A proposal to require all petrol filling stations to be installed with vapour recovery systems to recover petrol vapour during vehicle refuelling and return it to the stations' petrol storage tanks with effect from March 31 will be tabled to the Legislative Council for negative vetting on Janaury 5.

The Air Pollution Control (Petrol Filling Stations) (Vapour Recovery) (Amendment) Regulation 2004, gazetted today, requires all new petrol filling stations to be fitted with vapour recovery systems while existing petrol filling stations will be given a 36-month grace period from the commencement of the amendment regulation for complying with the proposal.

Petrol filling stations are also required to display a certificate issued by competent examiners to prove that the vapour recovery systems comply with the test requirements in the amendment regulation.

The proposal is part of the Government's efforts to meet the emission reduction targets agreed with the Guangdong Provincial Government for improving the regional air quality in the Pearl River Delta. It can also help alleviate nuisance caused by the smell of petrol vapour to nearby residents of petrol filling stations.

The proposal can reduce about 740 tonnes of volatile organic compounds emitted a year from petrol filling stations, which amount to about 2% of Hong Kong's VOC emissions.

Petrol vapour contains VOCs which will be released into the atmosphere during vehicle refuelling. They can react with nitrogen oxides to form ozone through a photochemical process under sunlight. Further reaction will take place together with other air pollutants in the atmosphere to form respirable suspended particulates.

Ozone can irritate the eyes and the lungs, and can cause breathing difficulties. RSPs can reduce human pulmonary function. They also contribute to the smog problem in the PRD region.

As an initial step to reduce VOC emissions from petrol filling stations, the Government has required owners of petrol filling stations and petrol delivery vehicles to install effective vapour recovery systems to reduce petrol vapour emissions when unloading petrol from the vehicles into the storage tanks at the filling stations since April 1999.