LCQ10: Operation Building Bright
Following is a question
by the Hon Leung Ka-lau and a written reply by the Secretary for Development,
Mrs Carrie Lam, in the Legislative Council today (February 16):
Question:
The Government, in collaboration with the Hong
Kong Housing Society and the Urban Renewal Authority, launched the two-billion
dollar Operation Building Bright (OBB) in 2009 to help owners of some 2,000
target buildings which are over 30 years old to carry out building repair
works. In 2010, the Government injected an additional funding of $500 million
to increase the number of buildings that could benefit from OBB. However, it
has been learnt that from time to time, building materials containing asbestos
are found to have been used in old buildings and repair works may lead to the
release of asbestos fibres, affecting the health of the repair workers and the
residents. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) whether the authorities have conducted asbestos assessments in old
buildings which received grants to carry out repair works since the launch of
the first round of OBB; if they have, of the relevant data (including the
number of buildings which have undergone asbestos assessments and the number of
those confirmed to contain asbestos materials); if not, how the authorities
ensure that the health of both the workers and the residents is adequately
protected from being affected by asbestos before repair works for the assisted
buildings are carried out;
(b) if the authorities have conducted asbestos assessments in old buildings
which participated in OBB for the first time, whether the Labour Department and
the Environmental Protection Department have monitored and inspected thoroughly
the risks of these repair works; if they have, of the number of the relevant
inspections and prosecutions; if not, whether the authorities will monitor and
inspect these repair works and report the relevant data and details to the
public on a half-yearly basis;
(c) whether it will consider requiring owners whose applications for the new
round of OBB have been approved to conduct asbestos assessments in their
buildings first and approval for commencement of the repair works will not be
given until the places under repair are proved to be free of asbestos
materials; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(d) given that the information provided by the Development Bureau showed that
since the launch of OBB, more than 5,900 job opportunities (including
construction workers, technical workers, contractors, and professionals) have
been created, but from time to time, building materials containing asbestos are
found to have been used in old buildings, whether the authorities have provided
workers undertaking the repair works with appropriate training and instructions
to ensure that they are equipped with the skills and knowledge necessary for
undertaking the asbestos works; if they have, of the details; if not, how the
health of these repair workers can be safeguarded?
Reply:
President,
Works involving asbestos are regulated by the Air
Pollution Control Ordinance (Cap. 311) (the Ordinance) and the Factories and
Industrial Undertakings (Asbestos) Regulation (Cap. 59AD) (the Regulation).
The Ordinance provides for detailed control on
works involving asbestos containing material. Works involving contact with
asbestos containing material are mainly related to demolition or repair of
buildings containing asbestos materials. The Ordinance requires that if the demolition
or repair works of a premises involve asbestos containing material, the owner
of the premises shall engage a registered asbestos consultant and a registered
asbestos contractor to handle the relevant asbestos works and notify the
Environmental Protection Department (EPD) in writing prior to commencement of
the works. Contractors for asbestos works are required to register with the EPD
to ensure that they have appropriate equipment, training, experience and
capability in complying with the relevant requirements of the Ordinance.
According to the requirements of the Regulation,
a proprietor/contractor who carries out asbestos work shall notify the Labour
Department (LD) not less than 28 days before commencement of the work. Prior to
the carrying out of the work, the proprietor/contractor shall also arrange
qualified persons to carry out an adequate assessment of the conditions of
exposure of the workers to asbestos, and take out effective measures to control
the risk arising from asbestos in the course of the work. In addition, to
further protect the health of the workers, the proprietor/contractor shall also
ensure that the workers have undergone a medical examination before being
employed to carry out the asbestos work, and that they are kept under periodic
health surveillance.
The target buildings under the Operation Building
Bright (OBB) are divided into two categories. Category 1 covers buildings with
owners' corporations (OCs). Category 2 covers buildings with difficulties in
organising repair works, such as buildings without OCs. The repair works for
Category 1 target buildings are organised voluntarily by OCs. If the owners of
a Category 2 target building are unable to organise repair works by themselves,
the Buildings Department (BD) will hire consultants and contractors to carry
out the relevant works on behalf of the owners.
The OBB has all along been putting emphasis in
reminding the participants (including owners and practitioners of the
construction industry) of the requirements of various safety aspects. We have
co-ordinated different departments to conduct extensive publicity and
monitoring work. The Hong Kong Housing Society (HKHS) and Urban Renewal
Authority (URA) have organised four briefings for authorised persons (APs) and
registered general building contractors, with the participation of
representatives of the EPD to explain to the participants the requirements of
the Ordinance and the responsibilities of investigation and removal works of
asbestos as well as to remind them of the issues that warrant attention and
need to be complied with. For the OBB, the LD has also organised over 20
seminars on the safety of renovation and repair works to enhance the
understanding of the importance of occupational safety of repair works of the
APs, consultants, contractors and workers responsible for the repair works of
the target buildings under the OBB. The seminars also covered matters related
to occupational safety and health of asbestos work.
When issuing an "approval-in-principle"
to the OC of a target building, the HKHS/URA will at the same time attach
pamphlets and posters related to matters that warrant attention and compliance
in the removal of asbestos containing material to remind the OC of the
requirements of the Ordinance. The HKHS/URA will also remind the AP engaged by
the OC to pay attention to and comply with all the relevant legislation,
including the requirements related to the handling of asbestos containing
material as provided in the Ordinance. Regarding repair of old-style buildings,
APs should assess whether the proposed repair works would involve asbestos
containing material. If it is assessed that the repair items involve asbestos
containing material, the APs should comply with the requirements in the Ordinance
and the "Practice Note for Authorised Persons, Registered Structural
Engineers and Registered Geotechnical Engineers" issued by the BD in
carrying out the repair works concerned, which include engagement of a
registered asbestos consultant to carry out an investigation for the proposed
repair works, and engagement of a registered asbestos contractor to carry out
the relevant works, etc. The costs of the works, including those for
investigation and removal works of asbestos and the associated professional
service, etc, that comply with the requirements of the OBB, could be covered by
the scope of grant.
Regarding Category 2 target buildings, the BD
will request its consultants to pay attention to whether the proposed repair
items would involve asbestos containing material. If the repair items involve
asbestos containing material, the BD will require its consultants to arrange
for the removal of the asbestos containing material, including the engagement
of registered asbestos consultants and registered asbestos contractors to carry
out the relevant works. The registered asbestos consultants and registered
asbestos contractors should also comply with the relevant statutory
requirements.
We will continue to adopt the above-mentioned
measures to implement the OBB in order to enhance the safety of asbestos issues
that might need to be handled during the carrying out of repair works.
The reply to the four-part question is as
follows:
(a) & (b) Since the implementation of the OBB, the HKHS, URA, BD, EPD and
LD have been maintaining close liaison. The HKHS, URA and BD provide the EPD
and LD with name lists and information of target buildings
monthly. The information includes whether APs have been engaged,
tentative or actual commencement date of works and the works involved, etc. in
order to facilitate inspection and regulatory actions by the EPD and LD.
Up to the end of 2010, the EPD has conducted
initial assessment for about 1,400 target buildings and confirmed that about
1,100 buildings contain asbestos containing material. The EPD has issued
letters to the owners of individual units and OCs of such buildings to explain
the issues that warrant attention and the requirements of the Ordinance in
relation to the removal of asbestos containing material. This is to remind the
owners and parties concerned that they should follow the requirements of the
Ordinance in carrying out repair works of the buildings. The EPD has also sent
staff to the above-mentioned buildings to carry out assessments and inspections
for about 1,500 times. No incidents of contravention of the Ordinance have been
found.
Besides, after receipt of information provided by
the HKHS, URA and BD, the LD has also carried out inspections. Up to the end of
2010, the LD has inspected about 1,400 target buildings. The Department has not
found any incidents in contravention of the Regulation in the course of the
inspections.
(c) The works to be subsidised under both the first and second rounds of the
OBB must comply with the requirements of all the relevant legislation,
including the Ordinance which requires that the owner of a premises should
follow the requirements of the Ordinance to handle works involving asbestos.
Therefore, before carrying out building repair works, an owner of a premises
should arrange to assess whether the proposed works would involve asbestos
containing material. If necessary, a registered asbestos consultant and a
registered asbestos contractor should be employed to carry out the works
involving asbestos in accordance with the requirements of the Ordinance.
(d) Up to the end of January 2011, the OBB has created around 15,600 job
opportunities for building professionals, contractors, technicians, workers,
etc. The Ordinance has stringent requirements on the control of abatement works
involving asbestos containing material. According to the requirements of the
Ordinance, it is necessary to engage a registered asbestos contractor to handle
abatement works involving asbestos containing material. The EPD has compiled a
set of detailed code of practice for reference by the industry. The
code of practice includes the issues of concern, guidelines and advice in
respect of different types of asbestos abatement works as well as individuals'
protective installations that should be equipped for the practitioners of
asbestos works, etc. The Ordinance also requires registered asbestos
contractors to provide regular training to their staff. In applying for or
renewal of registration, the contractors shall also submit the relevant records
to the EPD for scrutiny to ensure that the staff possess the required skill and
knowledge.
The Regulation requires proprietors/contractors
to provide adequate information, instructions and training about the risks of
asbestos and the safety precautions for workers engaged in asbestos work. In
addition, the Occupational Safety and Health Council has also been organising
occupational safety and health courses on asbestos work for the industry
regularly to enable workers to understand asbestos hazards and provide training
on the adoption of proper methods in performing asbestos work to safeguard
their health.