In harmony with nature

Since 1977, 24 country parks have been established in Hong Kong. Among these, 19 were in line with Talbot's plan.

No visitor limits were set at the parks. Developers avoided the most sensitive areas when planning hiking routes and planting trees. Proximity to urban areas is a key feature of many of the parks, just as Talbot had visualized: "Patches of wilderness within walking distance of the most densely packed urban areas".

Shing Mun Country Park, among the first ones to have been built by 1977, is one of Wong's favorites. Located near the urban area of Tsuen Wan, this park features a flat walking trail along the edge of a pond - a good choice for family hiking trips, Wong said.

At the head of the Shing Mun Reservoir lies a six-hectare feng shui woodland, where over 70 species of trees grow. Birds, squirrels, barking deer and, occasionally, pangolins could be sighted here. People living in Hakka villages next to these woodland areas practice a traditional lifestyle, informed by the ancient Chinese wisdom of harmonious coexistence of human beings and nature, said Ho Pui-han, conservationist and executive director of the Association for the Ecological and Cultural Conservation of Aquilaria Sinensis.

Ho said, normally villagers would build homes where the mountain would be in the northwest and the river in the southeast. Trees are planted between mountain, river and the village houses ostensibly to stop bad luck, but also to obstruct the cold northwest monsoon in winter. They also support the soil, absorb and retain water and preserve the biodiversity, Ho said.