Preserving biodiversity can soften urbanisation of landscape: Khaw
Judith Tan Straits Times 13 Nov 11;
After a year's work turning Yishun pond and its surroundings into a waterfront park, the team behind it comprising HDB, PUB, National Parks Board (NParks) and Alexandra Health has been issued yet another challenge: to bring hornbills back to Yishun.
Hornbills were a common sight in Singapore 100 years ago but they disappeared with urbanisation.
The man who threw down the gauntlet was National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan.
He said that while Singapore cannot avoid urbanisation, it can soften the landscape 'with greenery and preserve biodiversity through sensitive management of the environment'.
'Globalisation is fast-paced and often impersonal, but again we cannot unlock ourselves from globalisation. Let's work even harder to recreate the old kampung in new HDB heartland,' he said.
Mr Khaw was speaking at the launch of the rejuvenated Yishun pond yesterday. It was built in 1986 to collect rainwater from Yishun New Town.
The pond and its surroundings were adopted by Alexandra Health (AH), the health-care group that runs Khoo Teck Puat Hospital sited next to the park.
Last year, AH worked with the HDB, NParks and national water agency PUB to transform the pond into a one-of-a-kind waterfront park.
The team also planted nutmeg and other fruit trees in the park, hoping hornbills would nest there in due course.
Through a collaboration between the Bird Park and NParks, they are returning to certain pockets of the island.
Mr Khaw noted there are some 100 hornbills in Singapore, with a small family on the grounds of the Istana, and he hopes to see more of 'these magnificent birds in our urban environment'.
Singapore should "soften" urban landscape
Channel NewsAsia 12 Nov 11;
SINGAPORE: Singapore cannot avoid urbanisation, but it can soften the urban landscape with greenery and sensitive management of the environment.
That is the view of Minister for National Development Khaw Boon Wan, who launched the rejuvenated Yishun Pond next to the Khoo Teck Puat Hospital (KTPH) in Yishun, on Saturday.
"Globalisation is fast-paced and often impersonal, but again we cannot unlock ourselves from globalisation, (so) let's work even harder to re-create the old kampung in new HDB heartlands, to re-create kampungs in our lives," Mr Khaw said.
Over the past year, the pond and its surroundings had been transformed into a waterfront park, making it an ideal spot for residents to exercise, as well as rest and relax.
For patients at the adjacent KTPH, it is a place they can interact and recuperate.
"The HDB has a big job in creating many more common spaces where people can interact," Mr Khaw said.
"Instead of just rushing from your flat to your office and back to your flat, let's particularly create common spaces like this, that in a way make people meet, walk, slow down, say 'hello, how are you', and care for one another."
For someone who has been directly involved in the development of the KTPH and the surrounding areas, Mr Khaw has another challenge for the planners.
He is encouraging them to bring back the hornbills to Yishun Park.
Mr Khaw noted the hornbills were a common sight in Singapore 100 years ago but they too disappeared with urbanisation.
Mr Khaw added there are some 100 hornbills in Singapore with a small family in the Istana grounds.
He said he hopes to see more of these magnificent birds in Singapore's urban environment.
- CNA/wk
