The reclamation of land from the ocean has long been used in mountainous

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...

to expand the limited supply of usable land with a total of around 60 square kilometres of land created by 1996. The first reclamations can be traced back to the early Western Han Dynasty (206 BC – 9 AD), when beaches were turned into fields for salt production. Major land reclamation projects have been conducted since the mid-19th century.EIA: A survey report of Historical Buildings and Structures within the Project Area of the Central Reclamation Phase III
Chan Sui San Peter for the HK Government, February 2001

Projects

Bonham Strand

Praya Reclamation Scheme (1868-1904)

One of the earliest projects, the works were completed in two phases. The second added 50 to of land in 1890 during the second phase of construction. It was one of the most ambitious projects ever undertaken during the Colonial Hong Kong era. It significantly expanded the land around Praya Central.

Praya East Reclamation Scheme (1921-1931)

Kai Tak Airport extension (1957-1974)

The old airport, Kai Tak, was located In Kowloon and part of the land is reclaimed. A section of runway and most parking stands were built on reclaimed land.

New towns, phases 1-3 (1973-1996)

The

new towns A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...

were mostly built on reclaimed land, such as Tuen Mun, Tai Po, Sha Tin, Ma On Shan,

West Kowloon West Kowloon () is the western part of Kowloon Peninsula in Hong Kong, situated within the Yau Tsim Mong District and Sham Shui Po District. It is bounded by Canton Road to the east, Victoria Harbour to the west and the south, and Jor ...

, Kwun Tong and Tseung Kwan O. These were built in a series of three phases.

New International Airport construction (1991-1998)

The "new" airport, Chek Lap Kok International airport was built on two islands and was opened in 1998. Land was reclaimed to build a third runway and extend the current Terminal 2 in the airport.

Central and Wan Chai projects (1993-2018)

Several projects in and around Victoria Harbour, constructed for various purposes. This includes transportation improvements such as the Hong Kong MTR Station, Airport Express Railway & Central-Wanchai Bypass, as well as public recreation space such as the Central Harbourfront Event Space, Tamar Park and the

Hong Kong Observation Wheel The Hong Kong Observation Wheel (abbr. HKOW) is a tall Ferris wheel located at the Central Harbourfront, Central, Hong Kong. It has 42 gondolas, including one VIP Gondola with leather seats and a clear glass bottom floor. All gondolas are equippe ...

Disneyland construction (2003-2005)

Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (2009-2018)

The bridge project involved the creation of four islands, including one in Hong Kong.

Tung Chung New Town Extension (2017- )

Currently under construction, an expansion of Tung Chung on the north shore of Lantau island. The project is expected to be completed in 2023.

Hong Kong International Airport Third Runway (2016-2024)

The third

runway According to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and takeoff of aircraft". Runways may be a man-made surface (often asphalt, concrete ...

and the extension of Terminal 2 in the

Hong Kong International Airport Hong Kong International Airport is Hong Kong's main airport, built on reclaimed land on the island of Chek Lap Kok, Hong Kong. The airport is also referred to as Chek Lap Kok International Airport or ''Chek Lap Kok Airport'', to distingui ...

is built on reclaimed land.

Lantau Tomorrow Vision (planned)

In October 2018, a development project was announced with the intention of creating 1700 hectares of land in the form of new islands off the east coast of Lantau, to house an estimated 1.1 million people. The project has an estimated cost of 500 billion Hong Kong dollars,

Issues

Much reclamation has taken place in prime locations on the waterfront on both sides of Victoria Harbour. This has raised environmental issues of the protection of the harbour which was once the source of prosperity of Hong Kong, traffic congestion in the Central district, as well as the collusion of the Hong Kong Government with the real estate developers in the territory.

Environmental legislation

Hong Kong legislators passed the Protection of the Harbour Ordinance in 1996 in an effort to safeguard the increasingly threatened Victoria Harbour against encroaching land development. In a

judicial review Judicial review is a process under which executive, legislative and administrative actions are subject to review by the judiciary. A court with authority for judicial review may invalidate laws, acts and governmental actions that are incomp ...

in January 2004, the Court of Final Appeal stipulated an "overriding public need" test which the government must adhere in order to carry out reclamation at Victoria Harbour.

Gallery

File:ShaTin-ShingMunRiver-EarlyStageOfDevelopment.jpg, Sha Tin New Town under development in the 1980s File:Hong Kong Kai Tak Airport 1971.jpg, Kai Tak Airport in the 1970s, before more reclamation work was undertaken. File:Disneyland Site from the air.jpg, Hong Kong Disneyland Resort under construction (October 2004) File:A bird's eye view of Hong Kong International Airport.JPG, The airport platform of

in 2010

References

External links

Enhancing Land Supply Strategy

Reclamation History

Detailed list of historical land reclamation projects in Hong Kong
* Chen Yu
"Transformation of waterfront space in Asian cities: Macau, Hong Kong, Shanghai"
National University of Singapore, 2009
"Enhancing Land Supply Strategy: Reclamation Outside Victoria Harbour and Rock Cavern Development"
{{World topic, title = Land reclamation, prefix = Land reclamation in, noredlinks = yes Land reclamation Geography of Hong Kong Coastal construction in Hong Kong