Hong Kong imposes hefty fines for feeding wild animals

Residents and tourists need to stay alert. Hong Kong has decided to raise the fines for feeding wild animals, including city pigeons. The fine will be about £9,800, and imprisonment is also possible.

As the "Oriental Daily" newspaper reminds us, in the past, many lawmakers argued that feeding feral pigeons was nothing more than "ordinary littering," and the penalties were too low.

New regulations on fines for feeding wild animals in Hong Kong will take effect on 1 August 2024. People who violate the new rules will face a fine of 100,000 Hong Kong dollars, or about £9,800.

This is a tenfold increase in the rate. Currently, the fine for illegal feeding of wild animals is 10,000 Hong Kong dollars, or about £980.

The new law significantly increases fines and extends the ban to city pigeons. As reported by the Hong Kong Free Press portal, one can also be imprisoned for up to one year for feeding wild animals.

The prohibition on feeding pigeons and the increase in penalties for the offence of illegal feeding are aimed at strengthening the protection of wildlife, as well as mitigating the public nuisance and environmental hygiene issues caused by human feeding activities, explained Tse Chin-wan, the secretary (minister) of the environment and ecology.

Lawmakers hold that the amendment will help reduce littering in the city with food scraps and dog waste.

i-Cable Television cited Mr Li, who admitted that the droppings are everywhere in parks, making them dirty and untidy. He recalls being covered entirely in them during a walk.

Moreover, Hong Kong authorities point out that feeding birds can also attract other wild animals to the city, such as wild boars or monkeys. Thus, the problem deepens.

The "South China Morning Post" reports that more than 1,100 wild boars were recorded in urban areas in 2022 alone. A decade earlier, there were only 300 such cases.

During the same period, 81 cases of injuries caused by these animals were reported, 75 of which occurred between 2018 and 2022.

Meanwhile, "Oriental Daily" points out that some citizens use clever tricks to bypass the feeding ban - for example, they pretend to drop food. As a result, part of the public fears that the amended regulations will become a "toothless tiger" if the authorities cannot enforce them effectively.