HKFP Lens: Hong Kong’s bamboo scaffolding through the years, as centuries-old technique set to be phased out

Hong Kong is among the last remaining cities that use bamboo scaffolding in modern construction and maintenance projects.

High-rises across Hong Kong are often seen encased in bamboo poles, strapped together with nylon fasteners.

Skilled scaffolders – nicknamed “spiders” – lash the poles together, creating platforms.

But such sights may become less common, with the government looking to phase out the centuries-old technique and replace the material with metal frames.

Lightweight bamboo has been favoured for its speed of construction and availability, and has a greater tensile strength than steel.

On Monday, however, the Development Bureau said it planned to “drive a wider adoption of metal scaffolds in public building works progressively” to improve safety, citing bamboo’s combustibility and tendency to deteriorate over time.

There have been 23 deaths since 2018 involving bamboo scaffolds, according to AFP, citing official figures – mostly involving falls from height, fires or collapses. Comparable data for metal scaffolds was not immediately available.

The industry has also faced a shortage of labour and materials in recent years.

In January, the Hong Kong and Kowloon Bamboo Scaffolding Workers Union said they opposed the retirement of bamboo. According to RTHK, they said accidents were usually a result of poor site safety management, not the scaffolding.

The union’s Ho Ping-tak said that 80 per cent of sites still use bamboo and some 4,000 specialist workers could be affected if it were banned.