Centre Island or A Chau () is a small uninhabited island of Hong Kong located in

Tolo Harbour Tolo Harbour (), or Tai Po Hoi (, historically ), is a sheltered harbour in northeast New Territories of Hong Kong. Geography Tide Cove, also known as Sha Tin Hoi, is to the south of the harbour, and Plover Cove, Three Fathoms Cove and T ...

, in the northeastern part of the territory. Administratively, it is part of

Tai Po District Tai Po District is one of the 18 districts of Hong Kong. The suburban district covers the areas of Tai Po New Town (including areas such as Tai Po Market, , Tai Po Industrial Estate, Tai Wo Estate), Tai Po Tau, Tai Po Kau, Hong Lok Yue ...

Geography

The island has an area of 0.035 km². Its highest point is at 26.8 m.Chau Hing Wah, "Tai Po: Pre-History", ''Tai Po Book'' p. 20
/ref> The island has a partially rugged coastline with sections with sandy beaches. The interior of the island is covered by trees.

History

A mid-

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

prehistoric site dating back to about 6,000 years ago has been identified on Centre Island during a survey conducted in 1997–1998. Prehistoric sites have been discovered on two other islands of Tolo Harbour, namely

Yuen Chau Tsai Yuen Chau Tsai was an island in Tolo Harbour, Hong Kong. It is now connected to land by a causeway after Land reclamation in Hong Kong, land reclamation. It is part of Tai Po New Town in the Tai Po District. The Tai Wong Yeh Temple and Isla ...

(3,000 years,

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

) and Yim Tin Tsai (4,000 years, late Neolithic).

Conservation

Centre Island was designated a

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

in 1982. The designation is based on the geological interest of the island. Centre Island is part of the

Ma Shi Chau Special Area Ma Shi Chau Special Area () is a Special Area of Hong Kong. It is located in Tai Po District and in Tolo Harbour, in the northeast of the New Territories. The Special Area comprises four islands in Tolo Harbour, namely Ma Shi Chau, Centre Isla ...

, together with three other islands in Tolo Harbour, namely

Ma Shi Chau Ma Shi Chau (, literally "Horse Dung Island") is an island of Hong Kong, under the administration of Tai Po District. It is located in Tolo Harbour in the northeast New Territories (near Sam Mun Tsai). It is connected with another island, Yim ...

, Yeung Chau and an unnamed island located about 100 m northeast of the shore of Yim Tin Tsai near Sam Mun Tsai New Village. The Special Area was designated in 1999.SPECIAL AREAS (DESIGNATION) (CONSOLIDATION) ORDER - CHAPTER 208D
/ref>

References

Tai Po District Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark Uninhabited islands of Hong Kong {{TaiPo-geo-stub