In years when Hong Kong experiences relatively little rain, polluted run-off from the hinterland and overflowing septic tanks are less of a problem, resulting in a general improvement in beach water quality. Hong Kong experienced a particularly dry year in 2004, and that seems to have helped the overall water quality at its beaches. As the 2004 annual ranking chart shows, 25 beaches were ranked ‘Good’ for the year and nine were ranked ‘Fair’. Five attracted a ‘Poor’ ranking, and just two came in at ‘Very Poor’. These rankings can to a certain extent be correlated with rainfall across the year. In June, for example, rainfall recorded at the Hong Kong Observatory was just 145 mm for the month, down some 62% on the average for that month. Overall, for the swimming season from March to October, Hong Kong experienced 21% less rainfall than it does in an average year, while some specific areas received even less. Tsuen Wan, for example, recorded a massive 34% drop.
 
 

 

Southern District contains some of Hong Kong’s most popular and most heavily-used beaches, and in 2004 visitors were able to enjoy high quality water at beaches throughout the district. Of the 12 beaches in the district, the two best-ranked in terms of having the lowest annual geometric mean E. coli levels across the year were Repulse Bay and St. Stephen’s. Both these beaches achieved Grade 1 status across the entire swimming season. Repulse Bay Beach’s wide stretches of sand and safe, beautiful swimming environment made it one of the most popular in Hong Kong, with over 1.9 million visits made there up to the end of October. Just around the headland, the smaller but equally popular Deep Water Bay Beach managed to attract nearly 2.3 million visits in the same period. These figures are an obvious reflection of the importance of Hong Kong’s beaches to public recreation and enjoyment, and a strong reminder of the importance of maintaining beach water quality at the highest possible levels.
 
 
In 2003, 10 of the 12 beaches in Southern District were ranked ‘Good’ and two ‘Fair’, and this year 11 achieved the ‘Good’ ranking. Big Wave Bay remained ranked as ‘Fair’, although its E. coli count dropped to a level close to ‘Good’. It remains to be seen whether it can maintain this trend next year, since residents living behind the beach are still dependent on septic tank and soakaway pit systems which can overflow after heavy rain. Rocky Bay, meanwhile, made significant improvements and moved from a ‘Fair’ to a ‘Good’ ranking. Rocky Bay has been closed for some years now for reasons beyond simply those of water quality.
 

 
 
Sai Kung continued its reputation for offering not only some of Hong Kong’s most beautiful beaches but also some of its cleanest. Although getting to some of these beaches can take a little effort, this did not put off beach lovers in 2004. Hap Mun Bay Beach can only be reached by boat, but it drew 24,000 visitors on the Tuen Ng Festival public holiday in June, attracted by its isolation, majestic surroundings, and pristine water quality. Clearwater Bay Second Beach is perennially popular, and attracted 1.3 million visitors from March to October despite the long drive. These two beaches, along with Trio Beach near Sai Kung which is accessible only by ferry or an energetic hike, all achieved Grade 1 water quality 100% of the time across the swimming season.
 
Of the six beaches in the Sai Kung District, five were ranked ‘Good’. Some of these five improved nevertheless, most importantly Clear Water Bay Second Beach, which showed statistically significant improvement of its annual geometric mean E.coli figure. The small Silverstrand Beach, which lies at the bottom of steep and heavily populated hillsides, was the only beach in the district to rank ‘Fair’, but even this showed some improvement. In 2003 it failed to achieve any Grade 1 listings, but in 2004 it was awarded Grade 1 status 14% of the time. Drainage and sewerage work there is ongoing, and should eventually secure long-term improvement.
 
 
 

 
 
Hong Kong’s western coastline includes a string of picturesque beaches running from Tsuen Wan around to Tuen Mun. Six of these beaches are in Tuen Mun District and eight in Tsuen Wan District, but they are treated together here since they are all located along the length of Hong Kong’s western coastline. Unfortunately, a combination of factors has meant that despite their idyllic appearance some of these beaches are unsuitable for swimming, especially those closer to Tsuen Wan. Currently, seven of the eight beaches in the Tsuen Wan District are closed, and one of the six beaches in the Tuen Mun District.
 

The district saw improvements in water quality for all the Tsuen Wan beaches except Gemini, so much so that four of the District’s eight beaches were upgraded to ‘Poor’ from their previous year’s ‘Very Poor’ ranking. The particularly dry weather over the year was a contributing factor in this slight general improvement in water quality. The change was not major enough to warrant opening these beaches however, due to the fact that their water quality can still fluctuate quite dramatically at times. The one beach that was not closed in Tsuen Wan District was Ma Wan Tung Wan Beach, located on an island a little distance from the other beaches, which maintained a ‘Fair’ ranking. Ma Wan Tung Wan Beach also showed a general improvement in water quality for the year, although occasional Grade 4 readings were recorded.
 
One factor continuing to affect water quality in the Tsuen Wan area is the Harbour Area Treatment Scheme (HATS), which discharges effluent approximately 8 kilometres away. Disinfection of the HATS effluent has not yet begun, and although the discharged effluent has been treated the sheer volume of discharge is enough to push up E. coli counts at the Tsuen Wan District beaches to high levels. This effect is exacerbated by overflowing septic tanks from unsewered villages in the hinterland during periods of heavy rain, a problem that will continue until the public sewerage programme is completed.
 
In Tuen Mun District, residents had a greater choice of beaches available to swim at. Five of the District’s six beaches were open, and all six maintained a ‘Fair’ ranking for the year. In 2003, only one of the five beaches that are open in the district was awarded a Grade 1 status at any stage (This was Butterfly Beach, and only for 8% of the time). In 2004, by contrast, all these five beaches achieved a Grade 1 status for some percentage of the time.
 
 
Two beaches in particular are worth picking out for special mention. Kadoorie Beach showed a big improvement over the year, following a concerted effort by the EPD to track down an elusive pollution source. After careful investigations, a faulty manhole was discovered and quickly repaired, resulting in an immediate improvement in beach water quality.
 
Castle Peak Beach is also of some interest. This beach has been closed for many years, dating back to a period in the 1980s before the EPD was even established. Over the years, its water quality has gradually improved from its initial ‘Very Poor’ ranking to ‘Poor’ in 1993. Following extensive sewerage works at the beach, water quality there finally met the WQO in 1999, and it was ranked ‘Fair’. It has remained ranked ‘Fair’ consistently now for the past five years. The EPD had advised the beach management that Castle Peak Beach is suitable for re-opening, and it is hoped this will occur soon. In the meantime, of course, the EPD continues with its regular monitoring of the beach.
 


 
Although often remote, the beaches on Hong Kong’s outlying islands are some of the best on offer and are increasingly popular as destinations for escaping the stress of the city and enjoying a real holiday atmosphere surrounded by nature. The nine beaches located on outlying islands are not only beautiful and unspoiled, they also enjoy some of the best water quality in Hong Kong.
 

All of the beaches scattered around Hong Kong’s outlying islands were ranked ‘Good’ in 2004. The most impressive performer was Silver Mine Bay on Lantau. In 2004, its geometric mean E. coli count decreased from 50 to just 14 per 100 mL, a quite remarkable improvement that saw its annual ranking upgraded from ‘Fair’ to ‘Good’. Three beaches—Lo So Shing, Tong Fuk, and Upper Cheung Sha—registered Grade 1 readings 100% of the time across the season.


 
 
The non-gazetted beaches monitored by the EPD are ones that are popular swimming places or have the potential for gazetting at some future date. They range from large, heavily-used beaches like Discovery Bay Beach to small and remote ones, such as Lung Mei Beach on the northern edges of Tolo Harbour. Of the nine non-gazetted beaches, four ranked consistently ‘Good’ across the season, and four achieved a ‘Fair’ ranking.