Nullah decking improves environment (23/1/2008)

The department's decking works at Tai Hang Tung, Sham Shui Po, has greatly improved the environment there by eliminating the malodorous nuisance to the public, the Director of Drainage Services, Mr Wong Chee-keung, said today (January 23).  

     Officiating at the completion ceremony of the Lung Chu Street nullah decking works at Tai Hang Tung, Mr Wong said that illegal discharges upstream of the nullah, which had been an open channel for collecting stormwater, had polluted the water and caused malodorous problems in the environment nearby.    

     The department is embarking on a 10-year nullah decking programme to improve the environment.  The Lung Chu Street project is one of the 16 decking works carried out in phase one. The $4-million project included the replacement of a 95-metre long nullah with an underground box culvert. The work began in January 2006 and was completed last October.

     Phase one of the programme, completed in 2007, covered the decking of 480 metres of nullah at a cost of about $20 million. Phases two and three will be completed in 2010 and 2014 respectively.

     Mr Wong said the department's improvement projects, which had helped to enhance the environment, reflected the pledge by the Chief Executive in his 2007 Policy Address to develop Hong Kong into a quality metropolis and to respond to community aspirations to protect the environment.
 
     In carrying out the Lung Chu Street project, the department had made special efforts to preserve the trees in the vicinity, he said.  The area over the decked nullah now forms part of the adjacent playground, providing more open space for the people to enjoy their leisure.