LAND, PUBLIC WORKS AND UTILITIES
250
Drainage Services
The Drainage Services Department is committed to a programme of works to upgrade Hong Kong's drainage system to significantly reduce water pollution and flooding.
It is responsible for planning, designing, constructing, operating and maintaining the sewerage, sewage treatment and stormwater drainage infrastructures.
To serve the community, the department continued to attend expeditiously to complaints on drainage matters, such as blocked drains, and to promptly process applications for drainage connections for private developments.
Treatment and Disposal of Foul Water
The treatment and disposal of foul water, including domestic sewage and trade and industrial effluent, are based on standards, strategies and programmes drawn up by the Environmental Protection Department.
The planning, design and construction of the associated projects are carried out by the Drainage Services Department.
The projects on foul water disposal are broadly divided into three categories: sewerage or sewage treatment projects which were in the public works programme before the new strategy to combat water pollution evolved; 'sewerage masterplan schemes' which are territory-wide sewerage rehabilitation and improvement projects; and the 'Strategic Sewage Disposal Scheme' under the new strategy.
The latter is a massive project to collect, treat and discharge all sewage from Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, Tsuen Wan, Kwai Chung and Tseung Kwan O into the Dangan Channel, south of Lamma Island.
Projects under these three categories valued at some $9 billion are now under construction by the Drainage Services Department, and a further $4 billion worth of projects are at various stages of engineering planning and design.
Under the existing projects category, the largest project in hand in 1994 was the Tolo Harbour Effluent Export Scheme. This will export the sewage effluent from the Sha Tin and Tai Po sewage treatment works into Victoria Harbour and help to prevent the occurrence of red tides in Tolo Harbour. Stage I of the works between Sha Tin and Victoria Harbour was completed in late 1994 and included the construction of a sewer tunnel, 3.2 metres in diameter and 7.5 kilometres in length, under Tsz Wan Shan. Stage II of the works between Tai Po and Sha Tin is expected to be completed in mid-1995 and includes the construction of a one-metre diameter, six-kilometre long, steel rising main buried under the seabed of Tolo Harbour.
Another major project underway in this category was the construction of a sewage screening plant to serve a population of 700 000 and various industries in Tsuen Wan and Kwai Chung, to help reduce pollution in the Western Harbour.
Under the sewerage masterplan schemes, planning and design work was in hand to improve the sewage collection, treatment and disposal facilities in Tsuen Wan, Kwai Chung and Tsing Yi; Tuen Mun; Yuen Long and Kam Tin; North District; North, South and Northwest Kowloon; Wanchai East and North Point; Central, Western and Wanchai West; Chai Wan and Shau Kei Wan; Port Shelter; Aberdeen, Ap Lei Chau and Pokfulam; and the outlying islands. Advance works had started in some areas in order to reap early environmental benefits.