2015 incidents of lead in drinking water in Hong Kong
Samples of potable water in Hong Kong were found to contain excessive levels of heavy metals including lead, nickel and cadmium in 2015.The scandal began in June 2015 when the Democratic Party announced that testing of drinking water at Kai Ching Estate in Kowloon revealed lead contamination.[1] The Hong Kong Housing Authority subsequently confirmed that the levels of lead exceeded the standard established by the World Health Organization.[1] Since the initial discovery at Kai Tak, lead contamination of drinking water has been found at numerous other housing estates, schools, and public buildings across Hong Kong.Hong Kong Housing Authority also discovered the presence of heavy metal in the water that was used was higher in comparison to the World Health Organization standards.[3] Helena Wong who is a member of the Democratic Party led to the exposure of the presence of high levels beyond the set standard of lead occurrence in domestic used water in an estate in Kowloon City.[11] However, Leung Chung-lap, assistant director of WSD, rebutted Lam's claim and said records showed that LP was also responsible for the pipelines into flats.Property management company Savills Guardian conducted testing at The Caldecott, a luxury estate in Kowloon Tong built in 2004, and found 19 micrograms of lead per litre of water sourced from a kitchen tap.SKH St. Thomas' Primary School in Sham Shui Po, the first case, where test results on potable water were 330% above WHO guidelines was disclosed by Apple Daily on 23 August.[25] Pre-empting the government confirmation of high concentration of lead at Kai Ching Estate, Chiang Lai-wan pro-establishment legislator from the DAB claimed that the Democratic Party's test results were scaremongering.[26] Later, the media reported that her husband, Raymond Leung Hai-ming, was an independent non-executive director of China State Construction, the contractor of Kai Ching Estate.[28] On 22 July 2015, the Democratic Party legislator Wu Chi-wai tabled the same motion on the LegCo panel on housing, but this was again rejected by the pro-establishment lawmakers by a margin of 11:8.[29] On 13 August, the government appointed a Commission of Inquiry into Excess Lead Found in Drinking Water chaired by Mr Justice Andrew Chan, with Alan Lai as Commissioner.[34] On 11 July 2016, a meeting was held for LegCo House Committee to discuss "Report of the Commission of Inquiry into Excess Lead Found in Drinking Water" released by the government previously.
heavy metalsnickelcadmiumDemocratic PartyKai Ching EstateKowloonHong Kong Housing AuthorityWorld Health OrganizationweldingLead poisoningHelena WongWater Supplies DepartmentsolderingChina State Construction EngineeringShui on GroupsolderBritish StandardKwai Luen EstateHung Hom EstateTung Wui EstateChoi Fook EstateUn Chau EstateChing Ho EstateLower Ngau Tau Kok EstateSavillsAustin stationEddie NgWong Tai SinEnglish Schools FoundationKing George V SchoolSha Tin CollegeSouth Island SchoolWest Island SchoolAS WatsonChiang Lai-wanChina State ConstructionNeo DemocratsGary FanLabour PartyCyd Hogeographical constituencyWu Chi-waiMr Justice Andrew ChanAlan LaiCarrie LamIndependent Commission Against CorruptionAssociation for Democracy and People's LivelihoodPeople PowerLegCo House CommitteePrincipal Officials Accountability SystemChief Secretary for AdministrationHousing AuthorityLead paintMetalworkingMetal fume feverHong Kong Free PressSouth China Morning PostWayback MachineInformation Services DepartmentThe StandardHistory of Hong Kongsince 1997Handover of Hong KongAsian Financial Crisis1st Legislative Council electionsOpening of the Hong Kong International Airport1st District Council elections2nd Legislative Council electionsDirector of Immigration v. Chong Fung Yuen2nd Chief Executive electionArticle 23 legislation debate2002–2004 SARS outbreakDeath of Leslie Cheung2nd District Council electionsDeath of Anita MuiMurder of Robert Kissel3rd Legislative Council electionsResignation of Tung Chee-hwa2005 Chief Executive electionOpening of Hong Kong Disneyland2005 electoral reformWTO Ministerial ConferenceOpening of Ngong Ping 360Demolition of Star Ferry Pier3rd Chief Executive electionMTR–KCR merger3rd District Council electionsLegislative Council by-electionEdison Chen photo scandalOlympic Games4th Legislative Council electionsAcid attacksGlobal Financial CrisisSai Kung bus crashEast Asian GamesFlu pandemicAnti-Hong Kong Express Rail Link movement2010 electoral reformManila hostage crisis818 incidentVallejos v. Commissioner of Registration4th District Council electionsProtests against Kong Qingdong4th Chief Executive electionMoral and National Education controversyPlastic disaster5th Legislative Council electionsLamma Island ferry collisionHong Kong Television Network controversyDock strikeKnife attack on Kevin Lau2014 electoral reformUmbrella RevolutionBeating of Ken TsangCauseway Bay Books disappearancesDrinking water contaminationHKU pro-vice-chancellor selection controversy5th District Council electionsMongkok civil unrestLegCo candidates' disqualification6th Legislative Council electionsLegCo oath-taking controversy5th Chief Executive electionImprisonment of democracy activistsCUHK democracy wall standoffTai Po Road bus accident