Victoria Harbor
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維多利亞 港 Victoria Harbor 維 港 |
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| Coordinates | 22 ° 17 '16 " N , 114 ° 10' 25" E | ||
| Basic data | |||
| Country | People's Republic of China | ||
| Hong Kong | |||
| ISO 3166-2 | CN-HK | ||
| surface | 41.9 km² | ||
 Victoria Harbors Night Panorama - Victoria Peak , 2008
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The Victoria Harbor ( Chinese 維多利亞港 / 维多利亚港 , Pinyin Weiduoliya Gǎng , Jyutping Wai 4 do 1 lei 6 aa 3 Gong 2 , in short 維港 / 维港 , Wéigǎng , Jyutping Wai 4 gong 2 ) is a natural harbor between Hong Kong Iceland and the Kowloon Peninsula in Hong Kong . In ancient Chinese literature, the body of water was usually called Jiānshāzuĭ Yángmiàn ( 尖沙咀 洋面 , Jyutping Zim 1 saa 1 zeoi 2 Joeng 4 min 6 * 2 - " Tsim Sha Tsui ’s sea area") or Zhōngmén ( 中 門 / 中 门 , Jyutping Zung 1 mun 4 - "Mittleres Tor"). The harbor was named Victoria Harbor by the English after Hong Kong became an English colony in 1843. The depth of the harbor basin as well as the width of the waterways together with its strategically favorable location in the South China Sea were decisive for Great Britain making Hong Kong a crown colony .
The English recognized the port's potential early on. After the First Opium War , Hong Kong Island was taken over and Kowloon was later loaned to the British. Victoria Harbor became the main base of English sea trade in East Asia. The port had shaped the history and culture of Hong Kong in the past two centuries . He gave the decisive impetus for the development of this location, which has made it one of the most important economic centers in the world to this day.
The view that is offered from the harbor of the surrounding scenery makes it one of the main attractions of Hong Kong today, where it forms the center of the urbanized area of the city. The port is also the scene of the fireworks on the occasion of the Chinese New Year every year . Its promenade is a popular attraction for tourists and residents alike.
geography
According to data from 2004, Victoria Harbor has a total area of 41.88 square kilometers, with an average water depth of 12 meters. The deepest point of the port basin is Lei Yue Mun ( 鯉魚 門 / 鲤鱼 门 , Lǐyúmén , Jyutping Lei 5 jyu 4 mun 4 ), where the port is 43 meters deep. The shallowest point is at Yau Ma Tei ( 油 麻 地 , Yóumádì , Jyutping Jau 4 maa 4 dei 6 * 2 ). Here the port has an average depth of seven meters. The water height varies by about one meter between ebb and flow.
The eastern border is generally the section from the eastern end of Siu Chau Wan ( 小 酒 灣 / 小 酒 湾 , Xiǎojiǔ Wān , Jyutping Siu 2 zau 2 Waan 1 ) to A Kung Ngam ( 亞 公 岩 / 亚 公 岩 , Yàgōngyán , Jyutping Aa 3 gung 1 ngaam 4 ). The western boundary is determined by a line drawn from the westernmost point of Hong Kong Island to the westernmost point of Green Island, from where it continues to the southeastern point of Tsing Yi . There it stretches along the eastern and northern coastlines to the westernmost end of the Tsing Yi peninsula, before another straight line, which is drawn from there north to the mainland, forms the end.
Islands and peninsulas
The following are the main islands that should be mentioned in connection with the port:
- Green Island
- Little Green Island
- Kowloon Rock
- Tsing Yi Island
Due to land reclamation, the following former islands have now been connected to adjacent land areas or larger islands.
- Stonecutters Island (now attached to Lai Chi Kok Bay , New Kowloon)
- Channel Rock (now affiliated with Kwun Tong, New Kowloon)
- Kellett Island (now attached to Causeway Bay , Hong Kong Island )
- Hoi Sham Island (now attached to To Kwa Wan, Kowloon )
- Nga Ying Chau (now affiliated with Tsing Yi Island , New Territories )
- Pillar Island (now attached to Kwai Chung, New Territories)
- Mong Chau (now attached to Kwai Chung, New Territories)
- Chau Tsai (now attached to Tsing Yi Island)
Water level and quality
When Typhoon Wanda swept over Hong Kong in 1962 , the water rose to a level of 3.96 meters and marked the record in Victoria Harbor that is still valid today. Between 1954 and 2004, the water rose by a full 12 centimeters due to global warming, land reclamation , sedimentation from deposits of the Pearl River and changes in ocean currents in the South China Sea . Between 1987 and 1999 the water rose by as much as 22 millimeters annually. That is ten times the global average. However, since 1999 the water level has dropped rapidly again.
In the beginning, when the banks were still the original and natural coastline, the waterway of Victoria Harbor was much wider. Until the 1930s, the eastern part of North Point was a public stretch of beach and until the 1970s you could still swim at Shau Kei Wan . Today, the rapid development of the metropolis has meant that swimming is no longer possible due to the water pollution in the port and the high waves caused by land reclamation and the stronger currents within the port waters. In the course of the re-planning of the Hong Kong airport in the 1980s, there were also plans to relocate the port facility outside the city center to Rambler Channel or Lamma Channel . However, this plan was never implemented.
history
England occupied Hong Kong Island as early as 1841 and after the ratification of the Treaty of Nanking between China and Great Britain in 1843, the British crown was granted "perpetual ownership" of the island.
The British traders had now been given a starting point and natural harbor for their ships. The port between the island of Hong Kong and the Kowloon peninsula was deep and its location provided a protected anchorage for the British merchant fleet. Due to its strategic geographical location in the heart of the South China Sea and the proximity of Canton to mainland China, it has developed into a center of trade with China.
Gradually the various trading houses moved their headquarters to Hong Kong, where they had the opportunity to maintain their ships . After the long sea voyages, repairs and overhauls of the ships were often necessary, and Victoria Harbor was an ideal refuge for this. In Hong Kong's harbor, the stocks of food and water could be replenished. From the 1840s onwards, the so-called " tea clippers " often docked in Hong Kong, which took part in the legendary "great tar race" from China to London.
On December 21, 1854, the police arrested several armed rebels who were about to launch an attack on Kowloon City in the wake of the Taiping Uprising . Almost a sea battle broke out in the port waters on January 23, 1855 when a fleet of armed Taiping junks threatened the Chinese Imperial warships defending the port. However, the Chinese defenders were assigned by the British colonial power. These events caused increasing tensions, which were ultimately decisive for the Second Opium War .
After the Beijing Convention was signed , British troops occupied the Kowloon Peninsula in January 1861. In April the water between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon was renamed Victoria Harbor after Queen Victoria . Before that it was mostly referred to as Jianshazui Yangmian ( 尖沙咀 洋面 , Jyutping Zim 1 saa 1 zeoi 2 Joeng 4 min 6 * 2 - “Tsim Sha Tsui's sea area”) or as Zhongmen ( 中 門 / 中 门 , Jyutping Zung 1 mun 4 - "Mittleres Tor"). In the same way, Victoria Park , Victoria City and Victoria Peak were named after the then head of the British Kingdom.
Since Hong Kong had little flat land, the government initiated several land reclamation projects as early as 1841. As early as 1842, when Queen's Road and Wyndham Street were built, large amounts of rock were accumulated as rubble, which was dumped directly into the sea to enlarge the area of Hong Kong Island. In 1852, the Bonham Land Reclamation Project began to expand the area of Sheung Wan . This could be described as the first official land reclamation project. The government buildings and port facilities were then erected on the land that was gained.
The land reclamation projects were later extended to the entire north side of the Hong Kong Islands as well as Kowloon. The now economically important areas of Des Voeux Road , Wan Chai , Causeway Bay , Tsim Sha Tsui East , Kai Tak , Hung Hom Bay , Kwun Tong Industrial Area , To Kwa Wan and West Kowloon stand on former bodies of water.
After the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, steamships came to the fore as freight transporters. Due to the increase in shipping traffic, the construction of lighthouses had become necessary. In 1875, Hong Kong's first lighthouse, Cape D'Aguilar Lighthouse , opened. In 1913, more than 22,000 ships docked in Victoria Harbor.
As one of the most important ports in Asia, Hong Kong was an important shipbuilding location until the 1970s. Hong Kong owned two of the largest shipyards in Asia: the Taikoo Dockyard on Quarry Bay and the Hong Kong and Whampoa Dock in Hung Hom . The shipyards employed over a thousand people, and their technology and tonnage competed with the shipyards in Japan . Since then, shipbuilding has been in decline and the price of land in Hong Kong has soared. For this reason, the shipyards were dismantled in the 1970s and 1980s and their facilities were transported to Tsing Yi . Instead, residential buildings and shopping malls were built in the areas of the former shipyards.
The Royal Navy set up a naval base in Victoria Harbor early on . In the mid-1990s, the military base was relocated to Stonecutters Island . There were plans to build the new government district on the former military area. Hong Kong was and remains a free port to this day, and the city is also at the center of the Far Eastern waterways, which is why many British and American warships moored here before Hong Kong was returned to China in 1997. Even after 1997 the port was often used by American warships to stock up on supplies.
Port facilities and loading stations
Victoria Harbor is a natural ocean port. It has a wide waterway with an average water depth of 12 meters, which makes it easier to maneuver and is not at risk from silting. The port can accommodate over 50 cargo ships with over 10,000 GRT at the same time . The two approaches on the east and west side of the port are relatively narrow in comparison. The mountains of the Hong Kong Island that surrounds it and the Kowloon peninsula form a natural wind protection so that even typhoons do not pose a significant threat to the ships moored or anchored in the port. In addition, Hong Kong is located in a subtropical area, so that the port is navigable all year round. These factors make Hong Kong a perfect transshipment port.
Most of the city's port facilities are located at Victoria Harbor, which is one of the busiest and most important ports in the world. In 2006, a total of 39,040 overseas vessels and 190,820 inland vessels used the goods and passenger traffic. Victoria Harbor has been one of the most important and important ports for trade with Asia and China since the colony was established. It was only in the last few years that freight traffic slowly moved away from the city center with the construction of the Kwai Tsing Container Terminal . Today Victoria Harbor is mainly used for tourism and passenger transport, although many ships still pass through the harbor. Today, mid-stream operations, i.e. cargo handling at sea, as well as the passage of inland freighters can very often be observed. Victoria Harbor is still of immense importance, especially for the southern Chinese regions, as a large part of the goods from southern China to overseas are handled in this port.
Kwai Tsing Container Terminals
The Kwai Tsing Container Terminal is located in the Kwai Tsing District in the New Territories and in the Gin Drinkers Bay of Tsing Yi Island and is therefore in the northwest part of Victoria Harbor, at the western end of Kowloon . It is the largest container terminal in Hong Kong and in 2016 the sixth largest in the world after Shanghai , Singapore , Shenzhen , Ningbo-Zhoushan and Qingdao . From 1992 to 2004, Hong Kong was the world's busiest cargo port. It operates around the clock and in 2004 handled around 62 percent of the 21,930 TEU handled in the territories . Around 400 container ships dock in Hong Kong every week and connect the city with over 500 destinations around the world.
The Kwai Tsing Container Terminal spreads over a huge area from Kwai Tsing to Stonecutters Island. It consists of a total of nine container terminals , 24 berths and can serve the largest container ships in the world. Over 18 million ISO containers can be handled here every year. In 2006 a total of 16,048 million ISO containers were loaded and unloaded here.
Mid-stream operations
When the Kwai Tsing Container Terminal was still under construction in the 1970s, there were not enough berths for the container ships in the port. In order to shorten the waiting time, the containers were reloaded from one ship to the next with the help of pontoons or moved to the nearby port. This was the start of the so-called mid-stream operations in Hong Kong.
Facilities have been built on both sides of Victoria Harbor to accommodate cargo from the sea. This not only relieved the container port itself, but also its access roads. Around 20% of goods in Hong Kong are loaded or unloaded via these mid-stream operations.
tourism
Victoria Harbor is world-famous for its breathtaking nocturnal panoramic view , which is mainly characterized by an impressive skyline, especially with a view of Hong Kong Island ; A silhouette of skyscrapers lying close together and covered with neon signs, rising up along the slopes of the Victoria Peak towering behind them. Several viewpoints and pedestrian paths have emerged along Victoria Harbor in recent years, such as the waterfront promenade in West Kowloon or the Hong Kong City Hall , the convention and exhibition center and Golden Bauhinia Square on Hong Kong Island. However, the best view of the harbor is from the Victoria Tower on Victoria Peak, from the piazza at the Hong Kong Cultural Center or from the promenade of Tsim Sha Tsui with a view of the Kowloon side. The view of the harbor from aboard one of the Star Ferry ships is also very popular . However, the view from Victoria Peak has often been clouded by smog in recent years.
As the natural center of the entire urban area, many public events and shows are hosted along the harbor, including the annual fireworks display on the second night of Chinese New Year . These shows are popular with tourists and locals alike and are usually broadcast on local television. In order to increase the popularity of the port and highlight it as one of the city's attractions, the government introduced a show called A Symphony of Lights , in which the city has been using audio, light and light sources every evening since 2004 from eight o'clock Pyrotechnics and presented through laser shows and light games.
The Avenue of Stars , which stretches along the promenade in front of the newly built New World Center in Tsim Sha Tsui, was also opened. Following the example of the Hollywood Walk of Fame , the most famous people that Hong Kong cinema has produced over the past decades are honored here.
Transport links
Since Victoria Harbor separates Hong Kong Island from Kowloon, the transport options between these two districts were and are particularly important for the development of Hong Kong. There have been regular ferry connections between both sides of the port since the 1890s. With the economic development, the main traffic load has now been shifted from the ferries to road and rail tunnels under the seabed.
tunnel
Although there has not yet been a bridge over the harbor, there are now three tunnels that cross under the harbor basin: the Cross-Harbor Tunnel (opened in 1972), the Eastern Harbor Crossing (1989) and the Western, which has been in operation since 1997 Harbor Crossing . All tunnels connect Hong Kong Island with the Kowloon Peninsula . The three tunnels are now the most important transport links between these two urban areas. A fourth tunnel is being planned.
As early as 1894, when the first electrified tram was being planned in Hong Kong, the proposal was made to connect Hong Kong Island and Kowloon with a bridge. This should become the landmark of Hong Kong and also be used by the new tram. However, since the construction price was above budget and the bridge would also have impaired shipping, the plan was postponed.
After the Second World War , the transport load for the ferries increased. In the 1950s, the construction of a bridge was discussed again, with the possibility of building a tunnel being studied. Since the bridge would have seriously affected the landscape, the plan for a tunnel was given preference in 1955, and in the 1960s the decision was made to build the Cross-Harbor Tunnel. The tunnel was supposed to connect Hung Hom (on Kowloon) and Causeway Bay (on Hong Kong Island).
Cross-Harbor Tunnel
The Cross-Harbor Tunnel, in short: CHT ( 香港 海底 隧道 , Xiānggǎng Hǎidǐ Suìdào , Jyutping Hoeng 1 gong 2 Hoi 2 dai 2 Seoi 6 dou 6 ) was Hong Kong's first undersea tunnel and was opened to traffic in August 1972. It cost HK $ 320 million to build . To this day, it is one of the busiest 4-lane tunnels in the world and the most congested road in Hong Kong. The south entrance of the tunnel (on Hong Kong Island) is on Kellett Island , a former island connected to Hong Kong Island by landfill. The north entrance is west of Hung Hom , here too the land has been wrested from the sea. The tunnel is now out of date as it only has two lanes in each direction. The flow of traffic was saturated after just ten years. Traffic jams in both directions occur every day at rush hour. For this reason, a tax has been levied since June 1, 1984, which is added to the tunnel fee and is intended to limit traffic. The operation of the tunnel is now in the hands of the city government.
Although the Eastern and Western Harbor Crossing has now been opened, the Cross-Harbor Tunnel is still heavily loaded with traffic. The reason for this is that the two newer tunnels charge an even higher fee and are not as conveniently located in terms of traffic as the Cross-Harbor Tunnel. On weekends or before public holidays, traffic jams can last until after midnight. In 2006 the tunnel was used by an average of 124,000 vehicles per day.
Eastern Harbor Crossing
Since traffic jams kept coming up at the Cross Harbor Tunnel, a bridge was planned over the east side of Victoria Harbor from 1976. However, this bridge would have hindered shipping here too and also influenced the approach to Kai Tak Airport , which is why this plan was abandoned and the Eastern Harbor Tunnel was given preference instead.
The Eastern Harbor Crossing, short: EHC ( 東區 海底 隧道 / 东区 海底 隧道 , Dōngqū Hǎidǐ Suìdào , Jyutping Dung 1 keoi 1 Hoi 2 dai 2 Seoi 6 dou 6 , short: 東 隧 / 东 隧 , Dōngsuì , Jyutping Dung 1 seoi 6 ) is the second tunnel in Hong Kong. It connects the east side of Kowloon and Hong Kong Island and has a total length of 2.2 km. The tunnel consists of five tubes: two with two lanes each in both directions, two more are used by the Tseung Kwan O Line of the Mass Transit Railway and the fifth tube contains the environmental control system. The entrance to the south side of the tunnel is at Quarry Bay , the entrance to the north side is at Cha Kwo Ling .
The New Hong Kong Tunnel Company Limited is the construction company of the tunnel and received the right to operate the tunnel in 1986 for a total of 30 years. In 1989 the tunnel was opened. In 2005, the company increased the fee even though the company was making a huge profit, causing a lot of public outcry and adding to the traffic in the old tunnel. In 2006, the tunnel was used by an average of 61,000 vehicles per day.
Western Harbor Crossing
The Western Harbor Crossing, short: WHC ( 西區 海底 隧道 / 西区 海底 隧道 , Xīqū Hǎidǐ Suìdào , Jyutping Sai 1 keoi 1 Hoi 2 dai 2 Seoi 6 dou 6 , short: 西隧 / 西隧 , Xīsuì , Jyutping Sai 1 seoi 6 ) is the third and largest tunnel in Hong Kong. It connects the Sai Ying Pun district on Hong Kong Island with West Kowloon at a length of 1.97 km . The tunnel consists of three tubes and was built at the same time as the rail tunnel leading to the new airport. The lanes in the middle tube can be used in both directions, so that a total of 12 lanes are available in one direction at peak times.
The Western Harbor Crossing was also built by the New Hong Kong Tunnel Company Limited, which also operates the tunnel. After commissioning, the company has operating rights for a total of 30 years. Because of the high toll, the tunnel is used insufficiently and cannot relieve the increasingly heavy traffic. In 2006 the average daily traffic volume was only 44,373 vehicles, which is further lower than the 180,000 originally planned vehicles.
The fourth tunnel
In order to relieve the situation of the Cross-Harbor Tunnel, there are plans for a fourth tunnel under Victoria Harbor, to the east of the Cross-Harbor Tunnel and connecting Fortress Hill on Hong Kong Island with Whampoa on Kowloon. The idea is that the tunnel will be built at the same time as the fifth rail tunnel in order to limit costs in this way.
Railway tunnel
There are three MTR rail tunnels that run under the port:
- The Tsuen Wan Line (commissioning since 1980)
- The Tseung Kwan O Line (commissioning since 1989, parallel to the Eastern Harbor Crossing)
- The Tung Chung Line and the Airport Express Line , which share some rail lines within the tunnel (commissioning since 1997)
In 1967 the city government checked the traffic situation in Hong Kong with the help of British research institutions. In 1982 the first tunnel was put into operation, with the construction of a second rail tunnel being proposed as early as 1970. However, the proposal was postponed due to lack of resources and opposition from the population.
In the 1980s, the first tunnel began to reach capacity, prompting the government to consider the possibility of a second tunnel.
In 1989 several designs were presented. The rail connection through the west side of Victoria Harbor turned out to be particularly important in order to improve the connection to the airport. Since the route partially coincided with the Western Harbor Crossing , the construction costs could be reduced.
The government is temporarily planning a fourth railway tunnel. The original plan was from 1970, although this has been revised. The changes result mainly from the geographic conditions that have since changed due to land reclamation. In 2002 the government had already approved a tunnel plan, but canceled it for cost reasons. Planning for the fourth tunnel has been resumed since April 2006.
At the same time, the plan for a fifth tunnel was presented in 1989. However, since the fourth tunnel has not yet been built, this planning has also been postponed for the time being.
Ferries
Before the tunnels existed, ferries were the only means of transport to cross Victoria Harbors. The first ferry company, now known as Star Ferry , was founded in 1888 by a Persian named Dorabujee Naorojee Mithaiwala. The currently regular ferry routes of the Star Ferry run from Central and Western to Tsim Sha Tsui, from Wan Chai to Tsim Sha Tsui, from Central to Hung Hom and from Wan Chai to Hung Hom. There are also several other ferry lines that operate in the port. In 1898, The Wharf bought the ferry company.
With the development on the Kowloon side ( obsolete transcription : Koolong side) of the city, the need for ferry services increased. At the beginning of the 20th century there were a total of 16 ferry companies serving different routes. Due to the large number of providers, however, chaotic conditions soon prevailed on the water. From 1919, the government began to issue licenses for ferry companies. From January 1, 1924, the Hongkong and Yaumati Ferry dominated the ferry service and offered numerous cross-harbor routes between Kowloon and Hong Kong. Currently, the company is focusing on the transportation of vehicles and dangerous goods that are prohibited from being transferred through the tunnels.
Due to the heavy traffic, a ferry was also put into operation in the 1980s, which operates between the east and west of Hong Kong Islands. The situation only eased when the first subway went into operation. Before the underground tunnel went into operation in 1985, commuters could no longer drive across the port after midnight and had to stay in expensive hotels or use the relatively unsafe and expensive walla wallas , a type of small motorboat.
Since the 1990s the government neglected the expansion of the port facilities. Some port facilities and landing stages no longer exist because they were not relocated to the new bank after the land reclamation projects. In addition, many routes became unprofitable. Today there are only two ferry ports left on the Kowloon side, connecting areas that are not yet connected to the rail network.
There used to be a car ferry from Yau Ma Tei as well. After the road tunnels were opened, the demand for this ferry service decreased significantly, so that the ferry could no longer operate profitably and was eventually discontinued. However, in recent years there have been voices calling for the reopening of the car ferry service due to the charging of the road tunnels.
At the moment, the ferry operations within Victoria Harbor are divided between three companies. On the other hand, there are a large number of companies that offer ferry connections to Macau and the cities of the Pearl River Delta .
Terminals and piers
There are several passenger and car docks around Victoria Harbor. The moorings at Central are mostly ferry terminals that offer transport services within Victoria Harbor as well as trips to mainland China and Macau. The landing stages at North Point and Kwun Tong are mainly used for vehicle and dangerous goods transport. There are also several public moorings that offer the possibility of excursions or serve as anchorages for yachts and other smaller ships in Victoria Harbor. A few ports also serve to transport goods.
Two ferry terminals are available for international passenger traffic to mainland China and Macau , the Hong Kong-Macau Ferry Terminal and the Hong Kong China Ferry Terminal . Customs and border institutions are also integrated in these two terminals so that passengers can complete entry and exit formalities here. There is also the Ocean Terminal , a terminal for cruise ships.
Typhoon shelter
Hong Kong is often hit by typhoons in the summer months, which is why several shelters, the so-called Typhoon Shelters ( 避風塘 / 避风塘 , bìfēngtáng , Jyutping at 6 fung 1 tong 4 ) have been built in Victoria Harbor . Some of these Typhoon Shelters also offer amusement and catering services, such as For example, the famous floating restaurant Jumbo Kingdom near Aberdeen Harbor , which is permanently anchored in the Aberdeen South Typhoon Shelter ( 香港 仔 南 避風塘 / 香港 仔 南 避风塘 ). The dish “Typhoon-style fried crab meat” ( 避風塘 炒蟹 / 避风塘 炒蟹 , Bìfēngtáng Chǎoxiè , Jyutping Bei 6 fung 1 tong 4 Caau 2 haai 5 ) is even touted as a famous Hong Kong dish. Today, many former restaurants that were originally only located on this Typhoon Shelter have opened shops in the rest of the city.
Cruise ship port
The Ocean Terminal on Kowloon is the only cruise ship port in Hong Kong. The building was built in 1966 and, in addition to the port facilities, also has offices and department stores that have been integrated into the complex. Many famous cruise ships have docked here, including the RMS Queen Elizabeth .
At the moment the government is converting the former airport into the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal . The conversion has the advantage that no land reclamation measures have to be carried out.
Culture
swim
Some of the first recreational activities to take place in the harbor were swimming and water polo competitions organized by members of Hong Kong's first sports club, the Victoria Sport Club, in the 1850s .
As early as 1906, there were swimming competitions in Hong Kong for the fastest crossing of Victoria Harbor. These competitions were once a major annual event. The route went from the port of Tsim Sha Tsui on the Kowloon side to Queen's Pier on Hong Kong Island and had a total length of 1,600 meters. However, due to the increasing traffic, it became more and more difficult to close the port for this event. In addition, the water quality in the harbor basin fell rapidly. When the Hong Kong Cultural Center was being built, the railway port at Tsim Sha Tsui was dismantled, which resulted in the swimming competitions being finally stopped in 1979. In recent years the government has stated that the situation in the eastern part of Victoria Harbor would slowly have eased. Some organizations such as the amateur swimming club are now calling for the event to be resumed, especially to attract tourists. However, there is still no public consensus on these plans. In 2005 the Lifeguards Union planned an action in Victoria Harbor to publicize their demands. However, the plan was not implemented.
Under the Hong Kong Ports and Shipping Act, Chapter 313, currently in force, it is not allowed to swim in Victoria Harbor without the approval of the Marine Department. Violation can result in a fine of up to HKD 2000.
Hong Kong International Dragon Boat Regatta
The Hong Kong Tourism Board has already organized several dragon boat competitions in Victoria Harbor. The first of these events was held in 1976, then in one of the Typhoon Shelter. Later competitions were mostly carried out in open water. Teams from all over the world take part annually, making this event a major event that attracts numerous tourists.
Sailing regattas
The Hong Kong Island sailing tour has existed since 1864.
Fireworks
Fireworks have been staged over Victoria Harbor every year since 1982, first on the Chinese New Year and since 1997 on the anniversary of the return of Hong Kong to China as well as on the Chinese national holiday. For some time now, fireworks have been fired over Victoria Harbor on other days.
protection
Land reclamation
Hong Kong has very little flat area, which is why the government implemented land reclamation measures at an early stage in order to increase the arable area. As a result, however, the area of the Victoria Harbor steadily decreased. The Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center (HKCEC), which opened in 1988, is one of the many projects at the port that was only made possible through land reclamation measures by the city government.
In recent years, land reclamation has gained increasing public attention and many movements to protect Victoria Harbor have emerged. The Society for Protection of the Harbor gathered signatures from 170,000 citizens in 1996 to initiate a law to protect Victoria Harbor. The law was finally enacted by the Legislative Council of Hong Kong at its final session in June 1997.
After it was returned to China, voices against further land reclamation became even louder. In 1998 protests by numerous organizations forced the government to re-examine the land reclamation plans at Kai Tak . The government later tried to stand trial over the land reclamation plan at Wan Chai and Central . In 2004, the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal ruled against the government's plans to develop land in Wan Chai , but in 2005 the court approved a new land reclamation project at Central , ruling in the interests of the government. To avoid future lawsuits, the government set up a committee that also includes non-governmental organizations.
Today the amount of land reclamation has already decreased significantly, but the volume of traffic has also increased significantly in the same period, so that today there is a much stronger swell in Victoria Harbor than before.
Landscape protection
Victoria Harbor has always been a magnet for tourists. Many tourists go to Victoria Peak in order to overlook the entire Victoria Harbor. Because of the high real estate prices, numerous skyscrapers have been built on both banks of Victoria Harbor, some of which obscure the view. For example, the panoramic view that you once had from Lion Rock on Kowloon has been lost.
In Hong Kong there is currently no legal regulation for landscape protection. According to a survey, however, there is a majority within the urban population who are in favor of such regulations.
Water pollution
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The water quality in Victoria Harbor has been neglected for a long time. Since the 1970s, the water has been heavily polluted, not least due to the rapid development of industry. Before the government took appropriate measures to counteract this development, the city discharged 1.5 million cubic meters of filtered wastewater into the harbor basin every day. Heavy metals and other toxins were discharged directly into Victoria Harbor with the sewage without treatment and then settled in the harbor sediment.
Numerous people simply disposed of their garbage illegally in the sea and ships also discharge their waste oil directly into the water of the port area. In addition, domestic wastewater ended up untreated in Victoria Harbor. During the SARS outbreak , the use of bleach rose sharply among the population, causing ammonia levels in the sea to also increase dramatically.
The land reclamation measures also had an indirect impact on water quality. The straightening of the coastline created zones in which the water exchange could only take place to a very limited extent. The reduction in the water surface also weakens the tide , which could cause garbage to accumulate in some areas of the port, which led to increased odor development. Controls revealed increased bacterial concentration and insufficient oxygen concentration, which increases the possibility of fish death.
The government is therefore working out a plan to keep the port clean. According to data from the Environment Agency, the water quality has improved slightly in recent years, but the pollution is still significantly too high. At the same time, many advertising films were commissioned by the government to appeal to citizens to stop throwing rubbish in the port. In this context, staff were also assigned to collect the garbage from the water and to periodically check the water quality. In the long term, the government is thinking about channeling the wastewater into the distant sea via pipelines in order to relieve the pressure on Victoria Harbor.
In earlier times fishing was still practiced in Victoria Harbor. and to this day there are still people fishing in Victoria Harbor. However, due to the ongoing pollution, the fish are not suitable for consumption. Because of the water pollution, swimming events have not been held in Victoria Harbor for a long time.
Victoria Harbor Day
Victoria Harbor Day has existed since 2005 and is organized by several organizations and companies to raise awareness among the population about the protection of the harbor.
Web links
- Official Website - Hong Kong Maritime and Port Board (Chinese, English)
- Official Website - Hong Kong Marine Development (Chinese, English)
- Official website - Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) - Hong Kong Tourism Office (German, English)
- SCHEDULE 2 - Specified Sheltered Waters - Victoria Harbor Area (boundaries of the port area) (English)
- Live webcam on Victoria Harbor
- Satellite photo of the port from Google Maps
- More photos of Victoria Harbor
Individual evidence
- ↑ Water depth in Hong Kong . In: City Government News Office . April 28, 1999. Retrieved March 7, 2011.
- ↑ Handbook of the port ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 426 kB) Hong Kong City Government, Civil Engineering Department, December 2003
- ↑ Official information on the port boundaries of the Hong Kong City Government, accessed Jan. 22, 2010
- ↑ 維 港 水位 50 年 上升 12 厘米 水浸 機會 大增, Metro (Hong Kong), June 15, 2004
- ↑ 集體 回憶 之 維多利亞 港 - 百年 海港 的 故事, 何耀生 (He Yaosheng), 明 報 出版社, ISBN 962-8872-68-0 .
- ↑ a b c The History of Victoria Harbor. Retrieved January 17, 2010.
- ↑ Tsai, Jung-fang: Hong Kong in Chinese History: community and social unrest in the British Colony, 1842-1913. Columbia University Press, New York 1995, ISBN 0-231-07933-8 .
- ^ Gina Macdonald: James Clavell, A Critical Companion. Greenwood Press, Westport (Conn.) 1995, ISBN 0-313-29494-1 .
- ↑ Statement by the Qing government on the occupation of Hong Kong by England ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , 中華 文史 網
- ↑ «人文 風景 - 保護 維 港» (Culture and Landscape - Protect Victoria Harbor), Radio Hong Kong, November 4, 2006
- ↑ 香港 概貌 - 香港 便 覽 (Hong Kong, an overview; PDF; 570 kB). Hong Kong City Government
- ↑ Hong Kong Port Development Office ( Memento of the original dated December 3, 2006 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.
- ↑ Port (PDF; 561 kB), Hong Kong City Government
- ↑ Containerterminal ( Memento of the original dated December 8, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Hong Kong Port Development Agency
- ↑ Statistics of the Kwai Tsing Container Terminals ( Memento of the original from September 27, 2007 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. (PDF; 51 kB), Hong Kong Port Development Office
- ↑ 香港 中流 作業 的 發展 (The Development of Mid-Stream Operation in Hong Kong). Hong Kong Mid-Stream Operation Company Limited
- ↑ Hong Kong Maritime Office
- ↑ 空氣 污染 嚇走 旅客 (Air pollution scares tourists off). ( Memento of the original from September 30, 2007 in the web archive archive.today ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. www.jamestien.com, March 21, 2006
- ↑ World Record at Lichtspiele , Hong Kong City Government News Office, November 21, 2005
- ^ Report on the Inter-Departmental Working Party on the proposed cross-harbor tunnel. Hong Kong City Government, 1956
- ↑ List of Hong Kong tunnels
- ↑ a b c 使 三條 過 海 行車 隧道 使用 量 合理化 的 措施 (CB (1) 2023 / 06-07 (04)). (PDF; 202 kB) Hong Kong Legislature, July 9, 2007
- ↑ "香港 整體 運輸 研究" Hong Kong comprehensive transport study (CTS-1), Wilbur Smith and Associates. 1976
- ↑ New Hong Kong Tunnel Company Limited ( Memento of the original from September 29, 2007 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.
- ↑ Data , Western Harbor Crossing
- ^ Western Harbor Crossing
- ↑ "香港集體運輸研究", Hong Kong mass transport study (MTS-1967), Freeman, Fox, Wilbur Smith & Associates. & Hong Kong Government, 1967.
- ↑ a b "集體 運輸 計劃 總 報告 書" Hong Kong mass transit further studies (MTS). Freeman, Fox, Wilbur Smith & Associates. Hong Kong Government, 1970
- ↑ 邁向 二十 一 世紀: 香港 運輸 政策 綠 皮 書 (Moving into the 21st century: the green paper on transport policy in Hong Kong). Hong Kong. Government Secretariat. Transport Branch, 1989
- ↑ Hong Kong local discussion forum
- ↑ Replanning of Yau Ma Tai Ferry , Hong Kong Legislature
- ^ SF Lam, Julian W. Chang: The Quest for Gold: Fifty Years of Amateur Sports in Hong Kong, 1947-1997. Hong Kong University Publishing, Aberdeen, Hong Kong 2006, ISBN 962-209-766-9 .
- ↑ 維 港 將 再現 渡海 泳 (Victoria Crossing Revival), 星島日報 (Sing Tao Daily), March 23, 2007
- ↑ «公開 渡海 泳 今年 將 停辦» (swimming competition is discontinued this year), Ta Kung Pao , July 2, 1979
- ↑ Hong Kong Law, Ports and Shipping Law, chap. 313A, § 66
- ↑ Dragon boat races in Hong Kong, information from the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) "Dragon Boat Festival" - German: [1] - Retrieved on May 5, 2016 - discoverhongkong.com - Online
- ↑ «中 環 填海 計畫 被迫 再 縮 劉 勵 超 預計 歲晚 可 刊 憲 公布 第三 期 新 規模» (Land reclamation at Central is being scaled down), Sing Tao Daily, December 29, 1998
- ↑ Legal proceedings. ( Memento of the original from November 24, 2005 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. October 6, 2003
- ↑ 七 成人 冀 政府 保 維 港 景觀 (70% of the population want the government to protect the landscape, Hong Kong Commercial Daily) ( Memento of the original from February 2, 2014 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.
- ↑ a b c 填海 對 環境 的 影響 (environmental impact of land reclamation), 何麗莎 (He Lisha)
- ↑ a b «策略性 污水 排放 計劃 - 環境 影響 評估 研究» (Strategic wastewater treatment plan). (PDF; 1.2 MB) 環境保護 署 (Environment Agency), September 1998
- ↑ «漂白 水魚» (Bleached Fish), 香港 經濟 日報 (Hong Kong Business Newspaper), April 28, 2003
- ^ Official website , Hong Kong City Government
- ↑ 香港 海港 日 的 理念 及 使命 ( Memento of the original from September 1, 2007 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. (Motto and purpose of Victoria Harbor Day)
