Advanced Tech a Boon for Massive Land Reclamation
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
6 | CRITICALHKISSUES Monday, January 14, 2019 18th in the Data Journalism series. http://www.chinadailyasia.com/subjects/data/date_list.html HONG KONG EDITION | CHINA DAILY | 7 Six out of nine new towns were largely built on reclaimed land Consist of reclaimed land Tsuen Wan* Sha Tin Tuen Mun Fanling/Sheung Shui Yuen Long Tai Po Tseung Kwan O Tin Shui Wai Tung Chung Population 805,000 Population 691,000 Population 502,000 Population 261,000 Population 164,000 Population 278,000 Population 396,000 Population 290,000 Population 268,000 Total land 3,286(ha) Total land 3,591(ha) Total land 3,266(ha) Total land 667(ha) Total land 561(ha) Total land 3,006(ha) Total land 1,718(ha) Total land 430(ha) Total land 191(ha) No more new towns built since 2000s *Tsuen Wan New Town covers Tsuen Wan, Kwai 1960s Chung and Tsing Yi Island 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s Land reclamation the way to go for HKSAR General applications for public Advanced tech a boon for massive land reclamation Sha Tin Tseung Kwan O rental housing As of end March of the year Unit: ‘000 By LI BINGCUN in Hong Kong blocks), he added. Japan and South Korea, has also been applied in [email protected] Hong Kong International Airport — a poster child reclamation work to the east of Tung Chung. among the city’s reclamation projects — is a good Chung Kwok-fai, a renowned structural engineer Hong Kong engineering professionals reckoned example to the world. The 1,248-hectare airport and vice-president of the Hong Kong Institution of that with advanced technologies, the planned “Lan- erected on Chek Lap Kok artifi cial island is one of Engineers, told China Daily that the advanced recla- tau Tomorrow Vision” reclamation plan could be the world’s largest and most advanced. mation technologies and upgraded equipment will realized in a safe, eco-friendly and e cient way. Since it began commercial operations in 1998, help slash the time of creating new land. Lawmaker Lo Wai-kwok, who represents the engi- the airport has withstood various kinds of adverse A long-term land supply option, reclamation often neering sector, believes the constantly advancing weather, including the Super Typhoon Mangkhut, involves decades-long e orts. After preliminary stud- reclamation technologies support the plan’s feasibil- which caused havoc in the city in September last ies, other works in following stages, such as founda- 102 117 122 138 151 147 153 150 ity, and make Hong Kong more capable of handling year. tion reinforcement, silt fi lling and infrastructure challenges in future projects. Lo also said he’s confi dent that new reclamation construction, also could be time-consuming. Among Land reclamation the ‘right “Hong Kong has developed relatively mature skills technologies, which tend to be more eco-friendly, will them, waiting for the settlement of landfi lls alone in artifi cial island construction. Thus, I believe the minimize the environmental impact. may take nearly 10 years. island-building plans unveiled by the government To avoid contamination, the government has Various new approaches, such as adopting non- panacea’ for HK’s housing woes will be stable, durable and can withstand extreme adopted the deep cement mixing (DCM) technique, dredged reclamation methods like DCM, or accel- Sha Tin New Town (including Ma On Shan) Tseung Kwan O New Town was built mainly by weather conditions,” said Lo, former president of the a world-leading non-dredged reclamation method, erating the settlement process through a drainage was built on land mainly reclaimed from Tolo reclaiming Tseung Kwan O Bay and formation of By LUO WEITENG and tandem,” he said. Hong Kong Institution of Engineers. in the construction of Hong Kong International system, or using upgraded dredging vessels with Harbour. platforms on both sides of a long narrow inlet. 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Sep OSWALD CHAN in Hong Kong “As the reclamation project fi nally gets Geographical and maritime conditions, such as Airport’s third runway. larger capacity, could help shorten the time length 2018 o the ground, hopefully, private owners waves and tides, must be taken into account when This technique injects and mixes cement slurry for reclamation, Chung reckoned. Having earned itself the dubious honor of brownfi eld sites and agricultural land, doing reclamation in Hong Kong, he said. Even into unstable soft mud inside the pits on seabed, He said reclamation projects using DCM could of being crowned the world’s least a ord- who may worry about a cooling housing under extreme weather conditions, like typhoon or preventing mud from drifting and contaminating be completed several years earlier than traditional Population Population able place to live in, Hong Kong is desper- market in the foreseeable future, will storm surges, many projects could still safeguard waters, explained Lo. ways, as the technique could enhance the strength ately looking for more space to house its join the fray in developing their lands in people’s safety through precautions like heighten- The cutting-edge skill, which is popular in many and stability of mud in seas, thus saving a consider- 1970s 30,000 1970s <10,000 future population. a more proactive and open manner. This ing sea walls or placing dolosse (reinforced concrete developed countries, including the United States, able time waiting for settlement. 2016 691,000 2016 396,000 In a sign of her determination to plug will fundamentally increase the supply of the acute shortage of land supply and developable land in such a space-starved tackle the years-long housing crunch, city,” Cheung noted. An accumulated shortfall of Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet- With current stocks of 2.7 million resi- Let developers bear cost overruns, urges academic over 90,000 new housing units New town planning ngor introduced an ambitious reclama- dential units in Hong Kong, the proposed from the target stated in the tion project that was the cornerstone of Lantau reclamation, which will offer By LI BINGCUN in Hong Kong academic and structural engineer — however, doesn’t 3,591 hectares Total development area 1,718 hectares Total development area her second Policy Address in October an estimated 260,000 to 400,000 new Long Term Housing Strategy [email protected] think that Chow’s proposal could really solve the last year. homes, could boost long-term residential problem. 2013-17 771,100 Planned population 450,000 Planned population Dubbed “Lantau Tomorrow Vision”, unit supply by 10 to 15 percent, reckoned A prominent academic has proposed that the gov- He reckoned that the overrun risk, which may be the project, embracing gigantic man- Marcos Chan Kam-ping, head of Hong ernment transfer the risk of over-expenditure in the una ordable for many developers, could deter them made islands, estimated to cover 1,700 Kong, Macao and Taiwan Research at “Lantau Tomorrow Vision” project to property devel- from bidding for the project, especially when they’re 47,000 hectares to the east and north of Lantau CBRE — a global real-estate advisory opers so as to save up considerable fi nancial reserves. uncertain of future profi ts. 2013 Over 60% Over 70% Island and o the Tuen Mun coast, would fi rm. Chau Kwong-wing — chair professor of real estate Instead, Chung believes that the reclamation work 22,300 of Sha Tin’s population of Tseung Kwan O’s population live be home to 1.1 million people and Hong “Although the short to mid-term hous- at the University of Hong Kong — suggested that for “Lantau Tomorrow Vision” could cut much of the live in subsidized housing. on reclaimed land. Kong’s third housing and business center ing unit forecast brought by the proposed developers be made to bear the risk of over-spending expenses by taking advantage of the facilities and in the making. reclamation project may vary, its long- when contracting reclamation works. services of experts involved in the reclamation project. “In the long run, reclamation is Hong term e ect on enhancing residential land The builders could also pocket the profi ts generated Some advanced equipment and world-class engi- 95,000 80% Kong’s best answer and the most viable supply is clear,” Chan added. by the project and better manage it, thus avoiding pos- neers and planners — indispensable for many rec- 2014 of the land for housing in Tseung Kwan O comes solution to the acute land supply prob- Another factor that needs to be consid- sible extra expenditure generated by frequent changes lamation projects in the city — are from foreign 48,000 from reclamation, including major private lem, which has long been cited as the ered is that, after 20 to 30 years, existing to design and construction plans — a major cause of countries. housing projects like LOHAS Park and The culprit in Hong Kong’s housing conun- dominant housing estates like Mei Foo cost overruns. “By making use of their expertise in consecutive Cumulated target in Long Wings. drum,” said veteran surveyor Vincent Sun Chuen, Taikoo Shing, Whampoa In recent years, several large-scale infrastructure projects, we could save a lot of spending in getting Term Housing Strategy Cheung Kiu-cho. Garden, Laguna City, City One Shatin and projects in Hong Kong have encountered signifi cant them here and in travel,” said Chung. 141,000 5.5 While using land from unused New others will be made obsolete if there is no cost overruns. Among the cases, the government has Reclamation work for the “Lantau Tomorrow 2015 Actual completion of Territories land and brownfield sites further replenishment of new housing to shoulder part or all of the additional expenditure Vision” project, to the east of Tung Chung on Lantau 73,600 housing units as per 5.1 appears to be another feasible option, units, and the supply of residential fl ats fi nancial year according to di erent contracts signed with develop- Island, is expected to be completed by 2023.