High Court to hear challenge over golf course plan
A High Court judge has decided that he will hear a challenge by the Hong Kong Golf Club to the government's approval of an environmental impact assessment which paves way for the building of public housing flats on part of the Fanling golf course. Judge Russell Coleman ruled on Tuesday that he would hear the application in mid-August and suspended the Environmental Protection Department's decision to accept the report until then. The department had approved the report in May on the condition that forest land in the area is preserved.   The club sought a judicial review last week, noting that there were mistakes in the way the assessment was done. It said it hoped the judicial process would ensure procedural justice and highlight the importance of public participation. When asked if the legal challenge would affect town planning procedures, development minister Bernadette Linn said she needs to seek legal advice before commenting. But her department had earlier said that the case will not change its plan to recover 32 hectares of the golf course when the lease expires in September. Authorities intend to use nine of the 32 hectares to build thousands of public flats.