Today Online 10 Mar 14;
SINGAPORE — The haze continued to linger over the weekend despite some improvement in air quality on Saturday morning, with the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) readings remaining in the “moderate” range since 9pm last Friday. However, the situation was expected to improve overnight, said the National Environment Agency (NEA) in an update yesterday.
The agency said the haze may be attributed to hot spots to the north of Singapore blown in by the prevailing north-easterly winds. A total of 110 hot spots were detected in Peninsula Malaysia and 210 in Sumatra yesterday. This is an increase from the 14 in Peninsula Malaysia and 129 in Sumatra reported on Saturday.
Last Friday, the three-hour PSI reached as high as 71 at one point. As of 9pm last night, the 24-hour PSI readings ranged from 36 to 50. The three-hour PSI reading was 56 and the PM2.5 concentration level was in the range of 22 to 33 micrograms per cubic metre.
The NEA said that for the next few days, the weather is expected to be fair and warm. “Slightly hazy conditions can also be expected in the late afternoon and night if hot spots in the surrounding region persist. The agency will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates as necessary,” the agency said in a statement.
The NEA noted that the health impact of haze is dependent on one’s health status, the PSI level, and the length and intensity of outdoor activity.
“Reducing outdoor activities and physical exertion can help limit the ill effects from haze exposure. Persons who are not feeling well, especially the elderly, pregnant women and children, and those with chronic heart or lung conditions, should seek medical attention. At the current PSI and PM2.5 levels, most people can continue with normal activities,” the NEA said.
More than 200 organisations succeed in reducing water usage
Channel NewsAsia 9 Mar 14;
SINGAPORE: More than 200 companies and organisations that took part in PUB's "10% Challenge" have successfully managed to reduce their water usage by 10 per cent in the last four years, the national water agency said.
February was Singapore's driest month in 145 years since records were kept and statistics show that the Republic uses about 400 million gallons of water per day.
Last year, 45 per cent of water usage was attributed to households, with commercial operators and government buildings taking up the rest.
By 2060, commercial usage is expected to form 70 per cent of Singapore's water consumption.
PUB said 342 organisations have developed and submitted their Water Efficiency Management Plan as of last December, and 204 of them have managed to shrink their water usage by 10 per cent.
One of the companies that has successfully cut down its water usage is City Developments Limited.
It uses waste water and rainwater to test water-proofing in newly-built toilets and to wash the tyres of heavy vehicles to prevent them from soiling public roads.
At construction sites, it uses an underground water storage tank to collect rain water, which is then used for other purposes, for example, to water plants when the project is completed.
Recycling water helps the company save S$280.
Chew Chin Boon, a project manager with City Developments Limited, said: "When the project is completed, the rainwater tank will remain. It will be used to collect rainwater and the condensate from all the units' aircons. The water will be used to water all the plants in the estate."
- CNA/xq
Haze returns to Singapore as air quality dips to 'moderate'
Audrey Tan and Grace Chua The Straits Times AsiaOne 10 Mar 14;
AIR quality in Singaporeon Friday reached its worst level since the start of the year, with the haze affecting visibility in some areas and leaving a smell of smoke.
By 6pm, the Pollutant Standards Index's (PSI) three-hour reading had crept from "good" into the "moderate" range, hitting a high of 71 at 8pm and falling to 69 an hour later.
"It's difficult to concentrate," said National University of Singapore business student Jason Ng, 24. "The hall library is filled with people, not only because of the mid-term examinations but also the haze."
The National Environment Agency said north-easterly winds could have blown smoke from hot spots north of Singapore.
Four hot spots were detected in peninsular Malaysia and 35 in Sumatra, Indonesia on Friday.
Since the dry spell began in late December, farmers have been clearing land through burning.
On Friday, civil society activists and leaders of non-governmental organisations met to share their perspectives and recommendations on the proposed Transboundary Haze Pollution Bill.
The new Bill, which is up for public consultation until March 19, would hold companies and other entities liable for fires on their land outside Singapore that cause haze here. It also provides for both criminal and civil liability.
Singapore experienced its worst bout of haze last June when the 24-hour PSI hit a record 246.
At the meeting organised by the Singapore Institute of International Affairs (SIIA) at its Dhoby Ghaut premises, the 11 participants from think-tanks, universities, and NGOs such as BirdLife International discussed the practical challenges of the proposed law. For one thing, serving notice to those overseas may be challenging. If firms moved abroad in response, Singapore would have even less sway over them.
They also discussed if the proposed fines were high enough. One participant said fines could be pegged to how much land is burned so companies will not simply burn large tracts at one go.
SIIA chairman Simon Tay said feedback from the two-hour session would be compiled and submitted to the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources
. "Singapore's reputation is about enforcing the laws that it talks about and this proposed Bill shows Singapore is willing to do its part to help solve the haze. But the question now is, how this Bill is going to be enforced justly?"
Water use up by 5 per cent
The New Paper AsiaOne 10 Mar 14;
Daily water usage has gone up by 5 per cent above average during the current dry spell.
Singapore will have to "re-evaluate the adequacy of our current plans" if the trend continues, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Vivian Balakrishnan said.
He was responding in Parliament on Friday to MP David Ong (Jurong GRC), who asked at what point the country may have to consider water rationing, last seen in the 1960s.
Dr Balakrishnan reiterated that he does not see a need for water rationing in "the foreseeable future", as long as Singaporeans do their part to conserve water and cut usage.
Even so, he is "taking seriously" a suggestion from members of the public to conduct water- rationing exercises. These would remind people of the value of water, he said, and allow them to rehearse what may need to be done.
The two desalination and four Newater plants here have been running at near-full capacity during the dry spell, providing 55 per cent of the country's water needs.
Dr Balakrishnan stressed that despite the investments in desalination and Newater, imported water from Malaysia "remains an essential part" of Singapore's water supply.
He noted that the $300 million-plus thatSingapore spent to build the Linggiu dam across the Johor River had enabled both countries to draw more water, even during this dry spell.
"All these additional investments have been a premium that we have paid for greater security and diversity of our water supply," he said.
Singapore aims to achieve water self-sufficiency by 2061, the year the second water agreement with Malaysia expires, he added, reiterating Foreign Minister K. Shanmugam's remarks in Parliament on Thursday that both countries have to honour the agreement.
Meanwhile, Singapore has opened its first plant to recycle industrial used water.
This water was previously treated to internationally-accepted standards and discharged into the sea. The new plant purifies it to a higher standard so it can be re-used by industries.
National water agency PUB said the plant can produce up to one million gallons of non-drinkable water per day, and the output will be used by companies on Jurong Island.
63 per cent say drought has not led to less water use
Grace Chua, Laura Ng, Vanessa Chng The Straits Times AsiaOne 10 Mar 14;
SINGAPORE - Most people here have not changed their water use in response to the current dry spell.
Of 701 people who responded to a Straits Times poll on Thursday and Friday, 438 (62.5 per cent) said the dry spell had not made a difference to their water use. Many said they were already being frugal about water use.
Another 19.7 per cent said they were using less water by taking shorter showers, not washing their cars, and by doing dishes in a filled basin or sink.
The remainder said they were using more - drinking more, taking more showers and watering plants.
Singapore has had a prolonged, record-setting spell of dry weather since mid-January, and a 5per cent increase in water usage.
To maintain water levels in reservoirs, PUB has stepped up desalination to full capacity of 100 million gallons a day (mgd) and Newater production to over 100 mgd.
Meanwhile, attractions and commercial buildings have taken extra steps to save water. The Science Centre Singapore has closed its Waterworks play area and water features, while developer and mall owner CapitaLand has shut off external water features at most of its buildings. Hong Leong Group, which owns Millennium and Copthorne hotels and commercial buildings, has done likewise and has deferred cleaning the facades of some buildings.
The Chin family was among those taking water conservation more seriously.
Small business owner Catherine Chin, 42, waters plants with water collected from washing vegetables and rice, and mops the floor with water used for laundry.
Her husband, Mr Chin Yeow Wah, 49, said: "It's a good practice that we should continue - with or without the dry spell."
But what would it take for people to make a conscious effort to conserve water? Mr Eric Kok, 42, said: "If the Government gave us rebates or NTUC vouchers, if we could lower our water bills from month to month, I would ensure that my family saves water."
Public policy lecturer Leong Ching, who studies water policy and teaches at the National University of Singapore, said she could see why usage doesn't change: "I think it is because they don't see the direct link between, say, taking a shorter shower, and the levels in a reservoir."
Though desalination and Newater create self-sufficiency, she added, both of these require energy. "So we may be self-sufficient but water is not free."
She noted that Singapore's per capita domestic water consumption, at 151 litres a day last year, was more than that of Denmark and Finland, which use 131 and 115 litres a day respectively.
More could be done to affirm the efforts of people who are frugal about water use, such as putting a smiley face on their bill, she added. "To me, this drought is a perfect opportunity to focus people's minds on this issue," Dr Leong said.
