Water exports In the early 1960s, the increasing demand of fresh water in
Hong Kong was increasing due to a growing population. The government saw that the most efficient way to fulfill the unmet water needs was through the fresh water sources in neighboring
Guangdong. On November 15th, 1960, The government reached an agreement with Guangdong authorities to take 23 million cubic meters of water a year from the
Shenzhen Reservoir, which itself was connected to the Dong River. Later, additional pumping stations and dam works were built to further extend the supply. The new annual volume of water increased to 620 million cubic meters. More extensions in 1990 upgraded existing stations, leading to a new volume of 1.7 billion cubic meters of water, of which 1.1 billion went to
Hong Kong, 493 million to
Shenzhen and 150 million for irrigation along the river. Since 1960, 12 supply agreements have been signed, of which all were based on consumption projections in Hong Kong. These projections accounted for population growth, industry, commercial demands, and predications of local yields. Due to the worsening quality of the water, the intake point of the water was moved upstream, and new sewage treatment plants were constructed.
Historical discoveries Since 1996,
Heyuan has been the site of a large number of dinosaur eggs and bone fossils, giving it the nickname "hometown of dinosaurs." The presence of eggs in good condition is likely caused by the softened soil caused by the river. In 2019, a 9-year-old primary school student from
Heyuan accidentally found dinosaur egg fossils while playing on the river bank in the downtown area. Once museum staff came, they dug out even more dinosaur eggs. Totaling to 11 eggs, they date back 66 million years. ==Geography==