Clear The Air () is a voluntary organisation aiming at reducing air pollution in Hong Kong. It was founded on 10 December 1997 as a Society under the Societies Ordinance (Cap 151). It is self-sustained and is supported by individual membership fees and member donations.
爭氣 means "fighting for air" and "living up to others' expectations". 行動 means "Action". So the Chinese name of Clear The Air means that people must "Act now – fight for better air" and also "Act now to meet others' expectations".
Mission
Clear The Air is a voluntary organisation and a registered Charity. It hopes to raise the awareness of the Government and the legislative council on the worsening air quality in Hong Kong.
Objectives
To form an association among members of the public having a common goal in protecting air quality from excessive pollution in Hong Kong; To take all lawful actions in educating the public on the need to protect air quality and the public health; and To take all lawful actions in persuading the Government of Hong Kong to take actions to protect air quality.
History
In June 1997, at a dinner party, Barbara Parr, Ruby Cautherly, Anne Forrest and Janet Golden agreed to set up this organisation. They also agreed that each of them has to find a friend to set up and join this organisation. They have found six people altogether, they are George Cautherly, Christine Loh and Michel Porro, Michael Moszynski, Pip Landers and Lisa Hopkinson. At last, these ten people joined hands to form Clear the Air.
Hong Kong Telecom (acquired by PCCW Limited in 2000) donated HK$50,000 as the initial funding to "Clear the Air". Barbara Parr then arranged for pro bono council. Ruby Cautherly's graphic design company designed the corporate logo, pro bono, and donated all graphic materials. Anne Forrest loaned her centrally located Conference Room for the meetings. Michel Porro did all of the photography pro bono and George Cautherly was a part-time administrator. Moreover, Michael Moszynski of M&C Saatchi, now LONDON Advertising, was one of the earliest members and he did the advertising work on a pro bono basis. Ms Christine Loh became Undersecretary of the Environment from 2012 - 2017. Our former Patron Professor Dr Anthony Hedley passed away in 2014. Our current patron is Dr Judith Mackay.
Ten years later in 2007 the Executive Committee comprised
Chairman Christian Masset
Vice-Chairman : Phil Heung
Secretary : Amy Ng
Communications : Phil Smyth
Membership : Ann Davy Hou
Tobacco / Legal : James Middleton
Energy : Mark Hunter
Idling Engines : Amy Ng
Marine & Aviation : Guy Shirra
Town Planning : Dr AuYeung Chi Shing
Indoor : George Woo
The current Chairman is James Middleton
The current Past Chair is Christian Masset
The current Hon Secretary is Andrew Mak
http://cleartheair.org.hk
Areas concerned
Hong Kong's poor air quality is the main topic of conversation in town. Many people want to understand the details so they can assess to matters and take actions, such as deciding whether to stay in or leave Hong Kong.
The five main areas about which the organisation is most concerned are "Pollutants from China", "Vehicles and Vessels", "Traffic and Roads", "Power Plants" and "Tobacco Smoke".
Central District and Victoria Harbour on a polluted morning and a clear morning as shown on the right hand side, taken from a rooftop on Seymour Rd (near Robinson Rd).
Pollutants from China
Clear the Air is concerned at the condition of air quality in the Pearl River Delta and how it affects the air quality in Hong Kong. The air pollution from Shenzhen and the province of Guangdong mostly affects Hong Kong in winter time when the prevailing winds are from the North.
The organisation has claimed the "Blue Sky" project launched by the Guangdong Government in 2000, which is a project to curb the air pollution problem, as a mystery. In the project 100 cases of industrial pollution were to be dealt with, but the organisation questions which companies are involved and how many of them are Hong Kong companies aka Cartels.
Vehicles and vessels
Clear the Air has stated that diesel engines are one of the main sources of roadside pollutants, they support the use of hybrid buses, and urges Government to turn all public light buses into Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) vehicles. Other areas concerned are smoky vehicles and vessels (e.g.ships, boats and ferries, where reporting of idling engines is also encouraged by the organisation.