The State Key Laboratory of Marine Pollution at City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK) was awarded the "2024 Dayu Water Conservancy Science and Technology Progress Award (2nd Class)" by the Chinese Hydraulic Engineering Society, for the project "Key Technologies and Applications for Enhancing Urban Seawall’s Defence Capability and Ecological Function in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area". The award underscores CityUHK’s remarkable achievements in advancing sustainable development.

The Dayu Water Conservancy Science and Technology Award (Dayu Award) was the first national science and technology award in the field of water conservancy in China. The award was established with the approval of the National Office for Science & Technology Awards. It is a national scientific and technological award in the field of water conservancy, established and organised by the Chinese Hydraulic Engineering Society and approved by the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of China. The awarded project was jointly conducted by CityUHK, the Pearl River Water Resources Research Institute, Hohai University, Guangdong Hydropower Planning & Design Institute Co., Ltd., and Guangzhou PRHRI Engineering Survey & Design Co., Ltd.
 

Led by Professor Kenneth Leung Mei-yee, Dean of the School of Energy and Environment and Director of the State Key Laboratory of Marine Pollution, the CityUHK team was responsible for the research task of enhancing the ecological functions and applications of urban seawalls in the project. The research team has established ecological theories that enhance habitat complexity and marine biodiversity and has developed various ecologically engineered features suitable for vertical and sloping artificial seawalls. Field tests have demonstrated that these ecologically engineered features can effectively and significantly enhance biodiversity and ecosystem functions on seawalls.

Professor Leung said, "We are very pleased to receive this honour together with the research teams from the Pearl River Water Resources Research Institute, among others. Winning the Dayu Award acknowledges our efforts in ecological restoration research and our support for the implementation of artificial ecological seawalls by the nation and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government."

Professor Leung also sincerely thanked the HKSAR Government’s Development Bureau and the Civil Engineering and Development Department (CEDD) for their trust and the valuable opportunities they provided for the research team to conduct trials of innovative products on artificial seawalls in Hong Kong over the years.

"The support from the Development Bureau and the CEDD has played a critical role throughout the research and development process, promoting product diversification and design optimisation," he added.

Mr Michael Fong Hok-shing, Director of Civil Engineering and Development, warmly congratulated the CityUHK team, "I am very pleased that the CityUHK team has been awarded the Dayu Award, which fully recognises their years of hard work and research achievements. To enhance the biodiversity of artificial seawalls and create a sustainable future, the CEDD will continue to actively promote the research and application of 'eco-shorelines', aiming to benefit the coastal ecosystems of Hong Kong and other cities in the Greater Bay Area," he said.

Since 2016, Professor Leung has collaborated closely with the HKSAR Government to develop and promote innovative technologies and applications for the implementation of eco-shorelines. With strong support from the Development Bureau and the CEDD, Professor Leung has tested, applied and optimised various innovative ecologically engineered features on multiple artificial seawalls in Hong Kong, including those in Ma Liu Shui, Sai Kung, Tuen Mun, Tsuen Wan, Wan Chai, Causeway Bay, Lamma Island and Lei Yue Mun. He also participated in designing a 3.8 km-long eco-shoreline in the Tung Chung East reclamation area on Lantau Island, where preliminary research data shows that the artificial eco-shoreline has attracted over 90 species of marine organisms, demonstrating its significant effectiveness.

The team established a start-up company, called afterNature, through CityUHK’s HK Tech 300 programme and developed a series of novel eco-engineered products, including eco-tiles, eco-panels, eco-blocks, tidal pools and armouring units, with the aim of promoting the transformation of research into widespread applications. These products have been adopted by the HKSAR Government and promoted in South Korea, Mainland China, the Middle East, and other regions.

Additionally, the CityUHK team’s "eco-tiles" invention has received numerous awards, including the Special Prize (Prize of the Korea Invention Promotion Association) and Gold Medal with Congratulations of the Jury at the 48th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva, as well as the Gold Medal in the Asia International Innovative Award at the 2023 Asia International Innovative Invention Exhibition, and the Gold Award at the Hong Kong Green Innovations Award as part of the 2022 Hong Kong Awards for Environmental Excellence. The research team recently collaborated with the Chinese Hydraulic Engineering Society and the Pearl River Water Resources Research Institute to establish group standards for "Technical Guide for Ecological Design of Sea Dike", paving the way for further establishing standards for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.