Our Environment

HKRI has a long-standing commitment to promoting sustainable development and environmental awareness at every level of the business.  This can be seen in action at Discovery Bay, the first ever green community in Hong Kong. 
  • HKRI actively incorporates green building practices at every stage of its new property development and during the refurbishment phase of existing buildings, including planning, design, construction, operation, maintenance and renovation.  
  • Our flagship project in mainland China, HKRI Taikoo Hui, consists of a number of smart and green buildings. The complex incorporates a lot of smart features such as high speed elevators that run on renewable energy, smart lighting system and optimised rainwater drainage system. Meanwhile, its green features are reflected in the use of environmentally friendly and low-emitting materials, the adoption of floor-to-ceiling glass facade and 250-metre skylight which can maximise natural lighting, advanced electrical and thermal appliances to reduce emissions as well as reclaimed water system to conserve water. PM2.5 filtration system (remove up to 80% - 90% smaller particles) is adopted to ensure high indoor air quality. 
  • We take great care to adhere to the Group’s internal Project Management Guideline and international standards, such as the Hong Kong Building Environmental Assessment Method (BEAM) Plus certification and LEED®, which all encourage and recognise green building features,  dedicating to enhancing the quality of life in the communities we operate. HKRI Taikoo Hui obtained LEED® Platinum and Gold certifications for its office towers and retail mall respectively. At the same time, we target to obtain BEAM Plus certification for our properties under development in Hong Kong. 
  • Since 2016, we have pro-actively signed the Energy Saving Charter by the Environment Bureau of Hong Kong with a defined commitment to closely monitoring our fuel consumption and taking all necessary steps to minimise our carbon footprint. 
  • Electricity consumption at investment properties and fuel consumption by our fleet of ferries and buses at Discovery Bay are our main source of greenhouse emissions. Committed to cutting direct emissions of greenhouse gases, we reduce fuel consumption by adopting electric buses, using marine light diesel with a sulphur content of less than 0.05% for all ferries, and purchasing buses that meet Euro V/VI standards. 
  • We actively promote collaboration between our business units to reduce energy use while exploring new ways to increase efficiency with energy-saving appliances and operation system optimisation. 
  • Understanding that freshwater is a scarce natural resource, HKRI has stepped further to formulate a holistic approach to make better use of limited water resources in our operations, especially those in Discovery Bay, which account for the majority of our water consumption. 
  • We utilise the underused reservoir at Discovery Bay for flushing and irrigation since the opening of Discovery Bay tunnel and the connection of Discovery Bay to the municipal water supply in 2000. 
  • Some of our properties have installed dual-flush systems, automatic faucets, and water leakage detection system in order to reduce water wastage.  In our projects under development in mainland China, we reduce water consumption by storing rainwater for irrigation and watering unpaved road.

Effective waste management is crucial for conservation of natural resource. We are committed to carefully managing and reducing the consumption and recycling or converting waste materials into useful resources. 

Managing hazardous waste:

  • For hazardous waste, which includes engine oil and clinical waste mostly derived from our transport and healthcare operations, we have meticulously set out specific procedures to handle it in a responsible manner to avoid contamination despite that hazardous waste accounts for a small portion.  In our transport operation, used engine oil is collected by a qualified external waste collector and is disposed of in a responsible way under strict and transparent conditions.

Managing non-hazardous waste:

  • In terms of construction waste management, we work closely with construction contractors and enforce specific procedures, and maximise the use of reusable and recyclable materials and upcycle construction waste. 
  • We have developed pioneering waste reduction and recycling practices in our operations. Waste collection and separation facilities are in place to collect plastic bottles, used tyres, common recyclables, used clothes, second-hand books, toys, fluorescent tubes, energy saving bulbs and glass bottles to encourage tenants, customers and residents to recycle and reduce waste. Re-usable items collected are donated to various NGOs to help the underprivileged.  Glass bottles are ground into small sand granules through glass grinder at Discovery Bay and are then used for road repair work.
  • We are a pioneer of food waste minimisation. Food waste composters were first introduced to Discovery Bay in 2012. Products from the two food waste composters at Discovery Bay are used to further enhance Discover Bay’s eye-catching landscaping. Our hospitality operation at Discovery Bay also collects and recycles or converts used coffee grounds and unused fruits into useful materials, and has joined the  Environmental Protection Department’s “Waste Cooking Oils” Recycling Administrative Registration Scheme to gather waste cooking oils for converting into biodiesel. Moreover, we have also joined hands with Food Grace to launch the Edible Surplus Food Collection Event since 2016 to engage commercial tenants and food venues in Discovery Bay to play a key role in minimising waste by reducing their food waste at source.
Raising good environmental stewardship requires a strong chain of cooperation from commercial entities to communities and at an individual level. Creating environmental awareness and fostering behavioural changes are vital to drive sustainability, and everyone has a role to play. Thus, we are committed to raising awareness of sustainability internally among our staff and externally among the Discovery Bay community and other communities we manage through notices, workshops and recycle boxes, as well as regular green activities.