Latest news with #Fanling
South China Morning Post
3 days ago
- General
- South China Morning Post
Bitumen-lined water pipe in Hong Kong to be replaced by early July: minister
The water pipe believed to have introduced black particles of bitumen into the freshwater supply at two public housing estates last month will be replaced by early July, the development minister has pledged. Advertisement Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn Hon-ho also said on Wednesday that they had completed more than 1,500 requests from residents at Queens Hill Estate and Shan Lai Court in Fanling to flush their water meters within one to two days, and most people reported improvements in water quality and did not require follow-up. The 400-metre (1,312-foot) section of the pipe lined with bitumen, located outside the estates and connected to their freshwater pipes, would be permanently decommissioned from early July and replaced by a temporary pipe. She said the Water Supplies Department last week 'adopted an unconventional mindset' and explored the use of exposed temporary pipe to replace the pipe in question, and formulated traffic arrangements near the construction site with various departments. 'Even though the relevant locations are busy with traffic and the construction site has limited space, the Water Supplies Department will immediately commence the construction after concerted efforts,' she told the Legislative Council. Advertisement 'The department will conduct the construction around the clock. It is expected that the temporary pipe will be completed by early July, meaning that the bitumen-lined pipe will be decommissioned permanently from early July.'
South China Morning Post
4 days ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong's shelved plan for 8,300 public flats to face 90% higher cost per home
Hong Kong housing authorities have revealed that the now-suspended plan to build 8,300 public flats in a northern town will face higher costs of up to 90 per cent for each home and require an extra 10 months to complete if it were to press ahead. The Housing Bureau said on Monday that the postponement was prompted by its ground investigation that the site had 'complex geology with a deep bedrock layer'. 'The authority stresses that it has not abandoned the project,' the bureau said. It added that geological issues were expected to bring a longer-than-normal construction period and significant costs for foundation works. The bedrock level had been found at depths exceeding 80 metres (262 feet) below ground in general, with the deepest recorded at 120 metres. If the site were to be used for public housing construction, deep foundation work would be involved, it said. The suspension of the development, including its site formation and infrastructure works, in Fanling was revealed in a document the Housing Department and the Civil Engineering and Development Department submitted to the North District Council last week for a meeting on Monday. According to the paper, the Fanling Area 17 site, spanning about 5.47 hectares (13.5 acres) of both government and private land, is located to the east of Ling Shan Road and Jockey Club Road, south of Ma Sik Road and west of Fan Leng Lau Road. It currently houses the Fan Garden Police Driving and Traffic Training Centre.
South China Morning Post
5 days ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong's shelved plan for 8,300 public flats to face 90% higher cost per home
Hong Kong housing authorities have revealed that the now-suspended plan to build 8,300 public flats in a northern town will face higher costs of up to 90 per cent for each home and require an extra 10 months to complete if it were to press ahead. The Housing Bureau said on Monday that the postponement was prompted by its ground investigation that the site had 'complex geology with a deep bedrock layer'. 'The authority stresses that it has not abandoned the project,' the bureau said. It added that geological issues were expected to bring a longer-than-normal construction period and significant costs for foundation works. The bedrock level had been found at depths exceeding 80 metres (262 feet) below ground in general, with the deepest recorded at 120 metres. If the site were to be used for public housing construction, deep foundation work would be involved, it said. The suspension of the development, including its site formation and infrastructure works, in Fanling was revealed in a document the Housing Department and the Civil Engineering and Development Department submitted to the North District Council last week for a meeting on Monday. According to the paper, the Fanling Area 17 site, spanning about 5.47 hectares (13.5 acres) of both government and private land, is located to the east of Ling Shan Road and Jockey Club Road, south of Ma Sik Road and west of Fan Leng Lau Road. It currently houses the Fan Garden Police Driving and Traffic Training Centre.
South China Morning Post
6 days ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong puts construction of 8,300 homes on hold in Fanling
Hong Kong's housing authorities have suspended a key public residential development in a northern town consisting of 8,300 homes due to the suspected high costs of building the flats on deep rock strata, according to a lawmaker. The suspension of the development, including its site formation and infrastructure works, in Fanling came to light on Sunday in a document the Housing Department and the Civil Engineering and Development Department submitted to the North District Council, a day before a meeting to discuss the matter on Monday. The Fanling Area 17 site, spanning about 5.47 hectares (13.5 acres) of both government and private land, is located to the east of Ling Shan Road and Jockey Club Road, south of Ma Sik Road and west of Fan Leng Lau Road. It currently houses the Fan Garden Police Driving and Traffic Training Centre. The document did not mention the exact reasons of the suspension but said: 'To align with the government's principle of maintaining sustainable public finances, the Housing Bureau has adjusted the development plan for the Fanling Area 17 public housing project after reviewing the cost-effectiveness of public housing initiatives over the next ten years.' Authorities said they had 'more flexibility to prioritise sites that are more suitable and cost-effective for construction' with sufficient land supply for public housing in the next decade. Lawmaker Edward Lau Kwok-fan, who is a member of the Legislative Council's housing panel, said the government's decision stemmed from geotechnical studies revealing unusually deep rock strata beneath the site, leading to significantly higher foundation costs.
South China Morning Post
09-06-2025
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
How hard can it be to say sorry over Fanling water scare?
To celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Dongjiang water supply to Hong Kong, the government launched a series of events reminding residents to be grateful for the water they drink. Earlier in the year, Director of Water Supplies Roger Wong Yan-lok said he hoped the public would more deeply understand the importance of the water supply and appreciate the country's immense support. Yes, water is life. It is not to be taken for granted. That's why both Wong and Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn Hon-ho have been in the spotlight in the past week, after mysterious particles were found in the freshwater supply of two housing estates in Fanling. The mystery was finally solved when the government released laboratory results last Thursday. The particles turned out to be bitumen , a black, sticky by-product of crude oil, not the kind of substance you would want in your glass of water. The substance has been banned from the lining of pipes since 2005. Yet it somehow turned up in freshwater pipes supplying the two estates that were completed between 2021 and 2022. The outcry has been absolutely understandable. Residents should be applauded for not getting into a widespread panic. Many were buying bottled water to drink and cook with, despite government assurances that the samples collected 'consistently complied with freshwater safety standards'. Even after the results were released, Drinking Water Safety Advisory Committee chairman Chan Hon-fai said the water was safe, but advised residents against consuming the particles. There are several reasons for the public outcry. First, it took the government a week to determine what the substance was, while a test commissioned by local media and conducted by the Education University only took half a day to find that it was bitumen. When the media asked why it had taken the government so long, Wong said the Water Supplies Department had collected 126 samples, which meant there was '10 times more [testing] work' than usual. One could almost hear the angry game show buzzer that goes off for a wrong answer. Residents' safety, not the department's workload, should clearly have been the first priority here.
