Fighting a rising tide of pollution in Hong Kong

Researchers are working to preserve marine diversity in the city's coastal waters in the face of climate change, toxins and human activity, as Sylvia Chang reports.

It's easy for people in Hong Kong to be complacent - or even a little smug - about the fantastic abundance of marine life in the waters surrounding the city. However, what most people do not see is the frantic juggling act underway to save many of these marine species from extinction. It's a work in progress, focused on scientific, region-specific criteria for every precinct of Hong Kong's marine environment.

More than 6,500 marine species live in Hong Kong's coastal waters. These waters comprise just 1,650 square kilometers, or about 0.03 percent of the nation's coastal waters, yet they are home to 25 percent of all China's marine species.