Author(s): Antony N. F. Wan; Wilson C. K. Lam; Carmen K. M. Cheuk; Samson H. Y. Lai

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Keywords: Sustainable development; Climate change; Water tunnel; Flood prevention; Water conservation

Abstract: Most of the existing drainage systems in the developed districts in West Kowloon of Hong Kong were built more than 40 years ago. Owing to the rapid developments and changes in land use over the years, the capacities of these drainage systems do not meet the latest flood protection standards. To relieve the flooding risk in urban area, Drainage Services Department (DSD) commenced the construction of Inter-reservoirs Transfer Scheme (IRTS) in February 2019 and completed in October 2022. The IRTS, with an intake structure at the Kowloon Byewash Reservoir (KBR) and an outfall structure at the Lower Shing Mun Reservoir (LSMR), is designed to transfer part of the collected surface runoff from KBR to LSMR, thereby freeing up storage capacity in KBR to receive further surface runoff from the catchment and avoid overflowing into the urban area downstream and causing flooding. After commissioning of the IRTS in October 2022, the risk of overflow at KBR during rainstorms to the downstream drainage system in the urban area has been considerably reduced and the flood protection standard in the West Kowloon areas has been improved to withstand more severe rainstorms. This paper presents the design considerations of the IRTS and discusses its success and benefits after commissioning. As the first project of its kind in Hong Kong to serve dual purposes of flood management and water management, the IRTS strengthens the city's flood resilience against climate change challenges by adopting water sustainable system designs.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3850/978-90-833476-1-5_iahr40wc-p0506-cd

Year: 2023