Advertisement

'Promise broken' on sewage project

Reading Time:2 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
0

Legislators have accused the Government of failing to keep a promise not to seek further funding for the Strategic Sewage Disposal Scheme.

Yesterday, officials requested an extra $115 million. Some $487.6 million has already been approved for stage one of the project.

The new money is to replace a faulty mucking system and for additional ground strengthening and stabilisation for work done on poor ground. Two tunnels - from Tsing Yi to Stonecutters Island and from Kwai Chung to Tsing Yi - will be completed with the extra money.

The Government said the works would have to be abandoned if the funding was not available by early December.

Choy So-yuk, of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong, recalled that officials had promised several years ago not to seek more money.

'The Government asked for $1.7 billion from the provisional legislature for the sewage project and told us that it surely would not need to ask for more funding,' she said. 'Mr [Kim] Salkeld [Deputy Secretary of the Environment and Food Bureau] had promised me that the sewage tunnels will be ready in 1999 but now he says it will be 2001. Is it the Government's fault?'

Advertisement
Select Voice
Choose your listening speed
Get through articles 2-3x faster
1.1x
220 WPM
Slow
Normal
Fast
1.1x