Best of our wild blogs: 11 Nov 18

Night Walk At Punggol Promenade Nature Walk (09 Nov 2018)
Beetles@SG BLOG

Singaporeans got eat giant clams!?
Mei Lin NEO

Read more!

National sterilisation programme to manage Singapore's 7,000 stray dogs

Tan Tam Mei Straits Times 11 Nov 18;

SINGAPORE- A five-year sterilisation programme to manage the stray dog population in Singapore was launched on Saturday (Nov 10) by Minister for Social and Family Development and Second Minister for National Development, Mr Desmond Lee.

Stray dogs, or "Singapore Specials" as Mr Lee prefers to call them, have caused occasional "human-animal friction" as they evoke a range of reactions from people with concerns that vary from animal welfare to public safety and public health.

"Some care for them, and feed them out of compassion. Some are oblivious to them. Other people are afraid of them, and will press the authorities to take action," said Mr Lee who was speaking at the Happy Pets, Happy 'Hoodcarnival at Hillion Mall in Bukit Panjang.

To address the different concerns, the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) has launched a nationwide initiative known as the Trap-Neuter-Release-Manage (TNRM) programme, which is a humane, scientific and sustainable method of managing the stray dog population, said Mr Lee.

Read more!

What can be done to make Singapore buildings more green?

CHRISTINE LI Today Online 8 Nov 18;

The Building & Construction Authority (BCA) launched the BCA Green Mark Scheme in 2005 to encourage building owners to adopt environmentally sustainable practices. The BCA has set a target for 80 per cent of all buildings to be certified by 2030.

Today, more than 3,000 buildings – covering 89 million square metres in gross floor area - have undergone Green Mark certification. However, two-thirds of the current stock remain uncertified.

What’s holding building owners back and what can be done to make buildings here more environmentally friendly?

Read more!

Commentary: The Marina Barrage, a dream 20 years in the making

An iconic landmark, a symbol of the city-state’s success in water management, the Marina Barrage is a culmination of decades of visionary foresight, planning and execution, say Cecilia Tortajada and Asit K Biswas.
Cecilia Tortajada and Asit K Biswas Channel NewsAsia 10 Nov 18;

SINGAPORE: The Marina Barrage has become an iconic landmark and a popular social space for many Singaporeans.

Clean, green, open, free and accessible to all Singaporeans and visitors, built at a cost of S$226 million, this impressive infrastructure, with a breath-taking view of the sea, was completed only in four years in 2008.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Barrage. Its objectives range from the functional, like flood control, to the strategic, of ensuring water security, and the symbolic, in providing a landmark waterfront attraction. It has received 16 million visitors since it was built, almost three times Singapore’s entire population.

It is the result of visionary planning at the highest political level, and painstaking planning and implementation by scores of officers at PUB, Singapore’s national water agency.

Read more!