Hong Kong authorities have established a three-member expert panel to investigate persistent freshwater losses at the Fairview Park housing estate in Yuen Long. The initiative follows criticism from landlords over bureaucratic inertia. The Water Supplies Department will offer technical support to residents but maintains it is not responsible for repairing pipes on private land.
Hong Kong authorities have set up a three-member expert group to examine persistent freshwater losses at Yuen Long’s Fairview Park housing estate, following criticism from landlords over bureaucratic inertia. Fairview Park, a middle-class residential area of free-standing houses, has grappled with water leakage issues since the 1990s. A major repair about 20 years ago failed to resolve the problem.
In a Facebook post on Sunday, the Water Supplies Department announced it had commissioned the independent panel of three professionals and academics with expertise in water works. The group will provide third-party advice on the water loss issue through scientific and objective analysis.
“The expert panel will examine the site environment, review the department’s previous on-site test results and use advanced technologies such as ground-penetrating radar and acoustic detectors to collect data across different areas for analysing the condition of the water pipes,” the department said.
The department reiterated that it is not responsible for repairing water pipes on private land but will offer technical support to residents. No details were provided on the panel’s membership, nor on when the experts would start work or how long the review might take.
This development addresses long-standing complaints about delays in tackling the estate's infrastructure woes.
