An academic has warned that Hong Kong is becoming an “urban dome”, where building density hampers winds and leads to a build up of heat and pollution.
Professor Li Yuguo cited figures from the Hong Kong Observatory that show how average wind speeds at King’s Park have dropped from 3.5 metres a second in 1968 to two metres a second in 2014.
A temperature rise of 2°C was also seen over the same period.
In comparison, the weather station at the remote Waglan Island has seen stable wind speeds over the past five decades.
Li said that unlike cities like New York, where streets provide ventilation to the sea, Hong Kong’s streets run parallel to the ocean, therefore stopping warm air escaping.
Convective heat from buildings then rises, creating a dome of heat and pollution above the city.
Apparently something like this once happened in a Simpson’s movie.
According to comments Li made to the SCMP, there is no way to remove the dome, unless we start putting 10-metre openings at the bottom of all buildings, as shown by the HSBC headquarters in Central.
At least HSBC is doing something right.
“The price to pay is not having a 7-Eleven on the ground floor of every building,” he warned, however.
Yeah, screw that. We’d rather boil and suffocate, thanks.
Photo: Ronald Tagra
