This is absolutely terrible that the dolphins will pay the ultimate price for greed. To those who approved this project, do you really think your greed is worth the lives of a species that you could have protected for generations to come? What you can do I suppose is look out into the ocean with your children and/or grandchildren and tell them the stories of how there use to be dolphins that jumped out of the water when you'd look out. When they ask you, "Where did they go?" you can reply, "I destroyed them."
the wildlife will lose, of course. their abilities are no match to man's
Enough is enough. HK airport was built on landfill in this bay, already eliminating a big chunk of natural habitat. HK airport is already _massive_ and it's just common sense that building into water is one of the worst possible options in terms of environmental damage. There are other _huge_ airports very near HK - Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Macau. If it weren't for the bizarre way HK is set up to compete politically and economically _against_ the country that it is now part of, nobody would be talking about this - they would be expanding these other airports.
Very depressing. We edge ever closer to a dead world.
Hong Kong is one of the most over-populated places on the planet. That causes significant problems for the environment, something the Hong Kong government and legislature are well aware of. The only way to improve this situation is by reducing the human population. Worrying about Hong Kong dolphins when the air in Hong Kong is often virtually unbreathable is a joke. The reason I did not take a Hong Kong position when it was offered to me, years ago, was just that, the horrendous pollution, something most Hong Kongers cannot get away from. We don't worry about the health of the Hong Kong labour force because we can always make more?
Dolphins were born to swim. People were not born to fly.
1
Now the Dolphins matter?????????????????
I am heartbroken as I read this. Is a third runway more essential that an entire species of animal? Not in my mind.
The animals always lose. Thus, being a strong believer in man-made global warming, I keep my foot hard down on the gas pedal of my M3, keep the A/C cold throughout the house, use a gas-powered lawnmower with an unnecessarily large engine, water and fertilize my lawn to a deep green, decadent green, and engage in other behavior calculated to hasten the demise of man. Once man is gone, or our numbers slashed, hopefully other species still alive will make a comeback.
Actually, not always. Man's practices of farming and building huge cities, with attendant garbage, have led to a huge proliferation of animals numbers in species as diverse as coyotes, pigs and pigeons. And man's transport of animals to new areas, e.g., cats and goats to various tropical islands, have vastly increased some animal populations. Even animals that are rarely viewed as pests such as golden eagles are adapting to humans and climbing in numbers. This reality, of course, does not comport with animals activists' long-standing narrative that almost all animals are in peril.
Too many people in this world.
3
It saddens me beyond words to think that we may witness yet another preventable extinction of an animal species caused by nothing more than human greed. One day, we as a species will realize that our planet is not just a big rock to use as we see fit, but rather a living system that sustains us. The question is will it be too late?
2
The ordinary people of HK are in the same boat as the dolphins, an endangered species. HK is already building a bridge to China and a high speed rail link to China. There is more than enough transportation options for people flying to the region and transiting through HK. Building the 3rd runway is about profiting the established interests in the transportation and logistic industry. No amount of dolphins or competition from nearby airports will change their mind
It must be remembered that the existing runways of Hong Kong's airport were created in 1997/8 when landfill was dumped into the bay that was the dolphins' habitat to create a flat surface large enough to land planes. The dolphins seem not to have fled then. So, while it sounds like a terrible thing, it may not actually disturb them. I used to cruise off the edge of the airport and watch the dolphins at play along the runway while the jets landed and took off not a hundred meters away. Best not to jump to conclusions too quickly.
1
Are these tourists part of the reason that HK needs to expand their airport?