EVENTS
Event Highlights
Dongjiang Water Guided Tour & Lunch Gathering - Plover Cove Reservoir
2025-11-14
To commemorate the 60th anniversary of Dongjiang water supply to Hong Kong in 2025, the Water Supplies Department (WSD) has launched a series of special guided tours, covering the distribution, storage, and treatment of Dongjiang water after its arrival in Hong Kong, enabling citizens to understand the historical background and significance of various water facilities. To deepen members' understanding of water resources and enhance water conservation awareness, the Maritime Silk Road Society (MSRS) organized a special guided tour of Plover Cove Reservoir Guided Tour on 14 November.
Led by an experienced tour guide assigned by WSD, participants embarked from the Tai Po Tau Raw Water Pumping Station and walked along the Tai Mei Tuk Family Walk while listening to the history and interesting stories of the reservoir. They learned that Plover Cove Reservoir, located in the Pat Sin Leng and Plover Cove Country Park, is the second largest reservoir in Hong Kong and first reservoir built in the sea over the world. The mega construction works of this reservoir was unprecedented. Engineers dammed the sea inlet, then pumped out the sea water and filled it with raw water. The construction works commenced in 1960 and completed in 1968, providing a capacity of 170 million cubic meters. Afterwards, the works on height enhancement of the main dam was undertaken and completed in 1973, enlarging the reservoir capacity to 230 million cubic meters. The main dam of Plover Cove Reservoir, which is approximately 2 kilometres long, is built of layers of sand and gravel.
The tour guide noted that the Tai Po Tau Raw Water Pumping Station has four phases which were commissioned in 1964, 1973, 1984 and 1994 respectively. The pumping station is located at the heartland of the whole raw water supply network and responsible to distribute raw water to a number of water treatment works and impounding reservoirs in the New Territories. Under the normal operation mode, Tai Po Tau Raw Water Pumping Station transfers the Dongjiang water from Muk Wu to Tai Po Water Treatment Works, Sha Tin Water Treatment Works and Plover Cove Reservoir. Under the reverse operation mode, the pumping station transfers raw water from Plover Cove Reservoir to Sheung Shui Water Treatment Works, Ngau Tam Mei Water Treatment Works, Au Tau Water Treatment Works, Yau Kom Tau Water Treatment Works and Tai Lam Chung Reservoir. The pumping station consists of four pumping rooms which facilitate flexible distribution of raw water with various operation modes in order to meet different demands of water supply.
A total of 15 participants attended this event. Prior to the tour, MSRS arranged a lunch gathering in the Tai Po town centre. Mr Wong Tam Yin, MSRS’ President of Board of Honorary Advisory Governors, also joined the luncheon and kick-off ceremony to demonstrate his support of the Society.
