CO129-627-2 Fertilizer factory new territories- contains drawings 1-12-1950 - 31-1-1952 — Page 88

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new outfalls to the composting plant. At the composting installation some alterations might be required in the pumping and distribution arrangements in order to deal efficiently with liquids other than nightsoil.

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5. Barges. The now steel barges were designed for use with the

cxisting loading and unloading arrangements. A different design would be better for use with some of the alternative arrangements to be proposed for the composting project and I suggest that construction of more new barges should be suspended until the project is further advanced and a decision can be made about the design of the barges.

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The Earp Thomas process. I doubt whether the special secret bacterial cultures which are advocated for use as inoculants in the Earp-Thomas process can be of any great advantage when nightsoil or sewage are available for use in composting. However, I am prepared to accept that the digester plant can achieve an appreciable increase in the rate of decomposition, as compared with simpler composting methods, by reason of the fact that the compost is continuously stirred and aerated by rakes on each of the 8 floors of the digester.

The site at Tsun Wan. On balance the site at Tsun Wan seems to have more in its favour than other sites which I have so far been shown or which have been described to me. It has good access- ibility by road and sea. Its distances from the agricultural and urban areas are in reasonable proportion and it has one unique asset, a good existing sea wall,

On the assumption that the tugs would make 7 return journeys each day to Tsun Wan, in place of the present 5 return journeys to Kun Tong and 2 to Kau I Chau, the increase in the total distance travelled would be in the neighbourhood of 15 miles per day. In conjunction with the methods of loading and unloading barges which are to be proposed in later sections of this report, it might prove practicable to reduce the number of return journeys to be made by the tugs.

As a preliminary to detailed consideration of the layout of a composting installation at Tsun Wan, the Port Works Office of the Public Works Department has already undertaken a survey of the area reclaimed so far, of the basin formed by the sea wall and of the depths of water available along the frontage of sca wall.

This survey will also enable determination of the area available at Tsun Wan. The only figure which is recorded is 50 acres, but measurement from the sketch enclosed at 57 on file A.G.7/6/49 indicates an area of about 38 acres. The probable area required depends upon the type of installation and is discussed in a later section of this report.

The Outlines of a Scheme.

1. The supply of nightsoil to the composting installation. One

procedure would be to convey the nightsoil containers by barge to the composting installation, to empty them there and to cleanse them, either at the installation or on the barge during the return journey,

A second method would be to arrange for the pails to be emptied into barges at urban depots and also to be cleansed there. Simple alterations would be required in the design of the new type of barge to adapt it for receiving loose nightsoil