The strong commitment of The Jockey Club Kau Sai Chau Public Golf Course to environmental protection has received international recognition with the facility being named as a "Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary" - the first golf course anywhere in China to win this distinction.

Audubon International (website address: www.auduboninternational.org), based in the United States, is a not-for-profit environmental education organisation dedicated to educating, assisting and inspiring people from all walks of life to protect and sustain the land, water, wildlife and natural resources around them.  Its environmental programmes, including the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for Golf Courses, have themselves received numerous international accolades.

Since the two existing golf courses on Kau Sai Chau were opened with funding from The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust in 1995, and with rigorous environmental protection measures put in place, the natural beauty of this Sai Kung island has enjoyed an amazing resurgence.  Due to its former use as a military firing range and to hill fires caused by grave worshippers, the landscape was almost barren, but 10 years later it is lush and green with numerous species of flora and fauna having recolonised the island.

The Trust has recently provided a further HK$184 million donation to construct a third public golf course at Kai Sau Chau, of which HK$50 million has been designated specifically for environmental conservation measures.  The new course is expected to be ready for use in 2007.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club's Executive Director, Charities, Mr William Yiu, notes that concern for the natural environment has been at the core of development and operational strategies for the course since the earliest planning stage.  "Kau Sai Chau must be one of the most beautiful natural settings for a golf course anywhere in the world," he says.  "We wanted to make sure that the course not only provided Hong Kong people with a superb new sporting facility, but also created a permanent legacy in terms of its environmental approach.  It is very encouraging to see that these efforts have borne fruit, and have now received such prestigious international recognition."

To achieve Audubon certification, the golf course had to demonstrate its ability, commitment and dedication in maintaining a high degree of environmental quality in six key areas: environmental planning; wildlife and habitat management; outreach and education; reduction and safety of chemicals use; water conservation; and water quality management.

As well as being the first course in China to achieve this accolade, Kau Sai Chau is only the fifth to do so anywhere in Asia.

The Golf Course management is committed to maintaining the highest possible environmental standards as construction of the third course goes ahead.  As well as conserving Kau Sai Chau as a natural wildlife habitat and resource, it is hoped that these efforts will provide a successful business model for environmentally-conscious developments elsewhere in Hong Kong and Mainland China.

Pictures can be downloaded at The Hong Kong Jockey Club website (www.hkjc.com).

Photo 1	Photo 2
Photo 1 and Photo 2: Due to its former use as a military firing range and to hill fires caused by grave worshippers, the landscape of Kau Sai Chau was almost barren, but 10 years later it is lush and green. With rigorous environmental protection measures put in place, the natural beauty of this Sai Kung island has enjoyed an amazing resurgence. These pictures show the "before and after" impact of the facelift at one location on the Golf Course.
Photo 3
Photo 4	Photo 5
Photo 3, Photo 4 and Photo 5: Many different species of flora and fauna have now recolonised the island.
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Photo 6 and Photo 7: The two existing golf courses on Kau Sai Chau, embracing the most beautiful natural setting, were opened with funding from The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust in 1995. The third new course is expected to be ready for use in 2007.