Insane school argument

Above-some pics of Pui-O beach



School faces stiff fine for noise at recess after neighbours complain

Expatriate children at an international primary school in Pui O on Lantau Island are in no doubt about what the locals think of their school. NO NOISY SCHOOL 30-centimetre-high letters scream on a six-metre banner strapped to a roadside railing. Local villagers who erected the banner have complained to the Environmental Protection Department about the noise made by the 70 pupils, aged seven to 11, during recess at Lantau International School. And it could force the school to shut down. The department has issued it with a noise abatement notice, failure to comply with which could cost the school a HK$200,000 fine plus HK$20,000 for every day the order is disregarded. The school has lodged an appeal, which will be heard on Monday. The EPD found the level of noise from the school to be above the permitted 60 decibels. Staff of the school who also measured the noise said it varied between 62 and 65 decibels, slightly over the limit. Principal Serge Berthier and senior teacher Tom Vujnovac say it will be very difficult to pay the fines if the appeal fails. Plus we have to pay heavy legal fees for representation at the appeal, Vujnovac said. And it is not just the noise that is upsetting villagers in the beach resort town just a few kilometres from Mui Wo, the scene of another row with villagers over a school. Pui O residents say they do not see the need for an expensive school with an expatriate teaching staff and a body of mainly expatriate pupils in their small village, where there is already a free public school. Eddie Tam and his wife, Jenny, who live next to the international school - which occupies three village houses in a residential area - said its facilities were inadequate. This school is charging fees close to that of private schools where children have much better facilities, they said. Fees are HK$5,450 a month, and tuition is in English and follows the Basic English Curriculum. Vujnovac said most Pui O residents welcomed the school, but the Tams did not agree with him. Eddie Tam said that when they objected to planning permission he collected 250 signatures of people who lived in Pui O and did not want the school. Police estimate the population of Pui O to be about 1,000. No data is available on how many of these are expatriates. Berthier said the EPD was discriminating against expatriates. There are locally owned holiday homes in Pui O that are very noisy, often through the night. Yet these are never served with such notices, he said. Vujnovac said Pui O public school staff used hand-held loudhailers and roof-mounted loudspeakers to address the pupils, yet they had never received a noise abatement notice. Tam and his wife lead the objectors, but they said three village heads were backing them. He did not deny that the teaching staff were qualified but said the children have no playground; there is less than a metre of ground they can use for leisure breaks. He added that down the road is a public school with plenty of space and a large playground, and also with fully qualified staff. Expatriates are misguided if they think their children cannot be educated in Cantonese. The EPD said that noise complaints had been received about the school since late 2007. Noise measurements taken of the school at a complainant's premises confirmed that the statutory noise limit was being exceeded.

. South China Morning Post

Some Views;

SteveG

There is more to it than this. The acerbic head of the school reneged on some promises he made to the local community and they have not forgotten this.

If he actually tried to engage people instead of just being nasty he may find he actually makes progress.

Unfortunately you can't teach an old dog new tricks and will continue to be at loggerheads with the local community - including the school children's parents - for the foreseeable future.

Real shame as it is the excellent teaching staff that bear the brunt of this and they deserve better.

6th June 2010, 12:10 AM

ho loy

Agree with SteveG.

Unique school

A primary school like no other in Hong Kong

From biglychee.com

http://biglychee.com/blog/2010/03/17/a-primary-school-like-no-other-in-hong-kong/

That’s the claim made by Lantau International School, not least because of its unique location: scenic south Lantau. The lower school is in Tong Fuk, and the upper in Pui O – both villages with beaches, no less. How’s this for a school photo?

Click on the picture to hear kids playing at 62dB, courtesy of Amadou & Mariam!

LIS now has another distinction. It seems it has become the first school in the whole of Hong Kong to be served with a noise abatement notice by the Environmental Protection Department on account of the sound of its kids.

This happened soon after the growing school finally opened new premises in a renovated, derelict hotel at Pui O last month. That project – you can see this coming a mile off – faced peevish opposition on the part of certain sons of the local soil.* EPD inspectors turned up and positioned their microphone right outside. Apparently, they waited for some time before recording any noise, but sure enough, lunchtime came around, the children came out and the valiant EPD officials registered 62 decibels.

Which surely makes LIS students the quietest kids in the Big Lychee. However, the EPD take their job seriously – why else do you think Hong Kong is such a calm, almost silent place? – and slapped the school with the abatement notice for exceeding the 60dB limit in ‘village type development’.........continued (follow the link)

http://biglychee.com/blog/2010/03/17/a-primary-school-like-no-other-in-hong-kong/

Lantau School

From 'Biglychee.com'

http://biglychee.com/blog/2010/08/19/a-primary-school-like-no-other-in-hong-kong-part-2/

A primary school like no other in Hong Kong, part 2

The persecution of Lantau International School at the hands of murky ‘rural interests’ and the Environmental Protection Department continues, with the Noise Control Appeal Board confirming the validity of a noise reduction order. When outside during playtime, the kids create a noise level of 62dB, which, in plain English, could be worse. But it’s 2dB above the limit for the area, known for its graveyard-like silence and its local residents’ extreme aural hypersensitivity. So LIS has to find a way to cut the din.

The South China Morning Post reports the matter as one of a villager called Jenny Tam driven to torment by children laughing and playing music (as, in all frankness, I would be). An alternative story is one of apparent collusion between the EPD and the local village leadership who seem to have it in for the racially mixed institution; another school in the neighbourhood, full of all-Chinese students, can carry on as usual.......continued (follow link)

Tour De Mui Wo

Tour De Mui Wo

Dengue

Dengue fever warning issued

16-08-2010

The government has issued a warning against dengue fever. It says the latest figures show that there's been a rise in the monthly average ovitrap index from 11 percent in June to 13 percent in July. The ovitrap indices reflect the prevalence of Aedes albo-pictus, a mosquito vector for dengue fever transmission. The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department has urged the public to step up anti-mosquito measures and stay alert as the current rainy season is most favourable for mosquito breeding. It said the inter-departmental anti-mosquito response mechanism has been activated in six districts which recorded readings at or above the alert rate of 20 percent. They are Diamond Hill, Tsim Sha Tsui, Sheung Shui, Tung Chung, Ma On Shan and Pok Fu Lam.

Mui-Wo googled

Click on the map! Zoom in, spin it round, I have marked the must see places,just click on the markers.

View Mui-Wo,Lantau in a larger map
Here are some images of Mui-Wo

Turtles in Mui-Wo

Hong Kong (HKSAR) - The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) released a juvenile green turtle, which was rescued by a local fisherman in Mui Wo in April, in the southern waters of Hong Kong today (August 6). On April 13, the AFCD received a report from a fisherman that a green turtle was accidentally caught in a fishnet in Mui Wo, Lantau.He removed it from the net and temporarily kept it until AFCD staff collected the turtle the next day. The turtle was delivered to Hong Kong Ocean Park for veterinary assessment and was ascertained to be in good condition.Since then, it has been kept at the Hong Kong Wetland Park with constant monitoring and veterinary care.The caretaker fed the turtle with squid, shrimp and vegetables.

After more than three months of rehabilitation, the turtle has grown remarkably.Its weight has increased from 7.8kg to 10.4kg and its carapace length from 40cm to 45cm.Its good shape suggested that it was ready to be returned to sea. Before the turtle embarked on its journey, the AFCD microchipped it for future identification and attached a satellite transmitter to its back.Green turtles are remarkable for their migratory behaviour.By tracing the migratory routes and feeding grounds of green turtles, the AFCD can draw up protection measures and seek co-operation with relevant authorities to better conserve the species. The AFCD is very thankful to the fisherman who rescued the turtle, and urges members of the public to report any sighting or stranding of sea turtles to the department via the 1823 Call Centre to help protect them.

The AFCD will continue to promote public engagement in sea turtle conservation through educational activities and seminars with fishermen. In Hong Kong, all sea turtle species are protected under the Wild Animals Protection Ordinance (Cap 170) and the Protection of Endangered Species of Animals and Plants Ordinance (Cap 586). The green turtle is one of the five species of sea turtles found in Hong Kong waters and so far has been the only species known to breed locally.

It can be found in warm seas all over the world and occasionally is seen in the waters off Sai Kung and the southeastern region of Hong Kong.

Source: HKSAR Government