Sai Tso Wan Recreation Ground (晒草灣遊樂場) is a multi-purpose playground

Playground

A playground or play area is a place with a specific design for children be able to play there. It may be indoors but is typically outdoors...

 in Lam Tin

Lam Tin

Lam Tin is an area in the Kwun Tong District in southeastern New Kowloon, Hong Kong. Lam Tin is primarily a residential area, though it also hosts a major transport interchange and the location of several renowned shopping attractions. Lam Tin was once a large field in the vicinity of Kowloon Bay....

, Hong Kong

Hong Kong

Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...

. It is most notable being the first permanent recreational facility in Hong Kong built from a landfill

Landfill

A landfill site , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...

.

History

From 1978 to 1981, the knoll currently occupied by Sai Tso Wan Recreation Ground was known as Sai Tso Wan Landfill. The landfill served East Kowloon

Kowloon

Kowloon is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. It is bordered by the Lei Yue Mun strait in the east, Mei Foo Sun Chuen and Stonecutter's Island in the west, Tate's Cairn and Lion Rock in the north, and Victoria Harbour in the south. It had a population of...

. During its operation, the landfill held approximately 1.6 million tonnes of domestic waste and commercial waste. Rubbish in the landfill stacked up to 65 metre

Metre

The metre , symbol m, is the base unit of length in the International System of Units . Originally intended to be one ten-millionth of the distance from the Earth's equator to the North Pole , its definition has been periodically refined to reflect growing knowledge of metrology...

s high. After its closure in 1981, it was sealed with soil. The landfill then underwent a series of restoration works from 1995 to 2004, which turned the landfill into a recreation ground.

Construction

The ground was built from 1995 to 2004 from the former Sai Tso Wan Landfill. During the construction, the former landfill underwent a series of restoration works, which included the building of a final capping layer for prevention of leakage, a landfill gas

Landfill gas

Landfill gas is a complex mix of different gases created by the action of microorganisms within a landfill.-Production:Landfill gas production results from chemical reactions and microbes acting upon the waste as the putrescible materials begins to break down in the landfill...

 control system for utilization of methane

Methane

Methane is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is the simplest alkane, the principal component of natural gas, and probably the most abundant organic compound on earth. The relative abundance of methane makes it an attractive fuel...

 gas generated from the decomposed rubbish, and a leachate

Leachate

Leachate is any liquid that, in passing through matter, extracts solutes, suspended solids or any other component of the material through which it has passed....

 management system.

Sai Tso Wan Recreation Ground was commissioned on April 30, 2004. The ground has a multi-purpose sand-based, grass pitch which can be used for baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

 and football

Football (soccer)

Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

 activities, two (2) baseball batting cages, a children's playground, a jogging track, two changing rooms and a management office. Unlike most urban areas which relies mainly on electric supply, the ground is powered by wind turbine

Wind turbine

A wind turbine is a device that converts kinetic energy from the wind into mechanical energy. If the mechanical energy is used to produce electricity, the device may be called a wind generator or wind charger. If the mechanical energy is used to drive machinery, such as for grinding grain or...

s, solar cell

Solar cell

A solar cell is a solid state electrical device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect....

s and energy generated from combustion of methane gas.

Location

Located adjacent to Lam Tin MTR Station

Lam Tin (MTR)

Lam Tin is a station on the Hong Kong MTR Kwun Tong Line built as a part of the extension to Quarry Bay. The station is linked to the hillside community of the Lam Tin area by a series of escalators.-History:...

, the ground is a common sporting destination of many residents in Lam Tin. Its carpark also allows residents outside the district to access the facility easily.

Facilities

The recreation ground consists of a multi-purpose grass pitch for both football and baseball, two batting cage

Batting cage

A batting cage is an enclosed cage for baseball players to practice the skill of batting.It is usually made of netting or a chain-link fence and rectangular in shape. A batter stands at one end of the cage, with a pitching machine at the opposing end...

s for baseball practising, a children's play area, a jogging track and a number ancillary facilities, including male and female bathrooms and an office. The ground is a training venue for the National Squad

Hong Kong national baseball team

The Hong Kong national baseball team is the representative team for Hong Kong in international baseball competition. The team finished 6th in the 2007 Asian Baseball Championship....

 of the Hong Kong Baseball Association.

The ground opens from 7am to 11pm daily. Near its entrance is a main gate which has both a pedestrian ramp and a driveway, including an electric gate for the parking lot.

Environmental measures

Sai Tso Wan Recreation Ground was built in part to promote environmental protection in Hong Kong. Therefore, it was built with a number of features for environmental protection.

Wind turbines generate electricity by wind, which can either be used directly or stored in batteries for later use. Most electricity generated from the turbines is used for street lighting.

Solar panel

Photovoltaic module

A solar panel is a packaged, connected assembly of solar cells, also known as photovoltaic cells...

s in the recreation ground absorb sunlight during sunny days and convert the energy into electricity. The electricity generated from solar panels is first stored in batteries, and then used to power the fluorescent lights

Fluorescent lamp

A fluorescent lamp or fluorescent tube is a gas-discharge lamp that uses electricity to excite mercury vapor. The excited mercury atoms produce short-wave ultraviolet light that then causes a phosphor to fluoresce, producing visible light. A fluorescent lamp converts electrical power into useful...

 and electric fan

Fan (implement)

A hand-held fan is an implement used to induce an airflow for the purpose of cooling or refreshing oneself. Any broad, flat surface waved back-and-forth will create a small airflow and therefore can be considered a rudimentary fan...

s in the reception area.

Surface water

Surface water

Surface water is water collecting on the ground or in a stream, river, lake, wetland, or ocean; it is related to water collecting as groundwater or atmospheric water....

, including rainwater, collected from the facility is drained, recycled and then used to irrigate the turf

Lawn

A lawn is an area of aesthetic and recreational land planted with grasses or other durable plants, which usually are maintained at a low and consistent height. Low ornamental meadows in natural landscaping styles are a contemporary option of a lawn...

 of the ground.

Rubbersoil, a recycled, lightweight and porous material made from cement

Cement

In the most general sense of the word, a cement is a binder, a substance that sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. The word "cement" traces to the Romans, who used the term opus caementicium to describe masonry resembling modern concrete that was made from crushed...

 and shredded old tyre

Tire

A tire or tyre is a ring-shaped covering that fits around a wheel rim to protect it and enable better vehicle performance by providing a flexible cushion that absorbs shock while keeping the wheel in close contact with the ground...

s, is used as a sub-base material of the facility. Safety mats in the ground is also derived from used tyres.

A statue made from cement, crushed construction waste and glass pieces was erected in front of the ground's office as a landmark

Landmark

This is a list of landmarks around the world.Landmarks may be split into two categories - natural phenomena and man-made features, like buildings, bridges, statues, public squares and so forth...

of the ground.