To tie in with the new development in North-East New Territories, the Drainage Services Department will kick in to turn the existing Shek Wu Hui Sewage Treatment Works in Sheung Shui into the “Shek Wu Hui Effluent Polishing Plant”, with enhanced handling capacity and environmental friendliness.

Co-design with the community

In the wake of an increasing demand for sewage treatment due to rapid community development and the public’s concern for ecological conservation and the use of public space, the project team, working with the spirit of "putting people first", has adopted a breakthrough "design thinking" approach and engaged in in-depth communication with the community in planning the upgrade of this strategic sewage infrastructure. It has turned the community into a project designer to address community issues together.

In 2018, the project team launched a community-based co-creation project, "Community Design for Sustainable Development @ Shek Wu Hui Effluent Polishing Plant Public Space", to co-develop the scheme with the public. The project team also kept abreast of public needs through a series of “self-experiencing” and “multi-platform” public engagement activities, including street booths, interviews, as well as workshops and visits for members and representatives of the community.

Achieve "Co-use" and "Community connection"

With the change of time, the community has high expectations for public space. In this light, the project team co-designed the “Shek Wu Hui Effluent Polishing Plant” with the community with the idea of “co-use space”. Even though the additional land available for the facility measures only 2.5 hectares, the project team has been able to identify about 2 hectares of "co-use space” for the public. A lot of greening elements, a riverside walkway, a bird watching zone, an ecological garden and planting sites will be provided for public leisure, visits and educational facilities relating to water resources management. Extending the concept of "co-use space" to the peripheral areas, the project team also worked with the nearby residents and green groups in drawing two educational routes on the themes of "Sustainable Living in Sheung Shui" and "Impact of Water in District History", thereby immersing the facility into the community and achieving the goal of “social connection”.

The project team and the community have joined hands to exemplify the benefits of Community Building with a Harmonised “Hui”. It not only meets the sewage treatment demand arising from population growth in the next 20 years, but also enhances the quality of living of the community as a whole.