THE STATUS OF OLD

AND VALUABLE TREES

IN HONG KONG

Project Presentation

By Keith HUANG

November 2022
CA6120 Production Management
 Background
• Hong Kong is a coastal, hilly, rocky terrain.
• The urban setting is getting more intense.
• For trees, it is increasingly difficult to grow
and to be outstanding.
• But some trees have withstood past
environmental changes and urban
development.
• The OVTs are Hong Kong’s adopted heritage
and cultural assets.

The status of Old Valuable Trees in Hong Kong November 2022

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CA6120 Project Presentation, by Keith Huang, Prof IR C.W. Lim
 Background (cont.)
• Trees are a key component of a city's green
infrastructure.
• The OVTs are a natural asset that we fail to
appreciate.
• The mature trees and OVTs provide
considerable merits.
• Like landscape ecologically, culturally, and
aesthetically.
• Also helping link people to nature and
shelter nature in the city.

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CA6120 Project Presentation, by Keith Huang, Prof IR C.W. Lim
 Classification
• DevB Technical Circular for Works 5/2020.
• Registration and Protection of Old and
Valuable Trees
• For a tree to be eligible for enrollment, it
shall meet one or more of five criteria:
✓ Large trunk size,
✓ Precious or rare species,
✓ Particularly old age,
✓ Cultural or historical significance,
✓ Outstanding form.

Objectives
• There is a lack general understanding, and a
laissez-faire attitude to tree management.
• This study assesses the public data to generate
info on OVTs.
• The collected knowledge will build a basic
understanding of the OVTs status.
• To assess how the system may be improved,
for the advancement of OVTs in Hong Kong.
The status of Old Valuable Trees in Hong Kong November 2022
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CA6120 Project Presentation, by Keith Huang, Prof IR C.W. Lim
Statistical analysis:
• Each category on the Register was assessed.
• The study examined the quantitative summation,
lower and upper bounds, and average trends.
• Identify any patterns or irregularities present in
the data.

Relationship evaluation:
• Each category is crossed against another to
understand the relationships between them.
• Data to show any trends and more detail about
the OVTs.
✓ Maintenance department
✓ Registration year
✓ District area
✓ General location
✓ Special characteristic
✓ Tree species
✓ Trunk size
✓ Estimated age
✓ Tree status
✓ Last inspection date
The status✓ of Brown
Old Valuable
root rotTrees in Hong Kong
disease
November 2022
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CA6120 Project Presentation, by Keith Huang, Prof IR C.W. Lim
 Maintenance Department
• A total of 15 government
departments care for OVTs.
• LCSD maintains the majority
(71%) of OVTs.
• DoJ, EMSD, FSD, HKP, and LINK
have one OVT each.
• A non-governmental
department, Link Real Estate
Investment Trust, has a tree.

Registration Year
• OVTs first registered
in 2000, with the last
registered in 2014.
• In 2004 the majority (92%)
of OVTs were registered.
• There have been no new
OVTs registered in the last
The status of Old Valuable Trees in Hong Kong November 2022
eight years up to 2022. Page 6
CA6120 Project Presentation, by Keith Huang, Prof IR C.W. Lim
 Special characteristic
• The majority (75%) have 1 characteristic,
12 trees have 3 or more.
• The least common (2%) characteristic is
particularly old age.
• Some OVTs have no special
characteristic despite requirements

Location and District

• All 18 districts have OVTs, with the
most (24%) in CW, and the least (0.9%) at
IS and KU.
• Top 5 locations for OVTs accounts for
28% of the Register:
✓ Kowloon Park with 44 OVTs,
✓ Nathan Road with 33 OVTs,
✓ Zoological and Botanical Gardens
with 22 OVTs,
✓ King George V Memorial Park with
15 OVTs,
The status of Old Valuable Trees in Hong Kong ✓ Victoria Park with 15 OVTs. November 2022
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CA6120 Project Presentation, by Keith Huang, Prof IR C.W. Lim
 Tree Species
• There are a total of 74 tree species.
• 42 OVTs (57%) are unique in tree species.
• 151 FIC.MIC. (68% of FIC.MIC.) within 3 districts
CW, YT, and NO.

Tree Sizes
• The trunk diameter, tree height, and crown spread extents
vary from 100mm to 7700mm, 6M to 34M, and 4M to 50M,
respectively.
• The most common sizes of the trunk diameter, tree height,
and crown spread are 1200mm, 14M, and 20M, respectively.
• The largest trunk size, 7700mm, is in YL, and tallest height
34M and widest spread 50M is in WC.

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CA6120 Project Presentation, by Keith Huang, Prof IR C.W. Lim
 Last inspection date
• The majority (79%) are inspected in
2021, some (20%) in 2022, and remainder
(1%) were before 2021.
• The earliest year for a date inspection is
2015 for OVT at the Murray Building.
• All the 325 OVTs maintained by LCSD
were last inspected in 2021.

Brown Root Rot

• BRR is a fungal infection with no
treatment where the tree's structural
integrity deteriorates causing collapsing.
• A small portion (3%) of the OVTs have
been assessed to have BRR.

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CA6120 Project Presentation, by Keith Huang, Prof IR C.W. Lim
 Discussion
• The Circular has a clear policy for the
processes for OVTs
• The management responsibility is spread
between multiple parties.
• The assigned departments are under
various deputies and bureaus, and some
have no tree management expertise.
• LCSD department has the most trees and is
under the Culture, Sports, and Tourism
Bureau, visions to promote CST, not OVTs.
• The Circular created the Register, providing
a special status for trees in the city.
• The momentum has slowed in past decade,
with 92% OVTs registered 18 years ago and
no new OVTs in the last 8 years.

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CA6120 Project Presentation, by Keith Huang, Prof IR C.W. Lim
 Discussion (cont.)
• No sole maintenance department means
various complications, like no timely
inspections and proper record keeping.
• The inspections twice a year is to review
the trees in each of dry and wet seasons.
But 79% were not inspected in 2022.
• Some ambiguities, like OVTs with no
characteristics or trees on leased land.
• A Landscape Department can house the
arboricultural and horticultural experts.
• So streamline costs of multiple party,
have efficient procedures, advance the
profession, promote tree knowledge,
and ensure public safety.

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CA6120 Project Presentation, by Keith Huang, Prof IR C.W. Lim
 Conclusion
• Trees and the natural landscape areas are
important elements of the city’s composition
because they improve urban climates, lower
stress levels, improve health, encourage social
interaction, and have positive economic effects.
• The Government is steering towards carbon
neutrality and enhancing livability.
• The tree management policies overseas may be
references, many countries have dedicated
authorities for tree management processes.
• The most valuable trees the city need a sole
maintenance department.
• Should maintain the supply chain of OVTs for
future generations!

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CA6120 Project Presentation, by Keith Huang, Prof IR C.W. Lim
 Thanks for listening!

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CA6120 Project Presentation, by Keith Huang, Prof IR C.W. Lim