Six things every Hongkonger should know about water filters as more housing estates found to have high levels of lead
As contractors are set to install short term measures in affected estates, The Post asks all you need to know about water filters
Three more public housing estates have been identified as having excessive lead levels in their tap water, with more than 4,500 new families likely to be affected, raising the number of affected estates to seven.
Of the four main contractors responsible for plumbing across these estates, China State Construction Engineering (HK) and Shui On Building Contractors have agreed with the Housing Authority to buy and install an NSF 53 certified water filter for each household as a short-term measure to put residents’ minds at ease.
These are contractors for Kai Ching Estate and Hung Hom Estate, and Kwai Luen Estate Phase 2, respectively.
Yau Lee Construction Company and Paul Y Engineering Group - the main contractors for Lower Ngau Tau Kok Estate Phase 1 and Shek Kip Mei Estate Phase 2, and Wing Cheong Estate and Tung Wui Estate respectively - are still in discussion with the government about installing water filters and have yet to reach an agreement.
But what does “NSF 53 certified” mean? The South China Morning Post asked Rick Andrew, water quality expert and business development director for NSF International’s global water division, for more information.
1. What is NSF?