ENG-1991 — Page 153

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PRIMARY PRODUCTION

department continues to operate a number of temporary wholesale markets at Western District on Hong Kong Island for poultry, at North District in the New Territories for agricultural products and at Cheung Sha Wan in Kowloon for imported vegetables, freshwater fish and poultry.

Mining

The Mines Division of the Civil Engineering Department enforces legislation and safety regulations relating to mining, quarrying and explosives. It processes mining and pro- specting applications and inspects mining and prospecting areas, stone quarries, blasting sites and explosives stores.

The division also controls the possession, conveyance, storage, manufacture and use of explosives in Hong Kong, including the delivery of explosives from government depots to blasting sites, and issues shotfirers' blasting certificates. In addition, it manages two government explosives depots which provide bulk storage facilities for imported as well as locally-manufactured explosives.

Site formation projects including the new airport at Chek Lap Kok, advanced works and housing development projects, together with the West Kowloon Reclamation borrow area and stone quarries, were the largest users of explosives in 1991.

Sewerage and electric cable tunnel construction also used explosives, albeit in smaller quantities. There was an increasing interest in 1991 in the use of explosives for seismic surveys. The subsurface geological profiles obtained were used in the site selection for a new power station and in site investigations for underground construction projects such as caverns and tunnels. The overall consumption of explosives in the territory increased by 37 per cent in 1991. Total consumption was 5 790 tonnes.

Storage space was provided for imported fireworks for the Lunar New Year fireworks display in February. The division continued to provide transit storage facilities for explosives and temporary storage for confiscated fireworks awaiting destruction.