In-depth review of flood protection measures

Low Mei Mei Channel NewsAsia 11 Jun 11;

SINGAPORE: The Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources (MEWR) will appoint a panel of local and overseas experts to conduct an in-depth review of all flood protection measures that will be implemented in Singapore over the next decade.

The panel will be appointed within the next two weeks.

It will assess the current drainage infrastructure, topography of flood prone areas, projected weather patterns, current and future building plans, information systems as well as potential new technological solutions.

The review process will take six months.

MEWR will also be publishing for public consultation the recommendations of the Inter-Agency Drainage Review Committee consisting of members from the PUB and various government agencies, and also those of external panellists from the National University of Singapore (NUS), Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and overseas consultants.

These recommendations include enhancing drainage design standards to cope with more intense rain, requiring new developments to comply with higher platform and crest levels and requiring building managers to enhance flood protection measures.

In a joint statement released Saturday, MEWR and national water agency PUB said there are several immediate measures being undertaken.

The safety of the public remains a top priority.

Since June 2, PUB has begun a systematic review of all flood-prone areas.

To date, it has inspected about 70 locations and identified 30 locations which require enhanced safety measures.

MEWR and PUB said works are being carried out to ensure the public's safety is not compromised.

To date, 1.67km of safety railings have been installed at 14 locations.

The PUB will continue to monitor all flood prone locations and encourages the public to provide feedback to help identify potential danger spots.

Members of the public who have suggestions or feedback can reach the PUB through email at PUBOne@singnet.com.sg or through its hotline at 1800-284-6600.

PUB is also working with owners of vulnerable buildings to enhance flood protection at their premises and accelerating some of the current drainage improvement projects.

These include raising entrance crest levels and the installation of flood barriers.

PUB will open its SMS Alert on Water Levels service for public subscription by July 1.

Currently, the public can access information on the water levels of the canals at PUB's website.

Such alerts will also be posted on PUB's Facebook page and Twitter site with immediate effect.

The National Environment Agency will also make available online Singapore's rainfall data, so that the public will be able to access the information easily for their reference.

PUB will accelerate higher priority drainage improvement projects.

These include an ongoing drainage project to raise a depressed portion of Tomlinson Road by next week.

A drainage improvement project is ongoing at Bukit Timah Canal, affecting the stretch from Maple Avenue to Jalan Kampong Chantek.

PUB is accelerating works to increase the canal capacity by widening and deepening the existing canal.

This will be completed by October 2011, while the whole project will be completed by December 2012.

Works to improve drainage at Mandalay Road will start in August 2011 and will be completed by December 2011.

This will widen and deepen the drain and raise the stretch of Mandalay Road.

These works will be completed by December 2011.

In the MacPherson area, PUB is constructing an outlet drain near Lorong Bakar Batu Road by September 2011.

PUB will also bring forward a project to deepen and widen several roadside drains in Sennett Estate.

Other major drainage improvement works include the Alexandra Canal, to provide flood alleviation at Lower Delta and Alexandra Road junction area, as well as Geylang River to provide flood alleviation in the area near AZ Building and Certis Cisco Centre.

Improvement works for the Rochor Canal, to protect parts of Little India, have also been scheduled for later this year.

An open section of a drain along Grange Road will be covered to prevent stormwater from overflowing.

PUB will also study the possibility of raising Grange Road to provide additional flood protection.

The ministry said it is committed to finding long-term solutions to solve the flooding problem in Singapore.

-CNA/wk

Local, overseas experts to review flood protection
Straits Times 11 Jun 11;

THE Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources (Mewr) said on Saturday that it will appoint a panel of local and overseas experts to conduct an in-depth review of all flood protection measures that will be implemented in Singapore over the next decade.

In a joint statement with the national water agency PUB, it was stated that the panel will be appointed within the next two weeks. It will assess the current drainage infrastructure, topography of flood-prone areas, projected weather patterns, current and future building plans, information systems and potential new technological solutions. The review process will take six months.

After another wet morning on Saturday, heavy showers hit several areas of Singapore, with at least one driver abandoning his car along a flooded road in Mountbatten. It was another reminder of the task ahead after PUB said it is going to give the prime Orchard Road area special protection to guard against flooding. This means widening and deepening drains at the junction of Cuscaden and Tomlinson roads, possibly building a retention pond and even diverting water to other catchment areas.

PUB also clarified that last Sunday's flood that submerged parts of Tanglin Mall and St Regis Residences was not due to Stamford Canal overflowing - the cause of the flood in 2010 - but a smaller drain in Grange Road that had overflowed. It maintained that unusual rainfall intensity was the reason the drains and canals were overwhelmed on both occasions. There were no floods in Orchard Road for 25 years prior to last year, PUB added.

Mewr will also publish for public consultation, the recommendations of the Inter-Agency Drainage Review Committee consisting of members from the PUB and various Government agencies, and also those from NUS, NTU and overseas consultants.

The safety of the public remains top priority. Since June 2, PUB has inspected about 70 locations and identified 30 locations which require enhanced safety measures. Works are being carried out to ensure that the public's safety is not compromised. To date, 1.67km of safety railings have been installed at 14 locations.

The Environment and Water Resources Minister says:
'I am grateful to everyone who has responded with many fascinating ideas and proposals for enhancing flood protection in Singapore over the past week. I believe that Singaporeans expect and deserve better flood protection. However, we must proceed in a proactive, careful and comprehensive way based on best available scientific evidence. We must also take advantage of innovative new technology and engineering solutions.' - Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan on his Facebook page posting on Saturday.

Public feedback to PUB:

Email at PUBOne@singnet.com.sg or through the hotline at 1800-284-6600.

Keeping the public informed:

PUB will open its SMS Alert on Water Levels service by July 1, 2011. Currently, the public can access information on the water levels of the canals at PUB's website (www.pub.gov.sg/managingflashfloods). Such alerts will also be posted on PUB's Facebook (www.facebook.com/PUBsg) and Twitter (http://twitter.com/pubsingapore) with immediate effect.

The National Environment Agency will also make available online Singapore's rainfall data.

PUB to speed up improvement works
Tan Dawn Wei Straits Times 12 Jun 11;

While a panel of experts convenes to review existing flood-protection measures, national water agency PUB says it will take immediate action on a few fronts and speed up improvement works.

In a joint statement with the Environment Ministry issued yesterday, it singled out public safety as its top priority. It has inspected about 70 locations since June 2 - a day after an Indonesian student fell into an overflowing drain in Balestier during a heavy thunderstorm and died - and identified 30 that need safety enhancements.

These include places in Commonwealth Avenue, Sixth Avenue, Marsiling Drive, Jalan Taman and Paya Lebar Road. So far, it has installed 1.67km of safety railings in 14 locations. It is also working with owners of buildings that are vulnerable to floods to protect the premises, for example by raising crest levels at the entrances and installing flood barriers.

From July 1, members of the public can subscribe to PUB's SMS alert on the water levels of canals. It will also post such updates on its Facebook and Twitter pages.

The PUB will speed up its drainage and road improvement projects, which are of higher priority. By next week, it will finish raising a depressed portion of Tomlinson Road, originally slated to be done by the end of this month.

Works to widen and deepen a drain and raise the road at Mandalay Road will also start a month earlier, in August. These works will be completed by December.

The PUB is also ramping up works to widen and deepen the Bukit Timah Canal, which will be completed by December next year, constructing an outlet drain near Lorong Bakar Batu by September this year and bringing forward a project to deepen and widen several roadside drains in Sennett Estate.

In the statement, the Environment Ministry said the various agencies are 'committed to finding long-term solutions to solve the flooding problem in Singapore'.

It encourages the public to provide feedback on potential danger spots. Anyone with suggestions can send an e-mail to the PUB at PUBOne@singnet.com.sg or call its hotline on 1800-284-6600.

New panel to fight floods
Team will be set up to review existing measures and come up with new ideas
Tan Dawn Wei Straits Times 12 Jun 11;

One week after intense rainfall caused the worst flooding seen this year, new Environment Minister Vivian Balakrishnan is appointing a panel of local and overseas experts to take a comprehensive look at flood protection.

The panel, to be established within the next two weeks, will study a wide range of issues: the drainage infrastructure, topography of flood-prone areas, projected weather patterns, current and future building plans as well as information systems and potential new technological solutions.

The review will take six months and the panel will have between four and eight experts.

Dr Balakrishnan said on his blog (vivian.balakrishnan.sg) yesterday that he is grateful to people who have given him 'many fascinating ideas and proposals for enhancing flood protection in Singapore over the past week'.

He added: 'I believe that Singaporeans expect and deserve better flood protection. However, we must proceed in a proactive, careful and comprehensive way based on best available scientific evidence.'

The authorities must also take advantage of innovative new technology and engineering solutions, he said.

Intense rainfall last Sunday submerged parts of eastern and central Singapore, including the Tanglin- Cuscaden area near Orchard Road. Water from an overflowing Grange Road drain went into the basements of Tanglin Mall and St Regis Residences.

Meanwhile, the new panel will review measures that have been planned for the next 10 years, and suggest new ones.

Among other things, it will be looking at the recommendations of an inter-governmental agency drainage review committee set up after last year's dramatic Orchard Road flood, when water spilled into shops and malls, reaching waist- high levels in some places and causing damage estimated at $8 million.

An independent panel of four experts, comprising civil engineering academics and an engineering consultant, had validated these measures.

The committee had recommended improving drainage design standards to cope with more intense rain; requiring new developments to have higher platform and crest levels and building managers to have better flood protection measures.

The Environment Ministry will be publishing these recommendations for public consultation.

Mr Cedric Foo, chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee for National Development and Environment, said that given the intense speculation about what caused the recent floods, the panel's first task should be 'to get to the root of the problem'.

'They should then question if our planning parameters need to be revised,' he added. 'And if so, a cost-benefit analysis should be done to determine how much tax dollars should be invested.'

Mr Steven Goh, executive director of the Orchard Road Business Association, welcomed the setting up of the panel.

'I think it shows there's an urgency to review the whole drainage network in Singapore and in particular in the Orchard area.'

But he added that he hoped the new panel could include members of the business sector, as well as building management, 'not just academics and engineers'.

One thing the panel should look at is the flood level for building designs, said Associate Professor Susanto Teng from Nanyang Technological University's School of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

'The buildings here are strong enough to withstand the floods, but the only problem is that the ground floors must be raised to cope with the rising flood levels,' he said.

Madam Michelle Goh, 53, owner of jewellery shop SuLin Serio at Tanglin Mall, which was flooded last Sunday, said: 'Whatever the panel comes up with, I hope they can do it quickly. The most important thing now is to prevent another flooding.'

Additional reporting by Feng Zengkun and Cheryl Ong

Panel to review flood measures
Saifulbahri Ismail Today Online 12 Jun 11;

SINGAPORE - A panel of local and overseas experts will be appointed to conduct an in-depth review of all flood protection measures to be implemented in Singapore over the next decade.

The panel, which will be formed in the next two weeks, will assess the current drainage infrastructure, topography of flood-prone areas, projected weather patterns, current and future building plans, information systems and potential new technological solutions. The review will take six months.

The Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources (MEWR) will also publish and seek feedback on the recommendations of the Inter-Agency Drainage Review Committee, which comprises representatives from the PUB, other government agencies, university academics and foreign consultants.

These recommendations include enhancing drainage design standards to cope with more intense rain; requiring new developments to comply with higher platform and crest levels; and requiring building managers to enhance flood protection measures.

Yesterday, heavy rains fell again in the morning in several areas, with netizens reporting, for instance, that one man had to abandon his car in Mountbatten after it stalled in floodwaters.

The safety of the public remains a top priority, the MEWR and PUB said in a joint statement yesterday. Since June 2, PUB has to date inspected some 70 flood-prone locations and identified 30 that require enhanced safety measures.

To ensure the public's safety is not compromised, so far, 1.67km of safety railings have been installed at 14 locations. Members of the public who have suggestions or feedback on danger spots can email PUBOne@singnet.com.sg or call the PUB hotline at 1800 284 6600.

By July 1, the public will also be able to subscribe to the agency's SMS Alert on Water Levels service. Information on canal water levels can now be accessed at PUB's website, Facebook page and Twitter site.

In addition, PUB will accelerate higher-priority drainage improvement projects, such as at Tomlinson Road, Mandalay Road, Sennett Estate and a stretch of the Bukit Timah Canal. The agency will also study the possibility of raising Grange Road, among other things.

Writing in his blog, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Vivian Balakrishnan said he was grateful to everyone who responded with "fascinating ideas and proposals for enhancing flood protection" over the past week. "We are dealing with Nature, and Man needs to be humble when addressing the challenges that Nature poses. There will always be uncertainty and, sometimes, despite our best efforts, we cannot win," he said.

"We will be open and transparent. We will share as much data in real time as possible so that solutions and precautions can be devised for the immediate and long term."

Dr Balakrishnan added: "A resident posted on the Holland-Bukit Timah Facebook wall that 'It is nothing too difficult to solve'. I'm afraid it is actually quite difficult to solve. Therefore I cannot guarantee outcomes."