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Monday, July 30, 1973
BEACHES SAFE FOR SWIMMING
The Urban Council today assured bathers that the water at Hong Kong's beaches, including Shek 0, was not dangerous to swim in, although it was desirable to have a lower coliform count.
The Chairman of the Council's Environmental Hygiene Select Committee, Dr. Denny Huang, said: "Coliform is not a disease-causing bacteria and there is no accepted United Nations safety level that we know about.
Dr. Huang, who was commenting on newspaper reports of "pollution" at Hong Kong's beaches explained that some countries did set down so-called safety levels, while others did not.
In the United Kingdom, for instance, there was no such level because
it was most difficult and impractical to have one.
However, Dr. Huang said that Hong Kong's sewage should be properly treated before being discharged into the sea. The present system was certainly not in keeping with a modern city.
Meanwhile, the Assistant Director (Hygiene) of the Urban Services Department, Dr. S.W. Fung, pointed out that there was sharp fluctuation in the coliform court in the water at the beaches due mainly to tidal currents and constant movement in the water.
He said that if the count was constantly at a high level, or
the water stagnant, then it might be a different matter as in the case
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of Lai Chi Kok Beach which the authorities have closed.
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/He said