DSD invites public to participate in the diversified activities and collect public views through different channels. DSD regularly organises various forms of public engagement activities, including community outreach, technical visits and workshops. DSD listens carefully to the views of the community and balances the interests of all parties with modesty. At the same time, DSD is committed to public promotion to enhance public participation and support of DSD’s work. DSD believes inviting the public to participate in the engagement activities can enhance the transparency of DSD, also to inspire innovative ideas and creativity which will be of great benefit to the sustainable development of DSD in the future.

Kai Tak River Improvement Works

Prior to project commencement, DSD was in partnership with the Civil Engineering and Development Department and Planning Department to launch “Building Our Kai Tak River”, a two-stage public engagement programme. Since the commencement of the project in 2011, we have maintained close communication with various stakeholders and provided project information to the stakeholders and the public, so as to address their concerns and minimise the impacts of the project on residents as far as possible.

Community Activities and Publicity Efforts

To enhance the public’s understanding of the project, DSD held a series of outreach school talks at secondary schools near Kai Tak River in November 2018. During the talks, DSD staff introduced our flood prevention works and the challenges we faced when carrying out the Kai Tak River improvement works.

Apart from regular progress reporting in Working Group on Government and Public Utilities Works Projects of Wong Tai Sin District Council, we arranged a visit to the Kai Tak River Improvement Works for the members of Wong Tai Sin District Council to brief them on the temporary traffic arrangement implemented on site during the road reinstatement works.

Site Visits

In the past year, several site visits to Kai Tak River were arranged for groups of various organisations, including members of the Shenzhen Water Resources Bureau, members of Institution of Civil Engineers (Hong Kong Association, Graduates and Students Division) and delegates from the South Australia Government, in order to give them an understanding of the project’s objectives, challenges and outcomes.

Revitalisation of Tsui Ping River

The Revitalisation of Tsui Ping River aims to transform the nullah along Tsui Ping Road and King Yip Street into a river through a revitalisation concept that comprises waterscape, landscaping and ecological enhancement. The goal is to inject vibrancy and create habitats while strengthening the flood protection capability of Tsui Ping River. It will become a new and vibrant riverine amenity for the community.

DSD organised the Stage 2 Public Engagement in mid-2018 to introduce the updated design of the project as well as to collect further views from the public and stakeholders. We also consulted the Kwun Tong District Council and the Harbourfront Commission. Other initiatives were also rolled out to provide more project details for the public and to seek their comments, such as revamping the project website, arranging roving exhibitions and handing out project pamphlets. Two community workshops and a focus group meeting were held to provide platforms for direct communication and exchange of views with the general public, green groups, professional bodies and academia. The project has gained general support from the public.

Shek Wu Hui Effluent Polishing Plant

To tie in with the long-term development of the North District, DSD will reconstruct the existing Shek Wu Hui STW, to increase its sewage treatment capacity and to upgrade the sewage treatment level to a tertiary standard, for optimising Shek Wu Hui Effluent Polishing Plant.

In 2018-2019, DSD engaged a Hong Kong social innovation consultant, “Good Lab”, and jointly implemented a social innovative programme, namely “Community Design for Sustainable Development @ Shek Wu Hui Effluent Polishing Plant and Peripheral Areas”.

With the aim of “people-oriented”, DSD and the project team, held hands with the district members, green groups, representatives from the educational and other professional parties, collectively designed the public course and visitors’ areas inside Shek Wu Hui Effluent Polishing Plant. We also explored, with the stakeholders, the concept of connecting these areas to the community, in a breakthrough “design thinking” approach. In addition, we even infused educational elements of sustainable development and district history and culture.

With a view to communicate with the stakeholders in multi-faceted platforms, we held a series of interactive events, including interviews, street booths and public workshops throughout the process, so as to understand the users’ wishes towards Shek Wu Hui Effluent Polishing Plant, and jointly developed the concept of “user-oriented” co-use design from the future users’ point of view.

With the innovative way of co-design with the community, our wish is to make Shek Wu Hui Effluent Polishing Plant a public facility which is more beneficial to the public, and at the same time connects the community, such that the quality of living of the public can be improved and to enhance a more inclusive community.

Harbour Area Treatment Scheme Stage 2A

We organised various public engagement events throughout 2018-19 to promote the Harbour Area Treatment Scheme (HATS) Stage 2A Project to the public. Our key public engagement activities include:

• Distribution of newsletters to neighbourhood stakeholders;
• Arrangement of visits to Stonecutters Island STW for various groups and organisations introducing the project and the daily operation of the STW, including engineering and technology professional institutions, secondary school or university students, Construction Industry Council and the Environmental Protection Department, mainland officials and others;
• Organised the ceremony for celebrating DSD 30th Anniversary Cum Completion of HATS’ Main System Enhancement Works; and
• Media Interviews.


On 22 November 2018, Mainland government officers visited Stonecutters Island Sewage Treatment Works and the engineering design concept were introduced



On 22 March 2019, the Celebration Ceremony for DSD 30th Anniversary Cum Completion of Harbour Area Treatment Scheme Main System Enhancement works was held at the Stonecutters Island Sewage Treatment Works



DSD participated in the “Life Buddies” Scheme launched by the Commission on Poverty. Secondary school students were invited to visit Stonecutters Island Sewage Treatment Works on 6 July 2018 to understand the aims and benefits of HATS



On 28 March 2019, DSD Annual Media Briefing invited media to visit Stonecutters Island Sewage Treatment Works and the project of Harbour Area Treatment Scheme Stage 2A

During the year, DSD hosted and participated in various community activities and exhibitions, including:

Science in the Public Service

As in previous years, DSD took part in the annual “Science in the Public Service” event to introduce the general public about the scientific work and application of technology by the government bureaux and departments and other related organisations on the public services. The 2018 event was held with the theme of “Science for Smart City”.

On 15 September 2018 at the Forum held in the Hong Kong Science Museum, Mr. WONG Ho-yeung, DSD Senior Engineer and Mr. TAM Ying-fan, DSD Engineer, joined with Mr. WOO Wang-chun, Scientific Officer of the Hong Kong Observatory, to introduce the application of Short-range Warning of Intense Rainstorms in Localised Systems (SWIRLS) Nowcasting System for the Optimisation of the Control Philosophy of Shuen Wan Drainage System and Kai Tak River Improvement Works to the public.

InnoCarnival 2018

From 3 to 11 November 2018, DSD joined the InnoCarnival held at the Hong Kong Science Park. With the aid of videos, display panels, physical model, VR technology and interactive games, visitors learned about our works on river revitalisation, such as Improvement Works of Kai Tak River and Revitalisation of Tsui Ping River. They also were also invited to learn more about the innovations that DSD has adopted in our projects, as well as our works on flood prevention and sewage treatment.

Hong Kong Biodiversity Festival 2018

To promote the rich biodiversity of Hong Kong, guided tours were arranged between November and December 2018 to support “Hong Kong Biodiversity Festival (HKBF) 2018” organised by AFCD.

Guided Tour and Nature Sketching Workshop at Lam Tsuen River

On 10 November 2018 and 11 November 2018, DSD took part in the guided tour to Upper and Lower Lam Tsuen River as part of the activities in the HKBF organised by AFCD. The guided tour highlights the multiple dimensions of the Lam Tsuen River such as ecological, social, cultural and environmental dimensions, in order to enhance participants’ knowledge in our green river channels. Mr. WONG Kam Sing, the Secretary for the Environment, also participated in the first day of the guided tour.

Besides the guided tour, DSD also took part in a nature sketching workshop at Lower Lam Tsuen River, near the location of the site trial of ecologically enhancement works, on 23 December 2018. In this event, participants not only learned about the river ecology and enhancement works, but also the nature sketching techniques from a nature artist.

Guided Tour at Kowloon City No. 1 & 2 Sewage Pumping Stations

On 24 and 25 November 2018, DSD, joined with AFCD and a Non-Government Organisation, and organised an event titled, “Citizen Science－Urban Biodiversity”, and toured more than 100 citizens to the Kowloon City No. 1 & 2 Sewage Pumping Stations (SPS). Kowloon City No. 1 & 2 SPS has evoked the design concept of creating an urban oasis, by integrating green infrastructure elements, such as pervious grass pavements, vertical greening, roof gardens and rain gardens to maximise the green coverage, enriching the urban biodiversity. In addition to learning about green features, participants also explored the urban biodiversity of the SPS.

Yuen Long Bypass Floodway Eco Tour

On 8 and 15 December 2018, DSD and AFCD led about 40 participants to visit the San Tin Stormwater Pumping Station and Yun Long Bypass Floodway (YLBF). In addition to introducing how the village flood protection scheme and YLBF reduce the flooding risk, representatives of DSD and AFCD also demonstrated the environmental friendly features incorporated into our flood control projects.

DSD Open Day 2019

DSD held an Open Day at the Sha Tin STW on 19 and 20 January 2019 under the theme of “30 Years of Groundwork, Embracing a New Age”. The Open Day aimed to present to the public DSD’s development throughout the years, as well as our works and achievements in flood prevention and sewage treatment through various activities including guided tours and thematic exhibitions.

Along with the theme for the year, DSD introduced our “4Rs” on the Open Day. The first “R” stands for reviewing the achievements in flood prevention and sewage treatment of DSD over the last 30 years. The other three “Rs” represent the iconic future projects of the department, namely River Revitalisation, Rehabilitation and Relocation of Sha Tin Sewage Treatment Works to Caverns.

Prize presentation ceremony for the Manhole Cover Design Competition was also held during the Open Day. Themed with the “4Rs”, the competition received an overwhelming response with more than 1,400 design entries. All entries were displayed to the public on the Open Day.

The Hong Kong Flower Show 2019

From 15 to 24 March 2019, we took part in the Hong Kong Flower Show 2019 held at Victoria Park and our exhibit was awarded the Gold Award for Design Excellence (Landscape Display). The landscape design came from inspirations of Hong Kong’s interesting rock formations and natural landforms, reminding visitors of STWs to be relocated into caverns. Making use of the natural formations of caverns and rocks and by means of imagery, an outdoor terraced garden and a cavern corridor have been transformed into an exhibition gallery with a sense of modernity. Our theme – When Dreams Blossom – is accentuated by various elements of the starlit sky, the moon and stargazing. To tie in with the 30th anniversary of DSD, the cavern corridor with a sculpture aura serves as a time tunnel to glimpse the past, review the present and reach into the future.