wildsingapore news: singapore

Showing posts with label singapore. Show all posts

Showing posts with label singapore. Show all posts

wildsingapore news will no longer be updated

It's been more than a decade of daily updates, I would like to have a rest.

It's now easy to build your own news feed, and to gather the info you need from social media.

So it's a good time for me to stop the updates.

Besides, I sense that very few people really read the updates...

Ria
hello@wildsingapore.com

Update 16 Sep: Thank you to the about 10 people who wrote to me about wildsingapore news. It really means a lot to me to hear from you. All these years, I've not heard from subscribers. Glad at least a few people have been reading it.

If you would like to keep up with marine issues, do consider subscribing to the Celebrating Singapore Shores blog or the facebook page.

Best of our wild blogs: 9 Sep 19

Butterfly of the Month - September 2019
Butterflies of Singapore

Night Walk At Windsor Nature Park (06 Sep 2019)
Beetles@SG BLOG

Stretch of Kallang River gets $86 million upgrade, with flood protection and water features

Lim Min Zhang Straits Times 7 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE - A 1.8km stretch along Kallang River has received a facelift, to make it not only more attractive, but also a better defence against the onslaught of rain.

The four-year, $86-million project called ABC Waters @ Kallang River is meant to boost flood protection for residents in the area, as well as to strengthen the canal's structural integrity.

With the canal wider and deeper, drainage capacity has been increased by 80 per cent.

The drainage improvement works by national water agency PUB at Singapore's longest river was completed recently and unveiled on Saturday (Sept 7), at an event attended by Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC MPs Ng Eng Hen and Chong Kee Hiong. Dr Ng is also Defence Minister.

Previously, this part of the canal, between Bishan and Braddell roads, was plain concrete and did not have such water features.

PUB releases thousands of fish in Pandan Reservoir to combat midges

Channel NewsAsia 6 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE: National water agency PUB has released "tens of thousands" of fish into Pandan Reservoir, the latest measure employed to try to control the midge pupae population, it said on Friday (Sep 6).

The release of the guppies, mollies and swordtails into the reservoir was done in a controlled manner that does not affect its ecosystem, PUB said in a Facebook post.

Midges, which are commonly mistaken for mosquitoes, are small insects which exist in and near water bodies.

"While these midges do not bite or spread diseases, they can be a nuisance when present in large numbers," said PUB.

Taking the climate fight beyond straws and tote bags — individual actions that matter

NAVENE ELANGOVAN Today Online 7 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE — In a country where most people do not think twice about buying new clothes, Mr Leow Yee Shiang has not bought a single piece of clothing in the past two years.

The 31-year-old civil servant practises what he calls a “minimalist lifestyle”. He rarely shops, and has only bought four items for himself this year – a water bottle, socks, lenses for his sunglasses and a motorcycle plate number.

What sparked the decision? Mr Leow said it happened early last year when he was packing his belongings for his return to Singapore from Australia, where he had been living with his wife for two years because of work.

“I got a bit fed-up as I was packing… There were many boxes. I got so angry at myself that I just started throwing away things,” he recalled. Among some of the items which he threw out included his wedding photo and its frame, as well as the love letters he got from his wife when they were dating. It means that he can now “focus on cherishing” their relationship, he said with a smile.

Wasteful practices of affluence must stop

Let’s consider a set of new 3Rs for environmental sustainability – namely, reinvention, recalibration and reward, says Nominated Member of Parliament Professor Lim Sun Sun.
Lim Sun Sun Channel NewsAsia 7 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE: One of my favourite Instagram accounts is that of Tabao Girl’s. This environmentally minded young woman meticulously photographs the efforts she makes daily to reduce her use of disposables.

On most days, she succeeds remarkably with her inspiring arsenal of reusable cups, containers, and cutlery, and enjoys her take-away food like the rest of us.

But one day in July this year, she recounted in a post her distressing experience at a bakery, while waiting behind another customer: “…when he was done paying, I was almost going to cry. First the 13 buns, each in 1 plastic bag of its own. Then he wanted 6 buns in 1 bag, and 7 buns in another – and he wanted them double-bagged. Then he asked the cashier to give him 1 large bag to put everything into. In 1 bakery trip for 13 buns, there was a total of 18, EIGHTEEN PLASTIC BAGS used in 1 single transaction.”

I share her distress when I witness such scenes in bakeries, hawker centres and supermarkets.

Biodegradable plastic alternatives not necessarily better for Singapore, say experts

Ang Hwee Min Channel NewsAsia 9 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE: You might think that switching from single use plastics to biodegradable plastic alternatives is good for the environment but in Singapore, there are “no effective differences”, experts said.

They often end up in the same place - the incinerator, said Associate Professor Tong Yen Wah from the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the National University of Singapore (NUS).

Biodegradable plastic wastes make a difference to the environment only when they are buried in landfills, he added.

“In these situations, these plastic bags can degrade faster as compared to a regular polyethylene plastic bag and will not affect the environment as much. Overall for Singapore, it might even be more expensive to incinerate biodegradable plastics," said Assoc Prof Tong.He explained that this is because some biodegradable options take more resources to produce, which make them more expensive.

Best of our wild blogs: 6 Sep 19

Changi Beach
Offshore Singapore

100 hawksbill turtles released into the sea after rare hatching on Sentosa

JUSTIN ONG Today Online 4 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE — One hundred newly-hatched hawksbill turtles were released into the sea from Tanjong Beach in Sentosa on Wednesday morning (Sept 4).

According to a Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) spokesperson, the eggs were hatched on Tuesday at approximately 10pm. SDC carried out measurements and checks on the hatchlings before they were released into the sea at about 7am on Wednesday.

The hawksbill turtle nest was discovered at Tanjong Beach on July 14, said SDC.

Accident with boar, chain collision cause jam in Mandai Road

Clement Yong Straits Times 5 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE - An accident with a wild boar and a separate chain collision involving four vehicles caused a major jam along Mandai Road on Thursday morning (Sept 5).

The accidents happened one after the other along the same stretch of Mandai Road towards the Bukit Timah Expressway (BKE) at 6.50am, causing traffic to slow for more than an hour during the peak period.

Chinese evening daily Lianhe Wanbao reported that the wild boar had been killed by an oncoming vehicle, and the motorist left the scene after the accident.

FairPrice to charge for plastic bags, McDonald’s to stop providing plastic straws at some outlets

Clement Yong and Melissa Heng Straits Times 5 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE - Supermarket giant NTUC FairPrice and fast-food chain McDonald’s have jumped on the eco-friendly bandwagon.

Both companies announced on Wednesday (Sept 4) that they will be trialling initiatives to cut down on plastic bags and plastic packaging.

NTUC FairPrice will start charging 10 cents and 20 cents for plastic bags at seven outlets in a month-long trial, starting from Sept 16.

The "No Plastic Bag" trial will encourage shoppers to use their own bags, FairPrice said in a statement on Wednesday.

MPs question Government’s stand on single-use plastics as Parliament passes new sustainability Bill

Ang Hwee Min and Aqil Haziq Mahmud Channel NewsAsia 4 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE: The issue of single-use plastics was discussed in Parliament on Wednesday (Sep 4), with some Members of Parliament (MP) reiterating a call for plastic bag charges.

This came as MPs debated the Resource Sustainability Bill, which was passed on Wednesday.

The Bill introduces regulations to reduce food, packaging and electronic waste, as Singapore’s only landfill at Pulau Semakau is expected to run out of space by 2035.

It will be mandatory for large food waste generators to segregate and treat their food waste by 2021.

Producers of regulated electrical and electronic products will be responsible for collecting and recycling e-waste like mobile phones, computers and large appliances through an extended "producer responsibility" framework that will be launched by 2021.

A similar framework for packaging waste will also be introduced. Companies that use packaging, like importers and supermarkets, will be required to submit an annual report on the amount of packaging in their products and their packaging waste reduction plans from 2021.

MPs lauded the Bill as a step in the right direction, but some felt that more could be done to tackle the excessive use of single-use plastics.

BCA's green building innovation grant gets S$20 million top-up

Kelly Wong Channel NewsAsia 4 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE: The built environment sector received a S$20 million boost to go green on Wednesday (Sep 4).

This was announced by National Development Minister Lawrence Wong at the opening of the inaugural International Built Environment Week (IBEW), organised by the Building and Construction Authority (BCA).

Mr Wong said that the top-up of the funds will encourage more collaboration between the built environment industry and the research community. This is to support BCA’s drive toward Super Low Energy (SLE) buildings, which BCA has said will be the “next generation of green buildings".

Best of our wild blogs: 4 Sep 19

LTA releases CRL EIA Phase II report
Love our MacRitchie Forest

Terumbu Raya is amazing
wild shores of singapore

Through nature reserve or around? Residents, nature groups stick to guns on Cross Island Line paths

KENNETH CHENG Today Online 4 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE — Residents who may have to live with construction work at their doorstep are not letting up in opposing the proposal for the future Cross Island Line to skirt the Central Catchment Nature Reserve.

Nature enthusiasts, for their part, are also sticking to their guns, repeating their objections to the MRT line passing underneath the nature reserve, saying that this could damage fragile ecosystems and harm wildlife.

These entrenched positions remain despite assurances this week that both alignment options being explored for Singapore’s eighth MRT line were feasible.

The latest assessment report found that the environmental impact of either tunnelling through the nature reserve or going around it could be “adequately managed” with comprehensive mitigating measures and monitoring plans.

On Monday (Sept 2), the authorities gazetted for public inspection and feedback the second stage of a report assessing the environmental impact of building the line. The Government has not decided on which option to take.

Land reclamation projects to combat climate change can be funded from past reserves: Lawrence Wong

NG JUN SEN Today Online 3 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE — To finance the fight against climate change, smaller-scale infrastructure such as flood barriers can be funded from the Government’s Budget each year, while “long-lived major” infrastructure — including sea walls — could involve borrowing, said Second Finance Minister Lawrence Wong in Parliament on Tuesday (Sept 3).

When land reclamation is involved, the costs will come from Singapore’s past reserves and the value of the reclaimed land after it is sold in the future will be fully returned to the reserves, said Mr Wong, who is also the National Development Minister.

“The reclamation of land is in essence a conversion of past reserves — from financial assets to state land. This use is not a draw on past reserves,” said Mr Wong, adding that this arrangement is part of the Reserves Protection Framework agreed between the Government and the President, whose constitutional role is to safeguard the national reserves.

Mr Wong was answering a parliamentary question by Associate Professor Walter Theseira, who had asked about the extent to which this policy to fund land reclamation will be applied to the S$100 billion climate change costs announced in this year’s National Day Rally by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

Trash Talk: A toxic trash pile grows when gadgets become waste — in a year or less

CYNTHIA CHOO Today Online 4 Sep 19;

With Singapore having declared 2019 as the Year Towards Zero Waste, TODAY’s new four-part Trash Talk series examines the issue of waste management and how Singaporeans can do our part to reduce waste. In the third instalment, we look at the often underestimated problem of electronic waste, and how consumerist lifestyles are adding to the toxic pile. Click to read the first and second instalment of the series.

SINGAPORE — The next time you are about to throw out your handphone to get a new model, perhaps ask yourself first: How many gorillas died for this?

What is the link, you might ask? Well, the critically endangered Grauer’s gorilla has lost 77 per cent of its population in the last 20 years, partly due to the mining of minerals used in mobile phones.

The main mineral mined is coltan, a type of ore used in mobile phones and other electronic devices such as laptops, digital cameras and tablets.

And despite the hard labour (often in slave-like conditions) involved in mining this mineral, and the devastating impact that this has on the natural habitats of various wild creatures, we throw aside our devices each time a new version comes along.

Experts cautioned that the rollout of the fifth-generation (5G) mobile networks could also spell the demise of 4G gadgets, and see them ending up on the trash heap.

Man tries to smuggle 2 hedgehogs through Woodlands Checkpoint

Channel NewsAsia 3 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE: Two live hedgehogs were found hidden in a Singapore-registered car at the Woodlands Checkpoint by Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officers on Saturday (Aug 31).

The animals were wrapped in camouflage netting and hidden in the spare tyre compartment of the vehicle.

ICA said a 42-year-old Singaporean man was referred to the National Parks Board (NParks) for further investigation and that the hedgehogs are now under the care of Wildlife Reserves Singapore.

“Animals like hedgehogs are not suitable as pets as they may transmit zoonotic diseases to humans and can be a public safety risk if mishandled or if they escape.

Best of our wild blogs: 3 Sep 19

Seeking Singaporean Youth Voices on Biodiversity!
Psychedelic Nature

Ridge Walk – five Friday evening briskwalks along the Southern Ridges (Sep – Nov 2019)
Toddycats!

Labrador shore still alive
wild shores of singapore

The Fruit Feeders
Butterflies of Singapore

Explainer: How 2 proposed tunnelling routes for Cross Island Line will affect wildlife, housing areas

KENNETH CHENG Today Online 2 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE — The authorities are inviting public feedback on two proposed construction choices for the future Cross Island Line.

This is after the second stage of a report assessing the environmental impact of building Singapore’s eighth MRT line was gazetted on Monday (Sept 2). Gazetting allows public inspection of the report and feedback on its findings.

The Cross Island Line — which is set to run from Changi to Jurong and is expected to be opened in 2029 with 12 stations first — can either run directly under the Central Catchment Nature Reserve or go around it. It would take a longer route and be more costly to build if it skirts around the reserve.

However, both are feasible options when done with comprehensive mitigating measures and monitoring plans, the latest environmental-impact assessment found.

How will it affect the nature reserve or residents living around the train line? Here is a rundown of the key points to note.

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