Hong Kong's Wild Places An Environmental Exploration

by Stokes, Edward

• ISBN13: 9780195866018
• ISBN10: 0195866010
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1996-02-08
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

In this evocative book the reader follows Edward Stokes on an unforgettable journey across Hong Kong's natural landscape, learning along the way the story of its environment. Using photographs and entertaining narrative, the author takes us through Hong Kong's wild places - towering peaks, grassy hills, wooded valleys, and coastal waters - revealing the surprisingly varied life that survives among them. As the book traverses the landscape, it also documents the dramatic changes that have resulted from overdevelopment in the 1990's. The author brings to light the unrelenting natural and man-made challenges to Hong Kong's environment - climatic conditions, population pressure, industrialization, and pollution. He celebrates the present beauty and grandeur of the remaining wild places, and highlights the recent damage wrought by man. The book is intended for a general audience, especially those readers with an interest in Hong Kong, photography, or environmental issues.

Author Biography

Edward Stokes is a photographer, writer, and conservationist, who grew up in Hong Kong and came to love wild country.

Table of Contents

Preface

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Primeval Landscape

The Central Mountains

5000 BC-AD 1841

Settling the Land

Southern Islands

1841-1900

That Barren Rock

Hong Kong Island

1900-1941

Enduring Domains

Sai Kung Peninsula

1945-1970

A Phoenix Rises

Lantau Island

1970-1990

Commuter Countryside

The Remote North-East

1990 and Beyond

Vanishing Wild Places

The Mai Po Wetlands

Conclusion

The Future Challenge

Further Reading

Hiking and Conservation Notes

Photographic Notes

Index

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.