Shui Keng Teng

Shui Keng Teng: a name that echoes with the clang of quarrying, the scrape of granite, the roar of the sea giving way to fresh water. Here, at the heart of High Island Reservoir, this island stands as a silent testament to Hong Kong’s ambitious pursuit of water security. Shui Keng Teng wasn’t always an island. It was once a hill, connected to the mainland, until the ambitious High Island Water Scheme transformed the landscape. Two massive dams, reaching 110 and 103 meters high, were completed in 1979. They sealed off the strait, turning High Island into a giant reservoir and Shui Keng Teng into an island within its watery embrace. The project, a marvel of engineering, took nearly a decade to complete, costing HKD1,348 million. Shui Keng Teng played a crucial role. It became a quarry, supplying materials for the dam construction. The rock excavated here, columnar-jointed tuff, wasn’t suitable for the outer layer of the dams. So granite had to be imported from other quarries like Turret Hill in Sha Tin. Imagine the constant activity, the dust, the noise, as workers extracted tuff from Shui Keng Teng. The scars of this activity are still visible today, a reminder of the island’s contribution to the reservoir. The High Island Reservoir, completed in 1979, holds a staggering 281 million cubic meters of water. This makes it Hong Kong’s largest reservoir by volume. Shui Keng Teng stands within this vast expanse of water, a solitary peak rising from the reservoir. It’s a quiet monument to the ingenuity and effort that went into creating this essential water source for Hong Kong. Think of the thousands of concrete dolos, those uniquely shaped blocks, protecting the dams from the relentless waves. They, too, are part of the story of Shui Keng Teng and High Island Reservoir, a story of transforming the landscape to meet the needs of a growing city. Shui Keng Teng is more than just a peak. It is a vital piece of Hong Kong’s history, a story of vision and transformation etched in stone and water.