ENG-1952 — Page 169

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PUBLIC UTILITIES

Waterworks

The supply of water to the Colony is undertaken by the Public Works Department of the Government.

As there are no large rivers or underground sources of water in the Colony, the population is entirely depend- ent for its water supply on the collection of rainwater. There are altogether thirteen impounding reservoirs which store the water from the Colony's many uplands and which are usually filled during the summer months when the south-west monsoon blows. As the rainfall for the rest of the year is low a very large amount of storage would be necessary to provide a 24-hour supply of water throughout the dry season for Hong Kong's big population. The not inconsiderable existing storage capacity of the reservoirs, 5,970 million gallons, is in- adequate to meet the demand and serious annual water shortages, during which water is turned off for a number of hours every day, are experienced. Of the total storage only 2,362 million gallons can be stored on the Island, the remainder being held in the New Territories area of the Mainland, chiefly in the Jubilee Reservoir at Shing Mun which can contain 2,921 million gallons. This reservoir is the largest in the Colony and its 275 foot dam is one of the tallest in the Empire. In addition to these works, there are 35 miles of catchwater channels running along the mid-levels of various hillsides to divert rainwater from its natural channels of fall into one or other of the reservoirs.

Approximately 40% of the Island's consumption is supplied from the Mainland reservoirs, the water being

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