Evelyn Choo Channel NewsAsia 23 Dec 10;
SINGAPORE: In 2010, climate change made its presence clearly known in Singapore.
Flash floods in particular spared no mercy on the island, leaving Orchard Road as one of the worst-hit areas.
But a massive operation is underway to protect the shopping belt, which is set to go full steam in January.
Flash floods hit Orchard Road not once but twice, resulting in million-dollar losses at the shopping belt.
The public and private sectors then embarked on a slew of preventive measures.
National water agency PUB is spending S$26 million to raise certain stretches of Orchard Road by 30 centimetres.
Work has since got off to a slow but tactical start due to the recent festive period.
Steven Goh, executive director of Orchard Road Business Association, said: "You don't see much progress because PUB has agreed to delay the road-raising works till mid-January.
"We cross our fingers, as major works will only be carried out in mid-January.....the relocation of the bus stop, jacking up of the ERP gantries, and raising of the lamp posts on the road, these are major works."
Outside Orchard, the floods also brought much grievance to low-lying residential areas like Goodman Road.
Lew Chiew Quan, owner of Pureland Marketing, said: "We're doing business around this area and we were quite badly affected. I've heard from my neighbours - who had been here for the past 20 years - (that such floods) had not happened before. I really hope the authorities can look into this matter."
Since the ordeal, PUB says it has brought forward 10 drainage improvement projects. And six of them will start around the first half of 2011.
These include road-raising works at Lorong G Telok Kurau, Lorong H Telok Kurau, Bedok Garden, Bedok Lane, Balmoral Road; old roadside drain improvements around Ang Mo Kio, Everitt Road, Frankel Street, Dunearn Road, Outram Road, Hua Guan Avenue, Tiong Bahru Road; roadside drain improvements at Thomson Road, Derbyshire Road, outlet drains at Sin Ming Road to Braddell Road; drainage improvement works at Goodman Road and Boscombe Road; and roadside drain works at the Bedok South Road area.
A Risk Map Study of Singapore's coastlines will also commence soon. The project will map out areas being threatened by rising sea levels, which could lead to a high risk of land loss and flooding.
The project, which could take three years to complete, will find out how climate change impacts Singapore's biodiversity and public health.
Besides the floods, there was also trouble offshore.
In May, a tanker collision resulted in an oil spill off the east coast. Although the clean-up was swift, researchers warn of long-term effects on the eco-system.
And up above, the haze was back, with the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) reaching unhealthy levels for the first time since 2006.
This prompted calls to step up negotiations with Indonesia to put in place immediate and enhanced measures to curb the hotspot situation in Sumatra.
Lee Bee Wah, deputy chairman of Government Parliamentary Committee for National Development & Environment, said: "We have more senior residents who (said that) during the haze period, some of them have to go and see the doctor; they have breathing difficulties. I strongly feel that more needs to be done. I hope that our minister will continue engaging their counterparts (in Indonesia)....."
But Foreign Minister George Yeo told Parliament that diplomacy could only do so much.
More recently, Singapore was represented at the UN Climate Change Conference in Cancun, Mexico.
Although a legally-binding agreement was not reached, the republic said it would continue pushing for energy efficiency. One project is the tapping of solar energy.
Solar panels have already started supplying electricity to HDB flats in some areas.
HDB said that by 2015, 30 precincts will have such solar panels installed under a S$31 million programme, its biggest solar power project to date.
- CNA/ir
