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Following two days of green events, business and contacts and academic discussions, the great environmental meeting in Macao will host an “Open Day” tomorrow (4April) with many free gifts for all who will visit the exhibition at the Resort Hotel Venetian Macau, in Taipa. Through the educational display panels on site, with a theme “Beautiful Earth”, the MIECF organizing committee calls for the general public to protect and cherish natural resources, take practical action to protect the Earth in their daily lives and try to preserve make the unique home to all human being. Visitors may also place their wish on a green wish board at the exhibition hall to express their wishes for the nature. The opening hour for the Public Open Day is from 9:00a.m. to 6p.m., 4 April. Visitors may get free admission passes at Hall A of Exhibition Center of the Macao Venetian. Three free shuttle bus routes are provided for visitors to commute and the operation hour is from 9:00 a.m. to 6:30p.m, with the first return trip of the shuttle bus scheduled at 10:30am. The shuttle buses of each route will operate at 30-minute intervals. The drop-off points of free shuttle buses are at Avenida Doutor Mario Soares (Macao Square), Avenida do Coronel Mesquita (Pak Wai Popular Pharmacy), Avenida de Kwong Tung, Taipa (next to Hung Fat Garden) and the Venetian Macao-Resort-Hotel. MIECF staff will set up location signs at the above locations. Visitors will be given 4 hours of free parking by showing the passes at the car parks of Venetian Macao-Resort-Hotel.
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Hundreds of local and overseas government officials, scholars and experts in environmental protection gathered at the 2009 Macao International Environmental Co-operation Forum & Exhibition (2009 MIECF), sharing their expertise and insight in the latest measures in tackling environmental issues and dealing with natural disasters. The three forums held today at 2009MIECF were “Energy Saving, Emission Reduction and Carbon Trading Symposium”, “Natural Disaster Management Symposium”, and Green Co-operation Gateway: Environment – Business – Connection “Extending Green Industry Network” Seminar. The speakers of Energy Saving, Emission Reduction and Carbon Trading Symposium” were the Deputy Director of Resource Conservation and Environmental Protection Division of National Development and Reform Commission of the People’s Republic of China, Mr. He Bingguang, First Secretary of European Commission Delegation in Beijing, Mr. Magnus Gislev, Deputy Director of Guangdong Provincial Environmental Protection Bureau, Mr. Li Hui, Policy Analyst of European Policy Centre, Ms. Marie-Hélène Fandel, Director-General of Agência Portuguesa do Ambiente, Prof. Engenheiro António Gonçalves Henriques, Principal Assistant Secretary (Energy) of Environment Bureau of the Hong Kong SAR Government, Ms. Katherine Choi, Director of Office for the Development of the Energy Sector of the Macao SAR Government, Mr. Arnaldo Ernesto dos Santos, and Managing Director of Climate Strategies, Mr. Jon Price. The moderator of the symposium was Prof. Wang Zhishi of University of Macau. During the symposium, they addressed the participants over the environmental policies of China, European Union, Guangdong Province, Hong Kong and Macao in energy efficiency, cutting emission, carbon trading, energy usage and waste processing. At the Natural Disaster Management Symposium moderated by the President of General Council of Environment Council of Macao SAR, Mr Lionel Leong Vai Tac, Prof. Zhang Xiaojian of Department of Environmental Science and Engineering of Tsinghua University looked into the impact of earthquake in his thesis, “Water Quality Risk and Emergent Measurement of Municipal Water Supply after the Wenchuan Earthquake”. Other theses relating to earthquake were “The Chain Disaster Research and Forecast in China” by Prof. Gao Jianguo, a researcher of Institute of Geology of China Earthquake Administration, and “Environmental Protection Emergency Countermeasures after Earthquake” by Mr. Ye Hong, a Researcher of Sichuan Provincial Environmental Protection Institute of Science and Technology. Prof. Wu Xiaoming of Scientific Research Institute of Pearl River Water delivered a thesis, entitled “Suggestions on Macao Water Risk Analysis and Studies” (in collaboration with Prof. Wang Xianfang), and Prof. Nie Yongfeng of Environment Science and Engineering of Tsinghua University delivered a thesis entitled “Post-disaster solid waste treatment in Sichuan Earthquake Stricken Areas”. Other speakers included Prof. Milan Konečný of Masaryk University of Czech Republic (“Ubiquitous Mapping for Improvement of Decision Making in Disasters Situations”), Prof. Raphael P.M. Lotilla, Executive Director – PRF Regional Programme Director of Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia (PEMSEA) (“Integrated Coastal Management as a Framework for Natural Hazard Management”) and Mr. Martin Parr, Chairman & CEO, MPCEE (“Contingency Plans & Contingency Planning: Planning for the Unthinkable”). During the Green Co-operation Gateway: Environment – Business – Connection “Extending Green Industry Network” Seminar, professionals from public and private sectors discussed freely on environmental industry, regional co-operation, technology transfers, and other topics. The seminar was chaired by President of Macao Association of Environmental Protection Industry, Mr. António Trindade, and the consultant and advisor of 2009 MIECF, Mr Quang Trung Thai. The twelve speakers of the seminar were the Chief of Staff of the Green and Environment Secretariat of Sao Paulo, Brazil, Sra. Alejandra Maria Devecchi (on behalf of Deputy Secretary of the Secretariat, Mrs. Leda Maria Aschermann); Deputy Secretary of Guangdong Association of Environmental Protection, Mr. Ou Jun; Principal Engineer of Department of Land Environment and Resources in Hainan Province, Mr. Wang Ling; the General Manager of Honeywell Limited, Mr. Allan Cheung; Environmental Engineer of Safety Health Environment and Quality (SHEQ) Office of CEM, Mr. Edmond Sassouvi Etchri; Manager of Banco Espírito Santo do Oriente, S.A., Mr. Bernardo Amaral; Manager of the Value Engineering Department of GE Water & Process Technologies (Canada), Mr. Arnold Janson; Consultant of Emerge Knowledge Design Inc., Mr. Peter Reimer; Country Manager of CDM Service Unit China of German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, Dr. Markus Schwegler; Dr. Wolf-Dietrich Müller of Messe München International; CEO of SelfSun S.A., Mr. José Zurstrassen; and CEO of Martifer Solar N.V., Mr. Ricardo Meireles. Speeches, theses, and information of the speakers could be found on the official website of 2009MIECF: www.macaomiecf.com.
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Exhibitors of the 2009 International Co-operation Forum and Exhibition (2009MIECF) said the universal awareness of environmental protection continued to grow in recent years, it could be expected that in the future there would be more major constructions and projects using environmental protection equipments in Macao that further boost the environmental protection industry . The three-day 2009 International Co-operation Forum and Exhibition (2009MIECF) was officially opened today. The Organizing Committee launched a new campaign of "Green Business Cooperation Day" in the first day, providing precious business communication and negotiation opportunities for exhibitors from all over the world, based on this environmental protection exhibition platform, the exhibitors would further expand cooperation in environmental protection business, and create mutually beneficial development. There are more than 200 exhibitors this year from many areas around the world, including countries and regions from Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao, Europe and America, one of the exhibitors from the United States, the Honeywell Automation Control System Group (Honeywell) is running business mainly in areas of space, chemicals, transportation equipment, automation and control, and 50% percent of its products are used in environmental protection. Person in charge said in recent years there are more Macao Organizations willing to invest funds in environmental protection or replace environmental protection equipments in order to save energy, which could lead to a increase of profit for enterprises; as the universal awareness of environmental protection continues to grow in public, the company predicted that in the future there would be more major constructions and projects using environmental protection equipments in Macao, and the environmental protection industry would have further development. Besides, a Finnish environmental protection company, Lamor Corporation AB, today has signed a cooperation memorandum with local enterprises of Macao in 2009MIECF, to jointly set up an oil pollutant disposal company. The man in charge from Lamor expressed, as an international tourist city, Macao has potentials to develop environmental protection industry, meanwhile the Pearl River Delta Region has developed rapidly in recent years. Lamor chose Macao as a base to expand and further develop the environmental protection business in Macao as well as South China.
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To further strengthen enterprises’ business co-operation in the area of environmental protection, the first day of 2009 MIECF has been designated as the Green Business Co-operation Day by 2009 MIECF. The Green Business Co-operation Day aims at assisting enterprises to conduct business co-operation negotiations and promote projects as well as business co-operation. The activities in the Green Business Co-operation Day include “The Green Business Co-operation and Finance Symposium”, “The Enterprise Green Business Summit and Green Business Networking Cocktail Reception and Signing Ceremony”. The theme of the Green Business Co-operation Day is Gathering Unlimited Green Business Opportunities. The event is organised by China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute, European Union Chamber of Commerce in China, Macao Chamber of Commerce, Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Romania and European Union Business Information Programme. The event was officiated by Mr. Francis Tam, the Secretary for Economy and Finance of the Macao SAR. Mr. Dong Songgen, the Vice Chairman of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, leaders of local and international trade/economic authorities and chambers of commerce also attended the activities of the Green Business Co-operation Day. The Green Business Co-operation and Finance Symposium At the Green Business Co-operation and Finance Symposium, senior management and experts from environmental, financial institutions/enterprises in various regions conducted an in-depth study and discussions in the current status and future development of the environmental industry. Speakers of the event included Mr. Michal Pastvinský, Director of Development and Project Cooperation Department of Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic, Mr. Nigel Hall, Technical Adviser of Regional Office for the Pacific, European Investment Bank (EIB), Mr. Ethan Ji Win, Tzou, Vice-Chairman of Korea Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCCI), Chairman of Winfull Capital Korea Co., Ltd., Private Equity Fund Advisor of Myasset Investment Management Co., Ltd. and Mr. Stewart J. Ballard, Business Development Director (Asia) of Sindicatum Carbon Technology Limited. The Enterprise Green Business Summit Representatives of chambers of commerce and enterprises from Mainland China (Pan-Pearl River Delta Region) and various European countries attended the Summit to discuss environmental co-operation between enterprises. The event was held in the form of interactive discussion. Participants include Mr. João Marques da Cruz, Board Member of EDP Internacional, Dr. Dominic Orr, President and CEO of Aruba Networks Inc., Dr. Bernd Dallmann, Chief Executive of Freiburg Wirtschaft Touristik und Messe GmbH & Co. KG, Mr. Rui Faria da Cunha, President of Belgian-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Douglas Woodring, Chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce ‘s Environmental Committee, Hong Kong, Mr. Fred Larsen, Chairman of the Board of Lamor Group and Mr. Edward W.C. Leung, Managing Partner and Founder of Secured Environment Company. Green Business Networking Cocktail Reception and Signing Ceremony The Green Business Networking Cocktail Reception and Signing Ceremony, another activity held under the Green Business Co-operation Day, was held at 5:30pm at the 2009 MIECF venue. The activities aimed at providing business communication and exchanges opportunities to further promote interactive co-operation among participating international enterprises and environmental sector. Mr. Francis Tam, Secretary for Economy and Finance of the Macao SAR, officiated the event. The signing ceremony was also attended by leaders of local and international trade/economic authorities and chambers of commerce.
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Green and low-carbon emission industries are set to be the growth engines for economies worldwide amid the global warming crisis, said the experts from the financial sector today at the Green Business Co-operation and Finance Symposium, which is part of the ongoing 2009 Macao International Environmental Co-operation Forum & Exhibition (2009 MIECF). Advanced economies now regard the green industry as a new growth engine, with the market of new renewable growing up to 30 percent every year, and make every endeavor to tap the market, said Vice-Chairman of Korea Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCCI), Mr. Ethan Ji Win Tzou. Korea also plans to actively cope with climate changes and foster green industry projects in order to boost its national economic recovery. The government has launched 17 projects supported by fiscal spending in three sectors including the Green New Deal Project, according to Mr. Ji. He said that the Korean government projected that if these new growth engines bear successful fruits, the added values for 2018 of green industry would be approximately US$700 billion and the volume of exports would reach US$900 billion. Mr. Stewart J Ballard, Business Development Director (Asia) of Sindicatum Carbon Technology Limited, introduced the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) during the symposium. CDM allows industrialised countries to meet their emission reduction targets by paying for green house gas emission reduction in developing countries. A CER, or Certified Emissions Reductions, is issued by the CDM Executive Board to projects in developing countries to certify they have reduced green house gas emissions by one tonne of carbon dioxide per year. For example, if a project generates energy using wind power instead of burning coal, it can save 50 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year. There it can claim 50 CERs (as one CER is equivalent to one tonne of carbon dioxide reduced). Developed countries buy CERs from developing countries under the CDM mechanism to help them achieve their Kyoto targets. Mr. Nigel Hall, Technical Adviser of Regional Office for the Pacific of European Investment Bank (EIB), said that EIB provided loans and financing services to environmental and renewable energy projects across the world. Through its Carbon Funds, EIB engages in Clean Development Mechanism and promotes participation of CDM by the related industries. Mr. Michal Pastvinský, Director of the Development and Project Cooperation Department of the Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic, also took part in the symposium. 2009 Macao International Environmental Co-operation Forum and Exhibition Organizing Committee.
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On the eve of its 20th Anniversary, the Monetary Authority of Macao (AMCM) will host the captioned international conference with the main theme “Establishing a Platform for Financial Cooperation and Promotion of Economic and Commercial Development”. It is hoped that a financial cooperation mechanism can be established subsequently whereby economic and trade cooperation between China and Portuguese speaking countries can be further enhanced. The move will certainly underline the function of the MSAR as the service platform for liaison between China and Portuguese speaking territories. Representatives from central banks and financial institutions of Portuguese speaking countries in four continents will make their addresses surrounding the main theme. Up-to-date, confirmation has been received from representatives of Portugal, Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, São Tomé and Príncipe and Timor-Leste. To reinforce the effectiveness of this conference, AMCM has specially invited the Commercial Attachés of Chinese Embassies in the aforementioned countries to participate in the conference, whose presence will certainly of great help in our subsequent follow-up action in this respect. It is hoped that a financial cooperation mechanism between China and Portuguese speaking countries can be set up at an earlier date whereby economic and trade relationship can be further strengthened. The above mentioned conference will be held on 6 April 2009 from 9:30am to 6:30pm at the Lotus Room of Four Seasons Hotel. It will be officiated by the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr. Francis Tam, Ms. Gao Yan, Deputy Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government, Mr. Lu Sumin, Special Envoy, Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Representatives of consulates of Portuguese speaking countries in Macao and commercial institutions in addition to decision makers of local financial institutions have been invited to attend the conference.
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The Government will step up regional economic cooperation, especially within the Pan Pearl River Delta, in order to achieve Macao’s long-term goal of economic diversification and sustainable growth. Speaking at the launch of the Green Business Co-operation Day held alongside the 2009 MIECF, Secretary for Economy and Finance Mr Francis Tam explained that the Government was also trying to ensure sustainable development by striving to foster service industries and emerging industries, including the green industry and the convention industry. By showcasing global eco-solutions and green technologies, the MIECF aims to promote technology transfer and nurture development of the environmental industry, he said. This year the MIECF has added new events such as the Green Business Co-operation Day in order to attract wider business participation and encourage partnership between local and international enterprises.
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Based on the Outline of the Plan for the Reform and Development of the Pearl River Delta issued by the National Development and Reform Commission, the Macao Government will strive to work with its Guangdong and Hong Kong counterparts to deliver on policy initiatives towards a green and quality living area in the region. This pledge was made today by the Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, in a speech at the opening of the 2009 Macao International Environmental Co-operation Forum & Exhibition (2009 MIECF). The environment and sustainable development have become urgent issues as regional climate change presents real threats to our environmental wellbeing and economic development, he added. He warned that the cost of inaction was too great and the threats to the environment could not be ignored. Mr Ho said that the 2009 MIECF served as a timely opportunity for addressing these threats, with enormous contributions from governments, experts and industry leaders worldwide. Despite the global economic downturn, actions on climate change should not be postponed because this is a time when challenges bring opportunities as nations across the world are advocating a green recovery through investment in environmental infrastructure and other green industries, noted the Chief Executive. Meanwhile he took the opportunity to thank the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Environmental Protection for supporting the 2009 MIECF, as well as the governments of the Pan-Pearl River Delta Region for co-organising the event.
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At the opening ceremony of 2009MIECF, officials from the National Development and Reform Commission, the State Environmental Protection Department and the Czech Republic government deliver speeches on specific topics about policy, results and prospects of environmental protection industry and energy-saving and emission reduction in China and the European Union. Mr. Han Yongwen, Secretary-General of National Development and Reform Commission, said in his speech that while China is resolute to cope with the international financial crisis and maintains steady economic growth, the Government attaches great importance to the development of a recycling economy, and will take further steps this year to promote the development of recycling economy. Mr. Han also pointed out that the recycling economy and energy-saving and emission reduction closely related, with the joint efforts at all levels throughout the country, the Chinese government takes comprehensive use of the following five measures: the "Energy-saving and Emission Reduction Actions for All Citizens", optimizing industrial structure, promoting energy-saving and emission reduction in major areas and key projects, improving the mechanisms of energy-saving and emission reduction system and making great efforts to develop green energy. In recent years, the work of energy-saving and emission reduction and environmental protection has achieved significant progress, he said. Subsequently, Mr. Yue Ruisheng, representative of Minister Zhou Shengxian of Ministry of Environmental Protection, and Deputy Director of the International Cooperation Department of Ministry of Environmental Protection, gave an introduction about the achievements of China’s environmental protection work in the past year. He noted that in the plan of implementation a 4 trillion RMB government investment for the next two years, which was part of the basket of plans for the Central Government this year to make full implementation of promoting stable and rapid economic development, the budget for energy-saving and emission reduction and ecological projects was about 210 billion RMB, which would provided a rare opportunity for the development of environmental protection. He hoped to see a group of advanced environmental protection technologies in 2009MIECF, which fitted the national conditions and current situation of China, and would be introduced into China at an appropriate time to further strengthen the work of pollution control and ecological protection. Dr. Peter J. Kalas, the head of official delegation of the Czech Republic which is on the Rotating EU presidency (January to June, 2009), the Czech Republic Prime Minister's Advisor, former Minister of Ministry of Environment of the Czech Republic, said he believed that the activities in this year's 2009MIECF, as well as the time to discuss questions on energy and global warming, are of great significance to countries all over the world. He said in his keynote speech about the EU's policy and development direction of environmental protection industry. As global energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise, he said, we must find the appropriate technology to separate the relationship of economic growth and gas emissions growth apart from growth of energy consumption, and to transfer this technology to the high-energy emission countries, which will not only deal with the energy crisis, protect the ecological environment, but also help to develop huge business opportunities.
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The Environment Council has organised the Macao Green Hotel Award Scheme since 2007, which is designed to demonstrate the importance of environmental management, and honour hotels that have committed to environmental management. As environmental awareness and expectations of customers has been rising recently, it makes business sense for the hotel industry to adopt the “Green Hotel” model in their daily operation. It does not only save operational cost through resource conservation, but also further improves customer satisfaction. This illustrates a win-win situation for the environment as well as the community. Westin runs sewage treatment plant The Westin Resort Macau, a recipient of the 2007 Green Hotel Award, told media today that it had introduced a wide range of measures to cut energy and emission in order to protect the environment. According to the hotel, it was the first of its kind in Macao to be built with a sewage treatment plant to process all the wastewater generated from both the hotel and the golf club. It was built, with an estimated MOP$10 million, mainly to protect the nearby shorelines from being polluted. Since the hotel’s opening in 1993, the plant had processed an average of 130,000 cubic meter of effluent annually, at a yearly cost of approximately MOP$1 million. As part of the environmental program, the recycled water from the plant is used to water the hotel landscaping and that of the golf course, thus reducing the need for additional water consumption. Moreover, the hotel had introduced an energy management program since 1995 to reduce its energy consumption. According to an energy consultancy responsible for monitoring and recording all affecting factors such as hotel occupancy, food covers, laundry production, and ambient conditions, it was estimated that the resort had avoided 18,000 tones of CO2 emissions to the atmosphere from 1995 to the present, which equates to approximately MOP$19 million of energy savings. The hotel’s emission-cutting measures included recovering heat from steam returns, and retrieving cold exhaust air, using energy-efficient lightings, and among many others. The management of the hotel said that they would continue to adopt more measures to cut energy consumption and operate the resort in an even more environmental way. The goal this year is to cut 5% of energy consumption than that in 2008, said Mr. Romulo Z. Estrada, the resort’s director of engineering. Other winners of the Macao Green Hotel Award 2007 were Hotel Beverly Plaza, Mandarin Oriental, Macau, Holiday Inn Macau, Riviera Hotel Macau, Metropole Hotel, Emperor Hotel and Pousada de Mong - Há of the Institute For Tourism Studies. 2009 MIECF opens on Thursday Should you require more information on environmental protection and respective business opportunities, please participate in the 2009 Macao International Environmental Co-operation Forum and Exhibition, which is to be opened on Thursday (2nd April). Please contact the 2009 MIECF Secretariat at: Telephone: 853-8798 9675, Fax: 853-2872 8213, Email: info@macaomiecf.com, or visit the official website: www.macaomiecf.com for details. (Some information of the press release is provided by the Westin Resort Macau)
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