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The Chief Executive, Mr C Y Leung, and the Governor of Guangdong Province, Mr Zhu Xiaodan, today (May 28) attended the Commemoration Ceremony of the 50th Anniversary of Dongjiang Water Supply to Hong Kong together with relevant officials of the Guangdong and Hong Kong Governments, both to celebrate the anniversary and to witness the signing an agreement for the supply of Dongjiang water to Hong Kong for the period from 2015 to 2017.
To resolve Hong Kong's long-term water supply problem, the Guangdong and Hong Kong Governments agreed to implement the Dongjiang-Shenzhen Water Supply Scheme 50 years ago. The Scheme involved pumping water upstream more than 80 kilometres from Dongjiang, which is to the north of Hong Kong, via the natural channel of the Shima River to the Muk Wu Pumping Station on the Hong Kong boundary. The works took about a year to complete and the first delivery of Dongjiang water arrived in Hong Kong on March 1, 1965, thus resolving the problem of Hong Kong's inadequate water resources. Since then, Dongjiang water has supplied 70 to 80 per cent of Hong Kong's total fresh water requirements annually.
In addition to the commemoration ceremony held by the two Governments, the Water Supplies Department (WSD) will hold a roving exhibition in various districts of Hong Kong between June and September to introduce the history and development of the Dongjiang water supply. It will provide an opportunity for the older generations to look back nostalgically on the history of the Dongjiang water supply, and for the younger generations to appreciate the efforts of their predecessors in ensuring a reliable water supply as well as the importance of water resources development and protection.
At the ceremony, the Secretary for Development, Mr Paul Chan, and the Director-General of the Department of Water Resources, Guangdong Province, Mr Lin Xudian, also signed the Dongjiang Water Supply Agreement for the period between 2015 and 2017 on behalf of Hong Kong and Guangdong Province.
Other guests at today's ceremony included the Minister of Water Resources of the People's Republic of China, Mr Chen Lei; the Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Mr Zhang Xiaoming; the Vice-Governor of Guangdong Province, Mr Deng Haiguang; the Secretary-General of the Guangdong Provincial Government, Mr Li Feng; the Financial Secretary, Mr John C Tsang; the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Raymond Tam; the Secretary for the Environment, Mr Wong Kam-sing, and the Permanent Secretary for Development (Works), Mr Hon Chi-keung.
For details about the roving exhibition on the 50th anniversary of the Dongjiang water supply to Hong Kong, please visit the WSD's website at www.wsd.gov.hk.
Ends/Thursday, May 28, 2015
Issued at HKT 17:48
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