Letters | Nuclear power imports can help speed Hong Kong to zero-carbon goals
- Readers discuss climate change targets in the latest policy address, Hong Kong’s housing needs, annuity payments, power sources and hotel quarantine rules
Hong Kong must follow the science and bring forward its 50 per cent reduction target to 2030. The difference of five years is significant, and delays will have irreversible consequences for environmental and human health.
In “Powering a Carbon-Free Hong Kong” – a recent report from independent think tank Civic Exchange and global research group World Resources Institute – researchers found that a decarbonised power system with a high ratio of imported nuclear energy could have economic advantages. This would allow us to reduce power system emissions by more than 50 per cent before 2030.
To achieve this, the Hong Kong government and the two local power companies should immediately begin negotiations on joint venture investment agreements with mainland counterparts to secure stable, adequate and decarbonised energy for the city.
We are seeing encouraging moves from Hong Kong’s private sector. In April, Link Asset Management announced a net-zero strategy by 2035, including a 30 per cent reduction in electricity usage across the portfolio. Swire also committed to a 50 per cent greenhouse gas reduction target by 2030 compared with a 2018 baseline from direct operations.