Liu Wen Ting 10406700Liu Wen Ting 10406700Lo Wai YeeLo Wai Yee 10406921 10406921

Should the HK Government continue to import water from Mainland China?

Background

Source: Water Supplies Department

Background

For the year ended 31 March 2010, water consumption increased by 1.6% to 618 million cubic metres.

Source: Water Supplies Department

Background

The first Dongjiang Water Supply Agreement was signed in 1960 to purchase 22.7 million cubic meters of raw water each year.

The current Dongjiang Water Supply Agreement was signed on 11 December 2008.

The Dongjiang Water Supply Agreement guarantees Hong Kong access to up to 1 100 million cubic metres of water annually, that will be adequate to meet Hong Kong’s need beyond 2030.

The current cost regime for the Dongjiang water is fixed at $2,959 million for 2009, $3,146 million for 2010 and $3,344 million for 2011.

Major concerns

Quality and QuantityQuality and QuantityOnce-in-a-century severe drought:

• affected the south-western part of the Mainland;

• number of drought victims has exceeded 60 million. • There have been comments that

although the drought has not created immediate impact on the water source of the rivers in the Gu

angdong region, it has reflected the increasingly pronounced impact of climate change on human lives, which may exert pressure on local water resources in the long-term.

Source: Civic Exchange Organisation, http://www.civic-exchange.org/wp/

The Dongjiang River, one of the Pearl River’s major tributaries, is located in the eastern part of Guangdong Province.

Measures implemented along the Dongjiang include building sewage treatment plants, removing polluting factories, commissioning a bionitrification plant at

the Shenzhen Reservoir and diverting polluted water from the Shima River away from the Dongjiang.

Hong Kong’s Advisory Committee on Quality Water Supplies (ACQWS) visit various operational aspects of the water transfer chain on a regular basis.

Major concerns

Major concerns

Source: on.cc

Major concerns

Financial aspectFinancial aspect

Source: Water Supplies Department

Major concerns

Source: Water Supplies Department

Major concerns

The water charges have not been changed since February 1995.

Source: Water Supplies Department

Policy Address 2011-12

Dongjiang Water Supply135.     … negotiating a new agreement on the supply of Dongjiang water to Hong Kong with the Guangdong authorities… to ensure a continuous, reliable and flexible supply of Dongjiang water to Hong Kong up to 2014.

Seawater Desalination136.     … strive to explore other sources of water supply to meet our own needs.  … kept abreast of the latest developments in desalination technology and prepared for the related planning and studies … other water sources can be tapped in good time in case of water shortage…conducting a detailed study and field surveys to assess the feasibility and cost-effectiveness of building a medium-sized desalination plant.  A site has been reserved in Tseung Kwan O.

Source: 2011-12 Policy Address, http://www.policyaddress.gov.hk/11-12/eng/p135.html

Alternatives

Source: Water Supplies Department

AlternativesCapacity of Impounding Reservoirs in Hong Kong

Name of Impounding ReservoirsCapacity(1)

Million Cubic Metre

Aberdeen Lower Reservoir 0.486

Aberdeen Upper Reservoir 0.773

Pok Fu Lam Reservoir 0.233

Shek Pik Reservoir 24.461

Tai Tam Byewash Reservoir 0.080

Tai Tam Intermediate Reservoir 0.686

Tai Tam Tuk Reservoir 6.047

Tai Tam Upper Reservoir 1.490

High Island Reservoir 281.124

Kowloon Byewash Reservoir 0.800

Kowloon Reception Reservoir 0.121

Kowloon Reservoir 1.578

Lower Shing Mun Reservoir 4.299

Plover Cove Reservoir 229.729

Shek Lei Pui Reservoir 0.374

Shing Mun Reservoir 13.279

Tai Lam Chung Reservoir 20.490

Total capacity : 586.050

Alternatives

About 20%-30% of our water supply is surface water collected from local water gathering grounds

Alternatives

IsraelIsraelLarge scale projects to direct water from rivers and reservoirs in the north, make optimal use of groundwater, and reclaim flood overflow and sewage have been undertaken. Israel relies on unconventional water resources, including reclaimed water and desalination. Groundwater recharge from flood water is done by collecting runoff from winter rains in a drainage basin and directing it into recharge ponds. The groundwater is then pumped back up during summer through wells around the recharge ponds.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_supply_and_sanitation_in_Israel

Alternatives

Watershed managementWatershed management

Controlling erosion and runoff

Alternatives

Water GovernanceWater Governance

The immediate outcome of failing to achieve 'participation as citizenship', 'participation as payment' or effective hybrid spaces for water governance is that access to drinking water is neither sustainable nor equitable. However, there is currently insufficient data on overall pump downtime, the direct impacts (for example, drinking water of poorer quality, travelling further to another source, using lower quantities of water) and the indirect effects (for example, health problems, less time for pursuing livelihood activities or education).

Conclusion

Hong Kong should consider all the alternatives, in order to include a variety of sources. Also, the Government should be careful in water management.

Q & A Session