to

land.
infrastructure without
The damages done by the
flooding of
the cultivated
Tal Chin-wah made the following remarks on the
damages done by public and private developments in the

Legislative Council in 1987:-
'The floods in April caused severe damage to the
farming community and industries, particularly to

crops
and
approximately
reported
in
Water
livestock.
six
some
feet
places.
in
depth
Farmers
levels
were
of
being
blamed
the
Public Works Department and government land fill
In nearby areas
for causing blockage of water
courses and rivers
Some works were said to have
altered the natural flow of water.
However, the
Government claimed that, in fact, it was private

development
schemes
by
land-owners
which
had
caused the blockage of rivers and the existing

drainage scheme . "(24)
On the same occasion, Cheung Yan-lung was more

specific
in saying that "floodings are caused by large
31
scale
development
and
constructions
new
in
have been levelled and lands
"mountains
towns"
reclaimed"
as
arid
"soil piled up will block our drainage system once there
are heavy rain-storms"(25)
The extensive loss during
floodings will not only threaten the farmers' living and
hence deter them from continuing farming, but will also

permanently damage the cultivability of the land.
Marginal
land
farming
for
attempt
an
to
increase
aqricultural land
In
order
agriculture,
to
make
the
Agriculture
the
use
best
of
for
Department
Fisheries
and
land
encourages development of hillside land for cultivation

and
to
concept
in
develop
to
is
'Marginal
land
fallow
rehabilitate
New
Territories
development
plan
has
however
not
new.
is
'marginal
lande
land.
for
The
farming.
can be defined as undeveloped government
land1
the
abandoned
and
been
In
for
which
drawn up . (26)
1953,
the
no
imminent
The concept
Agriculture
and
Fisheries Department set up an investigational project of
a high altitude experimental station in Tal Po Shan at a

height of 600m. above sea-level with a view to determining
the potentiality of hill agricultural development and to
discover the most suitable crops that might be grown at
upper levels(27)
The concept led to some success in
32
developing some marginal land for farming.
In the later
1950s, although the loss of acreage in agricultural land

was
considerable,
the
total
area
developed
from
the
marginal land offset the reduction to some extent.(28)
Although the concept today has been altered in

some way, the aim is the same.
Since late 1980s, due to
the Livestock Waste Control Scheme, many livestock farmers

have been displaced.
Some of them sought assistance from
the government to provide land which were outside the

ambit of the Control Scheme for them to resume farming.
At the same time, the Agriculture and Fisheries Department
successfully developed the Pig-on-litter system which on
the one hand allowed pig farmers to raise pigs on spent

sawdust
and
disposed
farming.
on
on
the other hand,

sawdust
the
to
be
allowed the pig waste

re-used
for
vegetable
This system has the advantages of solving the
problem of disposing livestock waste as well as re-using

In order to try out the
the waste for vegetable farming.
system, the Working Group on Marginal Land for Farming was
established under the Advisory Committee on Agriculture

and
Fisheries
government
in
land
for
nid-1990
this
to
scheme
undeveloped
identify
and
to
consider
the
administrative arrangements such as leasing conditions and

plot
delineation.
The
Working
Group
has
initially
identified Hung Lung Hang in Ta Kwu Ling which has an area
of about 25.52 ha. of undeveloped government land to test
33
the scheme.
The scheme if successful, will be extended to
other undeveloped government land in the New Territories.
Conclusion
we have seen how agricultural
tn this chapter,
land diminishes under the pressure of urbanization and

industrializations
land
To maintain and increase the use of
agriculture,
for
Agriculture
the
and
Fisheries
Department has devised the concept of marginal land for

farming.
tested.
The effectiveness of the concept is yet to be

However, even if it is successful, the concept is
still limited by the scarcity of undeveloped government
land left in the New Territories that are suitable for

farming.
All
this
points
agricultural
land
held
agricultural
use.
to
by
In this
need
revive
land-owners
private
thesis,
to
the
for
we attempt to put
agriculture in the land-use planning context and try to

analyse their relationship in order to identify solutions
from the land-use planning perspective.
Before we look
for solutions, we shall see what land policies in the New

Territories had done to agriculture in the past.
34
Notes
(1)
Yeung Yue-man, DUrban Agriculture in Asia'
United Nations University
(2)
1985)
Agriculture and Forestry Department, Annual
port
1960/61 (Government Printer, 1962)
(3)
Agriculture and Fisheries Department, Annua.
eport
(4)
Agriculture and Fisheries Departnient, Annua.
Report 1980/81 (Government Printer, 1982)
(5)
Agriculture and Fisheries Department, Annual Report

(6)
Census and Statistics Department, Hong Kong

Statistics 1947-67 (Government Printer, 1969k
(7)
[bid
(8)
Census
nd Statistics Department, Hong Kong Ainual
Digest of Statistics, 1.989 Edition (Government
Printer, 1989)
35
(9)
Ibid
(10)
See "Hong Kong Hansard, Session 1972/73",

(Government Printer, Hong Kong), P.547-8.
(11)
Ibid
(12)
See "Hong Kong Hansard, Session 1974/75"

(Government Printer, Hong Kong), P.86.
(13)

(14)
Planning Department, "North West New Territories

Development Strategy Review (Planning Department,
1990)
(15)
For an account of how agricultural land in Tsuen Wan

was
converted to urban land-use,

and
"Urbanization
agricultural
and
agriculture:
town
development
see C.T.
the
on
Wong's
impact
the
of
rural
environment in Hong Kong." in Geography and the
Environment in Southeast Asia edited by R.D. Hill

and Junnifer M.
Bray,
(Hong Kong University Press,
1978)
36
(16)

(17)

(18)

(19)
See V. Sit's "Agriculture under the urban shadow"
in Urban Hong Kong
(Hong Kong:
Summerson Eastern
Publishes, 1981)
(20)
Agriculture
and
Fisheries
Department,
"Supply
of
fresh vegetables in Hong Kong" presented to the Crop
Farming Sub-committee of the Advisory Committee on

Agriculture and Fisheries, unpublished, 1988.
(21)
Tai PO District Office, "Rural exodus of villagens

from remote areas of Tal Po district, summer survey
1979", unpublished, 1979.
(22)
The results of the survey was never published but

were
discussed
at
the
Land
Committee meeting on 31 May 1991
37
Development
Policy
(23)
C.T. Wong, op.cit.
(24)
See "Hong Kong Hansard, Session 1986/87, Vol. II"

(Government Printer, Hong Kong) P.1503.
(25)
[bid. P.1506.
(26)
The definition of
Agriculture
and
'marginal land'
Fisheries
is given by the
Department
at
the
ist
meeting of the Working Group on Marginal Land for

Farming
which
is
established
under
the
Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries
Advisory
in 1990 to
plan for the development of undeveloped government

land in the New Territories for vegetable as well as
livestock farming.
(27)
C.T.
Wong
and
Tse,
K.L.
"Hill
agricultural
development in Hong Kong", the paper was presented

to
the
seminar
on
Nepal's
experience
in
hill
agricultural development held at Kathmadu, Nepal 30

March to 3 April 1981.
(28)

38
Chapter 4 Land policies in the New Territories

and the effects on acricultural land-use
s'The fact that land-use planning has followed,
rather than led,

nowhere
better
in Hong Kong
land policy
demonstrated
than
In
the
Is
New
Territories." - Roger Bristow, 1984.
One
needs
have
to
some
about
Ideas
the
government's land policies in the New Territories, their
history and their present

Roger Bristow's remark.
policies
in
the
New
in order to appreciate
form,
This chapter descrIbes the land

Territories
with
the
purpose
of
understanding their devastating effects on agriculture In

the New Territories.
It will also help us evaluate the
Agricultural
Area
Priority
saving agricultural land,
Scheme
which
was
aimed
at
and allow us to analyse the
political battle over the Town Planning (Amendment) Bill

which Is aimed at tightening the control over the use of
land in the New Territories.
Historical persptive
Traditionally,
rights
to
land
In
the
New
Territories were divided between the tenant who had the

right to farm the land In perpetuity and the landlord who
had the right to collect rent on the land.
The tenants
interests were protected by the traditional rule that land
could not be arbitrarily recalled by the landlord unless

he,
or
of
nenther
his
family,
wished to
The
farm.
tenant's right to farm his piece of land did not cease

with
death;
his
son
inherited
the
right
to
farm the
land. (1)
on ist July 1898, the New Territories were leased
from China for a term of 99 years under the Convention of
At the time, it was judged expedient to declare
Peking.
the
New
Territories
Ito
parcel
Her
be
part
and
Majesty's Colony of Hong Kong
.....
for all intents and
of
purposes as if they had originally formed part of the said
Colony"(2) and to decree that all laws and ordinances in

force
in
colony
the
Territories.
However,
should
in
take
effect
desire to
the
in
New
ensure peaceful
take-over(3), certain exceptions were made with respect to

A
land.
clause
"Expropriation
understood
expulsion
the
Convention
Natives"
of
that
of
of
there
the
of
states:
will
be
inhabitants
of
"It
headed
Peking
is
further
expropriation
no
the district
or
included
within the extension, and that if land is required for

public
offices,
or
fortifications,
purposes,
lt
shall
converse
of
the
be bought
inability
at
to
the
like
official
fair price."
expropriate
obligation to recognise existing rights.
was
The
the
Three government
agencies were involved

and
the
Land
registration
of
the Land Office, surveying teams
Court.
These
deeds
and
of
bodies
carried
out
the
preparation of
claims,
rough rent roll, traverse and cadastral and topographical

surveys,
demarcation, preparation of Crown leases and
provisional
formulation
considering
disputes.
titles
of
register,
policy,
hearing
determining
undisputed
claims
the
of
forni
of
title,
upon
The Costs of these tasks were huge and the
entire process was not completed until 1905.

of
petitions,
adjudicating
and
the day,
354,277
lots
comprising 40,738
confirmed by the British Crown;
At the end
acres were
because they were too
small and scattered to be given individual titles, these

lots were recorded in Block Crown Leases for each of the
566 Demarcation Districts and are known as Old Schedule

Lots.(4)
Most of these Old Schedule Lots were classified
in the Crown Leases
as
agricultural land with a small
amount of building land in villages.
Crown rent was fixed
at the time of the lease and the tenure of a lease was 75

years from ist July 1898, subject to renewal for 24 years
niinus three days.
On 4th March 1904, all land not already
claimed was proclaimed to be Crown Land.
At this luncture,
it is worthwhile to pause and
consider some of the repercussions of the land policy from
1898 up to the settlement in land matters in l9O.

following points are significant.
41
The
(a)
The arrangements for the land eliminated the

traditional
taxiords
who
large
"were
and
power lineages in the New Territories laying

claim to vast tracts of land on the basis of
the regular payments to them by the tenant

It upset the whole balance
cultivators."(5)
of local influence, wealth and power in the

region
decline
and
of
contributed
lineage
to
groups
relative
the
in
New
the
Territories.
(b)
The survey done between 189B to 1904 was

full of errors and inconsistencies in
demarcation and measurements.
were manifested
in
the
Such errors
conversion
of
the
record to square feet from dou chung in the

1960s and the sub-division of snall lots in
the conversion exercise.
All these confused
the land dealings and had a significantly

bad
impact
on
government's
land
policies
towards the Old Schedule Lots.(6)
(C)
The classification of the land in terms of

agricultural or building land has raised
subsequent
questions
as
to
whether
these
terms were descriptive of land-use at the
42
time - these permitting the use of land for

other
purposes
government
prescriptive.
or
The
latter
the
supports
interpretation which was borne out in the

case
Watford
Company
Construction
Secretary for the New Territories

August 1979.
and
heard In
It was held that the effect of
the terms of the Crown Lease was to effect

not merely a demise of agricultural land but
also
pending
demise
permission to build,
lessors
the
as agricultural land.
This decision has considerable Implications
for the development of private land in the

New Territories, most of which Is demised as
agricultural
land.
facilitate
should
It
by government to control private
attempts
development, insofar as specific permission

must
be
granted
to
change
land
from
agricultural to building use.
(ci)
The Convention of Peking which stipulated
that resumption of land for the development

of
building land
should
only
be
and
its
effected
subsequent
if
it
was
sale
for
"official purpose" and land resumed should

be
"bought
Interpretation
at
of
43
the
price".
The
key phrases
by the
fair
government
and
landowners
the
Identical.
The
interpretations
was
dispute
are
not
over
particularly
the
sharp
in
the 1920s when a large inflow of refugees

from China required land resumption by the
government for town planning purposes.
The
Contentions
the
much
had
bearing
on
relationship between Heung Yee Kuk and the

government and the latter's subsequent land
policies in the New Territories.
Since 1904,
land needed for private development
generally been disposed
has
of
covered by a 'New Grant' lease.
fashion are known either as

Lots'
by public
auction
and
Lots disposed of in this
'Auction Lots' or 'New Grant
and represent the second major category of
land
holdings in the New Territories.
The Old Schedule Lots under Block Crown Leases

and
the
New Grant Lots
relate to the leased land as
accordingly to the New Territories Ordinance of 1910, "all
land in the New Territories .....
declared to be and to
have been from the 23rd day of July 1900 the property of
the Crown."
However,
due to the fact that the basic
legality of land transactions in the New Territories dates
from the Ordinance which has the important provision that

fljfl
any proceeding's in the Supreme Court or the District
44
Court
in relation to land in the New Territories,
the
Court shall have the power to recognize and enforce any
Chinese custom or customary right affecting the land",

such leased land is often referred to as
and
is
subject
to the problems
of,
as
'private land'
Bristow flotes,
'va1jd limits to pre-1898 traditional rights which have

often been disputed."(7)
Crown land in the New Territojes
All
remaining land
in
the New Territories not
covered as 'private land' is technically Crown land which

may
either
be
vacant,
may
or
be
used
for
specific
government purposes such as Country Parks, Military Area

and reservoirs;
or may be let off for various teniporary
uses by private individuals.
An unspecifiable amount of
Crown land in the New Territories is occupied by tolerated

or illegal squatter structures.
The basis
of
policies
in respect of temporary
tenure is that:
(a)
land can be given a beneficial short-term

use and revenues can be derived therefrom
45
(b)
land licensed in t]iis way can be reclaimed
by government quickly when it is needed for

permanent development.
One form of temporarily allocating Crown land is

through Crown Land Licences, formerly known as Crown Land
Permits which are renewable annually.
They are issued for
a wide range of uses including residential? industrial,

arid commercial use and additionally, special uses such as
community or recreational development.
In the decade of
1970s, one of the main use of Crown Land Licences was to

'legalise' illegal squatter structures while in the 1980s,
Crown Land Licences were being converted to short term

tenancies,
initially
concentrating
on
conversion
of
industrial uses but subsequently commercial uses.(8)
Short-terra Tenancies
are
issued by abbreviated
tender as opposed to direct grant in the case of Crown

Land Licences.
The vast majority of Short-term Tenancies
are for plots of less than 1000 sq.ft. and over 36% are
for shop use.(9)
As in the case of Crown Land Licences,
Short-term Tenancies have been used as an instrument by
which a large member of illegal uses that have been in

existence for many years, can be officially recognised and
tolerated by the goverrunent.
46
A small percentage of temporary tenure is in the
form of forestry licences which are normally granted to

villagers to cut pine for firewood.
It is temporary and
renewable on a yearly basis.
Several problents exist in the policy of disposing

land temporarily:-
(a)
It is the result of no plans for the

permanent use of the land.
In planning
terms, it is a non-policy.
(b)
In political and administrative terms, it is
the result of the pressure from the

privatesector to use or develop land in a
variety of ways which have flot tet been
encompassed by any plans in the New

Territories.
(c)
The vast majority of temporary tenancies

are renewed as a matter of course.
It is in
fact a tenure which has a long if not a

permanent nature.
(d)
There is no incentive for temporary tenure

holders to improve standards of building
construction and the environment.
47
Land-use policies for leased land
The control over th$ use of leased land niet with

problematic
member of
political
the
Opposition
from
the
outset.
Heung Yee Kuk expressed the view that,
without the consent of the NT landowners
the Hong Kong
Government unilaterally drew up the Block Crown Lease in

1905
in order to control the use of private land."(lO)
The fact that leased land is commonly referred to, both

inside and outside the government, as "private land", is
indicative of an inherent uncertainty over both precise

legal definitions and valid powers of control.
Be that as it may, various enactments have been
introduced and procedures set Out to control the use of

One of them is the control through issuing
leased land.
free building licences by which the 'small house policy'

is
instituted.
This policy is applied in leased land
outside the lay-out areas where government land-use plans
are utilised or where land-exchange policies apply (see

later
sections
in
this
"buildings directly concerned
pigsties and chicken sheds,

agricultural
land
and
this
policy,
with agriculture,
such as
chapter) .
In
may normally be erected on
small
domestic
structures
for
occupation by villagers on their own land may be permitted

by the issue of a free building licence in the environs of
an existing village or their natural extension if no land
48
is
available
within
the
provided
village,
that
the
building does not interfere qith rural development or the

implementation of town planning.'(lj)
opposed
the
need
criterion
The Heung Yee Kuk
whereby
house
small
entitlements were based upon deliberation as to whether

the
applicant
was
village custom.
not
adequately
housed
according
to
In 1972, the policy was relaxed to allow
every male descendant of indigenous village to build one

small
house
contributed
in
to
life
his
This
time.
policy
the widespread infiltration
Irhas
sporadic
of
permanent structures over much of the more inhabitable

parts of the New Territories."(12)
that
small-house
constructing
entitlement
It is not surprising
been
has
highly marketable
suburban
means
indigenous
inhabitants
for the
agricultural
of
The fact that the policy was not under the
land.(13)
District
lessees
or
rather
houses,
than a way of meeting bona-fide housing needs
of
Land
Offices
Department perpetuates"
of
a
the
Buildings
and
Lands
development control procedure
that has always remained outside the consideration of the

land-use planning professionals . " (14)
Modification
Waivers
are
two
of
Tenancy Permits
and Short-term
instruments governing the majority of

Schedule agricultural land
short-term conversions of O1
to non-agricultural use.
Modification of Tenancy Permits
were issued to allow lessees of agricultural land to use
49
their land temporarily for purposes not covered by the

Crown Lease COnditionS.
Provided that the granting of
modification of tenancy did not frustrate moie permanent

allocations of land (for industrial and commercial use),
their
1975,
applications
Short-term
Waivers
Since
qranted."(15)
normally
were
superseded
Modification
of
Tenancy Agreenient which imposed more stringent conditions
such as adequate access with a minimum width of 3.5m. and
compliance with Employment Ordinance, Building Ordinance

and Fire Services Regulations.
Letter of approval has traditionally been used to

facilitate
the
on
construction,
buildings for agricultural use.
temporary basis,
of
The only condition for
issuing the letter is that applicants have to demonstrate

There was indication that
that they have owners' consent.

before
tightening
up
lease
the
letter-of-approval structures in
conditioiis
1.971,
of
the
many pigsties or
chicken sheds were used as dwelling units.(16)
In
the
absence
of
statutory outline
zoning
plan, land-owners are also free to apply for a re-grant of

his
land with
modified
development elsewhere.
lease conditions
to allow new
quisition of land in the New Territories
Resumption
purposes
such
of
as
Crown Lands
new
the
required
town
for public
development
plans
commissioned in the 1960s is governed by the Crown Lands

Resumption Ordinance.
There is an all embracing clause in
the Ordinance which rules that "resumption for any purpose
of whatsoever description which the Governor in Council

may decide to be a public purpose."(17)
Section 4(2) of
the Town Planning Ordinance provides that the Governor in

Council
may
decide
implementation of
public
purpose
Ordinance.
that
resumption
of
lots
an approved statutory plan

in
terms
of
Crown
Lands
for
is
the
for
Resumption
Although compensations are paid for the land
resumed, the fact that the government is not contractually

or
statutorily
bound
permission
to
Territories
landowners,
build
to
offer
invites
as
the
an
exchange
opposition
compensation
or
give
from
New
value
of
agricultural land is usually much lower.
To circumvent the landowners' opposition, the New

Territories land exchange policy, often referred to as the
Letter B system, was devised.

been
subject
to
Lessees, whose land has
resumption notice,
are offered the
option of a state cash payment or a promise to provide

alternative land for development in return for surrender
51
of the land required by the Crown.
where
resumption proceedings
have
While Letter B is used
already been
set.
in
motion and Lettcr A is issued where resumptioil proceedings

have not yet begun, they offer either of the following :-
(a)
a stated amount of cash in full. and final
settlement of the surrender
(b)
an exctange of agricultural land in the New

Territories, a foot for a foot being offered
without premium;
(c)
the right to a future grant of building land

in one of the New Territories urban
development areas on the following terms:
(i) an offer of 2 sq.ft of new building

lanci in any New Territories urban layout
for every 5 sq.ft of agricultural land

surrendered;
(ii)one sq. foot of new building land is
offered for each sq. foot of building

land surrendered
52
(d)
a premium Is payable equivalent to the

difference in value of the land surrendered
and that regranted. (IB)
The
insufficient
Letter
immediate
result
of
policy
this
was
land made available by Government to meet
entitlements
as
exchange to compensation.
most
lessees
preferred
land
The cumulative total of Letter
commitments between 1974 and 1971, for example, amounted

to
22,107,407 sq.ft whereas the land made available by
Letter
liquidize
only
of
5%
sufficient to
only 410,557 sqft;
tender was
the
claims.(19)
Moreover,
the
transferability of Letters B led to their being amassed by

speculators.
Despite the reform of the system by the
Working Group on New Territories Urban Land Acquisitions

in
1978
and the
subsequent abandonment
commitments remained.
In
1982,
AS time goes by, the commitments
grow larger in terms of market value of land.

to
the government's
large
1991 Hong Xong Annual
According
Report,
the
amount of entitlements stood at 0.74 million sq.m.in 1990.
53
comments on the land pollcies
We have so far highlighted the characteristics of

land
policies
In
the
New Territories
leased land and Crown Land.

policies
with respect
We also see how the land
shaped by historical perspectives
are
to
in land
matters in the New Territories with particular regards to
the notion of
Private land',
perception
to
their
delineation
of
agricultural
the indigenous villagers'

interests,
land
and
building
arbitrary
the
land
and
its
subsequent implications.
Certain comments can be drawn from the policies

as far as land-use planning is concerned.
Firstly,
ad-hoc
decisions
the government has been seen to make

such
as
the
Short-term
Tenancies,
Short-term Waivers and the issuing of Crown Land Licences

to squatters.
Secondly, each policy was made as a precedent for

others to follow and the implications of one ad-hoc policy
are wide.
54
Thirdly, since policies are piece-meal, there is

a
general awareness
among landowners
that there
.ts
zc
overall presumption against development except in obvious
prohibited areas.
This leads to a rise in 'hope value'
and land speculation.
Fourthly,
outside
by
covered
areas
statutory
outline zoning plans, lease and licence conditions provide

the
only means
of
development control.
They are not
designed for planning purpose and hence are not capable of
assessing the planning and transport implications of the

applications from the licencees or lessees.
Fifthly, the land exchange system (Letter B) does

not
provide
government.
adeguate
There
control
is
over
means
no
planning
by
administratively
the
or
statutorily of forcing a landowner to exchange land, and

the governmentts only recourse is to resume.
There is no
control over the timing of such exchanges nor is there any
control over the ownership of the Letters and hence, the

land.
Most of all, the immense resources required for the
exchanges
tie
the
hands
of
the
land-use planning.
55
government
in
overall
Finally, planning and administration of land use

in
the
New
political.
Territories
are
constrained
As 1997 draws near, the
and
intensely
rob1em is more likely
to expand.
Agriculture - the largest victim
Under
short-sighted,
agriculture
victim.
the
ad-hoc,
non-professional,
and highly politicised land-use policies,
in
The
the
New
following
Territories
was
observations
the
largest
illustrate
how
agriculture was forsaken.
Conversion of aqicultural land
Agricultural land was the nain portion of
the Block Crown Leases which were, as we have noted,

hastily and disputably drawn up.
Not much attention
was paid by the governxaent towards the control of

land-use which was evidenced by the reluctance of the
government to deal with the issue of "customary land
rights" of the indigenous villagers.

agricultural
Much of the
land was converted by the lessees to
other uses such as small-scale industrial cottages

and
residential
buildings.
56
Due
to
the
lax
enforcement
and
unwillingness
government(20),
such
control
to
illegal
by
conversions
t he
were
tolerated
The vague definition of the term

'agricultural
also
land'
allow the
and the loose lease conditions
land-owners
land to other uses.
to
convert gricultural
The Melhado Judgement(21)
in.
1983 which ruled that land held under the Lease could
legally
be
used
for
'open
situation of mass conversion.
uses',
aggravated
the
Over 500 of such open
storage sites were identified in the North West New

Territories alone. (22)
2.
Small house policy
indigenous
Since
holding
villagers
agricultural land were granted free building licences
to erect small
house and the almost absolute free
conditions for such applications, massive erection of
small houses took place over arable land in the New

Moreover,
Territories.
since
small
house
entitlements are not static as any male indigenous

villager can apply on reaching the age of eighteen,
potential
higher.(23)
demand
over
the
years
will
likely
be
Not only that agricultural land were
57
used for building residential houses, the arable land

in the environs were also spoilt.
3.
Teniporay uses of agricultural land
Short-term
licences,
illegal
as
tenancies
noted before,
squatter
the
and
60s
the
which
were
agricultural
erected
land during
On the other hand,
70s.
term
short
were used to recognise
structures
indiscriminately over
and
short-term
waivers and modification of tenancies were issued to

Block Crown Lease holders to temporarily convert the
uses of agricultural land.

over
5,500
temporary
It was estimated that
uses
plus
further
65,000
domestic squatter structure scattered over the New

Territories.(24)
All these measures contributed to
land which could not be
shrinkage of agricultural
rehabilitated for farming once it had been developed.
4.
Acquisition of land for new town development
In
developing
new
towns
in
the
New
Territories, much of agricultural land was resumed by

the
government
Ordinance.
using
the
Crown
Land
Resumption
In 1989, about 1.2 million sg. meters of
private
land
Territories .
was
acquired
the
in
New
On the other hand, large amount of
(25)
agricultural land under Block Crown Lease was given

up by indigenous villagers in exchange of development
land
through
protection
the
of
Letter
system.
agricultural
development projects
The
land
and planning
in
lack
new
of
town
for agricultural
land-use rendered agriculture the biggest loser in

urbanization.
Conclusion
Perry
noted
that
"at
Government
times,
intervention to solve one specific problem has

other problems because of the
approach.
from
lack
of
led to
comprehensive
The environmental problems which have resulted
the
example."(26)
temporary
In
tenure
this chapter,
policy
just
is
one
we piece together the
substantive parts of the policy to illustrate the problem
with particular relation to our subject.
In the next
chapter, we look at what land-use planning is supposed to
achieve and what it means to the government.
We shall
also look at the current land-use planning practice in

Hong Kong.
NOTES
1)
New Territories Development Consultants, uDevelopnient
investigation of the North Western New Territories"

(New Territories Development Consultants, Hong Kong,
1981)
2)
The New Territories Order in Council, Balmoral, 20th

Oct. 1989.
3)
The main problem of the take-over was not military

but
administrative.
among whom
it
was
A land syndicate of
suspected Ho Kai was
Chinese
one,
had
bought land at a fraction of its value by spreading
the rumour that the British would seize all land.

See
"A
history
of
Hong
Kong"
by
G.B.
Endacott.
(London: Oxford University Press, 1958)
4)
New Territories Administration,
Annual Departmental
Report 1967/68 (Government Printer, 1969) P.25.
5)
New Territories Development Consultants, "Development

(New Territories Development Consultants, Hong Kong
1981)
60
6)
Leung Shou-shun, "The Registered Areas of Old Lots in
the New Territories" in The Hong Kong Surveyor, Vol.

i Issue 4, 1985.
7)
Roger
Bristow,
Land-use
planning
history, policies and procedures
in
Hong
Kong:
(Oxford University
Press, 1984), P.245
8)

1981)
9)
Ibid.
10)
A statement in the South China Morning Post dated

18th February 1981, bu Chan Yat-san, Chairman of the
!leung Yee Kuk 1968-1978.
li)
New Territories Adiainistration,
Annual Departmental
Report 1967/68 (Government Printer, 1969) P.26.
12)
Roger Eristow, op.cit.., P.245.
13)
Ibid
61
14)
Roger Bristow, op.cit.
15)
New Territories Developnient Consultants, "Development

investigation of the North Western New Territories'
1981)
16)
Ibid
17)
Section 2(d) of Crown Lands Resumption Ordinance,

Chapter 124 of the Revised Edition 1974.
18)

(New Territories Developrrient Consultants, Hong Kong,
1981).
19)
See enclosure 2,
report of the Working Group on New
Territories Urban Land Acquisitions, 1978.
20)
D.M.E.
Lease
Evans
argued that in
System provided the
advantages.
administer as
fact the Block Crown
government with several
Firstly, the system was made simple to
it avoided the British Real Property
law and Personal Property Law.
Secondly, the Crown
can maintain a closer contact with and control over

the land by means of the lease and what it contains.
62
It
is
within
its
power
to
specify
enforce
and
planning Considerations which it feels desirable in a

particular
aspects
area.
of
Urbanization
urbanisation
:
Evans's
D.M.E.
See
Mong
in
Nelbado
was
an
investment
steel.
the
The
Asian
1971).
company which Jeld the
The Lease contained a description of
the land as agricultural/garden ground.

sublet
in
Kong"
a piece of land in the New
Block Crown Lease of

Territories.
legal
A Hong Kong Casebook ed. by
D.J. Dwyer (Hong Kong University
21)
'Some
land
to
Crown
sub-leasee
objected
brought in the High Court.
for
The company
storage
proceedings
and
of
were
The Judge held that the
storage of steel did not constitute a breach of the

terms of the Lease.
22)
Zeith D. Perry, "The rural area - what futureV'
in
Planning and Deve1oment Vol. 4, No. 2, 1988
23)
Michael Ling,
"Limits tO growth
villages
in the
urban fringe" in Planning and Development Vol. 4, No.

2, 1988
24)
Keith D. Perry, op.cit.
25)
Hong Kong 1990 (Government Printer, 1990), P.194.
26)
Keith D. Perry, op.cit.
64
Chapter 5 Land-use planning in Hong Kog
In
the
last
three
we
chapters,
looked
at
the
changing land-use and how urbanization and land policies

facilitated the encroachment upon agricultural land in the
New Territories.
Before we turn to assess the Agricultural
Priority Area Scheme which was
non-statutory land-use
plan to protect agricultural land, we take a brief look at

government's
land-use
planning
and
policies;
the
institutional and control aspects of the policies.
Land-use planning pplicies in Hong Kong
Bristow
adnijnjstratjve
intervenes
in
principally
process.(l)
defines
process
through
control
the
through
planning
which
the
as
government
environmental
of
influencing
the
an
change,
development
From an ideological perspective, this process
operates primarily as
built
land-use
environment
facilitator to
comprises
the
ensure that the
necessary
physical
infrastructure to allow and to service economic and social

relationship.
Pun goes further to specify the objectives
of planning as achieving a development situation conducive
to firstly, a good living and working environment for the

present and future population, and secondly, the efficient
and
effective
functioning
of
65
all
sectors
in
the
commnnity.(2)
While Pun offers a positive cefinition for
planning objectives,
the Hong Kong Institute of Planners
offers a normative definition which is the promotion of the

best
possible
environment,
social
and
health,
economic developments
and the
convenience
general
safety,
and
welfare of the community through the allocation of land for

various uses in the best interest of the community(3)
As
planning
is
about the
future,
planners must
have visions of the future needs of the society, people's

aspirations and the environment.
Moreover, planners must
possess some values which shape these visions.
The values
and the visions are the two main components of planners'

professional
judgements
land-use
in
planning.
In
understanding Hong Kong government's planning policies, one

therefore
needs
to
know what
the
government
planners'
visions and values were and are.
Hong
Kong
and
non-intervention
government
market-oriented
economy and the society.

government
has
and selectively.
once said,
approach
adopts
the
in
'Planning' is the word which the
never taken
become necessary,
basically
seriously.
Should planning
the government approaches it cautiously

The Secretary for the environment in 1977
"in contrast to certain other government, we
seek to plan in specific areas which clearly fall within

the
ambit of any government in a modern society
66
the
public sector obviously, but a10 such mattexs as land use

and transport, but we do not attempt to impose government
planning
areas
in
which
properly
belong
initiative, acting through market forces."(4)
to
private
At the times
when government planning was minimal or non-existent, the
main theme of land policy was central allocation of land

and it was made in response to public demand and with some
The Financial Secretary in
regard to public interests

1977
made
the
following
which
remarks
summarised
best
government's land-use plannthg policy at that time.
"Hitherto we have relied on a planning process

geared to meeting the social needs of the
population (for housing, schools, hospitals, open

space,
and so
on)
and all
other public sector
requirements (for roads, Government buildings and

so
on)
up
to
given standards.
planning process
sufficient
land
Although
this
has
included the provision of
for
industries
in
high
rise
buildings, the amount of land available for sale

to
the private
sector,
whether
for
commercial,
residential or industrial use, has tended to be a
In other words, the land production
residual.
process
has
been
project
oriented,
based
on
physical planning standard, and the emphasis has

tended to be on public sector needs."(5)
67
While
land-use
planning
was
oriented, it was not without directions.
mainly
project
Up to the 1970s,
development to help meeting the growing economy and to meet
its requirements was the main thrust in Hong Kong.
It
provided
or
economic
policies
direction
development.
but
With
only
not
also
growth
the
urban
for
of
social
fiscal1
for
planning
and
trade
and
entreport
subsequent industrialisation after the Second World War and

the
Chinese
population
Civil
due
to
War
and
the
influx
very
the
of
rapid
growth
of
industrial
refugees,
development and housing dominated the scene of
land-use
planning.
Government's
plan
provide
to
land
for
housing
headed for a new direction after the Shep Kip Nei Fire in
Coupled
1954 in which 50,000 squatters lost their homes.

with
the
need
the
satisfy
to
demand
for
labour
from
burgeoning industries, the government revised the squatter

policy
resettlement
to
one
which
aimed
at
rehousi.ng
squatters to sites near the major industrial areas.
Land
was provided for large housing projects in Chol Hung, So

Uk, Kwun Toig, Taj Hang Tung and Li cheng Uk.
In 1912, Sin
Murray Maclehose who was a new Governor of Hong Kong at

that time, announced a bold housing plan which brought a
new
dimension
to
land-use
policy.
The plan aimed at
providing a "reasonable environment for every inhabitant of

Hong
Kongu
10 years '
time . (6)
It was the first time
massive land-use planning for housing found its new venture

in the New Territories.
Sir Murray said that "while search
for nei sites in the urban areas will continue, obviously

if environmental standards are to improve the bulk of the
new housing must be provided In the new towns In the New

Territories
- the complex of Tsuen Wan, Tsing I and Kwai
Chung, Sha Tin and Castle Peak."(7)
In
the
meantime,
industrialization
rapid
had
exerted great pressure on the government to provide more

land for Industries.
The limited provision of formed land
for industries had been unable to satisfy the demands and

had led to great hike in land prices.
The Governor in 1976
had suggested three solutions towards providing land for

industrial uses.
were
reviewed
industry.
Firstly,
to
the layouts of the new towns
provide
for
wider
development
of
Secondly, the government continued the policy of
granting land on special terms for industries introducing

new
technology
of
value
to
the
economy.
Thirdly,
industrial estates were planned at Tai PO, Yuen Long and a

couple of other areas.(8)
These measures were traditional project oriented

approach to land-use planning and were unacceptable to some
Both Lydia Dunn and Chung
Legislative Council members.
Sze-yuen called for a "more comprehensive approach to the

production and use of land with a view to catering properly
59
for
the
needs
sectors.u(9)
of
both
the
public
and
Bowing to the pressure,
the
private
the Government in
1977 appointed the Special Committee on Land Production to
establish the quantum of the limited
and resources, and
then plan how and when they should be made available to

private as well as public sector. (10)
the
In
1980s,
environmental
dominated the world in every aspect

land-use planning.
The government
consideration
lives
of
in Hong
including
cong,
after
years of intensive land production to satisfy the housing

and
industrial
needs,
adopted
new
turn
in
land-use
planning which emphasised the improvement of the quality of

urban living.
In the Governor's Annual Address in 1985, it
was spelt out that "the government is concerned that the

redevelopment of the older parts of our city should proceed
in
parallel
government
with
intends
Corporation.'(I1)
new
to
development.
establish
this
To
a
Land
end,
the
Development
The Corporation was tasked to produce
new housing in the older urban areas.
In the meantime,
massive new town development projects had also caused much
disturbance to the rural New Territories.
Voices were
raised to improve the land-use planning from one of land

production to cohesiveness and harmony.
Maria Tam brought
forward the concept of cohesive land-use planning in 1985

in the following speech:-
70
"In the light of the changing socio-economic
conditions in Hong 1(ong,

cohesive
planning
territory.
there should be a more
land-use
for
over
whole
the
The areas outside of Hong Kong Island,
Kowloon and New Kowloon and the new towns also

should be covered by statutory plans with proper
area zoning ..... My main concern is that with the
rapid urbanisation
New Territories,
the
of
the
Administration should no longer adopt a negative

attitude towards planning for the development of
the New Territories,
including the rural areas,
and should try and achieve an effective control of

land-use
in
the whole
territory....
to
set
comprehensive policy to encourage the development

of agricultural and fisheries, which is consistent
with principle of proper land use."(12)
The new emphasis shifted from one of planning for
growth and development to one of environmental balance.

This shift could not be more forcefully demonstrated by the
Secretary
for
Lands
and
Works
in
his
answer
to
Legislative Council member's question in 1988 as to whether
the government could relax the control over the use of

agricultural land near the new town fringe in order to make
available more land for industrial use.
71
He said:
"rt
Is
flot our Intention to re-zone agricultural

In
lanci
order
to
facilitate
industrial development.
see
better control
land,
commercial
or
Indeed, we would like to
the use
in
of
agricultural
really to prevent further development for
commercial or industrial use.'(13)
This statement would have been unimaginable had it

been in the 1970s when agricultural land was made for every
other use except agriculture.
AdnUnistrative institutions for 1and-ue planning
The principal land-use planning body in Hong Kong

is the Town Planning Board established by the Town Planning
Ordinance in 1939.
The Ordinance lays down the procedures
to be adopted in preparing statutory town plans.
These
plans, called outline zoning plans, show areas zoned
or
it mm, industrial, government/institution!

Community and other specified purposes.
The Town Planning
Board considers and approves planning applications.
The
Board may impose development conditions before approving an

application
thereby
improving
the
local
environment.
Another function of the Board is to consider objections to

the
outline
officials
as
zoning
well
The
plans.
as
Board
non-officials.
72
is
One
composed
of
of
the main
criticisms against the Board is that it has discretionary
power whether to
consult the public before
zoning plans are published.
the
outline
It is suggested by some that
consultation should be statutorised in the planning process
which
affects
people.(14)
the
livelihood
welfare
and
of
the
The second criticism is that it is unfair for
the Board which prepares the plans to judge the objections

raised to the plans.(15)
Another important institution in land-use planning

in Hong Kong Is the Eand Development Policy Committee which
was established in 1960 as the Land Development Planning

The Committee which comprises only government
Committee.
officials
makes
co-ordinates
all
policies
the
for
the
land-use planning work.
all
strategic
planning
decisions
entire
territory.
The
directly responsible to the Chief Secretary.

composed
exclusively
of
civil
servants
who
and
It
land
Committee
is
Since lt is
"cannot
be
regarded In any way as professional strategic planners, the
Committee was criticised as a team of 'pall Chiefs and no

Indians'(l6)
Moreover, the exclusion of the public also
raises questions about
its
accountability.
Legislative Council member asked
the
In
1974,
government whether
non-official members could be appointed to the Committee.

The
reply was
inhibited
in
that members
their
in
the
deliberations
non-official members were present.(17)
73
at
Committee would be
the
meetings
if
On
the
advisory
level,
3uilding
and
Land
Advisory Committee was established to advise the government
on the needs o
the
adequacy
the public and private sectors for land and

land
of
development
programmes.
It
composed of official as well as non-official members.
is
The
main weakness of the Committee is that it 15 advisory in

nature and has no real power.
the
At
departments
multiple.
implementation
responsible
the
were
planning
land-use
for
government
Lyida Dunn must have much bitter experience in
dealing with the

land
level,
matters
responsible
government departments
when
she
appointed
was
to
the
for
Special
Committee of Land Production before she made the following
remarks in l98O-
seems,
"This
on
the
face
of
it,
fairly
At
straightforward but it is not so in reality.

various
times
of
involvement
departments,
at
and
a
bewildering
offices,
branches,
sub-committees is required.
stages,
various
the
multiplicity
committees
of
and
To name but a few
the New Territories Development Department of the

P.W.D., the Land Development Policy Committee, the
Town Planning Office, P.WD. Land Conference, the

Housing Department,
and
the
Finance
the Economic Services Branch

Branch
74
of
the
Government
Secretariat,
the Public Works Vetting Committee,
the Public Works Priorities Committee, the Public

Works Sub-committee, the Special Committee on Land
Production
and,
now the new Strategic Planning
Unit. '(18)
Since then, the various departments have undergone

numerous
changes,
amalgamation
defederation.
and
At
present, the Planning Department is responsible for town

planning matters, while the Buildings and Lands Department
is responsible for land policy administration.
The policy
branch responsible for land-use planning is the Planning,

Environment and Lands Branch.
Despite such delineation,
there are still other departments which take up parts of

the
planning
land-use
process
such
as
the
Territories
Development
Department
Department.
It is true as Bristow remarks that there is no
one
authority
and
the
Hong Kong
in
land-use planning policy.(19)
Environmental
which
As
can
Protection
totally
control
John Keung argues on
another occasion, it is a sheer waste of tax-payers' money

on this lack of co-ordination and control. (20)
Land-use planning
the current practice
Procedurally, the hierarchy of town plans is made

of territorial, sub-regional and district/local plans.
75
diagram of the hierarchy is illustrated at Appendix II. In

1965,
Colony
Outline
Plan
was
prepared
which
was
subsequently agreed to by the Land Development Planning

Coirunittee
in 1971 and noted by the Executive Council in
The
1972.
Flan,
which was
subsequently revised,
still
serves as strategic planning guidance for Hong Kong.
Plan consists of
The
a detailed assessment and statement of
planning standards for each major land use to be applied

through
the
drawing
up
and implementation
as well
detailed statutory and departmental plans

separate
general
strategy
development
for
planning of the territory as a whole.
Development Policy Committee decided
the more
of
the
as
land-use
In 1980, the Land

that
Territorial
Development Startegy should be formulated in order to plan
alead in terms of physical development for Hong Kong to

cater
for
"derived
target
soclo-economic activities in
population
and
associated
a manner which will produce
the highest quality environinent."(21)
The formulation of
such plan was agreed by the Executive Council in 1984 to

take into account the location of a possible new airport,
the development of the North West New Territories and the
Western Harbour Area etc.
At the sub-regional level, the entire territory is
divided into five
sub-regions namely the North-East New

New
Territories,
Territories,
North-West
Territories,
South-West New Territories
76
South-East
New
and Metropolitan
Except
Area.
planning
for
statenients
the
Metropolitan,
the
for the other four sub-regions have
been approved by the Develo,ment Progress

noted
by
Bristow,
sub-regional
prior
to
the
1982,
Committee.
only
method
As
of
sub-regional planning normally existing in Hong Kong was

non-statutory
the
planning
guides
prepared
areas of the rural New Territories.
subeguent to certain consu1tant
for
certain
However, after 1982,
recommendatjong,
tighter
land-use control was aimed at which would possibly lead to
full statutory control on those areas, principally in the

New
not yet
Territories,
plans.(22)
covered by statutory land-use
The full statutory control however is yet to be
materialised as at to-date.
At
zoning
the
plans
district/local
are
district
level,
plans
statutory
prepared
outline
under
the
provisions of the Town Planning Ordinance and under the

direction
of
the
Town
Planning
They
Board.
give
an
indication of the future land use pattern that provides a

guide to public and private investment.
On the other hand,
outline development plans are departmental plans prepared

within
the
framework
of
the
sub-regional
statements and statutory outline zoning plans.

as
guide
for
development
programming,
planning
They serve
development
control, land sales and the reservation and allocation of

government sites.
Compared with outline development plans,
layout plans are even more detailed and serve as a basis
77
for land formation work and the release of land for public
and private development.
Development control measures
Land--use planning involves inevitably control of

development on building and land.
can
broadly
be
classified
non-statutory control.
into
The methods of control

statutory
control
and
In Hong Kong, the former includes
the Town Planning Ordinance and Building Ordinance etc.

which
have
direct
influence
on
town
planning.
Non-statutory control includes government lease conditions,

density zoning control and other special control measures.
enacted
The
Town
in
1939,
Planning
Ordinance
stipulated
which
procedures
the
for
outline
inspection,
zoning
it
has
plan
is
statutory
gazetted
the
Once a
preparation of statutory outline zoning plans.

draft
first
was
for
public
Existing
effect.
However,
non-conforming uses are not affected by the plan.
any new development, including building works or change of

use, should conform with the zoning shown on the plan.
Ordinance
provides
development and appeal.

provision
for
application
for
for
The
permitted
It however does not contain any
enforcement.
The
enforcement
of
zoning
control is achieved through lease conditions and under the

provisions of the Buildings Ordinance.
In order to carry
out
statutory planning requirements,
resumption
land
of
under the Crown Lands Resumption Ordinance procedures Is

allowed for.
Apart from such procedures, It is stated that
no compensation is payable to land interests affected by

the zoning or other proposals made by a draft plan.
As
noted by Bristow, statutory plans prepared under this Town
argued
supersede
to
can be
while not stated explicitly,
Planning Ordinance,
granted
rights
Crown
under
lease
conditions. (23)
The
Buildings
design
planning,
and
Ordinance
is
construction
to provide
for
buildings
of
the
and
associated works; to make provision for renderizig saie the
dangerous buildings and lande;

connected
matters
enforcement.
therewith.
and to make provision for

It
provides
the detailed
As well as the Crown leases, the Buildings
Ordinance was considered the principal means of development

control in land-use planning.
Insofar
as
non-statutory development control
concerned, the Crown lease is the most important tool.
is
All
land in Hong Kong is owned by the Government which grants

leasehold
Interests.
Simply
speaking,
the
Hong
Kong
Government operates through its rights as ground landlords

for almost all. land In the Colony to exercise control over
land.
In the early days, leases were for terms of 75,99
and 999 yearS, subsequently standardised in the urban areas

of Hong Konq Island and Kowloozi to a term of 75 years.
79
Leases for land in the New Territories and New Kowloon will
terminate three days before 30 June 1997 (the expiry date
of the lease for the territories from China.)

Lease Ordinance,
Crown Lands Ordinance
the
The Crown
the New
arid
Territories Ordinance of 1910 are related to land matters
and their administration particularly concerning leases.
Development control by lease conditions are through the

requirements contained in the leases which control the use
and the extent of development such as site coverage, plot

ratio, building height, non-building areas, etc.
Conclusion
Modern
history
of
land-use
only
about
planning
thirty
in
Hong
years.
Kong
Frani
has
one
of
non-intervention to growth and housing oriented and finally
to environmental conscientious, land-use planning policies

in Hong Kong are still being refined and shaped to adapt to
As far as the policy-making process is concerned,
changes.
it remains closed to the public, highly authoritative and

unco-ordinated.
The
strategic
development
documents which are
highly conceptualised
merely
together
gathering
of
existing
arid
plans
are
represent
policies
and
statements of various departments to provide a framework of

land-use allocation.
The Town Planning Ordinance remains
non-enforceable and restricted to the urban area and the
[;1i
new towns.
All these require some fundamental political
and institutional changes to the entire land-use planning

process in order to make it adaptive and viable in the new
era Hong Kong is entering.
81
Notes
1)
Roger Bristow, riLand_use planning in Hong Kong
policies and procedures'
history,
(Oxford University Press,
1984)
P.9.
2)
ICS.
Pun,
"Town planner's role in environmental planning
in Hong Kong" in Plannini & Development Vol.
4,
No.
2,
1988.
3)
Working Group on the Review of Town Planning Ordinance,
Hong Kong Institute of Planners, "Issues of town planning

legislation
in
Hong
in
Kong"
Planning
&
Development,
Vol.4, No.1, 1988.
4)
See
"Hong
Kong
Session
Hansard,
]977/78"
(Governnient
1976/77
(Government
Printer, Rong Kong), P. 211-218.
5)
See
Hong
Iong
Session
Hansard,
Printer, Hong Kong), P. 830.
6)
See "Hong Kong Hansard, Session 1982/83" (Government

Printer, Hong Kong), P.4.
7)
Ibid, P.5.
82
8)
See I!Hong Kong Hansard, Session 1976/77n1 (Government
Printer, Hong Kong), P.8-9
9)
Ibid, P.762.
10)
See
on
"Report
Special
Committee
on Land Production",
(Government Printer, song Kong, 1971.
11)
See
"Hong
Kong
Hansard,
Session
1985/86"
(Government
Printer, Hong Kong), P.24
12)
Ibid, P.252
13)
See "Hong Kong Hansard, Session 1987/88" Vol. II,

(Government Printer, Hong I(ong), P.1705.
14)
Working Group on the Review of Town Planning Ordinance,

op. cit.
15)
Ibid.
16)
M.R. Bristow, "The role and place of strategic planning in

Hong Kong" in
inning & Development, Vol. 4, No. 1, 1988.
83
17)
See "Hong Kong Hansard, Session 1973/74", (Government

18)
See
"Hong
Kong
Hansard,
Session
1979/80",
(Government
19)
Roger Bristow, op.cit. P.151.
20)
John Keung,
"Urban Planning in Hong Kong - a political!
administrative perspective", paper in planning research,

(University of Wales, 1981)
21)
TOwn Planning Office, "Town Planning in Hong Kong"

(Government Printer, 1988), P.22
22)
Roger Bristow, op.cit.,P.180.
23)
Ibid, P.152
84
Chapter 6 AgrIcultural Priority Area Scheme

- an assessment
preventing
In
encroachment
further
upon
agricultural land, land-use planning is the most important

administrative instrument contemplated.
The purpose of
this study is to scrutinize Its effect in Hong Kong and to
highlight the principal land-use planning policy so far

made by the government to enhance agricultural land-use
i.e. the Agricultural Priority Area Scheme.
aims
providing
at
implementation
background
and
some
of
This chapter
the
assessments.
Scheme,
Based
on
an attempt to draw some implications
analysis,
relationship
land-use
between
government's
the
policies
planning
the
on the
agricultural
and how agriculture
its
and
can be
fairly taken care of in land-use planning will be made in

the last chapter.
!ii
origin of the Scheme
The
issue
zoning
of
land
statutorily
for
agriculture was first discussed at the Land Development

Policy Committee in 1979.
out
of
territory
total
were
of
under
10,140
At that time, only 6,020 ha.

ha.
arable
cultivation
or
land
over
farming.
remaining 4,120 ha. were left fallow or uncultivated.
85
the
The
The
discussion
measures
however
should
agricultural
came
be
land.
to
taken
In
io
to
1982,
conclusion
as
halt
decrease
the
compiling
in
what
to
the
of
North
Eastern New Territories Sub-regional Planning Statement,

the North Eastern New Territories Study Group compiled two
working papers on agriculture which proposed a format of
using land-use planning policy to

land
further
front
protect
encroachment.
The
agricultural
Study
Group
recognised the main problem leading to the decrease of

agricultural
land
was
the
retention
landowners for speculative reasons.

solutions,
policy
of which the
was
considered
of
key
land
by
It suggested three
introduction of
a
such
move
land zoning
in
stimulating
The other two proposals were
agricultural development.
meant to enhance the use of agricultural land in zoned

areas for cultivation.
They were the introduction of a
punitive land tax on owners of unused agricultural land

who maintained it in that condition and a scheme whereby
owners of unused agricultural land were offered land with
other development opportunities in exchange.(l)
These
measures
if
implemented
would
be
an
about-face of the governntent's agricultural policy from

one of non-intervention to regulatory control.
The Group
was realistic enough to Identify the associated political

problems.
The land-use zoning policy aside,
the other
options were considered extremely difficult to implement
on a fair basis.
unused
The introduction of a punitive tax on
agricultural
land
would
prejudice
against
agricultural land-owners as owners of vacant premises in

urban areas were not penaliseci.
However, it would violate
the traditional rights of the holders of Block Crown Lease
which the government had so far respected

Four) .
The
(See Chapter
land exchange programme would add to the
burden of the government which had already been extremely
heavy due to the Letter B land exchange system and was

considered impractical.
With regard to zoning land for agriculture, the

Study Group foresaw political problems as well.
It would
limit the range of opportunities of developing the land by
the landowners and was bound to create strong objection

from land-owners.
However, the Group recognised that the
zoning policy would remove uncertainty about the future in
the minds of landowners the

land speculation.
hope-value' associated with
The crux of the policy was to make
absolutely clear to the
owners
the situation
agricultural land for a fixed period of time.
of their
To quote
the Group, "(speculative) attitudes are unlikely to change
unless policy is seen to be absolutely firm."(2)
Only
with such a strong zoning policy to back up could the

Agriculture and Fisheries Department be in a position to
carry out a Land Rehabilitation Scheme (see the following
87
promoting agricultural development projects and providing

irrigation techniques.
Three years after the Study Group had proposed

such a land-use zoning policy, the Land Development Policy
Committee in 1985 discussed the issue and concluded that

"areas suitable for agriculture which are nt required for
development
or
objections
from
agricultural,
(APA)'t.(3)
other
are
nor
uses,
likely
developers
zoned
as
Agricultural
to
attract
if
zoned
Priority Areas
Subsequently, this policy guideline was laid
down as principles in drawing up development plans for the
New
Territories
in
North-Western,
the
North-Eastern,
South-Eastern and South-Western New Territories Sub-region
In explaining the APA Scheme,
Planning Statements.
an
officer from the Agriculture and Fisheries Department told

Yuen
Long
District
agriculture but not

useS
could be
Board
that
earmarked
"areas
suitable
for
for development or other
zoned non-statutorily as APA.'(4)
What
intended to be a statutory land zoning policy by the North
Eastern New Territories
Study Group was reduced by the
Land Development Policy Committee to be a non-statutory

land administration measure.
The Scheme
The Land Development Policy Committee ruled that

as a land administration measure, the APA scheme should be
coupled
with
development
measures
and
potential.(5)
development,
the
non-agricultural
to
realise
the
order
to
control
non-agricultural
agricultural
production
and Lands Department would,
Buildings
turn down applications
normally,
APAS.
actions
In
control
to
for the conversion of
lots to use other than agriculture in the
The Agriculture and Fisheries Department will take
complementary actions to provide technical assistance to

farmers
and
to
improve
road
access,
irrigation
and
infrastructural services in the APAS.
In 1987, the Agriculture and Fisheries Department

classified
different
types
of
APAS
in
term
broad
as
follows : -
A)
Areas with a substantial amount of arable

land,
proportion
small
of
which
is
currently lying fallow, and having marketing

facilities within reasonable reach.
Fairly
minor and location-specific improvements may
be required to bring the fallow land back

into agricultural production.
89
B)

land
currently
lying
fallow.
Adequate
infrastructure in terus of irrigation water,
road access, and having marketing facilities

within
reasonable
Minor
reach.
general
improvements will however still be required

in
order
to
bring
fallow
land
back
into
agricultural production.
C)

land currently lying fallow.
Infrastructure
in terms of irrigation water, road access and

marketing
may
facilities
adequate form.
not
exist
in
Moderate general improvements
will be required in order to bring the fallow

land back into agricultural production.
D)

land currently lying fallow.
of
infrastructure
water
facilities
terms
road
and
of
is
terms
in
access
lacking.
general
The provision
of
irrigation
and
marketing
A major
improvement
input
would
in
be
required, in order to bring the fallow land

back into agricultural production.
The
result
of
the
classification
can
be
summarised as follows:-
Cultivated
Arable
Sub-regions
land(Ha)
North-east
1,401
North-west
2,254
South-west
125
Total
Fallow Arable land (Ba)
3,780
Total
424
428
555
1,497
24
388
600
1,012
184
49
114
996
317
84
1,077
639
2,825
Source: Agriculture and Fisheries Department
As a land administration measure, the success of
the APA scheme depended on the ability of the government

to
non-agricultural
control
development
of
the
agricultural land which was entirely the responsibility of
the Buildings and Lands Department.

had inherent difficulties.
Works
made
the
following
The control however
The Secretary for Lands and

remarks
at
the
Legislative
Council:
"The
Towning
Planning
Ordinance
does
not
at
present have powers, or give powers to the Town

Planning Board to disown land for rural uses in
91
support
of
agriculture,
and
recent
judicial
interpretation of the Block Crown Lease (The AG V

Meihado Investuient Limited case in 1982) has made
any
protection
under
the
lease
agriculture for land for its

extremely difficult.
of
private
intended function
So potential good farm land
carries on being converted to storage, car dumps

and other monstrosities.'(6)
Therefore,
Department
might
even
the
not
approve
Buildings
and
Lands
applications
for
non-agricultural development in the APAs, it however could

not stop the holders of the Block Crown Lease to use their
lots
for
open
Despite the
storage.
impotency of
the
development control of the Scheme, it still invited a lot

of
objections
process.
from
land-owners
during the
consultation
Such opposition was based on the premise that
the designation
of
land
as APA would simply have the

At the
effect of freezing the development of such land.
Yuen Long District Board,

land-owners
as
good
in
the scheme was criticised by

principle
but
impractical.
District Board members considered that instead of shortage

of
agricultural
land,
the
constraints
faced
by
local
farmers were competition for available water supplies and

the territory's close proximity to China, which was one of
the worlds major food producers.(7)
The most
fierce
opposition came from the Pat Reung Rural Committee during
visit
by
the
Assistant Director
Agriculture and
of
Fisheries Department to the Committee on 5 November 1988.

Pat Heung was the area in which Cheung Po, one of the two
areas being selected for the pilot scheme, was situated.
What intended to be a briefing by the Assistant Director
on the plan to rehabilitate fallow land in the APA was

taken by the Rural Conunittee as an opportunity to voice
their objection to the freezing of development of their

land by the Scheme.
The Committee on the occasion voted
unanimously against the Scheme.(8)
The debacle at Pat Heung Rural Committee was not

At the
the only incident showing 1ardowners' discontent.
Legislative Council in 1987,
Taj Chin-wah,
a member of
Heung Yee Kuk, made the follo7ing comment:-
"However,
recently extensive areas
the New
in
Territories have been designated as agricultural
priority areas and within such areas land use

other than for agricultural purpose has not been
conceived.
While
Administration's
deterniination
sufficient
land
to
viability
of
our
appreciate
to
set
maintain
the
growth
primary
industries,
the
aside
and
due
consideration should also be given to meeting the

increased
denand
reasonable price" (9)
for
industrial
land
at
At another Legislative Council Session, Tal made

another statement criticising the Scheme:-
III would urge the Government to formulate a
better land policy so that agricultural land. can
be used for industrial purpose because over 50%
of land in the New Territories is uncultivated

agricultural land.
Some of them are of f-handedly
classified as Agricaltural Priority Area by the

town planners.
industrial
regionally
lessen
The use of agricultural land for
purpose
for
the
would
more
ever
create
development
and
transportation
and
balanced
increasing
employment
family problems in the new towns."(lO)
In
the
presence
of
fierce
oblections,
the
Secretary for Lands and Works could not but admit that
"the
reported
public
response
has
been
discouraging,
originating as it does from landowners whose freedom of

the use of their lands would necessarily be restricted"
and warn that "little can be achieved unless landowners in
the rural areas accept some restriction in the use of farm
land. "(11)
Apart
from
control
of
the
land-use
by
administrative means, the Scheme hinged on the efforts by
the Agriculture and fisheries Department to rehabilitate
fallow
the
land.
In
the
New
Territories
Sub-region
Planning Statements, it was recommended that the adoption

of
the
Scheme
should
be
accompanied by
significant
increase in resource input by the government to upgrade

the role of the agricultural sector through the services
of
the Agriculture and Fisheries Department.
through
statistics,
one
notice
will
Checking
that
recommendation was far from being taken seriously.
this
The
following two tables show the provisions of resources to

the department in the years 1985/86 to 1991/92.
Provisions for promoting the development of

aqricultural production arid to increase productivity
(in million $)
1985/86
30.9
1989/90
38.1
1986/87
32.4
1987/88
19 88/89
34.4
31.1
1990/91(Estimated)
199 1/92 ( Estimated
46.7
45.4
95
Provisions for irrigation projects in the N.T.
($)
1985/86
1986/87
1987/88
1988/89
600,000
605,098
634,586
567,000
1989/90
19 90/9 1( Estimated)
1991/92 (Estimated)
860,000
900,000
900,000
Sources: Government estimates for the years 1986/87-1991/92

(Government Printer, Hong Xong)
The average annual growth rate of the provisions

fr developing agricultural productions in these years was
a modest 7.36%.
The average growth rate of the provisions
for irrigation projects was
7.61%.
were considered very low as
These growth rates
compared with the average
growth rate of the whole public sector in these years

which was 17.34%.
Since the Scheme was non-statutory, the problem

of land speculation still existed as landowners preferred
their land lying idle to being rented out for farming.

Other problems between the landowners and tenant farmers
such as mistrust and difficulty of locating the landowners
96
were
yet
be
to
resolved
(See
Chapter
problems).
To resolve these problems
Agriculture
and
Fisheries
Department
Three
for
the
in the APAs, the

implemented
the
Agricultural Land Rehabilitation Scheme (ALRS) in the two
pilot areas
in Cheung Po
Northern District.
in Pat Heung and Hok Tau in
The reasons
for choosing these two
areas as pilot APAs for implementing the ALRS were:-
i)
the soil condition in these areas was good,
ii) infrastructure such as road access and

irrigation
were
basically
available;
therefore requiring few resources; and
iii)there was a
substructial amount of land
lying fallow in these areas.(12)
The ALRS scheme involved the Vegetable Marketing

Organization as a trustworthy third party to take tip the
land on a rental contract basis from the landowners for a
period of reasonable duration and then re-let to tenant

farmers
for
the
same
period.
For rehabilitating the
infrastructural facilities, the Organization also set up

an Agricultural Development Fund with an initial capital
of
$5
million
in
1987
and was prepared to inject an
additional capital of $8 million as and when required.(13)
The result of the ALRS in the two APAs received

support from some landowners and farniers despite the lack
of resources provided by the central government to the

Agriculture and Fisheries Department.
From July 1988 to
November 1988, altogether 22,000 sq.m.
of about 30 lots
were
rented
from
tenant farmers . ( 14 )
the
land-owners
and were
sub-let
to
However, many land-owners and tenant
farmers had reservation in the scheme.
For land-owners,
since participation in the scheme was entirely voluntary

and
the
use
non-statutory,
of
their
land
for
agriculture
was
many of them preferred to wait and see.
Moreover, many village leaders who controlled the land of

Tsos and Tongs, objected to the ALRS as they thought that
it would affect the communal cohesiveness of the village
if the land was rented to outside tenant farmers.
They
withheld their consent for the right of access to the lots
and blocked approval by the District Land Officer for the

tenant
farmers
Moreover,
to
erect
on-farm
domestic
structures.
since many lots were owned by more than one
owners or by those who were not in Hong Kong,

difficult to conclude a tenancy agreement.
it was
In some cases,
the rents damanded by the landowners were so high that

they were prohibitive to farmers.
done
According to a survey
by the Agriculture and Fisheries Department,
market rent of agricultural land in the N.T
the
was about
$500-$600 per dau chung per year, but for the ALRS, the
rent proposed to be negotiated was $l,000.(15)
Apart from
the high rent,
the tenancy period agreed In the ALRS,
which was normally five years, was too short for farmers
to make investment in the land(16)
Many
could
policy.
not
of
be
the problems
solved
without
experienced
firm
in
the ALR$
zoning
land-use
As the Crop Farming Sub-committee remarked that
for improving the results of ALRS, the following measures

had to be taken.
(1) The PPA scheine should be statutorised.
(2) The undeveloped crown land within APAS

should be used for agricultural purposes.
(3) Private land within selected APAs should be

resumed for agricultural development.
(4) Infrastructural
facilities
within
the
APAS
should be improved to facilitate agricultural

development. (17)
All
government1s
these
require
agricultural
as
total
well
policy in the New Territories.
99
as
change
of
the
land-use planning
An assessment
As remarked in the North Western New Territories

Sub-region
Planning
character
These were land "not required for development
or
other
use
Statement,
nor
were
M'As
residual
in
likely to attract objections
'would-be' developers if zoned agricultural."
from
It was not
conScious planning for using land for agriculture.
The
term 'Priority Area1 did not exactly reflect the intended

use
the
of
lande
While
the
government
hoped
that
agriculture should have the priority use of the land, the

lancPs residual nature wa
already a clear indication that
agriculture
any priority consideration
planning
did
process.
concentrated
often
not
in
suffering
get
In
fact,
the
'leftovers'
from
the
APAs
the
tended
urban
of
be
development,
effects
'blighting'
to
in
of being
considered as possible long term development options under

the
'Potential Development Area'
concept which had the
same status of the 'Agricultural Priority Area' concept in

the
that
'the
land resource was
rural
urban orientated uses

North
This residual nature suggested
land-use planning.
Western
agricultur1
New
land
' ( 18) .
be
for
Perry estimated that in the
Territories,
could
easy pickings'
lost
some
to
development proposals of various kinds
840
major
ha.
of
government
This was about
19% of the sub-region's agricultural land area.
Another very serious question is whether it

the government's intention to protect agricultural land In
loo
its own right or whether the APA Scheme was only intended
to be used as a development control mechanism to protect

the
rural
environment.
latter
the
In
situation,
agriculture was only one of the land-uses envisioned in a

rural environment.
It is a question of problem definition
which decides how and what policies are made to solve the
problem.
Hogwood and Gunn remark that how the problem is
defined will
objective
influence
identityin
setting,
appraising
and
them,
'success.(l9)
later policy processes
The
APA
options
'relevant'
suggesting
Scheme
such
standards
originated
from
as
and
of
the
decision of
the Land Development Policy Committee as a
measure
tackle
to
the
problem
encroachment
of
upon
agricultural land, and to allow the land to continue to be
used for cultivation.

implementation,
control.
However, when the policy came to

aim
the
was
changed
environmental
to
Perry, Senior Town Planner of the Town Planning
Office,
said
better
utilisation
that
"APA....laid the foundations for the

of
farmland,
the
more
orderly
development of rural settlements, the realisation of the

rural areas recreation potential, and better provision for
rural industry and domestic accommodation.'(20)

of
allowing the
land
to
Instead
used for agriculture,
be
the
Scheme when implemented was more as a tool of development

control to prevent unwanted development.
only
considered
as
one
of
the
environniental control purpose.
101
uses
Agriculture was
which
fitted the
This again demonstrates
that agricultural land-use was not the first priority in

the
Scheme.
the
In
Planning
Statements
for
the
sub-regions in the New Territories, it was directed that

'where
it
proven that APA concept
is
not feasible,
is
consideration should be given to the promotion of other

positive measures to secure environmental improvement and
more beneficial
through either up-grading or
land uses
The government was never adamant in
redevelopment."(21)
protecting the use of the land for agriculture.
Due
to
government's
the
nature
residual
attitude
uncommitted
areas
and
agriculture,
the
of
to
the
planning of the Scheme was never done in a sincere and

The government was well aware that in
detailed fashion.
the M'As,
"much
anticipation
of
Is
left fallow or is poorly farmed in

hope
the
realising
value
property
of
Where farmland is unused in remoter areas,
development.
it may be economically unviable to bring it back into

production" and "many APAS contain such a proliferation of
other
uses
viable
that their value
According
to
is
survey
done
Fisheries Department,
advisory
technical
irrigation
services,
assistance
and
seriously
areas
farnLing
economically
intensive
as
by
the
impaired."(22)
Agriculture
and
the resources required to provide

credit
and
drainage
and
to
marketing
maintain
infrastructure
amounted to $31.84 million in
102
1988/89,
facilities,
existing
the
in
not
the
to
APAs
include
manpower
resources. (23)
only
government
injected
However,
very
we
as
modest
have
seen,
for
resources
rehabilitating the lanci.
The Scheme failed also because of the lack of

planning.
There were at 1eat 3,500 ha. of farmland lying
fallow within APAs in North Western and North Eastern New

Territories.
According to the Agriculture and Fisheries
Department, it required an additional 10,000 farm holdings
(or a supply of 15,000 farm workers) to fully farm the

land which were not available in Hong (ong at that time.
Moreover, if the 3,500 ha. of land was fully cultivated of
vegetables,
it would produce an extra 380,000
tons
of
fresh vegetable per year which the local market would not
be able to absorb and which would seriously affect the

economic viability of local vegetable farming.(24)
While
the argument was not to be used against more land for

agriculture,
it
illustrated
vision of the Scheme.
the
lack
of
planning
and
It is considered that if the Scheme
was meant to protect those intensively cultivated land

rather than remote and hardly cultivable land, the result
could be much more promising and the cost would be much

impressively lower.
One of the most impairing characteristics of the

APA Scheme was that it was a non-statutory approach.
It
was not enforced by the Town Planning Ordinance as it was
103
not part of any statutory zoning in government's Outline

Plans
Zoning
strategy
for
the
zoning
of
new
towns.
It
preferably
land
was
for
planning
agricultural
As most of the land within the APA5 were privately
uses.'t
owned and since the APA scheme had no statutory status,
the landowners might choose not to lease out their land

agricultural
for
uses.
As
matter
fact,
of
most
land-owners let out their land for open storage which was
permissible in the Lease.
In other words, the Scheme had
no teeth.
One
has
government's
to put the Scheme

policies
land
In the context of
New
the
in
Territories
particularly those in relation to the indigenous villagers

in
order
understand how
to
it
functioned,
if
did
it
As we have seen, land policies in the
function at all.
New Territories were highly politicised and much shaped by

historical elements.
the
indigenous
Many of the policies evolved around
villagers'
claimed rights to dispose of
their land and the villagers' aspirations to develop their

land.
It was in fact an avowed policy as reflected in its
Small
House
Policy and the Letter
System,
that the
government tended to recognise the villagers' rights and

to absorb their aspirations.(25)
policies
were
subject
of
In addition, the land

contention
between
government and the powerful Heung Yee Iuk which

statutory
interest
group
representing
104
the
is
overwhelmingly
land-owners' interests.(26)
1947
to
The Govenor of Hong Kong from
Sir A1exande
1957,
Granthani remarked
when
Lrz
retirement that "conflict was going on all the time, and

nothing
creates
deeper
feelings
than
disputes
over
land.... This basic unease over their land was probably
what stirred the New Territories in the matter of the

Heung Yee Xuk."(27)
The government has always avoided
clashing with the 1(uk over land policies and APA Scheme is
an example to demonstrate this.

could
as
land
non-agricultural
land-owners
speaking,
While the APA Scheme
administration
development,
from using
it
failed
it
open
for
policy
storage.
disallowed
stop
to
Simply
the Scheme invited objections from landowners
and yet failed to achieve its objective.
Condemning the deficiencies of the Scheme, Perry

once remarked that:-
tsControl expressed through the statutory Outline

Zoning
Plans
has
proved
very
effective,
but
significantly these plans are only operative in a

small
part
of
the rural
NT.
We are largely
reliant on our system of non-statutory controls

which are not yet fully comprehensive and nor are
they specified in terms with the capability of

consistent interpretation in the consideration of
individual
development
105
proposals.
Ultimately
non-statutory
planning
control
is
expressed
through the land administration system
which) is
primarily a device to facilitate development and

raise capital and is not intended to stand on its
own
as
means
achieve
to
planning
our
and
environmental objective. "(28)
We have
piece-meal
and
seen
in Chapter Four how the ad-hoc,
un-coordinated
policies
land
the
and
restrictive town planning policies in the New Territories
created the
'hope-value' among land-owners who preferred
to lay idle their agricultural land speculating on its

development value.
speculative
This
just like other
'hope-value1,
thrived
activities,
uncertainties.
on
Landowners were uncertain about when their land would be

resumed
what
development,
for
would
compensation
be
yielded to landowners next time their land was resumed and
how
'temporary'
'short
or
temporary
government's
land
short-term lease holdings.
term'
tenure
might
mean
policies
the
in
and
other
All these uncertainties and
the outcome of the 'hope-value' were not and could not be
Not until a
resolved by the non-statutory APA Scheme.

statutory
permanently
incentive
land
zoning
allocated
to
hold
plan which would

to
land
confirm
agricultural
use,
un-used
speculative investment be reduced.
as
areas
would
potential
the
or
The end of the APA System
the
In
land-use
and
urbanization,
wake
the
the
the
concern
blightinq
government
Planning and
Rural
of
Improvement
imposed
effects
formed
rural
the
over
by
"New Territories
Strategy
Working
RPIS)
Group" in t987 under the Land Development Policy Committee

to solve the problems including proliferation of temporary
and
long
term
non-conforming
uncontrollable
uses;
conversion of agricultural land into open storage space

and gradual decline of agricultural activities and misuse
of the abandoned agricultural land.(29)
Four task groups
were formed under it which included one on agriculture and
one on NP land use policy development.
Backing down in
front of the landowners pressure, the latter task groups
proposed to adopt a new term "Rural Activity Area" (RAA)
in lieu of the APA so as to allow flexibility and to

reflect
wider
range
recreational development.
of
permitted
uses,
including
Such proposal was agreed by the
Task Group on Agriculture as the new term was considered

less objectionable and more acceptable by the landowners.
In
the
Consultative
Document
on
Rural
Planning
and
Improvement Strategy which was endorsed by the Executive

Council, the change of term was formally announced.
It is
decided that while agricultural activity will be retained
as part of the rural environment,
it will be limited to
those areas where farming is still viable.
lo,
In areas where
agriculture
is
unlilcely
to
be
revived
w1ere
and
development is suitable, RAAs will be zoned to alternative
land uses such as low density housing, industry

stage.
or open
It ends the short life span of the APA Scheme.
The ending of the APA Scheme dealt another bio

agricultural
sector.
change of term
to the
Many farmers considered that the
nd zoning strategy was a step backward in
protecting agricultural land.(30)
In formulating a broad strategy for the use of

land in the former APAs and to consider the feasibility of
re-zoning some agricultural land for other uses
in the
RAAs, an inter-departmental working group was formed.
working group will
select
cultivated
good
or
have
areas
which are
agricultural
conserved for agriculture.
intensively
potential
Preliminarily,
The
to
be
around 3,400
ha. of land has been identified for such purpose.(31)
Conclusion
The
APA
Scheme
is
the
first
land-use
zoning
concept applied for agriculture in Hong Kong after a long
history of encroachment and misuse of agricultural land.
It was however proven to be a half-hearted and another

piece-meal
Territories.
land
administration
policy
in
the
New
With the lack of statutory power of the
108
zoning concept coupled with unrealistic planning at the

outset,
the Scheme was dooied to
to compete with
fail
other land uses and to reduce landownerst

the
land.
agricultural
During
land
the
short
continued
storage or laid idle.
to
period
be
'hope-value' on
of
the
converted
Scheme,
to
open
While the Agriculture and Fisheries
Department wasted no time to push forward the Agricultural
Land Rehabilitation Plan in the APAs, its hands were tied
by the lack of resources and manpower.
The worst of all
was that it was unable to convince landowners to lease

their land for agriculture as the 'hope-value' was still
high.
For those landowners who were persuaded to use
their land for agriculture,

rezoning
of
APA to
they felt penalised by the

It
kPA.
would
in
the
long
run
undermine the department's effort in land rehabilitation.
With the failure of the APA Scheme, agriculture in Hong

Kong faces a bleaker futures
If the present situation was
allowed to go on, there would not be many days away that

it would perish forever.
In the final chapter, we venture
to suggest what should be done or undone.
109
Notes
1)
North Eastern New Territories Study Group,

Paper
47
Agricu1ture
(North
"Working
Eastern
New
Territories Study Group, 1982). P.11.
2)
Ibid, P.12.
3)
Town Planning Office, "Planning statement for the

Northwestern New Territories Sub-region" (1987) P.33.
4)
See minutes of the ist Yuen Long District Board

Industry, Commerce and Agriculture Committee meeting
on 30 May 1988, unpublished.
5)
Town Planning Office, op.cit.
6)
See, "Hong Kong Hansard, Session 1986-87 Vol. II

(Government Printer, Hong Kong). P.1498.
7)
See minutes of the 5th Yuen Long District Board

on 5 January 1989, unpublished.
8)
Wah Kiu Yat PO, 6 November 1988.
110
9)
See, "Hong Kong Hansarci, Session 1987-88 Vol.1",
1.0)
See, t'Hong Kong Mansard, Session 1988-89 Vol.1",
Il)
See, "Hong Kong Hansard, Session 1985-87 Vol.I1,

(Government Printer, Hong Kong), P.1498-99
12)
Agriculture and Fisleries Department, "Report
on the
AFD pilot agricultural land rehabilitation Scheme, Cs

Paper
3/88)
Sub-committee
presented
of
the
to
the
Advisory
Crop
Farming
Committee
on
Agriculture and Fisheries, unpublished.
13)
Ibid.
14)
South China !orning Post, 6 November 1988.
15)
See minutes o
the ist Yuen Long District Board

on 30 May 1988, unpublished.
16)
See minutes of the ist Crop Farming Sub-committee of
the Advisory Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries

on 26 August 1988, unpublished.
111
17)
See minutes
of the 2nd Crop Farming Sub-committee
meeting on 3 October 1988, unpublished.
18)
Keith Perry, "The rural area-what future" in Planning

and Development Vol. 4, No. 2, 1988
19)
Brian W. Hogwood and Lewis A. Gunn, "Policy analysis
for the real worldu
(Oxford University Press,
1984)
P. 110.
20)
Keith Perry, op.cit.
21)
Town Planning Qfice, op.cit.,P.42.
22)
Ibid, P.35.
23)
Agriculture and Fisheries Department, 'N.P. rural

planning and improvement strategy, task
group-agriculture, final report", (1989), unpublished.
24)
Ibid.
25)
At the 3rd meeting of the Crop Farming Si.ib-corniuittee

of
the
Advisory
Fisheries,
government's
favoritism
an
Comniittee
unofficial
Small
towards
House
member
Policy
indigenous
i 12
on
Agriculture
and
challenged
the
as
villagers
sign
and
of
bias
against agriculture.
The Chief Estate Manager of the
Buildings and Lands Department replied that the land
policy for indigenous villagers had a long history

and
that
allocation
it
was
of
land
matter
of
resources
priorities
to
meet
in
the
different
requirement of the society.
26)
Eric Lam counted that more than 60% of the matters
discussed at the general/executive committee meetings
of the Kuk and meetings between the government and

the Kuk and matters raised in campaigns organised by
the Kuk
his
ifl
1982 to 1984 were of land matters.
unpublished
thesis
for
the
Master
of
see
Soci1
Sciences degree in the University of Hong Kong titld
"An assessment of the role of the Heung Yee Kuk in

the
formulation
of
rural
policies
in
the
New
Territories" (1986).
27)
Lee Ming Kwan, "The evolution of the Heung Yee Kuk as

a political institution" inFrom villa
to city
studies in the traditional rootes of Honq Kong

society ed. by David Faure, James Hayes and Alan
Birch, (University of Hong Kong, 1984), P. 174.
28)
Keith Perry, op.ci.t.
113
29)
Lam Wah-king, 'Policy implementation and problems of

development in the new towns", thesis for the Master
of social Sciences degree in the University of Hong

Kong, unpublished, 1989.
30)
See the minutes of the 5th meeting of the Advisory

Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries held on
26 June 1989, unpublished, 1989.
31)
Agriculture and Fisheries Department, "Progress on
the review of the use of APA" CS Paper 3190 presented
to the 7th Crop Farming Sub-committee of the Advisory
Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries on 22 January

1990, unpublished.
1i4
Chapter 7 Towards a land-use poliy for agriculture
What do we want the area to look like?
What
roles can the rural area be expected to playV' Keith D
Perry
Perry, 1988(1)
considered
that
planners
had
remained
confused on the answers to these questions in planning for
the New Territories so far.
He predicted that the issue
of protecting the rural land-use will remain clouded if
the rural area continues to be seen as subservient to

urban development.
He is right.
However,
if we could
still recall that agriculture had been the main user of

the land before the infringement of urban development in
the past few decades in the New Territories, we would have
to address one more question from which the government has
so far chosen to shy away: what role should agriculture

play
in
Hong
Kong?
largely directed to
While
Perry's
planners,
two questions
my question goes
are
to the
policy-makers.
Do we need an agricultural policy?
Hong Kong has sustained remarkably high economic
growth rate in the past few decades.
115
The high growth
rates
made
are
activities
possible
and
by
the
export-led
"basically
economic
free-enterprise,
market-disciplined system.(2) however, a non-intervention

policy is certainly not the main cause.
Hong
Kong1s
economic
experience
does
Scott noted that

not
support
the
conclusion that the less government there is, the better

the chance of rapid economic growth.
He argued that if an
explanation of Hong Kong's economic development in terms

of laissez-faire and limited government were correct, then
expected rapid growth would have come earlier say in the

19th
century
when
Instead of applying
government
a
was
truly
hands-off policy,
limited . (3)
the government
chose to exercise rigorous control and influence in the

social and economic sectors.
Examples are the provision
of massive public housing, the implementation of new towns
projects, the regulation and guidance in the banking and
securities sector and the arrangement with the Chinese

government on the provision of water supply to Hong Kong.
112 establishing and creating a sound manufacturing sector,
the government did not hesitate to establish industrial

estates in which manufacturing industries enjoy privileges
in land use and infrastructural facilities; to fund the

research
and
training
expenses
such
as
in
the
establishment of technical institutes; and to organise the

Hong
Kong
Productivity Council,
the
Trade
Development
Council and the Export Credit Insurance Corporation.
All
these interventions are proved to be justifiable and work.
116
With
regard
to
agriculture,
the
government's
policy in primary production in the 1960s can best be

summarised as follows:-
'Ito favour 'free trade' and to refrain from any

'protectionist'
industries.
measures
towards
therewith
keeping
In
local
the
only
constraints placed upon imported primary produce

either
relate
to
health
standards,
aimed
at
safeguarding the local produce and local primary

production,
or
dutiable.
are
specific
There
are
no
Likewise there is no form

the primary producer.
must
be
e.g.
tobacco
tariff
is
barriers.
of direct subsidy to
Local primary production
highly competitive
therefore;
and the
major advantages which it enjoys relate to its

proximity to its major makret and to its ability
to produce highly perishable commodities, often

particularly suited to local demand."(4)
Almost two decades later, government's basically

non-intervention
unchanged.
At
policy
towards
the
Adjournment
agriculture
Debate
on
remained
Primary
Industries in the Legislative Council in 1987, the Acting

Financial Secretary Yaxley made the following remarks:
117
The Government neither gave direct subsidies to
primary industries nor protected them from the

tree operation of market forces.
Instead, the
Government provided infrastructural and technical
support necessary for the development of farming

and
fisheries and left them to
to the
adjust
market forces. "(5)
Although
non-intervention
totally
it
in
agriculture,
hands-off.
resources
are
generally
is
Quite
committed
the
policy
government
maintenance
the
not
is
considerable
justifiably,
to
of
the
of
agricultural industries mainly through the Agriculture and

Fisheries
Department
functions
of
the
established
Department
in
are
The
main
enhance
the
1946.
to
productivity of the local farming and fishing industries

through
improved
orderly
increased
Department's
production
efficient
marketing.
unnecessarily
objective
high
to
economic
and
of
stability
and
technical
and
maintenance
It
protect
the
efficiency,
is
also
consumers
food prices by ensuring that
of
the
from
local
produce of acceptable standards is marketed efficiently.

Towards achieving this objective,
the government set up
the Vegetable Marketing Organization in 1946,
regulated
the price of rice in the 1950s (6), promoted co-operative
marketing in the 1960s and 1970s and provided wholesale

markets for imported fresh food in the 1970s.
118
There
intervention
whether
In
fact
Is
record
In the primary industries.
sufficient
attention
The point
given
been
has
government
of
is
the
to
industries and whether a new direction should be provided

for agriculture.
With
only
about
8%
suitable for crop farming
the
of
area
land
total
there is no question of
(7),
Hong Kong becoming wholly s1f-sufficient in foodstuffs,

or
mainly
even
However,
so.
there
is
case
for
agriculture to play a significant role in Hong Kong.
Firstly,
well
remarkably
Hong Kong's
despite
the
is
environmental
performing
and
social
Over the years, agriculture has responded to
constraints.
managed
intensively
concentrating
by
pressures
economic
agriculture
high
vegetables and flowers.
value
production
crops
on
particularly
While agricultural land has been
progressively lost to other uses, agriculture in the years

1970
to
1980
however
production
of
following
remark
0.5%
registered
in
about
rea].
the
an
terms.
annual
Yeung
performance
growth
in
made
the
of
local
agriculture in 1985:-
"With a population of S million in a small area
(1,065 sq. km), Hong Kong distinguishes itself in
urban agriculture by using only 10% of its total
119
area to produce 45% of the fresh vegetables
consumed by Its population.
. .
This is even more
surprising considering the fact that 40% of its

10,000 ha.
laid
of agricultural land was abandoned or
waste
in
because
1979
restriction
of
of
conversion of agricultural land to other uses.

Thus,
the apparent irony in this city-state is
the continual and accelerating trend of abandoned

farmland along with the unmistakable move towards
greater
specialization,
intensification,
and
modernisation in urban agriculture'(8)
It would be very disturbing

competitive
and
well
developed
such
if
economic
a highly
activity
was
allowed to perish due to exogenous factors such as massive
Conversion of land to urban uses and dumping of cheap

vegetables from China.
Secondly,
there
agriculture to play.
Kong
cannot
supplies.
afford
is
long-terni role for local
Nichols remarked in 1976 that "Hong

to
be
complacent
about
Its
food
There is a world-wide problem which is likely
to magnify rather than diminish.
In such a context Hong
Kong could well be faced not only with a cost problem in
respect of imported foodstuffs but also periodic supply

difflculties."(9)
There is a point to retain agricultural
activities for strategic reasons although at present Hong
120
Kong imports some 66% of 1t

from China
vegetables consumed, mostly
As a buffer against sudden drop of imported
vegetables, Hong Kong's 34% share of vegetables consumed

will. play a very stabilising force.
An example was the
sudden stoppage of imports from China in the midst of the

Pienanmen
Square
Incident
in
Members
]989.
of
the
Advisory Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries considered

that Hong Kong government should have learnt a lesson from
the incident and set aside an agricultural policy which

allows loca]. vegetable production to tide over an import
vacuum period of 9 days.(1O)
Noreover,
as Hong Kong is
approaching 1997, there is a strategic reason to maintain
a certain level of self-sufficiency in food supply which

will
be
crucial
systems' to function.
foundation
for
Tone
country,
two
Reliance on imports front China also
involves a substantial administratve cost in maintaining

health and sanitary standards.
vegetables
Incidents such as toxic
from Shenzhen also incurs substantial social
costs.
Thirdly, despite the fact that the agricultural

sector in Hong Kong is relatively small, the annual output
amounts to $1,437 million to the total of $413,589 million
of GDP i.n 1988.(11)
This represents a considerable saving
with regard to Hong Kong's overseas balance of payments.

Without local agriculture, greater efforts would need to
be made in developing other export industries and overseas
121
markets
in
order
to
purchase
the
additional
food
requirements.
Last but not least,

environmental conservation.
agriculture,
Territories
agriculture contributes to
In emphasising the assets of
the then IDistrict Commissioner of the New
made the
(1969)
following
comnients
In
the
Legislative Council : -
'TNot only does it supply a significant portion of
our supplies of fresh vegetables, pork, poultry

and
eggs
but
environments
it
for
provides
also
the
the
Territories
New
original
natural
villages and the Scenic background ..... Any major

concession to the call for abandonment of control
of
agricultural
under-capitalised
undermine
land
industry
Government's
favour
of
would
not
in
policy
cheap
only
building
of
up
modern self-contained towns but would also go a

long
way
towards
depriving
Hong
Icong
of
the
irreplaceable heritage of agricultural land which

it took centuries to forni."(12)
Perry also remarked that
in the short-term,
'Greene
scenario would rely heavily on the agricultural economy

remaining
stable
as
means
122
to
secure
ari
attractive
landscape
and
effective
an
as
way
utilising
of
and
managing large areas of rural land.'(13)
In pursuit of an agricultural policy, Hong Kong
government must, apart from continuing or expanding the

current
assistance
and
establishments,
infrastructural
deal with the fatal problem facing agriculture today, i.e.

the decrease of agricultural land, which cannot survive if
some forni of government intervention is not forth-coming.
What land-use planning can do for agriculture
Planning
is
virtually
kind
of
intervention.
Dror defines planning as Ha process of preparing a set of
decisions for action in the future directed at achieving

goals
by
optimal
value-laden.
means(14)
It
is
bound
to
be
Bristow notes that "plans have objectives
which involve a particular value - to change the future so

as to bring about a situation which is in some way seen as
Planning as
being better."(15)
can bring about changes

Itself
and
factors(16)
regulating
government intervention
in two ways;
changes
promoting change
initiated
other
By promoting or regulating changes, planning
is overtly political.
Ma explains that planning decisions
involve the need to balance 'gain' and 'loss'.

planning
by
should
explicitly
recognise
123
the
Therefore
notions
of
socia1 equity'
and
'public interest'.(17)
Planning Is
thus as much a political process as lt is a technical one

because
it
arbitrates
distribution
in
social
society
conflicts
despite
and
the
resources
assertion
by
procedural planners who would argue that planning should
be apolitical, rational and scientific in oxder to help

decision makers make policies.
Some people would ask, "why intervene at all, why
not leave it to the market?"
The most common answer is
that there are market failures which require some form of

intervention.
it
helps
to
As far as land-use planning Is concerned,

exterminate
or
forestall
external
(externalities) generated by market activities.

land-use
planning
is
necessary
for
the
effects
Secondly,
production
of
public goods which are not produced by private individuals

or companies.(18)
Some arg1e that land-use planning is
necessary
place
in
utilitarianism
is
the
like
principal
Hong
Kong
In
which
ideology which defines
common welfare as a function of welfare of Individuals,

but
neglects
interest.(19)
the
community
has
an
Independent
It tends to neglect the externalities spilt
aver from private economic activities which may impose

severe social costs on the society.
Some sort of land-use
planning is therefore called for in a society like Hong

Kong in order to Improve "allocative efflciency"(20) which
balances the social and private benefits In an economy.
124
Ma notes that Hj
order to safe-guard Individual
rights
and Community benefits, the planning system has to define
those rights which need protecting
in relation to the
community benefit, and Set procedures to protect those who

disagree
the way welfare
with
elaborated
plain
in
system aims
land-use
reserve
to
When
defined.'(21)
is
planning
such
language,
lanci via zoning for uses which
produce positive externalities;
to separate incompatible
production and consumption activities via exclusive use

zoning;
integrate
to
external
effects
stipulate/encourage
negative
external
measures.(22)
land-use
To
planning,
compatible
via
mixed
use
positive
the
place
first
and
to
restrict/prohibit
control
development
via
a
negative
and
zoning
and
effects
reserve
positive
for
function
agriculture
of
the
in
system
mentioned above i.e. reserve land via zoning, is a direct
forestall the shrinkage of agriculture4
intervention to
o avoid encroachment and externalities upon agricultural
land, the second and third functions are relevant.
The
fourth function is to promote agricultural activities on

the zoned land4
Unfortunately In Hong Kong,

left
much
to
be
desired.
M.R.
land-use system has

Bristow remarks
that
(land-use) planning in Hong Kong has long been regarded
as reactive, pragmatic and ad hoc in nature."(23)

made
similar criticism that the problem of
125
tau
land-use
policies
Hong Kong was incompleteness,
in
inconsistency
and lack of co-ordination and long-term planning.(24)
these weaknesses
demonstrated
Although
by
in
land-use planning cannot be better
the
policies
long-term
All
and
in
the
New
comprehensive
Territories.
land-use
plan
emerged in the 1970s with the drawin up of the Colony

Outline
Plan,
its
land-searching.
centred
central
theme
one
was
of
The work of drawing up the Plan was
upon
the
physical
capacities
different
of
development options in terms of optimal housing densities

and
maximum
constraints
use
and
recommendations,
of
all
costs
available
dominated
Physical
sites.
the
discussions
and
while socio-economlc planning questions
were barely considered.
Although the Plan was updated in
1979 as the Hong Kong Outline Plan, lt largely took into

account
the
programme
demands
begun
in
of
1972
the
10-year
together
public
with
the
housing
further
expansion of the rural centres and their redesignation as

further
new
towns.
the
In
early
eighties,
mounting
pressures for strategic and long-term plan for Hong Kong

prompted the setting up of the Strategic Planning Unit and
the
decision
to
initiate
the
Territorial
Strategy and the five sub-regional studies.

the
I!overall
objectives
Development
Nevertheless,
of development planning are to
maintain or enhance economic development and to improve

the quality of urban living."(25)
The major weakness as
we have already seen is that adequate attention to the
126
adverse effects
of development
blights are particularly

land.(26)
bias
not paid.
Planning
in the once agricultural
felt
While remedial measures were considered, they
were thought of in terms of protecting the environment,

eradicating negative external effects of development and
projecting a
given
'green
providing
to
No idea has so far been
vision.
agriculture
status
separate
in
land-use planning nor was there any attempt to reserve

We have already seen
land for agricultural activities.

how
subsuming
agricultural
failed
planning
to
activities
in
agricultural
protect
environmental
land
in
All we are asking is
Agricultural Priority Area Scheme.
All it
to recognise agriculture in land-use planning.

requires
front
planning
government
concerned,
is
agriculture,
the
to
have
far
as
is,
recognise
land-use
as
values
the
of
to implant such value in land-use planning

To quote Perry, we
and not to hesitate in intervening.

will
the
to
learn
to
say
no
and
repeatedly
no
to
development where we do not want it.(27)
The word 'no'
cannot be more effectively heard by any
administrative
measures than a statutory agricultural land-use zone.
Hong Kong uses 2,090 ha. of agricultural land for

active
cultivation
nowadays
vegetables consumed locally.

by
the
government
that
to
produce
34%
of
the
If we adopt the calculation

days'
production
level
is
required to tide over an import stoppage period, Hong Xong
127
would only need an additional 1,330 tia. of cultivable land
The 1,330
to produce 55% of the local consumption.(28)

ha.
is not hard to find as there are some 4,000 ha. of
arable land lying idle in the New
erritories.
What is
required are a statutory zoning policy to put it back to

and
cultivation
an
policy
government
adamant
to
rehabilitate the land for cultivation.
Land-use planning is itself a political process
as we have noted.
Intervention in land-use planning is
bound to create political problems.
If it can be agreed
that sound planning principles are essential to guide the

future
development
the
of
New
Territories,
then
the
political consequences of a greater degree of intervention

will
have
to
intervention
be
is
faced.
If
one accepts that greater
politically unacceptable
and
therefore
there can be no strong planning, one is to accept orce and
for all that it is land interests in the New Territories

that
will
direct
the
course
of
government will accept the role of
events,
and that
the
fo1iower!r responding
to events and tooting the bill at the end of the day.
The aniendment to the Town Planning Ordinance - an episode
The existing Town Planning Ordinance which was

enacted in 1939, provides for the appointment of the Town
128
Planning Board which is an independent statutory body to

prepare Outline Zoning Plans for the urban areas arid for
the eight new towns In the New Territories namely Tsuen

Wan,
Kwai Chung, Tsing Yl,
Fanhing,
Sha Pin,
PO,
Taj.
Tuen Mun,
Sheung Shui and the southern coast of Landtau
Island.
For areas within these statutory plans,
land
owners will be affected if their land is zoned for public
purposes, is restricted to a use not permitted under the

lease;
or
is
more severely restricted
permitted under the lease.
as
to use than
We have seen how the lack of
statutory control in the non-urban areas except the eight

new
towns
contributed
to
agricultural land to other uses.
massive
conversion
of
We have also argued that
agriculture should be included in the statutory plan as a

statutory land use zoning.
As a major proposal In the amendment of the Town
Planning Ordinance ordered by the Executive Council in

1987, the government published in July 1990 a consultative
document which proposed the enactment of the Town Planning

(Amendment) Bill.
The Bill was intended to be an interim
measure to "improve the rural environment,
in particular
to control the proliferation of unplanned urban activities

in the rural areas."(29)
The Bill aimed at extending the
jurisdiction of the Town Planning Ordinance to cover the

rural
New
Territories
so
as
129
to
provide
statutory
planning
framework
to
guide
and
private
control
development outside new towns.
The Bill proposed tour major amendments to the

Ordinance:
(1.)
The jurisdiction of the Ordinance is

extended to cover the whole Territory arid to
expand the types

Zoning
The
Plan.
zoning in an Outline
of
types
of
zoning added
include open storage uses as well as village

type
agriculture
development,
or
other
specified rural uses,
(2)
The Town Planning Board is empowered to

designate Development Permission Area (DPA)
within
which
planning
periaission
under
section 16 of the Ordinance will be required

for
development,
all
exempted
in
the
pian.
unless
The
otherwise
DPA will
be
replaced by Outline Zoning Plan within three

years.
(3)
Enforcement provisions are included in

the Bill.
Any person who fails to comply
with the requirentent of either an
enforcement notice, a stop notice or a
130
reinstatement notice commits an offence and

is
liable
to
fine
imprisoimient for one year.
$500,000
The Authority is
also empowered to enter th

the
necessary
and
steps
land and take

ensure
to
the
discontinuance of the authorised development.
In order to reduce the risk of owners
(4)
making
use
the consultation period
of
establish 'existing uses'

will
be
exempt
from
to
in the tWA which
planning
permission,
Interim Development Permission Areas (IDPAs)

plans
will
regulate
areas.
the
effective
be
development
Subsequent
required
later
immediately
of
land
permission
when
the
Town
to
in
the
will
be
Planning
(Ainendiuent) Ordinance 1990 has been enacted.
though belatedly,
The Bill,
development
control
Territories.
It
over
land
use
effects
in
the
a powerful
rural
New
aims particularly at the uncontrolled
conversion of agricultural land under Block Crown Leases

to other uses.
Due to its sweeping powers, the Bill invited rong

st
objections
from
Ileung
Yee
131
Kuk
which
represents
landowners'
away
the
without
rights.
rights
It c1imed that the 3111.
to
develop
compensating
from
land
them.(30)
It
the
also
snatched
landowners
claimed
that
landowners' livelihood would be affected if their land was
restricted for farming because the rent for farming plots
was much lower than that for open storage
. ( 3]. )
Cheung
Yan-lung, Legislative Council member, criticised the Bill

sacrificing
as
benefit.(32)
minority
Other
interests
criticisms
the
for
included
the
public
lack
of
consultation as the IDPAs plans were effective the time
the proposed Bill
was announced and the heavy penalty
provision.
Strong
objections
including
protests
boycotting
were
petitioning
with
meetings
the
expressed
the
in
British
severe
government,
government,
snubbing
government officials at 1-leung Yee Kuk and District Board
meetings, and burning copies of the Bill.
At one time,
the New China News Agency in Hong Kong publicly denounced

the Bill as it argued that it contravened the Sino-British
Joint Declaration and Basic Law provisions safeguarding

the interests of indigenous villagers.(33)
The Bill however was well received by other parts

o:
the public.(34)
that
such
measure
Those who welcomed the Bill thought

was
long
over-due.
Eventually
on
23.1.1991, the Bill was passed in the Legislative Council
132
with the penalty provision reduced to a fine of $100,000.

Only six members voted against the Bi11.(35)
Conclusion
With
the
Town
Planning
passed to become an Ordinance,

overcome
preventing
in
agricultural
land.
It
(Amendment)
Bill
now
one great hurdle has been
discriminate
marks
conversion
turning
point
of
in
government's land-use planning history to ameliorate the

past
ad
hoc
and
agriculture.
of
piece-meal
policies
land
detrimental
Land-use planning is however only one part
series
of
policies
of
particular
importance
to
agriculture in an industrialised and urbanised society.

There is still much left to be done in order for a healthy
agricultural sector to survive.
of
farm labour,
Problems such as the loss
the economic viability of
arming and
infrastructural up-keep should be tackled immediately.
however have reasons to be hopeful.

the
advocacy
generations
are
of
environmental
beginning
to
We
Taking advantage of
conservation,
appreciate
younger
their
heritage and take a new interest in farm products.
rural
We
have in Hong Kong signs of large scale farms emerging.

For example, the Green Produce Ltd., a medium size organic
farm in Fanling has started production.(36)
Their organic
farm products are sold in supermarkets and are welcomed by
i 33
the middle income class.
Another large farm Is also being
set up In Pat Heung with Chinese and overseas capital.(37)
In maintaining Competitiveness,
the Agriculture
and Fisheries Department has introduced the mass seedling

production technique for the growing of exotic vegetables
which in 1989 valued at some $500 million in the local

market. (38)
We
improvements
are
in
also
the
looking
forward
infrastructural
to
subatantial
facilities
to
be
imDleniented by the Rural Planning and Improvement Strategy.
All in all, no time should be wasted in promoting
these activities
policy
for
if
the sound foundation of a 1and-ise
agriculture
provided
by
(Amendment) Ordinance is to bear fruits.
134
the
Town
Planning
Notes
1.)
Keith D. Perry, "The rural area - what future?"
Planning and Deve1opent Vol.4, to. 2, 1988.
2)
Hong
Kong
Goverruuent,
"Hong
Kong
1990"
(Government
Printer, 1990), P.61
3)
Ian
Scott,
legitimacy
"Political
in
Hong
change
lCong"
and
(Oxford
the
crisis
University
of
Press,
1989) P. 255-256.
4)
AgrIculture and Fisheries Department, "Annual report

1970/71" (Government Printer, 1972)
5)
Minutes of the inaugural meeting of the Advisory
Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries held on 27 June

1988, unpublished.
6)
Ian Scott, opcit., P.256.
7)
Hong Kong Government, op.cit., P.111.
8)
Yeung Yue-man, "Urban agriculture in Asia" (The United

Nations University, 1985)
135
9)
North Eastern New Territories Study Group, "North
Eastern New Territories

Agriculturetl,
(North
study
Eastern
Working Paper
New
territories
Study
Group, 1982).
10)
The calculation of the 9 days tide-over period mainly

takes into account the time required to get alternative
source of imported vegetables from other countries and
the daily consumption of local vegetables.

minutes
cf
Sub-committee
the
Joint
meeting
Crop
held
Farming!
on
See the
tivestock
August
unpublished.
11)
Hong Kong Government, op.cit., P.111.
12)
C.T. Wong, "Urbanization and agricu1ture' in
Geoqrphy and the environment In Southeast Asia

ed. by R.D. Hill and Jennifer Bray (Hong Kong
University Press, 1978) P.178.
13)
14)
Y. Dror, "The planning process
a facet design" in
International review of administrative sciences,

Vol, 29, No. 1, 1963 P.51.
136
1989,
15)
Roger Bristow, "Land-use planning in Hong i(ong

history,
po1icie
and procedures"
(Oxford 1Jnivrsity
Press, 1984),P.2.
16)
Michael Ma, "Planning in an utilitarian society - the

case of Hong Kong" in Planning and Deve1opineflt.
Vol. 3, No. 2, 197.
17)
Ibid
18)
See Lai Wai Cheuiig's, "The role of land use planning an eConoIUiC exposition's in The Hong Koxg Surveyor,
Vol. 3, Issue 2, July 1987.
19)
ichael 1a, op.cit.
20)
Lai Wal Chung, op.cit
21)
Michael Ma. op.cit.
22)
Lai Wai Chung, o.cit.
23)
M.R. BristOw,
"The role and place of strategic planning
in Hong Xong" in Planning and Development L

Vol. 4, No.1, 1988.
137
24)
S.K. Lau, t'Hong Kong's land policy in the

face of
1997" in The Hong KonqSurveyc
Vol. 1, Issue 3,
September IaS.
25)
M.R. Bristow, op.cit.
26)
Lai
Wai
Chung
negative
argues
external
uncertain
the
that planning
effects
expected
property such that
lt
which
value
itself creates
alter
of
an
is considered
render
existing
land
lower,
(ii)
(i)
uncertain, or (iii) higher than before.
or
Cases (ii) and
(iii) are applicable to the creation of 'hope-value'
agricultural land and its lying idle.
See his
on
tThe
role of land use planning - an economic exposition" in

The Hong Kong Surveyor Vol. 3, Issue 2, July 1987.
27)
28)
The
calculation
was
Fisheries Department,
done
by
the
Agriculture
and
CS Paper 5/89 presented to the
Crop Farming Sub-committee of the Advisory Committee on

Agriculture
and
Fisheries
unpublished s
138
on
10
October
1989,
29)
PlannIng Department, "Consultative bocuiuent - interim

amendments to the Town Planning Ordinance" (Government
Printer1 1990), P.2
30)
Lau Wang-fat, the chairman of Heung Yee Kuk said
in the Legislative Council meeting on 23 January 1991

that
avoiding
the
question
pressing
ahead
depriving
land owners
with
the
of
Bill,
comDensation
was
oE their right
whi1
tentamount
to
to
be treated
fairly when their interest was aected by government

policies.
See South China Morning Post,
24 Januazy
1991.
31)
South China Morning Post, 6 October 1990.
32)
South China Morning Post, 24 January 1991.
3)
South China Morning Post, 5 December 1990.
34)
Associations praising the Bill included the World Wide
Fund tor Nature, United Democrats of Hong Kong, the

Iong Kong Institute of Planners, Friends of the Earth
and the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce. Sources:
press reports.
35)
South China Morning Post, 24 January 1991.
139
36)
South China Morning Post, 1 April 1990.
37)
Agriculture and Fisheries Department, CS Paper 1/90
presented
to
the Crop Farming
Sub-committee
of
the
Advisory Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries on 22

January 1990.
38)
Ibid.
140
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SUB-REGIONAL
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DISTRICT
LOCAL/SITE-S PECI FIG
-:ds
iAn
Bib1ioaphy
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Title

An assessment of the agricultural priority area scheme

Li, Hon-kwong, James.; .

The author retains all proprietary rights, (such as patent

AN ASSESSMENT OF THE AGRICULTURAL

James LI HON KWONG

Master of Public Administration Dissertation

While allowing me to preserve the

Every mistake in this work however

Department which enabled me to have free access to the

would also like to thank Mrs. Betty Neoh who

Last but not least, I have to thank Ling for

Land policies in the

Land use planning in

Agricultural Priority Area

Towards a land-use policy

Hong Kong agricultural

Hierarchy of land-use plans

Different scales of weights and square measure are used

are provided for readers' reference:-

= 10,000 sq. meters (2.47 acres)

133 lbs (0.06 metrIc tons)

i kilogram = 2.20 lbs

To all the genuine

T go to work when the sun comes up;

To me, what's the use of power?

The objective of this study is to discuss what and

methodology used is to analyse, through the experience of

the Agricultural Priority Area Scheme,

relationship between land-use planning and environmental

planning; and the political and soclo-economic elements of

agriculture and land-use planning.

study refers to market gardening with vegetable farming as

its main concern and flower farming playing a residual

Qualitatively, vegetable Is the main diet

Agriculture In the conmon sense includes livestock

In this study, livestock farming is excluded for

livestock farming and

Livestock farming produces animal waste which

In contrast, vegetable farming is considered the

environmentalists as it has effective greening impact on

From another environmental perspective,

environmental pollution in the forms of acid rain and soil

Secondly, government has different policies

for livestock farming and vegetable farming.

the environmental impact caused by livestock farming, the

Livestock Waste Control Scheme in

1988 which imposed strict measures to control the disposal

of livestock waste in all livestock farms in Hong Kong by

the concept of Livestock Up-grading

This is a separate policy different from

the Agricultural Priority Area Scheme which is the target

Thirdly, mixed livestock and vegetable

separate modes of farming can be clearly delineated by the

and land used.

Land-use planning Is about planning the uses of

Simple and clear as it sounds, it is sometimes used

interchangeably and jointly with town planning and urban

Agriculture and land-use planning are two separate

subjects which deserve scholarly research in their own

means a lot particularly to agriculture.

Due to rapid urbanization in the past three

Land being one of the factors of production,