LAND, PUBLIC WORKS AND UTILITIES
renovation work of the sea water supply system for Central Kowloon, Central and Western areas on Hong Kong Island continued. Planning work continued for increased capacity to meet the demand from new developments in Central and Western areas on Hong Kong Island, Kwun Tong, Yau Tong, Tsing Yi, Yuen Long and the north-eastern and north-western New Territories.
Detailed design of Sham Tseng Treatment Works Stage II was completed and construction work commenced. Other major design work mainly concentrated on the provision of additional service reservoirs, pumping stations and water supply networks in Kowloon East, West Kowloon Reclamation, Central and Wan Chai Reclamations, Pok Fu Lam, Yau Tong and Tuen Mun.
To eliminate the risks associated with chlorine storage, the replacement of gas chlorination plants by on-site hypochlorite generation plants at sea water pumping stations continued.
Water Accounts and Customer Relations
cent per
The number of consumer accounts continued to rise at a rate of about 2 per annum and the consumer account base expanded to approximately 2.18 million accounts at the end of 1997. The Sewage Services Ordinance came into effect on April 1, 1995. For administrative convenience, sewage charges and water charges are combined into a single bill and the Water Supplies Department acts as an agent to collect general sewage charges on behalf of the Drainage Services Department.
Computer systems were widely employed to provide efficient enquiry services; to handle applications for water supply and change of consumer particulars; and to issue demand notes for water and sewage charges, connection fees and water deposits.
Efforts to promote the autopay service continued, and the number of consumer accounts using autopay for payment of water charges reached 318 000, or about 14.6 per cent of all consumers. The Payment-by-Phone service was also well received and about 10.4 per cent of the total payments received were using this service at the end of 1997.
In August 1997, the Water Supplies Department participated in a one-stop consumer registration service introduced by the Hong Kong Housing Authority. This lets a new tenant of a housing estate apply for utility services such as water, electricity, gas, and telephone by signing a Form of Consent to authorise the Housing Authority to release his personal particulars through e-mail to the utilities for processing his application. The department also announced in July its achievements against performance targets for the past year which showed improvements over those of the previous year in most areas. Most achievement rates were close to, or reached, 100 per cent. New enhanced performance targets were also publicised.
Electricity
The Hongkong Electric Company Limited (HEC) supplies Hong Kong Island and the neighbouring islands of Ap Lei Chau and Lamma; China Light and Power Company Limited (CLP) supplies Kowloon and the New Territories, including Lantau and several outlying islands. The supply to consumers is at a frequency of 50Hz alternating current while the voltage is 220 volts single-phase and 380 volts three- phase.
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