The Tai Tam Reservoirs, also known as Tai Tam Reservoir Group, is a group of

reservoirs A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of water, interrup ...

located in the Tai Tam Country Park in the eastern part of

Hong Kong Island Hong Kong Island () is an island in the southern part of Hong Kong. The island, known originally and on road signs simply as "Hong Kong", had a population of 1,289,500 and a population density of , . It is the second largest island in Hong Kon ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

. The four reservoirs have a total storage capacity of 6.2 million cubic metres. They are managed by the

Water Supplies Department The Water Supplies Department (WSD; ) is the department under the Development Bureau of the Government of Hong Kong of the People's Republic of China providing a Water supply and sanitation in Hong Kong, reliable and adequate supply of wholeso ...

of the

Hong Kong Government The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government) is the Executive (government), executive authorities of Hong Kong. It was established on 1 July 1997, following the ...

. The reservoirs consist of: * Tai Tam Upper Reservoir (), * Tai Tam Byewash Reservoir (), * Tai Tam Intermediate Reservoir () and * Tai Tam Tuk Reservoir () . The upper and byewash reservoirs are jointly known as Tai Tam Reservoir ().

Geography

The reservoirs are surrounded by Mount Butler (), Jardine's Lookout, Violet Hill and Mount Parker, with an extraordinary environment of peace and quiet.

History

The planning of the reservoirs is known as the Tai Tam scheme, which was started early in 1872 and was shelved in 1874 because of economic depression. The scheme was continued later in 1882 and virtually completed in 1888. Yet again, the supply was proved insufficient and the building of the Tai Tam Tuk dam began in 1912.

Tai Tam Tuk Reservoir

As part of the Tai Tam scheme, the UK colonial government commenced the construction of Tai Tam Tuk Reservoir in 1912. The project was completed in 1917, cost 2.46 million Hong Kong dollars and had a 1.42-billion-gallon capacity upon completion. The dam, designed by Daniel Jaffe, was 60-feet tall and 800-feet wide. Twelve arches supported by half-round granite columns were also built to prop up the

Tai Tam Road Tai Tam Road in Hong Kong links the districts of Chai Wan and Stanley, Hong Kong, Stanley on Hong Kong Island. This road connects Chai Wan Road, the northern end of Shek O Road, Turtle Cove, Tai Tam and Stanley. The Tai Tam Reservoirs, Tai Ta ...

connecting

Stanley Stanley may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film * ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy * ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short * ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...

and Chai Wan. Governor Henry May officially announced the completion of the reservoir on 2 February 1918, and the reservoir continues to operate today.

Conservation

Heritage Trail

In September 2009, the Tai Tam Waterworks Heritage Trail was opened, covering the architectural landmarks of the reservoir system. Placards describe the features, giving insights into the work involved in the construction of what the source of most of Hong Kong Island's fresh water supply.

Declared Monuments

Twenty-two facilities surrounding Tai Tam Tuk reservoir were declared as monuments in 2009, including pumping stations, masonry bridges, the memorial stone, the value house and the dam itself. A list of the facilities declared Monument:

Transportation

A restricted road, Tai Tam Reservoir Road, links reservoirs from

Wong Nai Chung Gap Wong Nai Chung Gap () is a geographic gap in the middle of Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. The gap is between Mount Nicholson and Jardine's Lookout behind Wong Nai Chung (Happy Valley). Five roads meet at the gap: Wong Nai Chung Gap Road, ...

Tai Tam Tai Tam or ''Tytam'' is an area in Southern District, Hong Kong, Southern District on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. Tai Tam means a ''big pool'' in the Chinese language which illustrates a triangular bay, namely Tai Tam Bay between Stanley ...

References

External links

Water Supplies Department, Hong Kong
(in Chinese) {{Reservoirs of Hong Kong