Tymon Mellor: Implementation of the Plover Cove scheme was intended to be undertaken in a number of stages. The first stage captured available water resources in the New Territories and a new treatment plant at Shatin. The second stage would cover the construction of the main reservoir with subsequent stages capturing water resources within the Sai Kung peninsula. With the […]
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Tymon Mellor: When you look at aerial images of Hong Kong, there are always interesting features to note. The 1963 aerial image of Tolo Harbour reveals a number of grounded vessels – what is their story? On the 1st September, 1962 Typhoon Wanda, one of the most severe storms to hit the territory, made landfall. With maximum wind speeds of […]
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Tymon Mellor: The Lion Rock Tunnels are a key part of the Hong Kong road network, linking Kowloon to the New Territories, allowing goods and people to move across the territory. However, they were not originally conceived to serve vehicular traffic but as tunnels to carry large diameter water mains from the Shatin Treatment works to new service reservoirs in […]
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Tymon Mellor: In 1961 the Plover Cove scheme had developed from a simple water supply reservoir into an integrated water management scheme, linking local sources with the new Mainland water supply. The scheme would also go on to provide the first road tunnel through Beacon Hill as a by-product of the new supply pipeline. This one scheme was about to […]
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Tymon Mellor: As the end of 2020 draws to a close the water storage reservoir at Bishop Hill in Shek Kip Mei has made headlines for all the wrong reasons. The relevant Government departments have failed to recognise the importance of this structure in the development of the Kowloon water supply and the unique design of this historic facility. Kowloon […]
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Tymon Mellor: As you walk down the path from Lead Mine Pass to Tai Po, you will see along the route a number of concrete blocks that once formed the pipe supports from some long abandoned water supply project. The location of the pipeline is isolated and there is no obvious scheme associated with the works. However, this was part […]
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When Tymon Mellor sent this revised version of his original article on Lin Fa Shan Mine, first posted in November 2014, he suggested it was more a complete re-write. Tymon Mellor: The Lin Fa Shan mine is located in a remote area of the Tai Mo Shan Country Park, on a steep west facing slope of Lin Fa Shan, just […]
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Tymon Mellor: The construction of Tai Lam Chung Reservoir in the 1950s was at that time, the largest and most expensive construction project yet in Hong Kong, but when a half page article[i] about the construction of the 12km of tunnels was published in 1956 the photo they used focused on the ever-running supply of water at the site. The […]
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Tymon Mellor: At the end of the Second World War, the returning British forces found a Japanese radar station on the top of Tai Mo Shan. This discovery highlighted the technical strength of the Japanese military. The theory behind radar had been established in the 1920’s with developments in Britain, US, USSR and Japan. However, whereas the British and Americans military […]
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Tymon Mellor: With the completion of the Shing Mun Reservoir in 1937 and the new cross harbour pipe line in 1939, Hong Kong should have had an ample water supply, but low rainfall in 1938 and an influx of refugees from Southern China put a strain on supply. Things would only get worse. With war raging in Mainland China, the […]
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