Hong Kong: Light Pollution Angers Residents
NTDTelevision
2011-03-04
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In Hong Kong, a giant LED advertising board has been causing so much disruption to residents in a nearby apartment complex that they may launch legal action. The case would be the first action of its kind in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong residents have complained about air pollution for years, but now a group of residents may launch the territory's first legal campaign against light pollution.
The problem is this.
A three-storey high LED advertising board that sits on top of a shopping mall. The sign looks onto a complex of luxury apartments. Residents say the sign shines into their bedrooms at night and blocks the view of the harbor, while landlords like Chui Mung-ngor say it's making it hard for them to find tenants.
[Chui Mung-ngor, Landlord]:
"Like, the beginning of October, one couple from Australia, they loved the apartment, they came back to visit four times, decided to rent it. Then all of a sudden, the sign comes on. So they still tried to accommodate, so they asked around to see how late the sign would be turned off and finally they decided they cannot handle it."
She finally found a tenant after reducing the rent by two thousand U.S. dollars per month.
It isn't just the lights on top of the mall that have caused complaints, Friends of the Earth have filed a complaint against this storefront in the same mall. Residents say it's an eyesore and distracting for drivers.
Before the year 2000, flashing lights on buildings were banned in Hong Kong, due to the close proximity of Kai-Tak airport. But after the airport was moved to Lantau Island, the government lifted the ban and invested in lights on Hong Kong's skyscrapers. District Councilor Paul Zimmerman says these lights are now finding their way into residential neighborhoods.
In Hong Kong, a giant LED advertising board has been causing so much disruption to residents in a nearby apartment complex that they may launch legal action. The case would be the first action of its kind in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong residents have complained about air pollution for years, but now a group of residents may launch the territory's first legal campaign against light pollution.
The problem is this.
A three-storey high LED advertising board that sits on top of a shopping mall. The sign looks onto a complex of luxury apartments. Residents say the sign shines into their bedrooms at night and blocks the view of the harbor, while landlords like Chui Mung-ngor say it's making it hard for them to find tenants.
[Chui Mung-ngor, Landlord]:
"Like, the beginning of October, one couple from Australia, they loved the apartment, they came back to visit four times, decided to rent it. Then all of a sudden, the sign comes on. So they still tried to accommodate, so they asked around to see how late the sign would be turned off and finally they decided they cannot handle it."
She finally found a tenant after reducing the rent by two thousand U.S. dollars per month.
It isn't just the lights on top of the mall that have caused complaints, Friends of the Earth have filed a complaint against this storefront in the same mall. Residents say it's an eyesore and distracting for drivers.
Before the year 2000, flashing lights on buildings were banned in Hong Kong, due to the close proximity of Kai-Tak airport. But after the airport was moved to Lantau Island, the government lifted the ban and invested in lights on Hong Kong's skyscrapers. District Councilor Paul Zimmerman says these lights are now finding their way into residential neighborhoods.
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