Marine and Water Bureau (DSAMA) Director Susana Wong Soi Man said yesterday that the Public Works Bureau (DSOP) has applied to dump sediment dredged from Macau’s maritime areas during the ongoing Light Rail Transit (LRT) East Line project into Zhuhai’s coastal waters.

Wong made the remarks while speaking to reporters on the sidelines of her bureau’s annual event aiming to raise residents’ awareness of tap-water saving, which was held at the recreational and sitting-out area on the north-western Taipa waterfront outside the Ocean Gardens residential estate yesterday afternoon.

Marine and Water Bureau (DSAMA) Director Susana Wong Soi Man talks to reporters at the recreational area on the north-western Taipa waterfront, officially known as Taipa Waterfront Leisure Area, outside Ocean Gardens. – Photo: Tony Wong

Deal with Ecology & Environment Ministry

The local government and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment in Beijing signed an agreement in July last year that allows Macau to dump sediment dredged from the seabed of its coastal waters into Zhuhai’s coastal waters in the Pearl River Estuary. Wong travelled to Beijing to sign the deal at that time.

The deal aims to help Macau tackle an expected increase in sediments needed to be dredged from its coastal waters, resulting from its ongoing urban development and its increase in construction projects requiring the use of the city’s coastal waters.

According to the agreement and its supplementary regulations, which took effect on January 1 this year, Macau’s respective public or private entities that need to dump dredged materials into Zhuhai’s coastal waters are required to apply to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment’s branch office in Guangzhou.

According to a DSAMA statement in December last year, the mainland authorities have earmarked three zones in Zhuhai’s coastal waters for dredged materials from Macau to be dumped there. The three zones are 15 kilometres, 29 kilometres and 36 kilometres south of the southern coast of Macau’s Coloane island.

According to the DSAMA website, Macau currently has two zones in its coastal waters for dredged materials to be dumped there, both located south of Coloane island. The bureau has said that the two zones are nearing saturation.

Macau’s coastal waters cover 85 square kilometres.

The ongoing LRT East Line project, which got off the ground in October last year, is a 7.7-kilometre-long section connecting the Barrier Gate checkpoint at the peninsula’s northern tip and the Taipa Ferry Terminal via the Zone A and Zone E1 land reclamation areas. The East Line will cross the sea between Zone A and Zone E1 through an undersea tunnel.

Speaking to reporters yesterday, Wong noted that in the run-up to the implementation of the local government’s agreement with the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, her bureau last year began to meet public and private entities that were expected to have to dump sediment dredged from Macau’s coastal waters during their respective construction projects onto Zhuhai’s coastal waters.

LRT East Line to generate 1.1 million cubic metres of dredged materials

Wong said that as of yesterday only the Public Works Bureau has applied to the ministry for permission to dump dredged materials that are being generated by the ongoing LRT East Line project into Zhuhai’s coastal waters.

According to Wong, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment’s branch office in Guangzhou is still assessing the application from the Macau Public Works Bureau.

Wong said that the Public Works Bureau has told her bureau that the LRT East Line project was estimated to generate a total of 1.1 million cubic metres of dredged materials throughout its entire construction duration.

The local government said last year that Macau dredged a total of 7.7 million cubic metres of sediment from the seabed of its coastal waters in 2022, comprising construction projects requiring the use of the city’s maritime areas as well as the regular dredging of Macau’s fairways.

Wong also said that the mainland authorities had not yet decided which of the three zones south of Coloane island on Zhuhai’s coastal waters would be used first for dredged materials from Macau.

According to Wong, the local government expects the future project to expand the local airport to be the next one that will generate a large volume of dredged materials. Wong said that the respective entity to be tasked with carrying out the airport-expansion project has not yet submitted an application for permission to the ministry to dump dredged materials into Zhuhai’s coastal waters.

The local airport-expansion project, which will require to reclaim land, was approved by the central government in late 2022. The local government said last year that the project was expected to get off the ground in the second half of 2024.