Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark
| Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark | |||
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| Location: | Hong Kong , People's Republic of China | ||
| Specialty: | hexagonal volcanic stone pillars | ||
| Next city: | Hong Kong | ||
| Surface: | 150 km² | ||
| Founding: | 2009 | ||
| Visitors: | 1.5 million (2016) | ||
| Address: |
geopark.gov.hk Administration: Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (Geopark Division) 6 / F, Cheung Sha Wan Government Offices 303 Cheung Sha Wan Road Kowloon , Hong Kong |
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The Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark ( Chinese 香港 聯合國教科文組織 世界 地質 公園 ), or Hong Kong Geopark (HKGP) ( 香港 地質 公園 ) for short, is a geopark opened in Hong Kong in November 2009 .
location
The Geopark is located in the east of Hong Kong, more precisely in the eastern and northeastern New Territories in the South China Sea . On an area of 150 km², several areas have been combined to form the Geopark, which can be roughly divided into the Sai Kung Volcanic Rock Region in the south and the Northeast New Territories Sedimentary Rock Region in the north. These two regions in turn consist of four country parks each . The geopark extends north-south from the Kat O ( 吉 澳 ) and Ap Chau ( 鴨 洲 ) islands to the Ninepin ( N 群島 ) islands . To the northeast, the park is bounded by Tung Ping Chau ( 東 平洲 ).
history
The Geopark was opened as the Hong Kong National Geopark on November 3, 2009 by the then Hong Kong Prime Minister Donald Tsang and was added to the Global Geoparks Network in September 2011 . Since the end of 2015 the park has been operating under its current name Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark.
In 2018, typhoon Mangkhut caused widespread destruction . Many streets and paths in the Geopark were no longer usable and more than 80% of the display cases were damaged. With the help of volunteers, the damage was gradually repaired, but some areas cannot yet be visited again.
Individual areas
Northeast New Territories Sedimentary Rock Region
To the north of the geopark is the Northeast New Territories Sedimentary Rock Region. This includes the following geological sights:
Ap Chau Island has an area of 0.04 km², making it the smallest inhabited island in Hong Kong. It consists essentially of breccias , which have a rust-like color due to oxidized iron in the rock. These rocks can only be found in the Ap Chau and Kat O areas in Hong Kong. In the north of the island there is a surf gate called Duck's Eye : the surf eroded the rock over the course of 8000 years and an arch about 10 meters long was created at a height of two meters.
- Kat O ( 吉 澳 , English Crooked Island )
Kat O is a fishing island and consists largely of tuff from the Jura . Most of the areas are overgrown, the rocks can only be seen on the coast. Small amounts of reddish breccias can also be found here.
- Wong Chuk Kok Tsui ( 黃竹 角 咀 , English Bluff Head )
Cape Wong Chuk Kok Tsui is located south-southeast of Ap Chau and Kat O on the Tolo Canal . Here you can find the oldest rocks in Hong Kong, which are around 400 million years old ( Devonian ). The rock formations essentially consist of sandstone , siltstone and conglomerate . As a result of the movement of the crust , the originally horizontal layers were distorted and were now pushed vertically upwards. Individual rocks weathered in the water over time, the most famous formation in this area is the so-called Devil's Fist .
- Tung Ping Chau ( 東 平洲 )
The 1.16 km² Tung Ping Chau Island is the northeasternmost area of the Geopark and the easternmost point of Hong Kong. In contrast to Wong Chuk Kok, the youngest rocks in Hong Kong are found here with an age of approx. 55 to 65 million years . They consist of thin layers of sedimentary rock such as dark gray siltstone, dolomite , mudstone and chert . The highest point on the island is Hok Ngam Teng with only 48 meters. Coral reefs can be found off the coast of the island .
Duck's Eye , Ap Chau
Cat O
Devil's Fist
Tung Ping Chau
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Sai Kung Volcanic Rock Region
- Kiu Tsui Chau ( 橋 咀 洲 , English Sharp Island )
About two kilometers southeast of Sai Kung is Kiu Tsui Chau, also called Sharp Island . Here you can find volcanic rocks from the Cretaceous period , especially pyroclastic sediment of various sizes and breccias . Rhyolites with traces of the lava flow and porphyries are also typical finds for the island. In the north there are occurrences of porphyrous quartz monzonites . A tombolo about 250 meters long connects the island with the neighboring island of Kiu Tau ( 橋頭 ) and can be entered when the water level is less than 1.4 meters.
- Leung Shuen Wan ( 糧船 灣 , English High Island )
To the east of Leung Shuen Wan is a grotto ⊙ . The island is known for its hexagonal volcanic stone pillars. These are around 140 million years old and up to 30 meters high. They arose from lava flows as a result of underground volcanic eruptions and have high proportions of quartz-containing phenocrystals and feldspar .
- Kwo Chau Islands ( 果 洲 群島 , English Ninepin Group )
The Ninepin archipelago is about 15 km from Sai Kung and forms the southernmost part of the geopark. In total, the group consists of 29 islands, which were formed around 140 million years ago during a volcanic eruption with the emission of around 70 cubic kilometers of volcanic ash . There are also hexagonal stone pillars here, but with a diameter of up to two meters they are significantly smaller than on High Island. Due to severe erosion, cliffs have also formed over time .
Sharp Island
High Island
North Ninepin Island
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Visitor centers
The Geopark Visitor Center is located in Tsiu Hang, south of the Sai Kung ⊙ settlement . Also known as the Lions Nature Education Center because of the financial support from the Lions Club , it is open every day except Tuesdays. In five exhibition halls and an outdoor area, it provides information about the Geopark and the geological history of Hong Kong. In the outdoor area, 28 rocks (various volcanic rocks , granites and sedimentary rocks ) are exhibited in the Rock Academy . Special tours are offered for schools.
The Volcano Discovery Center , which opened in 2014 and is run by a local group, is located in Sai Kung Waterfront Park ⊙ . It is open daily and shows how the landscape has been shaped by volcanism over the past 100 million years and how the volcanic rock pillars were formed. Volcanic rock from all over the world is also on display.
Web links
- Geopark website
- Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark on the UNESCO Global Geoparks website.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark: Annual Report 2016 , p. 12, last accessed: November 10, 2018.
- ↑ Map on discoverhongkong.com, last accessed November 10, 2018.
- ↑ Chief Executive opens Hong Kong National Geopark , Hong Kong government press release of November 3, 2009, last accessed November 11, 2018.
- ↑ a b Hong Kong Geopark at the Global Geoparks Network, last accessed: November 11, 2018.
- ↑ Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark: Recovery from Super Typhoon Mangkhut , September 25, 2018, last accessed: May 11, 2018. November 2018.
- ↑ Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark: Hong Kong's natural wonders - Ap Chau , last accessed on November 11, 2018.
- ↑ Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark: The ancient marketplace of Mirs Bay - Kat O , last accessed: November 11, 2018.
- ↑ Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark: Oldest rock in Hong Kong - Wong Chuk Kok Tsui , last accessed on November 11, 2018.
- ↑ Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark: Youngest sedimentary rock in Hong Kong - Tung Ping Chau , last accessed: November 11, 2018.
- ↑ Hong Kong Outdoors: Tung Ping Chau (東 平洲) ( Memento of the original from November 15, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , last accessed: November 11, 2018.
- ↑ Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark: Memories of volcanic lava flows - Sharp Island (Kiu Tsui Chau) , last accessed on November 12, 2018.
- ↑ Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark: Internationally rare acidic polygonal volcanic rock columns - High Island , last accessed: November 14, 2018.
- ↑ Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark: Spectacular joint columns – Ninepin Group (Kwo Chau Islands) , last accessed on November 14, 2018.
- ↑ Geopark Visitor Center , last accessed November 10, 2018.
- ↑ Lions Nature Education Center , last accessed November 10, 2018.
- ↑ Volcano Discovery Center , last accessed November 10, 2018.
