Background

Biodiversity is the variability among living organisms. This variability is not only important for organisms to adapt to changes in their physical environment and perform different roles and functions in their living milieu; humans also derive a wide range of benefits from biodiversity.

Our city receives many of these benefits, or “ecosystem services”, in forms ranging from life’s necessities such as food from our lands and seas, oxygen production and climate regulation from our trees, to non-material enrichments, such as aesthetic and spiritual inspirations, recreation and education opportunities.

A city-level BSAP is a strategic instrument for addressing the threats to biodiversity, identifying priorities, setting strategies as well as outlining actions for supporting biodiversity conservation. City-level BSAPs can assist in translating international biodiversity goals, including the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), into implementable actions at the local level.

The Government formulated a city-level BSAP for Hong Kong in 2016 to step up biodiversity conservation and support sustainable development. By formulating and implementing the BSAP, Hong Kong has been contributing to global efforts on biodiversity conservation, and to China’s national BSAP.

Since 2013, the Government embarked on an exercise to formulate a BSAP for Hong Kong in an open and participatory process. A series of public engagement and educational activities were held to promote biodiversity and facilitate an informed discussion on the formulation of BSAP, including a series of public lectures, engagement forums, and the Hong Kong Biodiversity Festival in 2015.

An advisory committee was also set up to discuss issues relevant to local biodiversity and make recommendations to the Government for preparation of the BSAP.