Ocean Park staff focus on the environment during Hong Kong closures

Although temporarily closed in response to the Hong Kong Government’s current COVID-19 prevention guidelines, Ocean Park’s staff team have been preparing for its reopening at any time while further extending the attraction’s conservation work to the community.

Starting from 20th January, more than 380 staff split into small teams to participate in the conservation activity to collect rubbish along 27 popular hiking trails in support of the Leave No Trace campaign, and clean up marine debris along the coastlines of the Southern District.

Such efforts aim to help protect the nature and bring positive impacts to the community and with Hong Kong residents making more used of the countryside since the outbreak of the pandemic, the problem of littering has become more serious.

Rubbish collected has included plastic waste and anti-epidemic supplies such as surgical masks and disinfectant wipes with Ocean Park team members sorting out recyclable items from the piles of waste collected. However, there are large quantities of non-recyclable trash including fishing nets, floating valves, styrofoam boxes and barbed wires.

As the Hong Kong people’s park, Ocean Park has launched a range of community initiatives to enable Hong Kong people to enjoy its offerings. These initiatives include concessionary admission for Hong Kong residents on their birthdays, Hong Kong residents aged 65 years and above, and holders of Registration Card for People with Disabilities; and sponsored admission to individuals and members of families receiving assistance from the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance Scheme (CSSA), and Social Welfare Department member organisations.

Images: Ocean Park team members clearing rubbish from Hong Kong's Southern District (top) and (below, at left) Ivan Wong Chi-fai, Chief Executive of Ocean Park, joins with frontline staff during the coastal clean-up (below).