The Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) recently announced the fourth batch of national "Beautiful Bays". Hong Kong's Mirs Bay has been selected as an "Outstanding Example of Beautiful Bays" with an excellent overall score. This marks the first time the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) has received this commendation, highlighting the efforts of the HKSAR Government in marine ecological environment protection, and representing a significant achievement of the HKSAR Government in jointly building the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area into an international, first-class beautiful bay area.
 
     Located in the northeastern waters of Hong Kong, Mirs Bay presents a beautiful scene of "clear water and clean beaches, thriving marine life, and harmonious coexistence between humans and the sea". Its overall Water Quality Objectives compliance rate has reached 100 per cent, achieving Class I of the National Seawater Quality Standard. The bay's rich and diverse ecosystems are important habitats for various nationally protected wild animals, such as hard corals, seahorses, horseshoe crabs and white-bellied sea eagles. The bay area also features the Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark, Yan Chau Tong and Tung Ping Chau Marine Parks, etc, allowing the public to appreciate diverse ecological and geological wonders in the bay at close range and to experience the harmonious coexistence between humans and the sea.
 
     Furthermore, the HKSAR Government has been strengthening regional co-operation with the Guangdong Provincial Government and the Shenzhen Municipal Government, deepening exchanges on marine environmental and resource management in Mirs Bay. This collaboration promotes information sharing and emergency response co-ordination, jointly elevating the overall level of ecological environment management. The Director of Environmental Protection, Dr Samuel Chui, said that the environmental management of Mirs Bay fully embodies the concept of harmonious coexistence between humans and nature, providing an important reference for bay management in densely populated areas of the country. Taking this opportunity of Hong Kong's Mirs Bay being selected as an "Outstanding Example of Beautiful Bays", the HKSAR will share its experience in developing beautiful bays with coastal cities on the Chinese Mainland, jointly promoting marine ecological environment protection and sustainable development.
 
     The HKSAR Government will continue to enhance the quality of the marine ecological environment through the prevention and control of nearshore pollution, co-ordinated ecosystem protection and shoreline remediation, continuously advancing the building of "Beautiful Bays".
 
     The "Outstanding Examples of Beautiful Bays" is a campaign launched by the MEE to identify exemplary cases in the field of marine ecological environment protection. It aims to establish replicable and promotable models for comprehensive bay management and advance the vision of building a "Beautiful China". This round of the campaign received a total of 72 applications nationwide, with 32 bays designated as "Beautiful Bays", of which 12 (including Hong Kong's Mirs Bay) were selected as "Outstanding Examples of Beautiful Bays". For the selection results, please visit the MEE's WeChat official account at mp.weixin.qq.com/s/dYq2dODQvjW-6sQaDHvk8Q (Chinese only).

Ends/Friday, December 26, 2025
Issued at HKT 13:40

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