Budget 2019: Total infrastructure bill to rise as Singapore fights climate change and rising sea levels

CYNTHIA CHOO Today Online 18 Feb 19;

SINGAPORE — The Government will be investing more “to protect Singapore against climate change and rising sea levels”, Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat said, stressing the urgency for Singapore to plan for climate change beyond the next decade.

“Together with existing infrastructure needs, our total bill for infrastructure will increase significantly,” he said during his Budget speech on Monday (Feb 18).

While it is “very difficult” to project spending needs “way into the future”, Mr Heng said that the different government ministries have done some preliminary estimates.

For one, the Government will be taking a harder look at closing the “waste loop”, such as by converting food-related waste into useful products. It is also studying the implications of climate change carefully and will come up with measures to prepare Singapore adequately, he added.

“Climate change and rising sea levels threaten our very existence. As a low-lying nation, there is nowhere to hide when sea levels rise. Other small island nations like the Maldives are already facing risk of flooding, with severe implications,” Mr Heng said.

In 2016, former president Tony Tan launched the Climate Action Plan and under this blueprint, low-lying roads near coastal areas are being raised. Changi Airport’s Terminal 5 will also be built at 5.5m above mean sea level.

Mr Heng said: “We will continue to do our best to look forward, develop fiscal plans well in advance, and put in place the right approach to finance such long-lived major infrastructure. Each generation should contribute a fair share.”

Besides adapting infrastructure to limit the impact of climate change, the use of polders and dikes (a wall built to prevent seawater from entering) has been piloted on Pulau Tekong to help the authorities learn how to deal with rising sea levels under the action plan.

The plan also sets out details on how to improve the energy efficiency rates of Singapore’s manufacturing industry, among others, while meeting obligations under the Paris climate change agreement.

CARBON TAX

In tackling climate change, global co-operation is vital, so Singapore is committed to doing its part. "It is the responsible thing to do for our children and future generations,” Mr Heng said.

This year, for example, a carbon tax will come into force here. About 67 countries and jurisdictions, including China, Japan and the European Union, have implemented or announced plans to roll out such a scheme.

During last year’s budget, Mr Heng announced that from 2019 to 2023, the carbon tax for large carbon-emitters will initially be pegged at S$5 per tonne of greenhouse gas emissions. The plan is to increase it to between S$10 and S$15 per tonne of emissions by 2030, and then there will be a review of the rate that same year.

Apart from that, from 2020, all facilities producing 25,000 tonnes or more of greenhouse gas emissions in a year will have to pay a carbon tax.

“This is an important signal to companies and households to reduce emissions and adopt energy-efficient practices,” Mr Heng said.

LIFESTYLE CHANGES

Mr Heng also urged individuals to adopt more environmentally sustainable lifestyles.

“We, too, must change our way of life and work towards becoming a zero-waste nation, by adopting the 3Rs — reducing consumption, reusing and recycling.”

The Zero Waste Masterplan will be launched in the second half of this year to look at better management of food waste, e-waste and packaging waste including plastic, among other issues.

Mr Heng said that Environment and Water Resources Minister Masagos Zulkifli will provide more details at his ministry’s Committee of Supply debate next month.

ENVIRONMENT-FRIENDLY BUILDINGS

On the infrastructure front, Mr Heng said that buildings can be designed to be environment-friendly.

Mr Heng cited the example of the School of Design and Environment’s SDE4 building in the National University of Singapore as an example of a “net-zero energy” building.

Separately, Singapore is rolling out a pneumatic waste conveyance system, which works on an air-suction system that carries waste from individual buildings through a network of pipes. The waste is then collected from a central location, eliminating the need for waste collectors to go from block to block to collect waste.

“Building a more sustainable environment makes our quality of life better, and also creates economic opportunities,” Mr Heng said.

When it comes to building homes, “we are not just building new flats”, he added. “We are improving the quality of life for Singaporeans, through the rejuvenation of all our public housing estates.”

These plans include the Home Improvement Programme (HIP) and the Neighbourhood Renewal Programme, as well as the Remaking Our Heartland initiative.

In the longer term, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has announced the HIP 2 and Voluntary Early Redevelopment Scheme (Vers) at the National Day Rally last year.

“These are plans that will keep our living environment first-class over the coming years,” Mr Heng said, adding that National Development Minister Lawrence Wong will lay out more plans at his ministry’s Committee of Supply debate.

Singapore Budget 2019: Preparing for climate change over long term, making Singapore a global city and home for all
Chang Ai-Lien Straits Times 18 Feb 19;

SINGAPORE - The Government will be investing in infrastructure in a big way, and developing long-term plans to protect itself against the impacts of global warming, said Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat on Monday (Feb 18).

But individuals must also change their way of life and work towards a more sustainable future.

"As a low-lying island nation, there is nowhere to hide when sea levels rise," he said.

"To protect ourselves against climate change and rising sea levels, we will have to invest more."

"Together with existing infrastructure needs, our total bill for infrastructure will increase significantly," he said.

Mr Heng pointed out that it is very difficult to project spending needs so far ahead, although the different ministries have done some preliminary estimates.

"We will continue to do our best to look forward, develop fiscal plans well in advance, and put in place the right approach to finance such long-lived major infrastructure. Each generation should contribute its fair share," he added.

The Government's Climate Action Plan, launched in 2016, has seen low-lying roads near coastal areas raised.

Changi Airport Terminal 5 is also being built 5.5m above the mean sea level.

There are also pilot projects involving dikes and new reclamation methods on Pulau Tekong - to shed light on how to deal with rising sea levels.

Mr Heng said the carbon tax being applied to this year's emissions is an important signal to companies and households to adopt energy-efficient practices.

And the Zero Waste Masterplan, which will be launched in the second half of the year, will look at better management of food waste, e­-waste, and packaging waste including plastics, among other issues.

But individuals must also change their way of life and work towards a more sustainable future, he noted, by adopting the 3Rs: reducing consumption, reusing and recycling.

Building a more sustainable environment not only makes quality of life better, but creates opportunities as well.

"Just as we closed the water loop, we can now turn our attention to closing the waste loop," Mr Heng said.

Start-ups are already tackling the challenge - UglyGood and Tria, for instance, have been working on innovative ways to convert food-related waste into useful products, he said.

UglyGood transforms organic waste into useful products, such as natural cleaners and animal feed, while Tria's proprietary packaging options can be rapidly turned into compost.

Praising the National Parks Board for its "excellent job" in greening the island, he said that in Singapore's dense urban environment, air quality and greenery were especially important.

The more than 40 per cent green cover here makes a difference to both the air and the living environment.

"Our beautiful living environment can also be enhanced through the smart use of technology, as a part of our Smart Nation efforts," he added, giving as examples pneumatic waste collection, the use of district cooling in the Marina Bay area, and environmentally friendly buildings.

"Today, our shining little red dot can hold its own on the global stage," he said.

But he added that Singapore's development plans must be far-sighted and must include the country's need to be well-connected within and with the world.

Within Singapore, there are now about 230km of MRT lines, a figure which will rise to about 360km in the 2030s, when major MRT projects such as the Cross Island Line are completed.

To enhance global connectivity, airport and sea port capacities are being enhanced.

"This will strengthen our role as a key node within Asia and to the world," he said.

"Connecting to future growth, knowledge, and cultural centres in Asia and beyond will not only benefit Singaporeans, but also add to the connectivity and vibrancy in our region."

Mr Heng said the long-term transformation of the city must start with Housing Board estates, where most people live.

"Many cities have large tracts that slip into disrepair over time - we must avoid that. We must strive to make every town in Singapore green and liveable, by rejuvenating them systematically over time."

Singapore's public housing policies had been uniquely successful because of long-term planning, he said.

Touching on the URA Master Plan 2019, he said it would guide the country's urban development over a 10 to 15-year time frame, ensuring that limited land could meet the needs of current and future generations.

"Today, we are not just building new flats. We are improving the quality of life for Singaporeans, through the rejuvenation of our public housing estates."

There is the Home Improvement Programme (HIP), which helps resolve common maintenance problems of ageing flats such as spalling concrete.

The Neighbourhood Renewal Programme is for block and precinct improvements, and the Remaking Our Heartland initiative is a blueprint to renew and further develop existing HDB towns and estates.

Over the longer term, there is the HIP 2 and the Voluntary Early Redevelopment Scheme.

"These are plans that will keep our living environment first-class over the coming years," Mr Heng said.

HSBC’s regional head of infrastructure in Singapore Jim Cameron said the Budget reaffirms Singapore’s commitment to maintaining core infrastructure spend in sectors such as airport and rail to maintain the economic competitiveness of the country.

“The Budget also reinforces the importance of climate change considerations in future development, both in terms of building climate resilience into large scale infrastructure projects such as Changi Airport and the importance that Information Technology will play in the Government’s ambition to showcase Singapore as the leading global Smart City where efficient urban functionality results in best in class sustainable planning and operations,” he added.

However Mr Tay Hong Beng, head of real estate at KPMG (Singapore), said while green buildings are highly relevant to Singapore’s sustainability initiatives, the Budget “does not provide any impetus to directly stimulate the demand and supply for green buildings”.

“It is only when we are able to establish a direct correlation between building sustainability and its occupancy, rental and valuation that greening of buildings can be driven by market forces rather than a top-down approach by the Government,” he added.