wildsingapore news: singaporeans-and-nature

Showing posts with label singaporeans-and-nature. Show all posts

Showing posts with label singaporeans-and-nature. Show all posts

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.

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.

Sky park to be built above Bukit Timah canal as part of new green corridor

Vanessa Lim Channel NewsAsia 31 Aug 19;

SINGAPORE: A sky park is set to be built above the Bukit Timah canal, National Development Minister Lawrence Wong announced on Saturday (Aug 31).

Construction works for the first phase of the new park, a 1.4km elevated stretch that runs from the Rail Corridor to Elm Avenue, will start in 2021 and is expected to be completed within two to three years.

The sky park is part of the National Parks Board (NParks) plan to develop the Bukit Timah-Rochor Green Corridor, a linear park that lies between Bukit Timah Road and Dunearn Road.

In future, this green corridor may be extended all the way to Kallang Riverside, totalling 11km.

Young activists planning 'green dot' gathering on Sept 21

Audrey Tan Straits Times 12 Aug 19;

A "green dot" rally is being planned for next month at Hong Lim Park.

About 15 young activists in Singapore are organising a climate action rally on Sept 21, in line with the global youth movement inspired by Swedish teen climate champion Greta Thunberg.

Next month's event, the Singapore Climate Rally, will be the first physical one in the Republic since the international movement began in August last year, although there have been other social-media climate campaigns here.

A permit for the event has been sought by the young organisers and approved by the National Parks Board, which manages Hong Lim Park - an area designated as Speakers' Corner where public protests are allowed. The organisers are also applying for a police permit.

The event will feature speeches, a picnic and a postcard-writing session in which participants will be encouraged to send notes urging stronger climate action to their representatives in Parliament and other government officials.

There will also be a "die-in", a photographic opportunity in which participants are encouraged to visually express their thoughts on the human lives and biodiversity that will be lost to unabated global warming. Attendees will be asked to form the shape of a spiral, and then gradually collapse inward domino-style to highlight the interconnectedness of the planet, organisers say.

New tech tools at Botanic Gardens arboretum will help conserve endangered forest giants

Yuen Sin Straits Times 20 Jul 19;

SINGAPORE - Due to illegal logging and deforestation, the population of dipterocarps - iconic trees that constitute the backbone of the Indo-Malayan rainforests - have decreased over the years.

Many species in Singapore have also become critically endangered.

When it opens at the end of this year, the OCBC arboretum in the Botanic Gardens will house an integrated suite of technological tools that will be employed to better track the climate, growth and conditions of these trees, and bolster efforts to conserve them, it was announced on Saturday (July 20).

The arboretum will also serve as a test bed for new technological tools for tree maintenance that will be progressively rolled out across the island over the next five years.

Citizens’ workgroup to be formed to help improve recycling culture

Comprising 50 S'poreans from diverse backgrounds, it will work on creating effective solutions
Timothy Goh Straits Times 18 Jul 19;

The Government will convene a citizens' workgroup as part of its efforts to tackle climate change and environmental issues.

This was announced by Senior Minister of State for the Environment and Water Resources Amy Khor during the Partners for the Environment Forum yesterday.

Dr Khor said that climate change and environmental protection are "complex and multifaceted problems that cannot be addressed by the Government alone", and which require businesses and individuals to also do their part.

Though the public has already been engaged widely on the Zero Waste Masterplan which will be launched later this year, Dr Khor said that the Government wants to go beyond discussion to action, and work with Singaporeans to co-create effective solutions to environmental issues.

The citizen's workgroup is an example of such collaboration. Comprising 50 Singaporeans from diverse backgrounds, it will work with the authorities on solutions to improve the way people here recycle at home.

Environmental champions lauded for efforts, inspiring others to go green

LAUREN ONG Today Online 18 Jul 19;

SINGAPORE — No plastic straws, plastic water bottles or plastic boxes are being sold or used on the premises of Commonwealth Secondary School, thanks to a push by the school’s biology teacher, Mr Jacob Tan Guan Rui.

The drive to minimise the use of plastic was spurred by a conversation that Mr Tan had with his former student, who was aghast by the exorbitant amount of plastic waste he witnessed in schools, especially the polytechnic where he was.

Mr Tan, 33, said: “I wasn’t aware of the issue of plastic waste pollution until, in September 2017, the ex-student came back to look for me and told me (how this was bothering him).

Mr Tan agreed that more could be done in this area and said that he would read up more and see if he could “influence the school community” to support an initiative to cut down on plastic use.

Commonwealth Secondary School now has a campaign that bans plastic products from the canteen since the end of 2017.

Singaporeans head to fire hotspot village in Indonesia to tackle haze

Michael Taylor Reuters 19 Jul 19;

KUALA LUMPUR (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - A Singaporean charity is working with villagers in Indonesia to restore ancient peatlands, seeking to curb the haze that chokes the region every year, organizers said on Thursday.

Indonesian farmers burn huge swathes of land every year to clear land for agricultural expansion, creating a vast haze that clouds the skies over large parts of Southeast Asia - including Singapore.

Now the People’s Movement to Stop Haze (PM Haze), an advocacy group in the city-state, has launched a peatland restoration project in a tiny Indonesian village that suffered bad fires in 2014.

“One of the things we realized is that good management of peatland is very important for managing haze in the region,” Benjamin Tay, executive director of PM Haze told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by phone.

“A lot of the haze comes over from that part of Indonesia into Singapore, so by preventing fires and haze in that region, we prevent haze from coming to Singapore,” he said.

Community sheds with litter-picking tools for beach clean-ups set up in Singapore parks

Channel NewsAsia 17 Jul 19;

SINGAPORE: Sheds with shared, reusable litter-picking tools dubbed CleanPods have been set up at three parks in Singapore, the Public Hygiene Council (PHC) and National Parks Board (NParks) said on Wednesday (Jul 17).

Volunteer groups who organise beach clean-ups will be able to reduce waste by using the tools provided in the community storage platform, the two agencies said.

The existing methods of organising such activities might potentially contribute to waste, PHC and NParks said.

Wanted: Public feedback on how to reduce Singapore’s carbon emissions beyond 2030

NAVENE ELANGOVAN Today Online 17 Jul 19;

SINGAPORE — Singaporeans may now give their suggestions on how to make Singapore cleaner and greener.

The National Climate Change Secretariat (NCCS) launched an online public consultation exercise on Tuesday (July 16) to get feedback from the public regarding its long-term strategy to reduce Singapore’s carbon emissions beyond 2030.

It would like to seek views on measures and actions that can be taken by the Government, businesses, households and individuals towards becoming a low carbon city, to minimise carbon emissions.

The NCCS, which comes under the Prime Minister’s Office, oversees Singapore’s domestic and international policies to tackle climate change.

It is working on a strategy which builds on Singapore’s ongoing effort to achieve its pledge under the Paris Agreement — where Singapore has committed to reduce its emissions intensity by 36 per cent from 2005 levels by 2030.

WHY IT MATTERS

Spot a python? Just leave it alone, advise wildlife groups

Pythons are a natural control for the rat population, say wildlife experts.
Cindy Co Channel NewsAsia 19 Jul 19;

SINGAPORE: Waking up to the screams of his wife and maid, Mr Melvin Yap rushed to them, only to discover a snake coiled around the cage of his pet bird.

It was a reticulated python about 1.5m long - one of the most common species of snakes found in Singapore.

Although the incident occurred about two years ago, Mr Yap still has vivid memories of the snake.

“It was quite docile,” said Mr Yap, recalling how he calmly used a stick to coax the python into a plastic bag.

“Unless you know what you’re doing, the best thing is to avoid it. (But) I knew what kind of snake it was.”

It takes a community to protect mangroves: Desmond Lee

Marcia Lee Straits Times 6 Jul 19;

As both the biggest threat to and beneficiary of mangroves, the local community needs to be involved in protecting the tropical trees growing in and around intertidal communities.

Anyone can help by volunteering with organisations like the National Parks Board (NParks) and the Restore Ubin Mangroves initiative, a mangrove rehabilitation project led by researchers, community groups and government agencies.

They can get involved in nature walks, biodiversity surveys and mangrove cleanups in the Central Nature Reserve, Pulau Ubin or Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve (SBWR).

Crocodile found in Sungei Kadut drain: Concerns from the past and what next

Experts explain how injured reptile may have got here, suggest possible relocation homes
Shabana Begum Straits Times 6 Jul 19;

The crocodile found in a Sungei Kadut drain last month may have been fleeing a territorial fight or was relocating from Malaysia, wildlife experts told The Straits Times.

The 3.4m estuarine crocodile - one of the largest ever spotted in Singapore - was caught and transferred to a crocodile farm on June 21 by the National Parks Board (NParks) and trained contractors.

It was believed to have entered the Sungei Pang Sua drainage area.

Otters spotted in Bukit Timah; group fled from Singapore River home due to Bishan otters

Goh Yan Han Straits Times 30 May 19;

SINGAPORE - A group of otters were spotted at a Bukit Timah bus stop on Thursday morning (May 30).

The group of six was also seen near Stevens MRT station on the same day, as well as near Adam Road Food Centre the evening before, according to posts by netizens to the OtterWatch Facebook page.

A Straits Times reader noticed the otters along Bukit Timah Road at around 7am when she was taking her children to school.

"They were chilling at the roadside at first, then they were trying to cross the road," said the 37-year-old, who wanted to be known only as Ms Lim.

"It was a bit scary. They tried a few times before managing to cross safely."

She added that it was an unexpected and unusual sight in the morning, and that the otters were "very cute".

Otter enthusiast Bernard Seah, 50, identified the group as the Zouk otters, which were so named when they were spotted near the former Zouk site in Jiak Kim Street in the second half of 2018.

40 species potentially new to Singapore discovered in Bukit Timah Nature Reserve survey

Channel NewsAsia 25 May 19;

SINGAPORE: More than 40 species potentially new to Singapore have been discovered during a comprehensive survey of the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, according to a National Parks Board (NParks) media release on Saturday (May 25).

In total, around 200 species new to the nature reserve were listed during the survey.

Of these, more than 30 species of spider and 10 species of beetle are potentially new to Singapore. Some may also be new to science, said NParks.

These include two new types of armour-plated spiders - the Paculla bukittimahensis, named after Bukit Timah and a type of jumping spider with white and gold scales - as well as a species of stick insect.

Researchers also found records of more than 160 plant species not previously listed in the nature reserve.

Mandai eco-resort to offer guests behind-the-scenes animal experiences

Tiffany Fumiko Tay Straits Times 23 May 19;

SINGAPORE - Beyond snoozing in the middle of five wildlife parks, overnight guests at the future eco-resort in Mandai will be able to participate in behind-the-scenes activities where they can work with keepers and learn about the animals.

Mr Mike Barclay, group chief executive of Mandai Park Holdings, said during a media conference on Thursday (May 23) that the resort will offer a unique opportunity for guests to experience hands-on and learning activities that are not currently available.

Guests could, for example, be taken to the zoo's elephant enclosure in the evenings to help keepers put together "food puzzles" to be placed in the exhibit, and return in the morning to watch the elephants pull apart the branches and twine enveloping the treats, he said.

Primary school pupils win top prize in environmental competition with role-playing game

Aqil Hamzah Straits Times 22 May 19;

SINGAPORE - The year is 2100 and rising sea levels have forced Singaporeans to live atop a floating city.

Global warming has caused irreversible damage to the environment and the only solution is to travel back in time to educate society about the importance of environmental conservation.

This is the premise of Symbiosis: The Environment Role Playing Game, which was developed by Primary 5 pupils from Temasek Primary School in collaboration with 28 partners, including the National Environment Agency.

Diving in: Singapore scientists, volunteers on a mission to protect local reefs from marine trash

LOW YOUJIN Today Online 19 May 19;

SINGAPORE — As the divers navigated their way through Singapore’s southern waters, the beam from their flashlights came across a child-like hand sticking out from the murky depths.

They approached it with apprehension and, to their relief, discovered that it was a doll.

“It was during the Seventh Month (Hungry Ghost Festival)…It was so creepy that I couldn’t sleep the whole night!” said Ms Sam Shu Qin, 30, one of the founders of Our Singapore Reefs.

Undeterred by the spooky encounter, the team from the non-profit organisation has continued on their mission to clean up the waters around the southern islands of marine trash.

The debris poses a threat to the marine biodiversity in Singapore, said Ms Sam, a marine biologist.

Research is emerging on the environmental damage caused by plastic – the most common type of marine debris retrieved in Singapore, making up 57 per cent of the pieces retrieved.

A new study released on May 15 revealed that the production and incineration of plastic in 2019 will add more than 850 million metric tonnes of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere — equal to the pollution from 189 new 500-megawatt coal-fired power plants.

According to the report by the Center for International Environmental Law and other groups, oceans absorb as much as 40 percent of all human-produced carbon dioxide since the beginning of the industrial era.

A small but growing body of research suggests plastic discarded in the environment may be disrupting the ocean’s ability to absorb carbon dioxide, said the report, titled Plastic & Climate: The Hidden Costs of a Plastic Planet.

From ideas to action, Singapore youth are making a difference in the community in their own ways

AsiaOne 14 May 19;

"Self-absorbed", "apathetic", "deeply self-entitled", "couldn't care less" - do our youth deserve to be stereotyped this way?

If you listen to their life experiences, learn about their life-changing initiatives and read about their hopes for our nation, you will realise that they are nothing like the labels you may have used on them.

In the past year, the Youth Conversations series engaged over 8,000 youth aged 15 to 35 to share their views and ideas for change on various issues that Singapore faces.

Here are some of the insights gathered from these conversations:

Youth are redefining their version of success

The youth are aware that society views success differently from them.

HDB unveils plans for new park in Bidadari estate

Channel NewsAsia 5 May 19;

SINGAPORE: A new park will be developed to form a “green lung” in the upcoming Bidadari estate, the Housing and Development Board (HDB) announced on Sunday (May 5).

The 10-hectare Bidadari Park will feature a lake, a heritage walk, experiential trails and a play area for children.

In designing the park, the team drew inspiration from the fictional Hundred Acre Wood in the Winnie-the-Pooh children’s series, said HDB.

“The team behind the planning and design of the park saw the opportunity to retain the wooded and rustic nature of Bidadari and to create a unique park experience for visitors,” it added.

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