Letter from Kevin Chua Hock Meng, Straits Times Forum 25 Mar 08;
DURING the long weekend, we went to the beach at Loyang with our neighbours. It was delightful to see more and more families camping out at the beach enjoying what little nature we have in Singapore.
What continues to mar our experience at local beaches is their littered state. I understand that we need to continue educating ourselves to keep our environment clean and litter-free. But shouldn't the authorities clean the beaches more frequently until public education really kicks in?
When the condition of the beaches is already in such a littered state, beach goers don't think twice about littering. The only clean beach that comes to mind is in Sentosa. In other countries, beaches are cleaned frequently, usually in the early morning before the crowd arrives.
The cleaners at our beaches restrict themselves to cleaning the walking pathways and to emptying the trash bins. Another obvious need: more bins and bigger ones which can hold the large amount of rubbish and which can withstand the robust sea breeze.
System in place to keep beaches clean
Straits Times Forum 7 Apr 08;
WE REFER to the letter 'Not enough done to keep beaches clean' by Mr Kevin Chua Hock Meng (March 26).
The National Environment Agency (NEA) has a system in place to ensure the cleanliness of recreational beaches such as those at East Coast Park, Changi and Pasir Ris. Beaches are cleaned by our contractors either daily or on alternate days. During the monsoon seasons, the cleaning frequency is increased as more debris and flotsam are washed ashore from the sea during these periods. Additional manpower is also deployed for beach cleaning during festive seasons.
Following Mr Chua's feedback, we will provide more litterbins in areas that are more crowded, for example, near the barbecue pits in the parks. During peak periods such as weekends and public holidays, we will increase the frequency of emptying the bins. As for the bins, they are secured to the ground, and are thus able to withstand strong winds.
NEA and the National Parks Board will continue with both public education and enforcement to remind the public against littering in parks and beaches. We also seek the cooperation of beach and park users to be civic-minded as no amount of cleaning will be sufficient if users continue to litter.
We thank Mr Chua for the feedback.
S. Satish Appoo
Director, Environmental Health Department
National Environment Agency
Kong Yit San
Director, Parks
National Parks Board
