ENG-1996 — Page 292

LAND, PUBLIC WORKS AND UTILITIES

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enjoy. Sewage charges amounting to $685 million were collected from the dischargers in the 1995-96 financial year.

Stormwater Drainage and Flood Control

The North and North-West districts of the New Territories are particularly vulnerable to flooding. The main causes leading to the aggravation of flooding in the New Territories have been the urbanisation of the rural areas and uncontrolled developments on the floodplains of the main rivers. The department has developed basin management plans for the five flood-prone basins in the North and North-West New Territories. They have been used to help to prepare outline zoning plans and development permission area plans. Furthermore, proponents of infrastructure projects with significant drainage impacts are also required to carry out drainage impact assessments so that the effect of flooding can be limited to an acceptable level. As a follow-up to the basin management plans, seven drainage masterplan studies will be carried out to cover most areas in the territory. The first one began in January 1996 and the rest will follow in phases. All studies will be completed by late 1999. The drainage capacity and the structural condition of the drainage system will be scrutinised. Recommendations for improvement works will be made so that flooding can be controlled and computerised asset management will be developed to facilitate the operation and maintenance of the drainage systems.

The government continued to implement schemes aimed at alleviating flooding in the North and North-West New Territories. Projects valued at some $6 billion were at various stages of planning, design and construction in 1996.

In the North-West New Territories, construction work on the improvement of the Kam Tin River and the Shan Pui River in Yuen Long progressed satisfactorily. Design work was in progress to build a further 24 kilometres of drainage channels in Kam Tin, Ngau Tam Mei and San Tin.

As an associated measure, 15 floodwater pumping systems have been built and were in operation to mitigate the impact of flooding in low-lying villages in the New Territories. Another 12 schemes were at various stages of planning, design and construction.

In the Northern New Territories, the construction of Stage I of the three-stage Shenzhen River Regulation Project was progressing satisfactorily and is scheduled to complete in May 1997. Working jointly with the Shenzhen Municipal Government, preparation for Stage II of the project was actively under way. The Stage II works were expected to start between late 1996 and the first half of 1997. The completed project will provide a higher flood protection level to the communities along the river. The Land Drainage Ordinance is an essential component of the strategy to alleviate flooding in the New Territories. It authorises government staff to gain access to, inspect, clear and maintain main watercourses running through or bordering on private land, in a further attempt to reduce the risk of flooding. It also empowers the government to control the erection of structures within main watercourses, to ensure their water-carrying capacity is not undermined. The ordinance became effective in the Yuen Long, Kam Tin, Ngau Tau Mei, Indus, San Tin, Ganges and Tin Shui Wai drainage basins in 1996.