Cindy Co Channel NewsAsia 1 Apr 19;
SINGAPORE: There is no correlation between burning or chemical smells and the ambient air quality readings, Senior Minister of State for Environment and Water Resources Dr Amy Khor said in Parliament on Monday (Apr 1).
This was in response to a question by Member of Parliament (MP) for Nee Soon GRC Lee Bee Wah, on whether there was any cause of concern for Yishun residents with regards to burning and pungent smells in the area.
There have been several fires in Johor over the past two months, including fires at two landfills in Bandar Tenggara and Tanjong Langsat and a fire in an oil palm plantation in Punggai.
"Between early-February and mid-March when the hotspots were detected in Johor, the 24-hour PSI readings remained within the good to moderate range, and the 1-hour PM2.5 levels remained in the normal range," Dr Khor said.
She also highlighted the specific measures taken by the National Environment Agency (NEA) to monitor and keep Singaporeans informed of pollution levels in Singapore's air quality and water supply.
AIR POLLUTION MONITORING
NEA uses both satellite remoting sensing and a network of real-time ambient air monitoring sensors across Singapore to monitor air pollution levels, according to Dr Khor.
In February, satellite remote sensing allowed NEA to detect fire hotspots with plumes of smoke in Southern Johor. This was later confirmed by the Department of Environment (DOE) Johor to be fires at three hotspots.
Prevailing north-easterly winds blew the smoke plumes towards Singapore, causing “intermittent burning smells over the past few weeks", Dr Khor said.
Real-time ambient air monitoring sensors measure key air pollutants, which include sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, ozone and particulate matter classed under PM2.5 and PM10. With this data, NEA calculates the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) over a rolling 24-hour period.
Readings of air pollutants are available publicly on the NEA website and the myEnv app, which has hourly updates from NEA.
"If there are significant variations above normal levels, unhealthy levels, we would notify the public with this information," said Dr Khor.
WATER POLLUTION MONITORING
Dr Khor also addressed the issue of water quality monitoring by NEA, in response to the illegal dumping of around 20 to 40 tonnes of chemical waste in Pasir Gudang.
According to Dr Khor, chemical waste was not been detected in NEA's water samples, and the agency has not detected any anomalies in the water quality at Singapore's recreational coastal beaches.
"PUB’s online sensors have shown that the water quality of Johor River, our waterways and reservoirs in the north and north-eastern part of Singapore, as well as the water supply is within normal variations," the minister added.
"On-site inspections and water quality checks have also shown no abnormalities.
"This incident has no impact on our water supply as the chemical dumping location is outside of our Johor River catchment area, where part of our water supply comes from."
The chemical dumping in Sungai Kim Kai at Pasir Gudang caused thousands of people in the area to be taken ill. A Singaporean and two Malaysians have been charged in connection with the incident.
CROSS-BORDER COLLABORATION
Dr Khor emphasised the need for greater cross-border collaboration between Malaysia and Singapore to tackle environment pollution.
"These include the provision of early warnings, and environmental monitoring data and guidelines. NEA and SCDF have been in contact with their respective Malaysian counterparts … to obtain regular updates on the situation there," she said.
“We will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates if there are significant developments."
Source: CNA/cc(mi)
Parliament: Singapore's air, water and food unaffected by fires, chemical spill in Johor, says Amy Khor
Rei Kurohi Straits Times 1 Apr 19;
SINGAPORE - Singapore's air and water quality, as well as its water and food supplies, has not been significantly affected by recent fires and the chemical spill in Johor last month.
Residents in the north and north-eastern regions of Singapore complained about a burning smell after hot spots were detected in the southern Malaysian state between early February and mid-March - the result of fires in two landfills and near an oil palm plantation.
Despite this, Singapore's National Environment Agency (NEA) found that the ambient air quality measured by the Pollutant Standards Index remained in the good to moderate range during this period, Senior Minister of State for the Environment and Water Resources and Health Amy Khor told Parliament on Monday (April 1).
"There is no direct correlation or association between the smells and the ambient air quality readings," she said.
She was responding to questions from MPs about the recent incidents in Johor.
Ms Lee Bee Wah (Nee Soon GRC) asked whether there were any long-term health effects for the residents who complained about the smells.
Non-Constituency MP Daniel Goh asked whether pollution levels had increased following the dumping of toxic chemicals last month into Sungai Kim Kim, a river in Pasir Gudang, in Johor.
PM2.5 levels, which reflect the concentration of fine particulate matter in the air, remained normal and the NEA did not detect elevated levels of volatile organic compounds like benzene, toluene and xylene in the air, Dr Khor said.
The agency also did not detect water quality abnormalities in the Strait of Johor, near Pulau Ubin, or at Singapore's recreational beaches.
"This incident has no impact on our water supply as the chemical dumping location is outside of our Johor River catchment area, where part of our water supply comes from," she said.
Dr Khor also said fish farms in the Johor Strait did not report unusual fish deaths, and that the Singapore Food Agency's tests for pollutants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, volatile organic compounds and heavy metals in seafood samples from the farms did not find any anomalies.
"We will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates if there are any significant developments. We will also continue to step up our checks and enforcement to protect our environment and safeguard the health and safety of Singaporeans."
