Hong Kong's Polluted Air Erodes City's Competitive Edge
HONG KONG -- During the past five years he spent in Time Warner Inc.'s office here, Todd Hodgson watched the city's skyline disappear under a gray cloud of smog.
As the pollution worsened, Mr. Hodgson, a vice president at the company, began suffering from coughs and sore throats. His children, three and six years old, were constantly at the doctor's office with asthma and chest infections.
People wearing surgical masks are a routine sight in Hong Kong's most polluted districts.
Last summer, Mr. Hodgson decided he'd had enough. "The money and the perks just weren't enough to keep us there anymore," says Mr. Hodgson, who relocated his family to Australia in August. "You can drink bottled water. But with the air -- you have to breathe it."
Three years after an outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome battered Hong Kong's economy, the city is facing a new challenge. Senior executives at companies including Morgan Stanley and Marriott International Inc. are increasingly vocal about the negative impact of pollution on business. Like Mr. Hodgson, a growing number of foreign executives -- and even some companies -- are leaving the city, citing the air pollution.
There is good reason for their concern. Last week, the World Health Organization released new air-quality guidelines and issued a warning about the health consequences of urban air pollution. WHO says levels of particulate matter -- the tiny flakes of soot, dust and ash that are considered the most dangerous form of air pollution -- shouldn't exceed 20 micrograms per cubic meter. Roadside particulate levels in Hong Kong averaged 75 micrograms per cubic meter last year, according to Civic Exchange, a local think tank.
Hong Kong's overall air quality has been declining for the past six years as booming industry in mainland China sends clouds of soot and toxic gases wafting across the harbor into the city. In addition, local power plants and diesel-fueled traffic fill the narrow streets with foul air that gets trapped at street level by the city's skyscrapers. Some residents walk about wearing surgical face masks. Researchers at Hong Kong University say local air pollution contributes to at least 2,000 premature deaths a year.
A tourist takes pictures at Hong Kong's Victoria Harbor last week with the city skyline in the background shrouded in smog. Pollution has become a touchy issue for some foreign companies and executives operating in the city. Poor air quality reduced visibility to less than roughly a half a mile on more than 50 days last year.
While Hong Kong still has better air quality than many other cities in Asia, including Beijing, it lags far behind most cities in the developed world with equally sophisticated economies. Levels of particulate matter are roughly 40% higher in Hong Kong than in Los Angeles, the most polluted city in the U.S.
"There are days when you can almost see the grit in the air," says Cliff Taylor, human-resources director for Eli Lilly & Co.'s Asia operations, who says he knows of half a dozen people who have left Hong Kong because of the pollution.
Some companies worry pollution could cost the city its competitive edge. A recent survey of American business leaders in the region, conducted by the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, found that 79% of executives felt environmental issues are making Hong Kong less attractive to foreign companies. Recruitment firm ECA International recently began advising companies to give an additional 5% "hardship allowance" to employees moving to Hong Kong from the U.S., because of pollution.
"As a regional finance center, Hong Kong needs to get its act together, and quickly," say Rob Morrison, chief executive at brokerage firm CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets, who says pollution is making it harder to fill jobs in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong has long been a prime location for companies doing business in Asia, because of its simple tax structure, transparency and central location. It is all the more prized these days as a financial center for its proximity to mainland China. The city of 6.9 million -- where some 1,200 U.S. companies have foreign offices -- has traditionally been a cushy posting for American workers, offering all the comforts of home, from HBO movies to Starbucks frappuccinos.
And there is little concrete evidence that Hong Kong's economy is suffering from the pollution. Office rents here have surged 37% in the past year, and hotel occupancy is up 11%. The number of foreign and mainland-China companies with offices in Hong Kong rose 1.3% in the past year, according to the government.
"It is simply not having an impact on foreign investment," says Mike Rowse, director-general of Invest Hong Kong, a government agency that promotes investment. "Companies go where they can make a profit. It's Economics 101."
Still, earlier this year, U.S. hedge fund Concordia Advisors opened its new Asian office in Singapore instead of Hong Kong for "lifestyle reasons," including Singapore's cleaner air. U.S. hedge fund Stark Investments recently opened a satellite office in Singapore because several fund managers with families wanted to leave Hong Kong.
Teall Edds, portfolio manager at Stark and a former marathon runner, is one of them. Mr. Edds says in Hong Kong he was "banished to the treadmill," and his children were regularly kept in during school recess when the air pollution was bad.
Critics say Hong Kong's failure to address the pollution is a problem of will, not resources. "This is a very socially and economically advanced community," says Anthony Hedley, a professor of public health at the University of Hong Kong Medical Centre. "Whenever there is political will to do something, it is done in double-quick time....But on this issue, the government appears to be digging in and denying the fact that there is an urgent imperative to act."
In fact, after years of shrugging off the problem, some of Hong Kong's leaders are finally acknowledging it. Victor Fung, a government adviser and chairman of the Greater Pearl River Delta Business Council, recently admitted that "people are not coming to Hong Kong to take that job because their kid has asthma." Hong Kong's top official, Donald Tsang, is under pressure to come up with proposals to address the problem.
Hong Kong's Environmental Protection Department has taken some steps to reduce pollution, including converting the city's taxi fleet and public minibuses to liquefied petroleum gas, which is cleaner then diesel. The agency recently announced a plan to review its current air-quality objectives, which haven't been updated since 1987, but it says the city is still years away from meeting WHO guidelines.
Meantime, the departures continue. Sarah Hauser, a 36-year-old voice-over actor from California, moved here in 1995 and never thought she would leave. But when her infant daughter developed a chronic cough, Ms. Hauser started packing for San Francisco. "I love Hong Kong," she says. "But I care about my baby's health more. And I can't even take her for a walk outside here."
污染令香港城市魅力大打折扣
托德?霍奇森(Todd Hodgson)过去五年一直在时代华纳(Time Warner Inc.)设在香港的办公室工作，他眼睁睁看着这个城市的地平线一点点消失在一团烟雾中。
随着污染不断恶化，霍奇森开始频繁出现咳嗽及喉咙疼等症状。他的两个孩子也因哮喘及肺部感染经常去看医生。
去年夏天，霍奇森觉得他已经受够了。“那些薪水及额外补贴不足以再让我们呆在这里 ，”他说。“我们可以喝瓶装水。但是空气－－你总得呼吸吧。”去年八月他们举家迁往澳大利亚。
三年前的非典型肺炎(SARS)让香港经济蒙受损失，如今它面临着一个新的挑战。摩根士丹利(Morgan Stanley)及万豪国际集团(Marriott International Inc.)等公司的高层管理人员不断提到香港空气污染对其业务发展的负面影响。越来越多像霍奇森这样的高层管理人士──甚至一些公司──都因为空气污染而离开了香港。
他们的担心是有道理的。世界卫生组织(World Health Organization, WHO)上周发布了新的空气质量标准，并针对城市空气污染给身体健康造成的危害发出了警告。WHO称，可吸入颗粒──煤烟、灰尘以及烟灰的微小颗粒被认为是空气污染中最危险的一种──不应该超过每立方米20微克。根据当地智囊团思汇政策研究所(Civic Exchange)的数据，去年香港路边空气可吸入颗粒为每立方米75微克。
香港整体空气质量在过去六年不断下降。中国大陆蓬勃发展的工业产生的煤烟及有毒气体等污染物飘移过海到达这个城市。香港当地的电厂及以柴油为燃料的交通工具也使这里狭窄的街道乌烟瘴气，由于受到高楼大厦的阻挡，污浊的空气一直萦绕在街道上空无法散去。一些香港市民外出时甚至戴着医用口罩。香港大学(Hong Kong University)的研究人员说，空气污染每年至少导致2,000人早逝。
尽管香港的空气质量比北京等其他亚洲城市要好，但是它仍远远落后于发达国家中拥有同样复杂经济结构的城市。香港空气中的可吸入颗粒水平比美国污染最严重的城市洛杉矶高出约40%。
礼来公司(Eli Lilly & Co.)亚洲分公司的人力资源负责人克利夫?泰勒(Cliff Taylor)说：“有几天你几乎能看到空气中的砂砾。”他还说，他认识的人中有五六个已经因为空气污染离开香港了。
一些公司非常担心污染会削弱香港的竞争优势。香港美国商会(American Chamber of Commerce)对驻香港的美国商业高层人士最近进行的一份调查显示，79%的高层管理人士认为环境问题使香港在外资公司眼中的魅力大打折扣。猎头公司ECA International最近开始建议公司客户向从美国迁至香港的员工提供5%的额外“艰苦条件津贴”(hardship allowance)。
经纪公司里昂证券亚太区市场(CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets)的首席执行长罗布?莫里松(Rob Morrison)说：“香港作为地区性金融中心，需要迅速一致地采取行动。”他说，污染问题使吸引人才来香港填补职位空缺变得更加困难。
香港一直以来都是众多公司发展亚洲业务的重要地点，因为它的税制结构简单、透明度高且地处亚洲中心。由于香港与中国大陆的密切关系，投资者现在更加重视其金融中心的地位。这个拥有690万人口的城市以前一直是美国雇员舒服的海外工作地点，因为它能够提供在美国所能享受到的一切，如HBO电影以及星巴克(Starbucks)的星冰乐(frappuccinos)等。约有1,200家美国公司在香港设立了办公室。
另外，基本没有迹象表明香港经济因污染而蒙受损失。在过去一年中，香港的办公用房租金飙升了37%，旅店入住率上升了11%。根据香港政府的数据，同期外资及中国大陆公司在香港设立办公室的数量增加了1.3%。
“污染没有对外商投资造成任何影响，”香港投资推广署署长卢维思(Mike Rowse)说。“公司往往会前往那些它们获利的地方。这是最基本的经济学常识。”
不过今年早些时候，美国对冲基金Concordia Advisors将其亚洲办公室设在了新加坡而不是香港，原因之一就是生活方式问题──新加坡的空气更加干净。美国对冲基金Stark Investments最近在新加坡开设了一个“卫星”办公室，因为一些携妻带子的基金经理们想离开香港。
Stark的投资组合经理蒂尔?埃德斯(Teall Edds)就是其中的一位。埃德斯说在香港他整天干着单调的工作，而他的孩子在学校放假时经常因空气质量太差而被迫呆在家里。
批评人士说，香港没有很好地解决污染问题主要是人的意愿问题，而不是资源问题。“这是一个社会和经济发展水平都相当高的城市，”香港大学医学院(University of Hong Kong Medical Centre)的公共卫生教授安东尼?赫德利(Anthony Hedley)说。“只要政府官员愿意做什么事情，行动速度会非常快……但是在污染这个问题上，政府似乎固执己见，不愿面对需要立即采取行动的紧迫性。”
事实上，在对污染问题多年不屑一顾后，一些香港的领导人终于正视这个问题。香港政府顾问、大珠三角商务委员会主席冯国经(Victor Fung)最近承认，人们不再来香港工作，因为他们担心孩子会得哮喘。香港行政特区长官曾荫权(Donald Tsang)也面临巨大压力，要尽快找出解决问题的方法。
香港环境保护署(Environmental Protection Department)已经采取了一些措施以降低污染，比如将出租车及公共汽车的燃料改为液化石油气，因为它比柴油更清洁。环境保护署最近还宣布了重新制定其现有的空气质量目标的计划。现行标准自1987年以来从未进行过更新。但是他们也表示，香港要达到WHO的空气质量标准仍需要几年的时间。
与此同时，还有人不断离开香港。现年36岁的配音演员萨拉?豪泽(Sarah Hauser)于1995年搬到香港，那时根本没有想要离开这个地方。但是当她的小女儿得了慢性咳嗽之后，她决定搬回西雅图。“我热爱香港，”她说。“但是我更在乎女儿的健康。在这里我都无法带她出去散步。”
Jane Spencer
