OREANDA-NEWS. August 07, 2012. Nature lovers in Hong Kong are invited to step beyond the city’s “concrete jungle” facade and vote for their favorite spots selected from eight eco-heritage routes currently developed by HK Electric and The Conservancy Association (CA). Entitled “My Favourite Top 8 Eco-Heritage Spots in Hong Kong”, the on-line voting campaign will take place from 1-31 August 2012, reported the press-centre of HK Electric.

The voting is open to the public, who can choose eight out of 24 eco-heritage spots as their favourite by logging onto www.ghkg.hk/vote or clicking on the Facebook page (www.facebook.com/greenhkgreen) during the campaign period. They are required to select one spot for each of the eight routes, and the top eight will then become the winning spots.

Participants will have the chance to win the “Bull’s-eye Prize” or a “Lucky Prize”. Organisers will draw a winner from those who have chosen the Top 8 eco-heritage spots and these lucky eight will each be awarded a HKD 1,000 cash coupon for hiking gears and be invited to attend the launching ceremony and eco-heritage tours to be held on 14 October this year. Fifty others who take part in the voting will be randomly picked and will each receive a HKD 200 cash coupon for lucky shopping for their next hiking trip.

Announcing details of the campaign, HK Electric’s Public Affairs Manager (Corporate Communication), Ms. Catherine Sing, said that the Company has been keen to support environmental protection and education, and has joined hands with CA to chart out these routes on Hong Kong and Lamma Islands.

“Three such routes on Lamma Island were rolled out under the ‘Green Lamma Green’ project in 2008 and since then, monthly eco-tours have been arranged to promote the ecological resources of the island,” she said. “Riding on this success, we then launched “Green Hong Kong Green” in 2009 to develop three new routes on Hong Kong Island and two more on Lamma Island.”

The eight routes are located at the Aberdeen, Tai Tam and Lung Fu Shan country parks, as well as northern and southern Lamma Island. Preparation work for their official launch in October this year is now underway.

Chief Executive of CA, Mr. Ken So, expressed his delight to be working with HK Electric in green education. “The eight routes are so rich in ecology and history that they serve well as ‘nature classrooms’ for those wishing to enrich their knowledge in these aspects. Through these routes and the monthly eco-tours we organise, we hope Hong Kong citizens will come to appreciate and treasure our precious resources at home,” he said.

The 24 eco-heritage spots selected for voting include interesting plants such as Yellow Cinnamomum known for its anti-pest fragrance, and rough-leaved Holly used for making Chinese herbal tea; endangered species such as the short-legged toad which can only be found in areas near Hong Kong; and relics of local history such as the Pinewood Battery and the Victoria City Boundary Stone in Lung Fu Shan.

“To prepare for the monthly eco-tours after the official launch, we have trained more than 150 voluntary eco-leaders who come from all walks of life but are all great narrators. They would be happy to speak up for the eco-heritage spots and share with the public the value and stories behind each of them,” Mr. So added.

“My Favourite Top 8 Eco-Heritage Spots in Hong Kong” on-line voting campaign is organised as part of the “Green Hong Kong Green” project jointly developed by HK Electric and the CA. Results of the voting campaign will be announced at the launching ceremony for the eight routes on 14 October 2012.