 Although the scale of the phase 3 reclamation in Central was cut back from 32 to 18 hectares, the fate of the piers was sealed by the reclamation.The pier became the centre of a bitter struggle between the Government and conservationists, who opposed either further destruction of the harbour or the further loss of historical buildings.Consultants who prepared the Environmental Impact Assessment report in 2001 for the Central reclamation noted the pier's significant role in Hong Kong's transport history.