Water pollution

Improvements Made 
The EPD has an extensive programme for cleaning up Hong Kong's waters which has had good results. The number of beaches meeting the Water Quality Objective for bathing water increased to 34 in 2007, compared with 26 in 1997. The number of river monitoring stations with bad or very bad water quality dropped, from 52 per cent in 1988, to less than 15 per cent in recent years.

Toxic metal discharges have been reduced from 7,000 kilogrammes per day in 1993 to 2,000 kilogrammes per day in 2000. In Victoria Harbour, the first stage of the Harbour Area Treatment Scheme (HATS) to collect and to treat the sewage generated around the harbour was completed at the end of 2001. Now, 75 per cent of sewage around the Victoria Harbour receives chemical treatment. As a result, the dissolved oxygen in the harbour waters has increased by about 10% and the levels of key pollutants in the harbour area waters have generally decreased. 

CONTROLLING WATER POLLUTION
Water quality improves only when we stop dumping untreated or inadequately treated sewage into the sea and the local rivers, streams and bays. The government has a three-pronged approach for dealing with the problem: controlling pollution at source, providing sewers, and collecting and treating sewage.

Controlling At Source
The EPD controls waste water discharges through the Water Pollution Control Ordinance. Operators are required to ensure their discharges meet standards specified by the EPD, and these specifications are contained in licences allowing them to discharge their waste water into receiving water bodies. The EPD regularly inspects operators, responds to complaints and will prosecute offenders.

Providing Sewers 
All sewage should be discharged into sewers, not stormwater drains which are only meant to carry rainwater into the sea. The EPD is trying to extend the public sewer networks in the NT and new development areas. The department prepares sewerage masterplans and the works are carried out by the Drainage Services Department. The plans are revised to take into account a projected population increase of about two million by 2016

Collecting and Treating Sewage 
The Harbour Area Treatment Scheme (HATS) is a strategy for collecting and treating sewage from both sides of Victoria Harbour. Stage 1 of HATS, which intercepts sewage from Kowloon and part of Hong Kong Island and delivers it to Stonecutters Island Sewage Treatment Works for chemical treatment, was brought into operation in late 2001. Following studies, trials and a public consultation exercise, the Government developed a two-phase, HK$19 billion, programme (Stage 2A and 2B) which will provide additional facilities to convey all sewage from the northern and south-western areas of Hong Kong Island to Stonecutters Island Sewage Treatment Works for chemical treatment and disinfection in Stage 2A, and in Stage 2B, biological treatment.

Elsewhere, a collection and treatment system in Tolo Harbour has resulted in a drop in red tides from 43 in 1988 to less than 20 in recent years.

What You Can Do
Individual operators, such as restaurants and factories, can help to make a difference by ensuring they follow anti-pollution laws. Please refer to Guidelines & References for a full account of compliance guides and good practices.

Residents should co-operate with efforts to connect their buildings to sewers. They can also try to reduce their consumption of water, thereby reducing the amount of sewage that needs treatment. For more advice on reducing water pollution, please refer to Tips to Save the Earth.