Edward Yau is Secretary for the Environment of Hong Kong. He oversees the policies for promoting the environmental well-being of Hong Kong, which is one of the priorities of the third term HKSAR Government (2007-2012). Mr Yau's responsibilities cover environmental protection, energy, nature conservation and sustainable development, with a view to building Hong Kong into a greener city.
Mr Yau took with him to his ministerial post more than 20 years of public administration experience. He joined the Government as an Administrative Officer in 1981. During his years as a career civil servant, he has held various positions, including Director of Information Services, Deputy Secretary for Education and Manpower, Deputy Director-General of Trade and Industry, as well as Director-General of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Washington.
Air quality and climate change are high priorities on Mr Yau's policy agenda. The incorporation of energy into his portfolio has given him an important policy tool in enhancing the city's air quality and tackling climate change. He has embarked on an exercise to update Hong Kong's Air Quality Objectives, with an aim of benchmarking the Air Quality Guidelines issued by the World Health Organisation as the ultimate goal. The new objectives will be underpinned by a series of supporting measures to help achieve the guidelines. He has introduced measures to enhance energy efficiency as part of Hong Kong's strategy to combat climate change. Mr Yau has also made progress in promoting clean energy in Hong Kong, including securing new sources of natural gas and nuclear energy supply from the Mainland and offering incentives for the city's power companies to use renewable energy. In the initial two years of his term, he has enacted legislation on product eco-responsibility and waste separation in buildings, among other initiatives to promote sustainable waste management.
Mr Yau is a nature lover. Nature conservation is dear to his heart and he is currently working on a project to accord national geopark status for sites of unique geological features in the northeast New Territories area.
Mr Yau, 49, graduated from the University of Hong Kong. He received further education at Oxford University and at Harvard University.
Updated May 2009
