Chapter 63 Chapter 62: Side Notes on Water Supply, Water Control (Pollution Control) and Land Reclamation in Hong Kong and Macau

1. The American "National Geographic" magazine once spent two years asking a group of journalists who have traveled the world to choose 50 places to go in a lifetime, which are divided into 5 places: urban style, wild adventure, paradise on earth, sunshine zone and world wonders In the part, Hong Kong is actually among the 10 century-old cities that must be visited by the winners in the draft.This kind of selection is of course a matter of opinion. Since cities such as New York, London, Paris, and Istanbul are on the list, people in the country will never understand why the famous ancient cities in mainland China cannot compare with Hong Kong one by one. !If the amount of underground and surface cultural relics is not used as a rigid indicator for the evaluation of the old city style, then Hong Kong, which once had a century of colonial vicissitudes, does have many remarkable and impressive things.

Hong Kong [including Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, and the New Territories] is located in the southern part of mainland China, with an area of ​​1,075 square kilometers, of which Hong Kong Island [including nearby islands] is 75.6 square kilometers, and Kowloon Peninsula [including Stonecutters Island] is 11.1 square kilometers , the New Territories [including the New Territories land and 235 large and small islands] covers an area of ​​975.1 square kilometers, and another 13.2 square kilometers of newly filled land.Compared with the vast mainland of China, it is not inappropriate to say that Hong Kong, which is built by the mountains and is built by the sea, is a small projectile.

The topography of Hong Kong, Kowloon and the New Territories is characterized by undulating hills, most of which extend from northeast to south, in the same direction as the hills in Fujian and Guangdong provinces in China.However, some of the hills in Hong Kong were submerged in the sea in ancient times, forming many islands and bays with steep mountains, which have also become important tourist resources in the future. The well-known Repulse Bay is an example. Looking around the world, almost all island cities are short of one indispensable resource - water, of course fresh water rather than salt water, let alone the salt tide that flows into rivers from time to time.Hong Kong has struggled to find enough water since it was opened as a port in 1841.This densely populated industrial and commercial center has suffered from water scarcity for most of its 165-year history, in an almost total absence of natural resources.

Geological factors are one of the reasons for the water shortage in Hong Kong.Mountains seem to be incompatible with nature and water. Hong Kong is a mountainous and hilly area, and its stratum is mainly composed of igneous rocks and granites. These rocks are continuous and layered, clanging, and they will be good materials for steps and pillar foundations.The rocky landform has poor water permeability and is difficult to store water. It naturally isolates the undercurrent and undercurrent, so it cannot provide a large amount of groundwater.Uneven rainfall is another reason for Hong Kong's water shortage.Hong Kong is affected by the climate and typhoons, and the seasons are like a child's face, moody, and the weather is either pouring or pouring, or the red sun follows.According to the statistical data from the Observatory from 1875 to 1939 and from 1947 to 1990, the average annual rainfall in Hong Kong was 2206mm during the more than 100 years of rainy and cloudy cycles.Although it is not considered dry, the rainy season is only concentrated in five months from May to September every year, and the difference in rainfall between the flood season [May to September] and the dry period [October to next April] is quite large.The dry period is not only long, but also the rainfall is very different from the average annual rainfall.In the rainiest month, there is only 5mm, while in the rainiest month, the rainfall can be as high as 590mm.When typhoons occur between summer and autumn, they will bring rain. However, because most of the mountains in Hong Kong are continuous and there are many crags, collecting and storing rainwater is time-consuming and labor-intensive, and often achieves twice the result with half the effort.Both adults and children in the family are worried about the lack of daily water.

2. Before Hong Kong was opened as a port, commerce was still in its infancy, and everything was wild. Residents' drinking water mainly relied on mountain streams near their residences or dug underground water sources.At that time, a British trade caravan with only a few hundred people established a business base in the Central District. It is said that the waterfall in the mountain stream of Baibulin [Pokfulam] and the mountain stream in Abadian [Aberdeen] were the main places for them to get water.The aborigines use bamboo pipes to guide streams from mountain streams to their residences or fields for daily life and irrigation of farmland.When the French painter Auguste Borget traveled through Hong Kong in 1838, perhaps the water difficulties of the local residents impressed him too deeply. He once drew the bamboo water pipes at that time into the painting, and made the bamboo pipes used by the villagers. The description of diverting water from the mountain stream into the village.European immigrants mostly dug wells in their residences.Fortunately, there were not many residents on the island at that time. In 1841, the British conducted a census for the entire Hong Kong Island. At that time, there were only about 3,650 villagers and about 2,000 fishermen on the island.Five or six thousand people are comparable to the current six or seven million people. Using streams and wells can basically solve the daily expenses of the residents.

In the early days of the opening of the port, the government's water supply service was also very limited. In 1848, government records first appeared on the government's provision of water for its departments. In 1851, the government allocated £52 in the budget to dig five wells.The above-mentioned budget actually cost only 47 pounds and 4 shillings, and four wells were dug in a grandiose manner.Before 1860, the government also built reservoirs upstream of major streams to store water for drinking by the public. The tension of all resources is revealed by the increase in headcount.As the population of Hong Kong Island increases day by day, the limited measures mentioned above will be like the pockets of the poor—stretched. In 1851, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom rebelled, and the flames of war ignited the sky. Refugees swept across the scene. Many businessmen from South China moved to Hong Kong to escape the war. From 1849 to 1851, gold mines were discovered successively on the west coast of America and Australia. Western countries needed a lot of cheap labor. Hong Kong was a British colony and was not subject to Chinese law. It was also close to South China and had good shipping conditions. Transit stations in the United States and Australia.This has led to a dramatic increase in the number of people temporarily residing or transiting in Hong Kong.The population of Hong Kong increased from over 33,000 in 1851 to over 120,000 in 1865.The rapid expansion of the population has made a stable supply of drinking water a top priority for the government.Hong Kong is short of natural water sources, and the land that can be developed is limited. The government has offered a reward of 1,000 pounds for proposals to develop water sources, and plans to allocate 25,000 pounds as the first large-scale water project in Hong Kong.It can be said that Hong Kong Island has been haunted by the scarcity of water resources since then, and the previous Hong Kong and British governments have worked hard, but it has always been difficult to solve it once and for all.

"Waiting for the benefits of all ages, in today's victory."Unfortunately, in terms of the government's financial resources and technological level at that time, collecting rainwater seemed to be the only feasible strategy.The British Rawling proposed to build a water storage reservoir with a capacity of 30 million gallons in the Pok Fu Lam Valley.The pond can be used according to the situation to build a slightly larger dam to intercept rainwater.The government adopted Luo Ning's suggestion and officially passed a law on July 10, 1860, stipulating that in addition to undertaking various responsibilities, the government also has another important responsibility-providing drinking water for citizens.

3. "Anyone has a size, only what he can do."In order to save money, the construction cost of this first pond was repeatedly reduced, and the capacity of the pond was also reduced from the original design of 30 million gallons to 2 million gallons.Due to the small capacity of the reservoir, the pond was criticized for having no practical effect on alleviating the drinking water difficulties in Hong Kong at that time.According to an estimate in 1863, the daily water consumption of all Hong Kong residents was 500,000 gallons, and the total water volume of Pok Fu Lam Reservoir could only last for 4 days.Therefore, after the reservoir is completed, it is necessary to carry out expansion projects such as dam heightening immediately to prepare for the need.

However, compared with the small cistern, this is after all a new and attractive beginning.The construction of reservoirs proved to be a feasible strategy, and the government stepped up the construction of a second reservoir, Tai Tam Reservoir.This water supply system project is huge. The construction cost of the first phase alone is more than double the total expenditure of Pok Fu Lam Reservoir, and its capacity is also more than three times higher.The fresh water of this pond mainly supplies the heart of Hong Kong today, the area around Central, Wan Chai and Causeway Bay. After all, the government is not omnipotent, and the beginning of the market economy is to spread out from private interests to the prosperity of the world.In addition to the reservoirs built by the government, there were also 4 reservoirs built by private enterprises in the second half of the 19th century. Three belonged to Swire & Co. [Butterfield & Swire Co.], and one was built by Dacheng Paper Mill.These ponds are usually only for the use of property owners, but have also helped the government provide drinking water during times of drought.The pond of Dacheng Paper Mill has also agreed with the government to provide drinking water on a daily basis.

The main role of the government is not so much construction, but management, supervision, and of course distribution.At that time, in addition to organizing the construction of ponds, the government was also responsible for the distribution of drinking water: the water from the ponds was input into pipelines and diverted to various streets, and then public faucets were installed in the streets to supply water to residents on a regular basis. In 1902, a special water authority was established to carry out water work, which was no longer managed by the Public Works Bureau.Their main job is to install and maintain water supply equipment, coordinate the storage and use of water in various ponds, and calculate and collect water fees.For a while, the water workers wearing special overalls walked through the streets and alleys.

4. The quality of food has attracted the attention of the current media, and the quality of drinking water has long been the target of the media.Undoubtedly, how to control the quality of drinking water is also a headache for the Hong Kong government's water supply. In 1894, tens of thousands of residents in Guangzhou died of the plague, which was widely reported by domestic and foreign media.In May of the same year, Hong Kong first discovered the epidemic in the Taiping Mountains, and then spread rapidly.Commercial activities in Hong Kong have been greatly affected. Many business owners have brought their employees and family members back to Guangdong. The supply of food and daily necessities is in short supply, and prices have soared.After the inspection, the health department believed that the occurrence of the plague was related to the dense population, poor living environment and residents' lack of hygiene knowledge.After the outbreak, the epidemic could not be controlled, mainly because the government's early water supply system and sewage system were not perfect.This is a painful lesson. The government organized experts to carry out drinking water filtration work step by step.In the beginning, the popular sand filter was used in the UK, and the process was quite slow. During the rainy season, the rainwater flow is abundant, and most of the rainwater collected by the pond is mixed with a lot of sand and mud. Due to the limited capacity of the filter pool, the drinking water is often mixed with mud, which makes the smell unpleasant. .The government purchased more advanced British equipment in 1924 to reduce filtration time and improve filtration quality.In addition, the government began to regularly take drinking water samples for testing, and announced the results of the water quality testing.The relevant work was mainly carried out by the British Royal Chemist, and the announcement was posted in the store, and the knowledge was announced in the lane, and people felt at ease immediately.Time flies, and it has come to the first half of the 20th century. Although there were several droughts in Hong Kong, the sky was very hot, and the clouds were hidden, but there were still only a handful of cases where citizens were infected with infectious diseases due to unhygienic public drinking water. The danger of plague outbreaks Basically lifted. "As usual, the moon in front of the window is different if there are plum blossoms."Reservoir construction was the only open source and fruitful option for the government at that time to ensure water supply.Therefore, Tai Tam Reservoir was followed by Kowloon Reservoir, Aberdeen Reservoir, Shing Mun Reservoir, etc. The development of the entire water supply system basically reflected the population distribution.Because of its early development, the population of Hong Kong Island is denser than that of Kowloon and the New Territories. In 1929, there was a drought in Hong Kong. Due to the low population density and low water consumption in Kowloon, the water supply was still sufficient.Therefore, the government plans to build a cross-sea water pipeline connecting Hong Kong and Kowloon to transport the rainwater collected from the Kowloon Peninsula and reservoirs in the New Territories to Hong Kong Island to relieve the pressure on drinking water.This was a small "North-to-South Water Diversion" project, but at the time, it was considered a lot of courage and planning.The project went through several twists and turns, and was finally approved by the British side. Huo Ran shook his clothes and officially started construction.In the past ten years, the authorities have built three submarine water pipelines, and the clear water submerged to moisten the island. The residents are very happy because they no longer have to live by water like the ancients. 5. The reservoirs in the early stage were all built against the mountains, and they were dammed to store water in the valley.In Hong Kong, where land is very expensive, land resources are as scarce as water resources. "Work early and think late, work hard and work hard", the government, experts and citizens need to get out of the box and find another way of thinking. In 1959, the government began to prepare for the construction of an epoch-making project in terms of design and investment - Plover Cove Freshwater Lake.The location of this pond is not in the valley, but by the sea.The authorities took advantage of the half-moon-shaped bay in Tai Pu Bay, New Territories, to build a 1.25-mile-long dam on the Tai Mei Tuk Peninsula, cross the strait, and connect Pak Sha Tau Chau on the peninsula off the coast of Da Pu, changing the original coastline and making it a 3-mile-long dam. Half a mile, 1 mile wide, and an area of ​​2,950 acres of seaside lake, and then drain the seawater in the lake to store fresh water.The project is quite large and complex. In addition to large dams, supporting pumping stations and distribution reservoirs also need to be built, which took seven years to complete. "Lights on all sides of the city of thousands of homes, the center of a galaxy of water", after the completion of the reservoir, the capacity of the reservoir reached 37.3 billion gallons, which was three times the total capacity of the reservoirs in Hong Kong at that time. Although ponds and reservoir lakes have been built one after another, because the island's rivers are short and the natural conditions for building large-scale reservoirs are lacking, the situation is stronger than that of people. The scale supply of existing ponds can never keep up with the needs of the rapidly growing population. Since 1931, the population of the Kowloon Peninsula has risen to 30% of the total population of Hong Kong, and the city has increased from one core to two. The "North-to-South Water Diversion" has gradually lost its meaning and is showing signs of decline.The Boxer Rebellion in China in the early years and the frequent wars after that, the displacement of refugees, and the immigrant population of the Hakkas in the south were surging, and a large number of them entered Hong Kong, just like the rhythm of music. 6. The Hong Kong Observatory began to record the rainfall in Hong Kong in 1884. According to the records, the precipitation in 1895 was 45.83 inches.The population of Hong Kong that year was about 248,000, and the annual rainfall was half that of the normal year.In order to save water, the government implements time-limited water supply measures from April to June and October to December, and the supply is only 3 to 4 hours a day.And because of the plague that began in 1894, the government closed some of the polluted wells, which meant the lesser of two evils, but in this way, the original shortage of drinking water would only become more serious. 1929 was a year that made economists all over the world daunting. The Great Depression, the Great Crash, and the Great Water Famine in Hong Kong. The annual rainfall in Hong Kong was only 69.82 mm, and the population was close to 800,000. .According to records, in April of the same year, there was a severe drought in Hong Kong, and seven-level water control began to be implemented. In June, the severe drought continued, and 6 ponds, 5 of which were cracked in mud, dried up to the bottom.Egrets fly in the shallows, birds chirp in the shade.The authorities formed a Drinking Water Supply Committee to deal with the water shortage and announced emergency measures: all water pipes in buildings were cut off, and residents had to drink water from drinking water supply stations.The 800,000 residents in Hong Kong rely on only 306 taps on the street for two hours of water supply every day. From the beginning of July to the end of August, Hong Kong and Kowloon were in an extreme water shortage. Various organizations in Hong Kong gathered to ask the authorities to improve the equipment and supply of ponds.The authorities took emergency measures and converted all the carriages of the Guangzhou-Kowloon train into water tanks. What a spectacular and tragic scene, they took water from the Shenzhen River and transported it to supply water. At the same time, they sent a fleet to the Pearl River to absorb fresh water to supply the residents.According to the "Historical History of Shenzhen-Hong Kong Relations", the price of water has soared all the way and is unstoppable. Back then, a bowl of barbecued pork rice cost only 5 cents, but a small bucket of water could be sold for 2 cents. 200,000 people left Hong Kong, and many returned to their hometowns and starred overseas.It was not until after September 5 that the weather changed and the rain began to fall, and the threat of water shortage gradually came to an end. In the early 1960s, Hong Kong's water consumption increased rapidly.According to the Hong Kong government's annual report, the average hourly water consumption in 1962 had a 63% increase over the same period in 1961. In 1963, there was a rare drought since the opening of the port. The rivers and ponds were dry, the fields were cracked, and the reservoir savings were only enough for 43 days of food.The authorities rent tankers to go to the Pearl River every day to draw fresh water.The British Hong Kong government implemented strict water control measures, supplying water every 4 days, and each time was only 4 hours.The measure has been in place for a year, causing panic throughout Hong Kong.Not only drinking is suffering, but fishing and agriculture, which cannot be separated from water for a day, have suffered heavy losses. Manufacturing industries have also shut down due to water shortages, especially water-consuming industries such as beverage manufacturing, cloth dyeing, laundry, and construction.In order to save water, some restaurants distribute water chips for tea-making to tea customers. The price is calculated by each piece. Customers are stipulated that customers can make hot water up to 3 times. In addition, they stop supplying towels to customers and use plastic tablecloths to avoid washing fees.Tea restaurants no longer give away free tea, but charge by cup.Barbershops have also been forced to cut back on sales because they cannot store enough water.During the water production period, every second counts. The scene of the family suspending work, suspending school and taking turns queuing up to fetch water is staged every day like a drama, but no one wants to see this kind of drama. Cooking, bathing, and laundry are hard to read. In practice, pots, pans and ladles will come in handy as long as they can hold water. "Moonlight shines on Hong Kong, there is no water in the mountains and ponds, there is no food, my sister carries water, and my mother goes to the Buddhist hall, GFEA9 knows when there will be no water shortage." The ballad spread like wildfire. Frowning, tears bearing eyelashes. 7. "Tall trees are full of sad wind, and the sea is full of waves."If you ask in the midst of the gloomy clouds and mist, who else will benefit?The answer is that the only beneficiaries are the bucket manufacturers.All walks of life and general households will buy buckets to store water, and the sales of buckets will double. 50-gallon iron vats are the most popular among citizens.It is roughly estimated that in 1963, there were 3 million refitted buckets in Hong Kong, which was 1913 times higher than Victoria Peak!What a thriving market and what a magnificent scene this is.Porting drinking water has also become a new industry. Many villagers in the New Territories took the opportunity to pump well water and sell it to the public. Some fishing boats went to Lantau Island and outlying islands to find clear mountain springs for sale.But it has to be a first-line stream, and the family has to feed. Before May 1963, the price of natural water was about 1 jiao per load. After the water control was implemented in May, it rose to 5 jiao a load, and even in urban areas it was as high as 5 RMB a barrel.People at that time said that rice is more expensive than pearls, and this is said that dripping water is more expensive than oil. After the water shortage in 1963-1964, the British Hong Kong government began to seek other ideas for open source.With more people and less water, everyone realized that only sea water is "inexhaustible and inexhaustible".At that time, Hong Kong, which was located in the corner of the South China Sea, did not have water shortages. Water shortage was a problem all over the world. Many countries and regions in the world had already carried out seawater desalination work one after another.As early as the 1950s, the U.S. government established the Salt Water Office [Office of Saline Water] to conduct research on the application of desalination technology. After 1974, it was transformed into the Office of Resources Technology to continuously promote the progress of water resources and desalination technology.Japan also built the first civilian desalination plant in 1968. By 2001, Japan had 369 seawater desalination plants with a capacity of more than 500 tons, with a daily supply of 777,967 tons of desalinated water. The advantage of seawater desalination projects is that the production quantity and time can be completely controlled by the government, and it is very convenient to obtain materials. However, the cost of refining seawater is very high-this is almost an obstacle that has not yet been easily overcome.The Hong Kong British government first built a seawater desalination test site in 1970, which produced only 50,000 gallons of fresh water per day, and the finished product was purely for testing purposes, not for public consumption.After absorbing the research experience of the seawater desalination test site, in 1973, the Hong Kong government formally prepared to build the largest seawater desalination plant in the world at that time——Castle Mountain Lok Pai Seawater Desalination Plant.The plan cost 460 million and was completed and put into operation in 1975.At that time, the political background of the establishment of the factory was the "Cultural Revolution" in full swing in the mainland. The Hong Kong government did not know the ins and outs of this "revolution" when the prairie fire started. The deep shadow of the water source made the high-nosed and deep-eyed Westerners who were in power dare not think about the long-term continuity of the inland water source. Because the British Hong Kong government has been unable to change the production method that relies on high-priced fuel oil, the seawater desalination plant was once closed. In 1981, Hong Kong experienced another water shortage, and the government planned to reopen the desalination plant.However, due to the tense situation in the Middle East, the oil price quickly soared three times because of the tension between consumption and reserves.The government must increase water charges and other taxes in order to balance revenue and expenditure.Therefore, restarting the seawater desalination plan has been strongly opposed by people from all walks of life, especially the industry. Most public opinion believes that asking Guangdong Province to increase supply is a good way to open up new sources of income. In 1982, the desalination plant closed down, and in 1992 it was completely demolished by blasting. 8. "Gold can be used as a lesson, but everything can't escape its shape."After 30 years, technology has advanced rapidly and matured day by day, and the cost of seawater desalination has been much lower than that of the past.Neighboring Singapore has developed even faster in this regard.Singapore, an island country known as the garden country, is only 647 square kilometers, slightly larger than half of Hong Kong, but it is full of verdant trees, covered with shade, singing birds and fragrant flowers, and the warm wind makes tourists drunk. In Singapore, where "summer is all year round, and it turns into autumn when it rains", due to the shortage of natural water resources, more than half of the water source in Singapore comes from the west of Malaysia.They also began to study seawater desalination technology in the 1970s, but also because of the high cost, it was not until the early 1990s that the Singapore Public Utilities Commission began to plan the supply of desalinated water by private companies, and decided to use the BOO method [Build-Own- Operation] Construct a seawater desalination plant with a daily output of 136,000 tons.Because the contractor is a private enterprise, the government will support the initial investment and determine the minimum purchase quantity guaranteed by the government after the factory is produced in the contract to reduce the risk of investors. In June 2003, Singapore spent 200 million Singapore dollars to build the first seawater desalination plant Xinquan [SingSpring].The plant adopts reverse osmosis membrane technology and started water supply in September 2005, which can meet 10% of Singapore's water demand.Reverse osmosis membrane technology is an achievement of bionics. The United States has always been the leader in the world in various scientific fields, so it is natural not to be left behind in this aspect. In 1950, American scientist DR.S.Sourirajan once observed that a seagull sips a mouthful of seawater from the sea surface while flying over the sea, and spits out a small mouthful of seawater after a few seconds.He had doubts, because the lung-breathing animals on land could never drink high-salt seawater.After dissection, it was found that there is a thin film in the body of the seagull. The film is very precise. The seawater is inhaled by the seagull and then pressurized, and then the water molecules penetrate through the film through the pressure to convert it into fresh water, while the seawater containing impurities and highly concentrated salt is spit out of the mouth. outside.This is the basic theoretical framework of reverse osmosis [REVERSEOSMOSIS].This technology was first used by U.S. astronauts to recycle urine into pure water. The medical profession also used reverse osmosis technology for kidney dialysis [hemodialysis]. The U.S. Navy applied this technology to turn seawater into fresh water.Today, this technology has been widely used in seawater desalination and sewage treatment. Today, Tuen Mun and Ap Lei Chau in Hong Kong are conducting feasibility studies on the use of "reverse osmosis technology" for seawater desalination.Although the cost of seawater desalination has dropped significantly because of this, the processing cost per ton is about 7 yuan, but the purchase from Dongjiang is less than 5 yuan.Although it is as low as 2 yuan, the cumulative cost is immeasurable due to the large quantity and long-term use.In Hong Kong's centuries-old industrial and commercial environment, no matter if you are an entrepreneur or an ordinary person, you must compare the ratio of input and output, and you will never indulge yourself even in living expenses.What's more, non-governmental environmentalists have sharp eyes, and their reasons are convincing and loud: on the premise that the Dongjiang River can continue to provide high-quality water, compared with desalinated seawater, natural water containing natural minerals is more beneficial to the human body than purified water. 9. In addition, "reclaimed water" is also regarded as the most economical new water source by the Hong Kong Water Supplies Department. The international trend is to expand the scope of application of reclaimed water. In addition to irrigation and industrial purposes, it is even indirectly used for drinking purposes. The benefit of water, stresses conservation, stresses open source, and stresses recycling.The Hong Kong government is studying the recycling of domestic sewage from washing or toilet flushing, which is similar to the use of reclaimed water that is often said in the Mainland.At the Ngong Ping 360 tourist attraction on Lantau Island and Shek Wu Hui in the North District, after tertiary treatment [that is, the highest level of sewage treatment procedures, combining physical, chemical and biological principles to remove nutrients and any remaining suspended solids in sewage] "Sewage" is used for toilet flushing, garden irrigation and other non-potable purposes.The problem in Hong Kong is that there is not much agriculture, the industry has moved to the north, and sea water is used to flush toilets. Therefore, the government is exploring the scope of application of reclaimed water, which can be used for cleaning streets and vehicles, irrigating parks and sports fields, flushing toilets, fire fighting and industrial purposes. The Ngong Ping Tertiary Sewage Treatment Plant is the first trial project for the use of reclaimed water in Hong Kong. The treated sewage is clear and odorless, meeting extremely high hygiene standards. It has been proven safe, beneficial and effective, and has been used for many non-drinking purposes.With the repeated advancement of the pilot plan, the reclaimed water will be sent to the crane station and its related tourist facilities for toilet flushing, and part of the reclaimed water will be moved to the sewage treatment plant, and then used for breeding ornamental fish and monitored irrigation.The North District also implemented a two-year reclaimed water use plan to provide reclaimed water to participating residences, schools, etc. "The east wind sprinkles rain and dew, and it will enter the spring of heaven and earth."Researchers even believe that after sewage is purified by microfiltration or reverse osmosis technology to become reclaimed water, it can even be drunk.The public may have psychological barriers to the use of reclaimed water. It is difficult for people to accept that a pool of dirty water can be transformed into drinkable water. Although we have seen similar experiments on TV, it is still difficult to accept it for a while.Science speaks louder than words, and it is unmistakable that reclaimed water has reached extremely high hygiene standards and is suitable for daily use. However, the cost of treating sewage into reclaimed water will inevitably increase.Most of the sewage discharge has already undergone secondary treatment. Excluding the cost of secondary treatment, the price has to be increased. The recycling of sewage to irrigation will cost an additional 5 yuan per cubic meter, which is much higher than the cost of seawater desalination. Psychological problems of the people.However, from the perspective of environmental protection, the recycling and reuse of sewage can achieve zero discharge, which not only solves water supply but also protects the environment, which can be said to kill two birds with one stone. 10. The most proud use of sea water in Hong Kong is the sea water flushing system. Don't underestimate a toilet flushing. In 1957, the Water Supplies Department suggested setting up seawater flushing systems in newly developed areas of Kowloon, such as Shek Kip Mei, Li Cheng Uk Estate and other densely populated resettlement areas.Implementation is planned to begin the following year. In the 1961-1962 fiscal year, the government allocated a total of 14 million Hong Kong dollars to develop seawater flushing equipment, build seawater pumping stations and storage tanks, and lay anti-seawater corrosive water pipes, etc.Although the government has made a lot of efforts, the use of seawater was still unattainable in the 1960s, and it took a long time to get rid of the old sewage disposal methods. In 1965, the government promulgated new regulations, stipulating that newly built buildings or rebuilt old buildings must be equipped with water supply channels suitable for seawater flushing systems.At present, 80% of the buildings in Hong Kong are equipped with a salt water flushing system, forming a pipe network completely independent of the drinking water system.Another 20% of the area is not yet covered, mainly due to cost-effectiveness of plumbing. "Know it after you know it, and then you will be sincere when you know it."Whether it is from the perspective of environmental protection or economic benefits, seawater flushing has obvious advantages.The water source is sufficient, and the biggest expense is the cost of pipe laying.Therefore, in the early stage of construction, the seawater was still charged according to the consumption, and after 1972, it was changed to free.The seawater treatment process is very simple. Firstly, large impurities are removed by the screen, and then disinfected with chlorine gas and hypochlorite. The seawater treated twice can be transported to the distribution reservoir for users.At present, Hong Kong is already the city with the highest water flushing coverage in the world.Moreover, according to Article 12 of the Waterworks Regulations: "If fresh water from a waterworks is used on any premises to flush a latrine, latrine or urinal without the written permission of the Water Authority, the occupier of the premises and Owners are guilty of a crime." This is probably the only "flushing toilet" crime in the world. Water is precious, and it can be seen in Hong Kong. The government's efforts to develop local fresh water resources have contributed a lot to the centuries-old history of water supply, but a smart woman cannot live without rice, and the scarcity of fresh water resources has always hindered the development of Hong Kong's cities.Perhaps, in order to fundamentally solve Hong Kong's water use problem, the "North-South Water Diversion" from the mainland is the solution once and for all.The idea of ​​buying fresh water in Guangdong Province originated in 1929. Time flies, and the dream has been difficult to realize. In the late 1950s, the well-known patriotic entrepreneur in Hong Kong, Li Mingze, urged Gregory Grant, the then governor of Hong Kong, to divert water from the Dongjiang River to Hong Kong.It was not until 1960 that the Hong Kong government reached an agreement with Guangdong Province for the first time to provide 5 billion gallons of drinking water to Hong Kong every year from the Shenzhen Reservoir. 11. "Don't take gold and soup for solid, long-term make the universe new". In 1955, there was a severe spring drought in Bao'an County, and the construction of the Shenzhen Reservoir was put on the agenda.Looking left and right, Hong Kong is suffering from floods, which is also one of the important issues.According to the suggestion of Tao Zhu, the first secretary of the Guangdong Provincial Party Committee at the time, the Shenzhen Reservoir should not only meet the daily supply needs of Baoan County, but also undertake the task of supplying water to Hong Kong. On September 5, 1959, the Guangdong Provincial Government approved the plan to build the Shenzhen Reservoir. On November 15, 1959, construction of the Shenzhen Reservoir officially started.With the sound of drums and the fluttering of flags, 10 people's communes in the county mobilized a total of 25,000 people, and at the same time a regiment of troops came to build the reservoir.Nearly 40,000 people were working at the same time on the most day, and 10,000 people worked in normal times.At that time, the equipment was backward, and it was basically carried by shoulders and hands. Because there were too many people to turn around, the workers passed the tools to the construction site one by one.Due to the special significance of this project, Marshal Chen Yi, then Vice Premier of the State Council, visited the construction site in person to encourage the migrant workers. On November 15, 1960, Cao Ruoming, representative of Bao'an County Government, and Bati, representative of Hong Kong Government, signed a water supply agreement to supply 22.7 million cubic meters of water from Shenzhen Reservoir to Hong Kong every year.The following year, the water from the Shenzhen Reservoir was imported into Hong Kong.The Chinese side charged 0.022 yuan per ton of water symbolically. It was not until the agreement between the two parties in 1978 that the fee per ton of water was set at 0.15 yuan [after several adjustments]. Only part of the cost was recovered. In 1963, the two governments reached a consensus to build the Dongshen Water Supply Project. In April 1964, the two parties formally signed an agreement, agreeing that from March 1965, Guangdong Province would sell no less than 15 billion gallons of drinking water to Hong Kong every year, at a price of HK$1.06 per 1,000 gallons. But plans were delayed by a severe drought in 1963, and construction did not start until February of the following year.The Dongshen Water Supply Project diverts water from the Dongjiang River southward to Shenzhen City. It is necessary to turn one of the tributaries of the Dongjiang River from south to north, the Shima River, into an artificial canal and go upstream. The project is huge and the task is arduous.After eight stages of water lifting, the water level is raised to 46 meters, and then injected into Yantian Reservoir, and then a 3-kilometer artificial channel is excavated from the end of the reservoir to inject water into Shenzhen Reservoir.Then, through two water pipes across the Shenzhen River, it enters the receiving pool at the border Muhu Lake, and then supplies the urban area of ​​Hong Kong.This can be called an artificial canal, starting from Dongguan City, Guangdong, winding south, with a total length of 83 kilometers, and was completed in 1965. 12. So far, hundreds of thousands of aborigines in Bao'an and Longgang are quite dissatisfied with the historical description of "Shenzhen is a small fishing village". If it is said that Shenzhen was under the jurisdiction of Bao'an, there is nothing wrong with it. Since it belongs to Shenzhen, it is still said that Shenzhen was originally a small fishing village, so the complaints of the aborigines may be justifiable.In fact, Hong Kong before and after the Opium War was not a small fishing village. Today, Hong Kong covers an area of ​​more than 1,000 square kilometers, most of which are hilly and mountainous. , the standard of living is among the best in the world, and the consumption of water for drinking and washing, gurgling and flowing day and night, is not a small figure.Today, 80% of Hong Kong's drinking water is obtained from the Dongjiang Taiyuan water intake 142 kilometers away, which is in the same line as Shenzhen.The other 20% is self-sufficient, and the reservoirs and river ponds use trickles to accumulate rainwater from country parks with 1/3 of the land area of ​​the port area.Hong Kong is no longer a small fishing village with a population of only 7,000 when it was opened in 1841. At that time, streams, wells, and ponds alone were enough water for people's daily life. In 1965, the population of Hong Kong increased to 3.59 million.It was in this year that the Dongshen Water Supply Project was completed, an 83-kilometer-long Shenzhen-Hong Kong open waterway, allowing Hong Kong citizens to bid farewell to the water supply of "only once in four days". In 1982, Hong Kong bid farewell to the last water restriction.For example, Beijing and other places are currently talking about water price increases or tiered water prices. The reason is that water resources, like oil and coal, are becoming more and more scarce, and their tightness is becoming more and more in line with non-renewable resources.As the climate changes, its scarcity will only become tighter, not looser. Afterwards, the Dongshen Water Supply Project underwent three phases of expansion, which took 16 years and cost 2 billion yuan.Someone once estimated that the total amount of excavated earth and stone can build a road from Shenzhen to Beijing with a width of 10 meters and a height of 1 meter. 13. Hong Kong's water supply has basically been stable after the Dongshen Project. In 1981, Hong Kong implemented the last water control measure in the 20th century.In recent years, population growth has been lower than expected, Hong Kong's industries have moved northward, and Hong Kong's reservoirs have become full of water due to climate change, causing reservoirs to overflow.However, the Hong Kong government still has to purchase at least 800 million cubic meters of Dongjiang water every year based on the contract, costing more than 2.4 billion yuan in financial expenditure.Between 1998 and 2003, about 3 billion Hong Kong dollars worth of Dongjiang water was discharged into the sea, causing an uproar.The media reported extensively, calling this move "dumping money into the sea".Today, the Hong Kong government has signed a flexible water supply agreement with Guangdong Province to avoid wasting fresh water resources. "If you don't know enough, you can reflect on yourself; if you know difficulties, you can strengthen yourself."From shortage to surplus, Hong Kong people have a deep love for water for more than a hundred years.早期的水务设施建筑，如今多数仍在运作，部分已被列为法定古迹，成为历史地标，沧桑几度，咏叹三拍。如今，政府也很重视对水塘周边地段的生态环境的规划，水塘区成为风景优美的郊野公园。 14.问题总在不经意之间浮现，近些年来，随着东江水源污染问题日趋严重，香港供水又现危机。自大陆改革开放后，东江沿岸的工业发展及城镇人口增长迅速，广东省政府对污染工业及生活污水排放的预计与管理不足，沿江市民环保意识薄弱，以至东江河水水质不断下降。港府过滤东江原水的过程变得复杂，成本亦不断攀升。政府在过滤过程中，为中和氨氮含量而添加的氯气所产生的氯化物，更被市民怀疑会引起癌症，港媒之揣度分析，亦未曾止息。 1998年广东省政府建议兴建一条封闭管道，自东莞桥头镇直达深圳水库，将供水系统与污染日益严重的石马河分离，双方希望工程能使输港的东江水维持在Ⅱ类的原水标准。 2004年，当密封管道落成一年后，环保组织绿色和平于3月18日至19日，分别在密封水管的入口地带抽取32个样本，在源头水样本中，大肠杆菌超标3200倍、部分样本发现重金属如水银等，报章报道“污染程度犹如粪水”。 但水务署强烈反驳该份报告，重申本港食用水可安全饮用，并质疑环保团体的抽水位置。根据水务署化验报告，自密封水管2003年6月启用后，他们在7月起至2004年3月，在位于香港边境的木湖抽水站抽样，发现大肠杆菌每升水含量降低31.7%；氨氮含量更大跌84.6%，反映本港水质显著改善。 港府与绿色和平组织的数据差距被认为有季节因素影响，冬季枯水期的污染物较全年平均水平偏高。但绿色和平组织人士忧虑，即使水质只属季节性恶化，但是港府为清理食用水，将要采用更多化学物料进行消毒。而且自密封管道启用后，邻近东江、受严重污染的石马河，水量急降，每遇潮水涨退，更可能倒流至东江中游，污染东江源头。广东水利厅亦承认石马河污染极严重，计划整顿污染。 15.2006年，港府再次重申密封管道启用后，输港东江水水质在各方面都有显著改善。港府与广东省政府设立紧急通报机制，透过电话及传真就可能影响东江水水质的重大事故尽早通知对方，以便适时采取适当的控制措施和相应行动，确保供水安全。然而2006年以来，为发展经济作物，东江中上游不少原生态灌木林带被砍伐，大力发展种植尾叶桉，大量原生态森林被毁，变成单一桉树，导致物种多样性消失，生态破坏严重。若情况继续，东江水源很可能遭遇断流危机。 百年供水的新难题，不仅影响到香港未来的发展，更是广东省政府乃至中国的发展瓶颈。污染的影响是其一；内地工业的发展，用水量激增是其二，广东可用水资源也日渐捉襟见肘，中央一再保证对港供水，但香港也要未雨绸缪，多自躬省，不能肯定，日后香港制水是否卷土重来。因此港府在配合和督促广东省政府治理污染的同时，自己也在研究探讨其他供水方法，包括再造水、海水淡化及本地收集雨水等，避免畸轻畸重，过度依赖东江水。 16.地是恒数，人是变数，香港地少人多，增加集水区并不可行。而扩大现有集水区，如加高堤坝，每立方米水价急增至9元，较目前购买和处理东江水的成本高出一倍。而且扩大集水区会淹没毗邻郊野生态环境，同时也会减少有限的可发展土地。 再造水则成本高昂，市民亦未必接受。而海水淡化目前成本虽高，但有下降趋势，如配合可再生能源如太阳能使用，有助降低营运成本，可能是未来最有希望的水源。 节流方面，水务署制定了一个涉及方方面面的“全面水资源管理计划”，包括用水器具标签计划、15年的水管修复更换防渗计划、海水冲厕和集雨区扩展计划以及提升市民的环保意识计划等。 17.“暮景萧萧雨霁，云淡天高风细”。香港每年耗水约9亿多立方米，由于水管年久失修，严重老化，其中将近四分之一是在输水过程中汩汩潜行，在地底悄悄溜走，一算吓一跳，足足等于9万个标准泳池容量。过去测漏水管要在夜间进行，将水管网络内的水掣逐一关掉，监察流量及水压的变化，从而找出漏水范围。水务署自2001年采用先进的探测仪器，将大量有如成年人拳头大小的记录仪，置于水管网络的水掣上，这些仪器会自行于夜间启动，如发现附近一带有水管渗漏，水务署就会派员驾车巡查，以无线接收器接收信号，找出渗漏的一段水管，然后以声纳仪器收窄范围，最后由富有经验的水管测漏人员监听音棒或电子测漏仪，在地面进行听声检查，确定实际位置。此法好处是减低对交通影响，检测期间亦无须停止供水。单是过去5年，估计累计节水2.6亿立方米，相当于8.5亿元的食用水。节约是富余之母，能不慎乎俭乎！ “东风好作阳和使，逢草逢花报发生”。香港百年供水的过程，生聚教训，困厄颠踬，恰如奔流到海的大江，回环九曲，慷慨悲歌，然而终于在祖国的怀抱里，在港人治港的奋进中，得到涌泉之报。 1.“云散月明谁点缀，天容海色本澄清”。保障供水，固然是当今全世界各大城市一大难题；治理污水如同保障供水一样，同样是经济发展迅捷城市的一个令人头疼的肯綮。 香港最早的环保措施可追溯到百年之前的雨污分流系统。百年沧桑，一路跋涉。1894年，香港暴发的大规模瘟疫，首宗病例，患者是一名国家医院的庶务员，由刚从广州视察疫情返港的国家医院署理院长娄逊医生【Dr.Lowson】发现的。5月10日，香港宣布成为疫埠。是年，全港人口最稠密及环境卫生恶劣的上环太平山区成了疫症重灾区；控制疫情，就成为当年港督的首要任务。之后30年，香港市民仍然不断与鼠疫搏斗。媒体一片哗然，也直接引起港英政府对香港华人生活区的公共卫生状况的重视，1902年，已经开始有新建住宅规划成雨污分流系统，即雨水和污水用两套独立渠道进行收集和排放。上世纪20年代，港府在港岛东西侧填海并将人口分流，同时较大规模地在住宅区铺设管网系统，且一开始就用雨污分流。高处的雨水被拦截送到水塘作为20%食用水来源；剩下的则通过管道排出，因地势低洼而排不及的，不少地区会形成“水浸街”。那时候的香港人，尤其是日常采买的家庭主妇，穿着木屐，摄裙蹚水，莫不以为苦哉！采用此套系统，主要的考虑还是收集雨水，供应短缺的用水。 工业发展初期，万事蛰伏，炊烟霭霭，当时污水只需顺着管道直排维港，每天数万次的海水潮汐足以将它们净化。然而到上世纪70年代，随着香港工业的起飞，污水直排对海水水质影响越来越大。深水埗的雨水渠把未经处理的污水垃圾和油迹全部流入“坑渠口”。发展蓬勃的屯门一带海域满目油污、荃湾工业废水直排维港。维多利亚港的水质被长年忽视，当时政府没有任何措施监控工厂排出的污水，香港每天向维多利亚港排放约150万立方米筛滤后的污水，其中有不少含有毒物质及重金属的废料未经处理，便直接排放到维港，沉积在维港海底的污泥中。 2.“燕子不归春事晚，一汀烟雨杏花寒”。直到1980年政府才实施《水污染管制条例》，明文管制废水污染海洋及河溪环境。1989年，全港人口产生的污水，仍有超过50%未经处理而直接排入大海或内陆水域，泛泛之波，清流变浊，伤痛隐隐的岂止是媒体，又岂止是环保绿色和平组织。当人们发现，本港只有不到四分之一的经收集所得的污水曾做较高级别处理，其余一概散入大海，遽然知晓生存环境之劣，未必要等到子孙后代来品尝风侵雨蚀之痛。上个世纪90年代初，政府在各方吁请的压力下，下决心制定了16个“污水收集整体计划”，为本港所需的污水收集基本设施制定一本发展蓝图，要义便是收集集水区内的污水。轻重缓急，一一展列之后，政府更知自己的首要工作峻切迫急，那便是清理维多利亚港的海水。 维多利亚港湾一线逶迤多姿，大厦接云，山峰似列，鸥鹭翻飞，汽笛悠扬，更有客轮、货轮、游艇和快艇驰骋其间，斩浪劈波，弧线如梭。从太平山头眺望维港，从来都是八方云游而来的客人的愉目之景，岂可或缺！但这一线又是香港最密集的人口生活区，每天排放近185万吨污水，超过全港总排污量的60%。维港水质极为恶劣，每天有足以注满1000个奥运规格泳池的170万立方米污水，这些泛着扑鼻臭味的污水，只在沿岸的初级处理厂略经隔筛及隔滤砂砾的简单处理之后便排入港湾。受水质污染影响，不少鱼类及其他海洋生物遭受灭顶之灾。老一辈人在海边随便用桶盆即可舀到鱼虾的记忆，美好而不可复现。虽然之后一直仍有不少人在维港两岸垂钓，或有垂钓之乐而无口腹之福，因为人们担心污水残留的有害物质，鱼虾难以幸免，于是通令维港中的海产品已不宜食用。一方面是鱼虾不可食，另一方面，因维港污染问题严重，海水能见度下降，加之海面交通繁忙使得封闭海港困难，以往常见的泳装男女，竞相竞姿的泅渡活动渐趋式微。至今忆起，那些肌腱发达的“老运动员”们犹自惋叹不已。 3.似乎没有哪个住户能够对自家门口一天天恶化下去的海水景况无动于衷，人们在奔走呼号，媒体在激扬文字，政府在反躬自问。 “繁枝容易纷纷落，嫩蕊商量细细开”。非一日之寒的冰冻，须得慢慢来融解，但是必须行动。政府开始推行策略性污水收集及处理系统，又名“净化海港计划”及“海港污水处理计划”，并于1995年展开第一阶段的建设工程。好的计划然后行动，便是成功开始发酵。在这项计划下，政府改良了现有的初级处理厂；在深海挖通总长度达23.6公里的污水收集隧道，把九龙市区、青衣、葵涌、将军澳和港岛东北部的污水，引进新建成的污水处理厂处理；该计划下第一阶段的污水处理厂亦已在昂船洲建成。现时已处理的污水，可通过扩散式排水口排进维港以西的水域。海水固然有自净能力，但是污水的集中排放是自净的大敌，分而治之净之，这要有一个科学的估量。 4.追根溯源，香港策略性排放计划是于上个世纪80年代后期开始实施的，解决维多利亚港日益严重的污水问题肇其始。策略性污水排放计划第Ⅰ期的目的是将来自九龙市区及香港岛东北端的污水截流，利用地下排污隧道将污水输送到昂船洲的化学辅助初级厂集中处理，经处理后的污水由维多利亚港西面的海底竖井排水扩散器排放。昂船洲污水处理厂于1997年5月落成以来，每天处理300000立方米污水。只经过初级处理后便排入海港的污水量，已减少20%。第一阶段的污水处理系统在2001年下半年启用后，只经过初级处理便排放入海港的污水量，减少了70%至75%。市民站在维港两岸再闻不到异味，海水中溶氧量、大肠杆菌以及海水清晰度等多项卫生和环保部门关切的指数，均有不同程度的改善。 “参横斗转欲三更，苦雨终风也解晴”。一番科学治理，众人劳心劳力，维港中东部水质如今已大为改善，在维港绝迹了近30年的珊瑚群正渐渐发育成形，如颜色鲜艳的海葵、柳珊瑚已率先在海底摇曳生发，争妍斗艳。香港海洋保护组织指出，只要不把维港做“厕盆”，来日可期，这批珊瑚群便会伴随市民的美好期盼，一起盛开、成长。 香港海洋环境保护协会派出潜水人员在维港7个海域进行珊瑚普查工作，当中包括将军澳、北角、启德、中环皇后码头及昂船洲等。普查结果非常令人鼓舞，在这些海域均看到灿烂夺目的珊瑚簇，如在歌连臣角看到海胆、海葵及石头鱼；在昂船洲看到海马、柳珊瑚、软体珊瑚等；在将军澳看到星珊瑚、鱿鱼卵、狮子鱼；在启德看到海葵及珊瑚丛等。能否设想，不远之将来，内地和世界游客，香港游又多了一个海底观秀的项目，那就是我们香港市民和绿色环保人士共同爱护家园的可喜收获。 这些海洋生物过往只能在西贡和东坪洲的海岸公园看到，如今，在维港都可以看到，虽然规模并不算多，只要政府进一步落实改善维港的水质，这些海洋生物便会与市民一起成长。珊瑚都是刚刚生长出来，只有一岁左右，非常幼嫩，从长远看，还需多多护佑。 环保人士建议当局可以仿效早年在海岸公园进行的人工鱼礁，尝试在维港一至两个水域内安装人工鱼礁，以便在海底营造一个聚集鱼类及珊瑚群的地方，相信可以加速鱼类及珊瑚群的生长速度。 5.但针对“净化海港计划”，时至今日仍有质疑之声。当年供职于环保署的香港公开大学教授何建宗仍认为这条深海污水隧道“不是最优方案，只是基于当年港英政府一意孤行而为之”。早在1995年该工程施工之初，何建宗和另外62名香港学术界及科技界学者就联署一份长达6000字的意见书公开反对。 “昂船洲现在处理香港一半的污水，万一'死机'了怎么办？”何建宗说，深海排污工程缺乏弹性，由于排污管道又深又远，发生意外时处理起来很困难，“我们怎么可以把所有鸡蛋放在一个篮子里？”他和多名专家当时建议做分散型的污水处理厂：将军澳一个，观塘一个，北角一个，摩星岭一个。“全世界都没有一个污水处理厂如此大型，一口气处理140万吨废水！其实分散成几个20万至40万吨的污水处理厂，有如战场降敌，分而治之，既省钱又高效。” 渠务署回应当初不采取“分散设厂”，主要是因为市区难以找到政府满意而市民又无异议的场地。而“净化海港计划”一期工程自2001年底竣工投入运营以来，成效很明显，从未试过“死机”。昂船洲污水处理厂有两套“中央处理器”电脑系统，完全电脑化控制的排污流程并不惧怕“死机”；即使因停电等因素“彻底死机”，厂方也早已制定后备方案：在各个收集污水的隔晒厂进行初步处理后通过深海渠排放，排污原理与未用深海污水隧道时一样。 6.“利莫大于治，害莫大于乱”。头痛的问题层出不穷，23.6公里的深海隧道每天将140万吨近一半香港人排出的污水收集到昂船洲，经处理后在西面通过海底排放管排入维港，这直接导致荃湾至少4个泳滩关闭。原因是荃湾一带水域受到污染，经过“一级半”化学强化处理的污水集中排放，会令海水大肠杆菌严重超标。人泳其间，安危难保。 “环保界的同行都说，这是香港典型的先污染后治理例子。”专家至今坚持认为，净化海港计划是一个“反面教材”，完全是由于“洗湿了头没有办法不继续”。 而香港渠务署在已经进行的净化海港二期甲工程中加入污水消毒项目，主要针对超标排放的大肠杆菌。完成后的消毒设施，对昂船洲每天处理的140万吨污水全部进行消毒之后再排放，维港水质将得到显著改善，预计海港主要区域的细菌含量可减少90％。为早日改善维港西部的水质，政府计划在两年内提前完成兴建污水处理消毒设施，使得部分已关闭的荃湾区泳滩可早日重开。渠务署官员乐观地表示，等2014年二期所有工程投入使用时维港水质将得到更大改善，停止36年的“渡海泳”年度盛事极可能旌旗翻飞，重新举办。另外在“净化海港计划”第二期甲的基础上，政府将进一步采用更高级别的污水处理技术，即开展“净化海港计划”第二期乙，增设生物处理设施，从而提高除污率，以应对集水区内的人口增长。 7.“一溪烟柳万丝垂，无因系得兰舟住”。目前全港共划分为10个水质管制区，每区按该区水体的用途和性质订立具体的水质指标。蓝图所列，一一规范，处理废水的要求和排放的地点均视受纳水体的同化能力而定。这项能力受潮汐、珠江口水流和海洋水流的影响，也受个别地区具体环境需要的限制。比如在半封闭的海域，如吐露港，或者河流，水流更新缓，只能将少量的经过高级处理的污水排放进入这些水体。 大部分污水通过统一系统辖制，被送往香港各区污水处理厂进行处理。而像新界的个别村庄和港岛南区的一些偏远地方，则因为管网铺设成本太高，通过自家屋苑的化粪池和楼宇污水处理设备，进行基本的隔晒处理或一级处理。目前，约275座遍布全港的污水处理厂和泵房由渠务署负责，同时维修总长超过1600公里的污水渠网络，整个香港污水收集率达93%【约270万吨】。 治污环保，乃千秋之业，香港率先为天下范，个中甘苦，个中教训，可为内地各城市引为镜鉴。 1.“苞物众者，莫大于天地”。香港傍海而居，山陵起伏，可供发展的平地自然很少，城市乃如岩中大树，衔泥固水，滋润而生。自1841年开埠以来，政府多次进行填海工程，也是迫于无奈，放眼四顾，可图谋者，唯大海而无他。今日，香港很多繁华地段，当中包括德辅道以北的中环、湾仔、铜锣湾、尖沙咀东、前启德机场、港澳码头、红磡湾、观塘工业区和西九龙等，都是靠填海而取得土地发展。不少重要建筑物或地标，都坐落填海区，包括香港国际机场、国际金融中心，以及香港会议展览中心等等。20世纪20年代的皇后像广场以及最高法院【现今立法会所在地】，都是建于中环的填海地上，