Hong Kong’s High Court has thrown out a judicial challenge against the environmental impact assessment (EIA) of the San Tin Technopole project.
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government welcomed the decision, which granted leave to the applicant, Eddie Tse, to withdraw the judicial review case, but rejected his request for another activist to take over the judicial review proceedings.
With the judicial review set aside, the uncertainty for the San Tin Technopole development has been removed, the Development Bureau said after the court ruling.
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The SAR government will continue to press ahead with this flagship project of the Northern Metropolis, so as to deliver innovation and technology land in full steam, with a view to creating strong impetus for Hong Kong’s economic growth, said a spokesman for the bureau.
San Tin Technopole will also become a modern new development area with industrial development, ecological conservation and a livable environment, the spokesman added.
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More than HK$27 billion and nearly 300 hectares of land have been earmarked for the innovation and technology hub in San Tin.
The city’s Environmental Protection Department also welcomed the ruling.
Saying that it has been vetting all EIA reports in strict accordance with the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance and the ordinance’s Technical Memorandum, an EPD spokesman stressed that it will continue to strictly review all environmental impact assessment reports according to statutory requirements.
