Pilgrimage to Kusu Island, Malay weddings, hawker culture among the first 50 items identified for Unesco listing

Melody ZaccheusH Straits Times 7 Apr 18;

SINGAPORE – Hawker heritage, pilgrimages to Kusu Island and Malay weddings are among 50 items that feature in Singapore’s first intangible cultural heritage inventory.

Comprising traditions, rituals, crafts, expressions, knowledge and skills, it was released by the National Heritage Board (NHB) on Saturday (April 7).

It is hoped its publication will start a conversation about what the Republic’s nomination should be for its first attempt at making Unesco’s Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Malaysia’s Mak Yong theatre from the villages of Kelantan, Belgium’s beer culture and Italy’s Neapolitan art of pizza twirling already feature on the almost 400-strong Unesco list which sets out to demonstrate the diversity of world heritage.

Singapore’s bid, which comes after the Botanic Gardens was inscribed as a Unesco World Heritage Site in 2015, is aimed at raising the profile of the country’s rich cultural heritage.

Items on the inventory were selected by the NHB’s Heritage Advisory Panel from an ongoing intangible cultural heritage survey, started in 2016.

Elements are grouped under six categories, with some entries overlapping.

The categories are: oral traditions and expressions; performing arts; social practices, rituals and festive events; knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe; traditional craftsmanship; and food heritage.

The pilgrimage to Kusu Island falls under several categories and is arguably a truly Singaporean experience as it is location-based.

The island’s history as a place of worship dates back to at least 1813, before Sir Stamford Raffles arrived in Singapore. In modern times, people visit the island’s Tua Pek Kong temple to worship. They pray for fertility at a tree or stroke the temple’s stone turtle statues for luck.

Worship on Kusu Island is also linked to the Malay keramat (or shrine) on a nearby hill.

Malay weddings here, meanwhile, are typically held at HDB void decks, instead of the traditional arrangement with a reception is held at the family home’s courtyard.

Another entry, xinyao, is a repertoire of Mandarin songs composed, written and performed by young Singaporeans. It can be traced to the late 1970s.

The board said the inventory will be progressively updated in batches.

The Singapore National Commission – chaired by Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Ms Grace Fu – will submit the country’s nomination after consultations, and feedback from the public and NHB’s panel. It is not yet known when this will take place.

It takes about two years for Unesco to officially list an element.

Could hawker heritage be Singapore’s Unesco entry?

At Jurong Town Hall on Saturday, Ms Fu launched both the Singapore Heritage Festival, and the Our SG Heritage Plan – the first holistic masterplan for the Republic’s heritage and museum sector, which the inventory comes under.

On the Unesco nomination, she said the eventual element that is listed “should reflect our multicultural and multiracial make-up”, adding: “It should also resonate with Singaporeans from all backgrounds, and help in building a greater sense of our national identity.”

The $66 million Our SG Heritage Plan also includes a survey of places of architectural, historical, cultural, social or educational significance, and sites or structures completed before 1980. The findings have yet to be released but are expected to be factored into future land planning decisions.

The masterplan comes as citizens are paying more attention to the island’s history, heritage and identity. The goal is to develop a long-term strategic plan for heritage issues, and to enhance the country’s capabilities in research, documentation and commemoration.

In her speech, Ms Fu said the food heritage category was a recent addition following “significant enthusiasm and interest” among Singaporeans. In a NHB poll this year, food resonated most strongly with the 3,000-plus respondents.

The NHB said countries often share similar intangible cultural elements and the inventory will include elements that can be found in other countries. However, the NHB said it will highlight unique features of how these elements are expressed and, or practised in Singapore, and show how they have evolved to suit the local context.

Other entries in its inventory include silambam – a form of martial arts using a long staff typically made of bamboo. It is believed to have originated from the southern part of India.

Ayurveda, wood-fired pottery and the cuisine of ethnic groups here, also feature .

The NHB added that languages and dialects are not defined as intangible cultural heritage under the Unesco convention.

The public can weigh in and contribute information and resources to the inventory at: www.roots.sg/ICH

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Dialogues to gather views of youth kick off at conference

Rachel Au-Yong Straits Times 8 Apr 18;

SINGAPORE - A series of dialogues to capture the views of young Singaporeans kicked off on Saturday (April 7) with 150 tertiary students and working adults discussing climate action, racism and job security.

The three topics were part of the Youth Conversations, announced during this year's Budget debate, and in the same vein as 2012's Our Singapore Conversations.

These dialogues aim to inform the young about important national issues, as well as help them work out their differences by listening, negotiating and finding solutions together and with the Government, said Minister for Community, Culture and Youth Grace Fu, who attended the event on Saturday.

Ms Fu said she hoped that such dialogues would connect youth who are passionate about certain causes with others who have local knowledge about where these solutions could be implemented.

"We want to see how we can help the youth scale up their projects," she said. "We can provide them with resources, but they will still take charge... They would feel more empowered."

Ms Fu acknowledged that participants at such events may be self-selecting, since they are often already passionate about certain causes, but added that there is still diversity in the mix.

Participants, she noted, come from various schools or workplaces - diverse enough to "allow activation for that partnership to see more youth-initiated projects on the ground", she said.

The Youth Conversations are targeting about 2,000 young people at conferences and roadshows at schools or parks, and thousands more through its social media channels, by the end of the year.

The National Youth Council is conducting an ongoing online survey to get a sense of the topics youth are passionate about. It is also using different engagement models, such as video game simulations and longer workshops, to get them interested.

Saturday's conversations were part of a larger Singapore Youth Conference organised by the National Youth Council and the People's Association.

Among the participants was Mr Sujandren Alaghimanvalan, 21, a soon-to-be undergraduate. He decided to sign up for the workshop on racism to share his experiences and listen to others.

In a few hours, he and his teammates came up with suggestions on how to tackle racism in Singapore, including raising funds for lectures and training themselves to facilitate conversations among races.

"I have a strong passion about this, and I want to see how I can help my friends and neighbours tackle any misconceptions they may have," he said.

Another participant, community intern Elizabeth Tan, 18, attended a climate change workshop. While she found the duration too short to make an immediate change, she said she was inspired to join an organisation to combat food wastage and raise awareness about climate change.

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Owners of older motorcycles will get up to S$3,500 for de-registering bikes over next 5 years

Aqil Haziq Mahmud Channel NewsAsia 6 Apr 18;

SINGAPORE: Owners of motorcycles registered before Jul 1, 2003 will get up to S$3,500 if they choose to de-register their motorcycles over the next five years.

About 27,000 motorcycles will meet the criteria for this incentive, which comes as the Government steps up efforts to meet air quality targets by 2020.

"Over the years, we have been trying to reduce the number of older vehicles on the road to ensure that our air quality is something that’s healthy for everyone to breathe," Environment and Water Resources Minister Masagos Zulkifli told reporters as he announced the incentive on Friday (Apr 6).

The incentive consists of two components: S$2,000 for eligible owners and an additional S$1,500 if they do not renew their motorcycles’ Certificate of Entitlements (COE). Owners will also get a rebate for unused COE periods.

The breakdown means that eligible owners who choose to renew their motorcycles’ COEs on or after Apr 7 before de-registering their motorcycles within the next five years will only get S$2,000.

Owners of motorcycles that are on five-year COEs, or the Classic, Vintage (Restricted) and Revised Vintage Vehicle Schemes as of Apr 6 are not eligible for this incentive.

Eligible owners will receive a letter from the National Environment Agency (NEA) by the end of this month informing them of the incentive.

"This (incentive) is one way for them to evaluate and compare the cost-benefit of having the vehicle on the road versus cashing it out and using hopefully public transport, or even if they have to, change to better standard motorcycles," Mr Masagos said.

"This will incur cost for themselves, but the S$3,500 they can cash out will lower the burden of doing so."

OLDER MOTORCYCLES FACE TIGHTER EMISSIONS STANDARDS, TO BE PHASED OUT EVENTUALLY

After the incentive scheme ends on Apr 6, 2023, NEA will tighten the in-use emission standards of such older motorcycles. The agency said it will release details in due course.

After Jun 30, 2028, these motorcycles will not be allowed on the roads.

However, motorcycles on the Classic, Vintage (Restricted) and Revised Vintage Vehicle Schemes are exempted as they are already subjected to restricted usage.

Motorcycles are tested for their emissions at the Vicom inspection facility in Sin Ming.

Meanwhile, NEA said it will look at measures to reduce pollution from foreign motorcycles, without elaborating further. Last month, it nabbed 197 motorcyclists at the land checkpoints for smoke and excessive noise emission offences.

NEA is targeting motorcycles as they contribute 53 per cent to local sources of carbon monoxide (CO), even though they make up 15 per cent of vehicles on the road.

In addition, older motorcycles registered before Jul 1, 2003 emit up to 30 times more pollutants than new motorcycles. They also contribute 40 per cent of the total CO emitted by motorcycles on the road.

“Motorcycle emission is a public health concern because it contains hydrocarbons and CO, which are precursors to ozone,” NEA said in a release. “CO and ozone are known to impair respiratory functions.”

Channel NewsAsia understands that NEA does not have plans to roll out this incentive for older cars as they only make up 1 per cent of the car population.

In contrast, motorcycles that are 15 years old and beyond make up 21 per cent of motorcycles on the road. Some of the oldest bikes on the road are more than 65 years old.

IMPACT ON COE PRICES

Channel NewsAsia also understands that the incentive was designed to run over the next five years to avoid causing an increase in COE premiums for motorcycles.

In addition, some owners might decide that they do not need a new motorcycle after taking up the incentive, reducing the demand for COEs.

However, Mr Masagos said he expects the incentive to have an initial impact on COE prices, albeit not a long-term one.

"There will probably be an immediate impact on reaction," he said. "But because we are giving at least five years for people to make a decision to cash in on de-registering their motorcycles, and also another five years for them to actually use it, we think that it will even out the impact over the years."

Singapore Motor Cycle Trade Association secretary-general Norman Lee told Channel NewsAsia that he expects a short-term dip in COE prices as dealers cash in on surplus stocks of older motorcycles that buyers don't want.

"If such an exercise in the short term is magnified, we should have more unused bikes or old COEs return to the system and appearing by the next quarter to push the prices down," he said.

Motorcycles that are three years old and older have to be inspected every year.

GOOD VALUE FOR RIDERS?

While Mr Lee expects dealers to take advantage of the incentive, he said riders will be less enthusiastic.

"S$3,500 gets you nothing in the market today," he said. "Compared to today's COE value, it is worth less than five years of usage, and we haven’t factored in the machine price (of a new motorcycle)."

Explaining this, Mr Lee gave the example of an eligible owner who in 2013 renewed his motorcycle's COE for 10 years based on the premium then, which was about S$2,000. If he were to take up the incentive by de-registering his bike now, Mr Lee said he would only get S$3,500, plus less than S$1,000 in COE rebates.

"You can barely buy a COE (with that)," he added. "If you do not touch the bike now, the opportunity cost is only S$1,000 to use the bike for the next five years."

In the last COE exercise, motorcycle premiums closed at S$7,114.

Mr Amri Sidik, who owns a rare Italian-made Vespa scooter registered in 2001, said the S$3,500 incentive might not be enough for riders who own older motorcycles that have a bigger engine capacity and are thus more expensive.

"For smaller bikes it's fine," the 30-year-old said. "But I'm not sure if there should be a tiered thing. S$3,500 for all classes of motorcycles might be unfair to some."

Mr Amri has developed an affinity for his scooter and wants to hold on to it for as long as he can. The self-employed worker intended to keep renewing his scooter's COE, which expires in 2021, every 10 years. But because his bike will not be allowed on the roads beyond 2028, he's had to rethink his plan.

"If we maintain our engines, go for regular servicing and pass the inspections yearly, what's wrong with that?" he said. "I'm not really keen on the incentive. The part where I can't use it beyond 2028 bugs me more."

This incentive is the latest in a slew of measures aimed at reducing vehicular emissions, which NEA said is a “key source” of air pollution here.

Mr Masagos said in Parliament last month that the Government would be reviewing how to reduce vehicular pollution from older, more polluting vehicles.

The minister also said last year that new emission standards for petrol vehicles and motorcycles on the roads would kick in from Apr 1 this year.

The new standards, which are comparable to those in Europe and Japan, would reduce emissions due to “vehicle defects or poor maintenance”, he added.

NEA figures show that Singapore has some way to go in meeting its air quality targets. Last year, the eight-hour mean measurement for ozone was 191 µg/m3. The target is 100 µg/m3 by 2020.

When asked if Singapore is on track to meet the targets, Mr Masagos said: "This and all the initiatives, including how we tighten up our road and industrial emissions, all tie up to meet our WHO (World Health Organization) standards for 2020."

Source: CNA/nc


Cash incentive to encourage deregistration of older motorcycles
TOH EE MING Today Online 6 Apr 18;

SINGAPORE — To cut air pollution and meet air quality targets for 2020, motorcyclists will be given a cash incentive of up to S$3,500 to deregister their older, more pollutive vehicles over the next five years, said the National Environment Agency (NEA) on Friday (April 6).

Motorcyclists who registered their vehicles before July 1, 2003 will receive S$2,000 if they deregister them on or before April 5, 2023, said the NEA in a press release.

If the motorcycle’s Certificate of Entitlement is not renewed on or after 7 April 2018, the owner will receive an additional S$1,500 upon its de-registration. The owner will also receive a rebate for the unused COE period, upon its de-registration.

Around 27,000 motorcycles aged 15 years old or older will meet the criteria for the incentive.

Motorcycle owners holding five-year non-renewable COEs, as well as those on Classic, Vintage (Restricted), and Revised Vintage vehicle schemes as of April 6 will not be eligible.

“The new initiative addresses the large contribution to air pollution by motorcycles,” said the NEA, adding that while motorcycles make up 15 per cent of the local vehicle population, they contribute around 50 per cent of carbon monoxide (CO) from vehicles.

The agency added that older motorcycles are also more pollutive. “Those registered before July 1, 2003 (i.e. before the introduction of Euro I emission standards for motorcycles) emit up to about 10 times more CO and 30 times more hydrocarbons compared to a Euro IV motorcycle today,” it said.

Such older motorcycles make up around 20 per cent of Singapore’s motorcycle population, but account for about 40 per cent of CO emitted by motorcycles.

Speaking to reporters at Vicom vehicle inspection centre on Friday, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Masagos Zulkifli said the cash incentive may have an “immediate impact” on COE prices.

“But because we are giving at least five years for people to make a decision to cash in on de-registering their motorcycles… We think this would even out the impact,” he said.

Owners of motorcycles registered before July 1, 2003 will receive a letter from NEA by end-April to inform them if they are eligible for the incentive.

Separately, the NEA and the ministry will also tighten in-use emission standards for older motorbikes from April 6, 2023, before they are phased out after June 30, 2028. More details will be shared later.

Motorcycles on the Classic, Vintage (Restricted) and Revised Vintage Vehicle Schemes are exempted as they are already subject to restricted usage.

Motorcycle owners said the NEA’s move would hit their pockets and called for the authorities to tackle pollution by foreign-registered vehicles here.

A civil servant who wanted to be known as Mr Nor, 30, said he was dismayed by the move to phase out these older motorbikes by 2028.

The owner of a 1979 Vespa scooter said cash incentives “do not appeal to him” because of the “sentimental value and memories” attached to his ride, which he bought with his first paycheck from a friend in 2012 for about S$2,500.

Mr Nor said he would wait for more details on the tightened in-use emission standards from April 6, 2023, before deciding whether to renew the COE on his Vespa, which has about two years left on its COE.

Buying a new bike would cost at least four times more, which would defeat the purpose of “cutting down on transport costs”, he said.

In the “worst case scenario”, Mr Nor said he would deregister the motorcycle and reassemble the parts into an armchair.

Another motorcyclist who wanted to be known as Mr Wee, 48, said the move would leave him “with no choice” but to fork out a hefty sum to even switch to a second-hand motorbike, given the high motorcycle COE premiums. Some could be “forced to give their motorbikes up and take up public transport”, he said.

Mr Norman Lee, honorary general secretary of the Singapore Motor Cycle Trade Association, welcomed the new incentive scheme but hoped that after 2028, “iconic and legendary” motorcycle models which currently do not qualify for the Classic and Vintage Schemes would be considered for conservation in Singapore.

Mr Lee felt it was unfair that emission requirements do not apply to some 45,000 foreign-registered motorcycles that enter Singapore on a daily basis.

TODAY understands the NEA is looking at measures to curb pollution by foreign motorbikes.

Other Government schemes to tackle air pollution by vehicles include the Vehicular Emissions Scheme and the Early Turnover Scheme for commercial vehicles.

Tighter exhaust emission standards for petrol vehicles and motorcycles also took effect from April 1, with CO limits lowered for newer petrol vehicles and motorcycles, and hydrocarbon limits introduced for all petrol vehicles and most motorcycles.

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Indonesia peatland swap plan questioned over deforestation risk

Kanupriya Kapoor, Fergus Jensen Reuters 6 Apr 18;

JAKARTA (Reuters) - An Indonesian plan to curb the commercial use of peatlands, by swapping nearly 1 million hectares of forestry concessions on carbon-rich peat, risks simply displacing environmental destruction to other parts of the archipelago, green groups say.

Indonesia was blamed for one of the worst ever peat and forest fire crises that blanketed much of Southeast Asia in thick haze in 2015, and since then has sought to take back and protect vast tracts of peatlands from corporations.

But environmentalists say a new ‘land swap’ policy - which will affect an area the size of Lebanon - may undermine those efforts if relatively undamaged land is given to companies that in the past have been criticized for unsustainable practices.

An Indonesian environment ministry official said under the deal companies will be evaluated over the course of this year to assess how well they have restored damaged peatland on existing concessions before receiving new land elsewhere.

“For this land swap, we will look for empty land that is non-productive,” said Hilman Nugroho, a senior official at the environment ministry.

An alliance of 10 environmental organizations said in a joint statement this week that the government was not being open about what land would be exchanged.

“We fear that vast areas of natural forest, especially in Kalimantan, Sumatra (island), and Papua will be designated for land swaps and converted into pulpwood plantations in the name of peatland restoration,” the environmental organizations said. Kalimantan is the Indonesian portion of Borneo island.

“The policy will also threaten the livelihoods and cultures of indigenous peoples,” said the statement, which was issued by groups including the World Wildlife Fund Indonesia and Eyes on the Forest.

To estimate where potential land concessions would be given away, the alliance compared satellite imagery of forested area with known government allocations of land suitable for plantations and inactive land.

“With this analysis, we found that 971,900 hectares of potential land swap locations are on natural forest area,” said Syarul Fitra of Auriga, one of the NGOs in the alliance.


The government has not made public the locations of the new concessions that will be given as part of the swap.

An environment ministry document seen by Reuters showed companies set to receive new land include several companies linked to Singapore-based Asia Pulp and Paper (APP).

One of those companies, PT Bumi Mekar Hijau, was in 2016 found guilty by an Indonesian court of illegally setting fires on its concession land in South Sumatra. bit.ly/2IA9NYr

A spokesman for APP declined to comment. Bumi Mekar Hijau could not be reached for comment.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo approved last year a two-year extension to a moratorium on issuing new licences to use land designated as primary forest and peatland.

The country has suffered one of the highest rates of deforestation in the world - often cleared for palm oil and other plantations or pulp and paper mills.

In the last half century more than 74 million hectares of Indonesian rainforest - representing an area twice the size of Germany - have been logged, burned or degraded, according to Greenpeace.

Reporting by Kanupriya Kapoor and Fergus Jensen; Additional reporting by Tabita Diela; Editing by Ed Davies and Gopakumar Warrier

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The monstrous scale of plastic bag wastage in Singapore

Do Singaporeans know the extent of the resources needed to fuel their plastic bag usage, and the amount of bags that is wasted? Talking Point explores the issue.
Derrick A Paulo and Peh Yuxin Channel NewsAsia 5 Apr 18;

SINGAPORE: If each person in Singapore uses 1.6 plastic bags a day, the country would guzzle enough petroleum in a year to drive 8,555 cars round the world.

That is not a hypothetical situation.

It takes 37 million kg of crude oil and 12 million kg of natural gas to produce three billion plastic bags – the amount the Republic was already consuming in a year by 2011.

And the 1.6 bags that comes to per person per day is twice as many as the average Malaysian uses and thrice the figure in Australia.

“A lot of Singaporeans see plastic bag usage as a right, not a privilege,” said Ms Jessica Cheam, the founder of online publication Eco-Business. “The problem is that people take far more bags than they need.”

This issue of wastage came up in Parliament last month when the Government said that imposing a charge or ban on disposable plastic bags and substituting them with other types of disposable bags is unlikely to improve environmental outcomes.

But as Talking Point discovered, people are still shocked when they hear how many plastic bags are being disposed of: About 420 tonnes every day last year, or 2,640 bags every three seconds. (Watch the episode on Channel 5 tonight, April 5, at 9.30pm.)

NOT RECYCLED

Worldwide, a plastic bag is used, on average, for 12 minutes before being discarded. And this is damaging the environment.

“Many of them just go into the incinerators, and worse, they end up in oceans,” said Ms Cheam.

If we don’t do anything about it, then there are going to be more plastics than fish in the ocean by 2050.

While plastic bags have many uses, from carrying groceries to bagging up refuse, they add to the mountain of rubbish Singapore produces.

Last year, 94 per cent of plastic waste was not recycled, and plastic bags are estimated to constitute around a fifth of this.

But even most of the bags sent for recycling are typically discarded. For example, shredding and recycling company Impetus Conceptus ends up recycling about 30 to 40 per cent of the bags it receives because the rest would be contaminated.

“Food contamination, oil contamination, stuff like that,” said its business development director Thomas Wong.

Once it’s contaminated, we’re not able to do anything else because it deteriorates the quality of the pellets.

He advises those who want to recycle plastic bags to fold them in old clothing, books or glass containers, which can all be put in the blue recycling bin at every public apartment block and, from August, every condominium block.

Most of all, he urged: “Don’t ask for a plastic bag. Bring your own bag.”

WASTE IN THE MAKING

To begin with, the production of plastic bags not only requires a huge amount of resources, but also entails wastage in the process.

Over at Union Packaging Industries, which supplies 30 tonnes of bags monthly to retailers in Singapore, about 20 per cent of the plastic resins are wasted because of the adjustments needed in the different stages of manufacturing.

“There’s a lot of manpower and hard work involved (at each stage),” said its director Lam Chun Seng.

With supermarkets holding off on imposing a plastic bag levy, and the government not planning to make them do so, the ball is in the consumer’s court.

In 2013, the Singapore Environment Council found that some 26 per cent of households have more than 20 bags lying around at home. And non-profit organisation Zero Waste SG wants to reduce this kind of “excessive” usage.

While its call for a mandatory charge for plastic bag use has been rebuffed, Zero Waste SG manager Pek Hai Lin hopes that will change in future, even as she stressed that her group is not pushing for a ban.

“The government is dealing with other environmental issues as well: It’s increasing the water price; it’s implementing the carbon tax,” she said.

“So it’s looking at different aspects of responsibility to the environment. And I hope it’ll look at this sooner rather than later.”

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'Energy islands' among new solar energy projects launched

Samantha Boh Straits Times 5 Apr 18;

SINGAPORE - Singapore, a sunny island set in the sea as a song goes, may soon have "energy islands" made up of solar panels floating in the sea.

These "islands" will supply electricity to nearby industrial zones or living areas, under a project by the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (Seris) housed at the National University of Singapore.

It is one of three projects launched on Thursday (April 5) as Seris marks its 10th anniversary at an event at the NUS Shaw Foundation Alumni House.

The "energy islands" project comes as the Government looks to expand the world's largest floating photovoltaics (PV) testbed at Tengeh Reservoir - run by Seris, PUB and the Economic Development Board - to other reservoirs in the next few years.

In another project, Seris will work on developing more efficient solar cells with Nanyang Technological University and the National Research Foundation's Campus for Research Excellence and Technological Enterprise. The aim is for the cells to convert 30 per cent of the sunlight it absorbs into energy - surpassing the current world record efficiency of 26.6 per cent.

As for its third project, the institute is looking to develop cheaper and more efficient solar panels that can be integrated into buildings to overcome land constraints.

In a statement congratulating Seris on its 10th anniversary, Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean noted that solar energy is presently the best alternative energy option for Singapore, in terms of economic and technical viability.

For instance, the costs of solar energy have been reduced by about 85 per cent in the last decade, and are now competitive with fossil fuel-based power in many countries, including Singapore.

By 2020, Singapore aims to put in place enough solar PV systems to supply 350MWp of electricity - about 5 per cent of projected peak electricity demand here.

Mr Teo said there is a global shift towards renewable energy and Singapore is in a good position to trial cleantech solutions, which can be scaled for other cities in the Asia-Pacific, particularly as they seek options to tackle energy and sustainability challenges.

He said research initiatives and supporting services have helped to anchor a new ecosystem of more than 100 clean energy companies here, an effort that Seris has played a large role in.

With several breakthroughs under its belt, research funds flowing and an elite team of researchers, the Seris has had a good run this past decade, said Seris’ chief, Professor Armin Aberle.

Today, it has a team of 220, including scientists, engineers and technicians. It has also groomed 110 PhD students, of whom 52 have graduated and join the solar power industry.

Seris has also garnered $30 million in funds from the industry over the last decade.

Among its breakthroughs is a real-time monitoring system with high reliability and availability. The monitoring system provides the backbone for the well-known "Live irradiance map of Singapore", which provides data that can be used to develop ways to overcome the intermittency of solar energy, due to factors like cloud cover.

The institute is also a forerunner in developing new solar panels, including the TwinPeak panels, which have at least 7 per cent more power than standard panels.

The future for solar technologies is bright, said Prof Aberle.

Solar energy is progressing rapidly and expected to gain an increasing share of the power generation mix.

"This in turn will help Singapore to achieve its carbon emission targets, and at the same time will provide a clean, green and healthy environment for future generations," he said.

Singapore's solar capabilities to be strengthened through 3 new research projects
Gwyneth Teo Channel NewsAsia 5 Apr 18;

SINGAPORE: Three flagship research and development projects, aimed at diversifying the industrial uses of solar power, are set to be spearheaded by the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (SERIS) in its efforts to propel Singapore in the sector.

SERIS CEO Professor Armin Aberle announced this on Thursday (Apr 5) during the institute's 10th anniversary celebration.

Housed in the National University of Singapore (NUS), the institute was founded in 2008 as a government initiative to stimulate the establishment of clean technology as a future pillar of the economy.

To achieve its aim, the institute has planned three new flagship R&D projects for its next decade of research into clean technology.

For the first project, SERIS will collaborate with Nanyang Technological University and the Campus for Research Excellence and Technological Enterprise to develop a 30 per cent efficient thin-film-on-silicon tandem solar cell.

Such a solar cell will improve the current practical efficiency of silicon solar cells, which is limited to around 28 per cent under natural sunlight.

The second project will aim to develop photovoltaic modules (or solar panels) that can be integrated on building surfaces apart from roofs, such as the facade.

SERIS will be working on making the photovoltaic modules lightweight, highly efficient and low cost.

According to the institute, the success of the project will open up commercial opportunities and export potential.

Meanwhile, the third project will look to expand the institute's current achievements in "floating solar" and develop a multi-purpose floating system of photovoltaic modules that will be suitable for off-shore use.

This could lead to the development of "energy islands" which would supply energy to nearby industrial zones or residential areas.

SERIS currently operates the world's largest such testbed at Tengeh Reservoir. It is also writing the world's first guidebook on floating solar, commissioned by the World Bank.

In the past ten years, more than 80 solar companies have set up shop in Singapore.

A S$2.5 billion factory in Tuas generates 1.5 per cent of global production, producing as many solar panels each year as there are inhabitants in Singapore.

Last year, solar energy accounted for more than 40 per cent of new installed energy capacity globally - the top contributor for the first time.

NUS President Professor Tan Eng Chye said the university aims to help Singapore achieve greater sustainability.

"In this endeavour, SERIS plays a key role by developing novel technology solutions to make the harnessing of solar power more efficient and economical, as well as working closely with public and private sector partners to address the challenges of optimising solar power systems to local conditions."

Source: CNA/ad

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New sea burial facility to be built in Tanah Merah

The new burial facility will be built along the shoreline in Tanah Merah, with a boardwalk that extends into the sea to allow the scattering of ashes.
Jasia Shamdasani Straits Times 5 Apr 18;

SINGAPORE - Families of deceased could soon opt to scatter the ashes of their loved ones at sea without having to travel by boat.

A new burial facility will be built along the shoreline in Tanah Merah, with a boardwalk that extends into the sea to allow the scattering of ashes.

The facility is expected to be completed by the fourth quarter of next year, Lianhe Zaobao reported on Thursday (April 5).

It will have four pavilions, each of which can accommodate seven people, and a shelter for 28 people, among other features.

The facility will be open to any member of the public, regardless of race and religion.

Currently, ashes can be scattered at a designated site located about 2.8km south of Pulau Semakau. Those who choose sea burial will have to rent a boat to get to the site.

With the new facility, the National Environment Agency (NEA) hopes to make it more convenient for people to conduct their sea burial ceremonies and to protect the dignity and decorum of the proceedings.

Prior to construction, comprehensive consultancy studies and a study on the impact on the environment will have to be conducted .

Mr Ben Tay, 39, funeral director of Teck Hin Undertaker Funeral Services, said: "This facility will provide one more option for a larger ritual and will make it safer and more convenient for people with disabilities to attend the ritual."

Scattering of ashes at sea can cost about $100 without any ritual, or $400 to $480 with rituals, according to undertakers whom The Straits Times spoke to.

It would cost at least $1,200 to place the ashes in a niche at a columbarium, they said.

Undertakers have seen an increase in the number of sea burial requests, with the majority coming from Buddhists and Hindus.

"In general, there is an increase in the number of people who opt for sea burial of about 20 per cent," said Mr Roland Tay, 71, funeral director of Direct Funeral Services.

This increase could be due partly to the deceased not wanting to put a burden on their family members during the annual Qing Ming Festival, and the lower cost of sea burial.

"If a place can be dedicated for sea burial, many Hindus will be able to conduct burial ceremonies for their loved ones and I think many Hindus will appreciate it a lot,"said Mr Swami Vimokshananda, 69, president of Ramakrishna Mission Singapore.

NEA is also considering the feasibility of a land-based ecological burial service as an additional option for the placement of cremated remains.

This will be confirmed by the end of this year.

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Indonesia: Firms to be tested on fire readiness

Jakarta to assess pulp and paper companies as part of land-swop move to curb the haze
Wahyudi Soeriaatmadja Straits Times 6 Apr 18;

Indonesia's government will apply strict environmental and fire readiness testing to pulp and paper firms before they will be granted new concessions under a land swop scheme that aims to get the companies off carbon-rich deep peatlands, a senior official said yesterday.

The controversial scheme is part of efforts to curb fires and the haze as well as cut carbon emissions blamed for driving climate change.

Last year, Jakarta passed a regulation under which pulp and paper company concessions on deep peatland must be allocated non-peatlands as compensation. Under the scheme, the firms, such as Singapore-based Asia Pulp and Paper and Asia Pacific Resources International Holdings Limited, must halt replanting on deep peatland concessions once the current rotation is harvested. These are swopped for non-peatland elsewhere.

Dried-out peatlands are prone to fire and were a major source of the choking, toxic haze that enveloped the region in 2015. Jakarta has a wider programme to protect peatlands to cut fire risk and emissions, and the initial aim is to restore 2.1 million ha of deep peatlands, mostly in company concessions.

Mr Hilman Nugroho, a director-general at the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, said any swops will have conditions attached. "Let's see how this year. Is there fire on their land? If there is still fire, we will hold," he told reporters, saying companies must be equipped with adequate fire-fighting personnel and equipment and possess good environmental management.

Field teams were checking if such equipment had been deployed by the firms, he said. "If they have all that, it means they are in good faith. And we will see this year whether they 'play' (are involved in slash-and-burn) or not... whether the water level (in the peatland) rose, canals are blocked properly."

He was responding to a statement by a coalition of Indonesian civil society groups, which yesterday urged the government to reveal more details about the land swop scheme.

The determination of the areas for the land swop has been carried out without transparency or public input, according to the coalition, which includes WWF Indonesia, Auriga and Wetlands International.

It said: "We fear that vast areas of natural forest, especially in Kalimantan, Sumatra and Papua, will be designated for land swops and converted into pulpwood plantations in the name of peatland restoration."

Mr Hilman dismissed these worries, saying non-productive forest concessions will be reallocated to qualified pulpwood firms. He also said officials will prepare and make public maps of land swop locations.

The coalition also appealed to the government to hold public auctions for firms to select concessions. Mr Hilman said: "We will find the (land) allocations first. The amount of land swop will follow the amount of those restored and remedied."

The ministry last year said about 920,000 ha of non-productive forestry areas and areas requested by plantation firms but not yet given permits might be suitable.

Pulp and paper companies have expressed concerns over the land swop scheme, saying there is little clarity on where the land is, that it is likely to be far from their mills, and that they will have to protect the deep peatland concessions from encroachment, fires and illegal logging for the life of the concessions. Some concession areas have leases of 60 and even 99 years.

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Drop in plastic bags littering British seas linked to introduction of 5p charge

Scientists find an estimated 30% drop in plastic bags on the seabed in the same timeframe as charges were introduced in European countries
Juliette Jowit The Guardian 5 Apr 18;

A big drop in plastic bags found in the seas around Britain has been credited to the introduction of charges for plastic bags across Europe.

Ireland and Denmark were the first two countries to bring in levies for plastic bags from shops in 2003, followed by slew of other European countries. England was the last UK nation to introduce one, in 2015.

In the first such study of its kind, scientists have found an approximately 30% drop in plastic bags on the seabed in a large area from close to Norway and Germany to northern France, and west to Ireland.

The authors of the study, published in the journal Science of the Total Environment, claim the drop in plastic bag pollution, measured from 2010 – about the mid-point of charging policies coming into force – showed the power of such levies.

“The fewer bags we use, the fewer we can lose, the fewer we can put into the environment,” said Thomas Maes of the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science, lead author of the paper.

“If we all work together towards a better environment, we can make changes. A lot of people live in doom, but … don’t give up yet.”

The results could also be used by campaigners for other charges aimed at reducing public problems, such as pollution, obesity, smoking and congestion. The UK is already consulting on a refundable charge for bottles and cans.

“These findings have reminded us of one of the fundamentals of policy – incentives matter,” said Robert Colvile of the Centre for Policy Studies, a rightwing thinktank.

“When it comes to the environment in particular, pricing in external costs is better than heavy-handed regulation,” he said.

Globally around 8m tonnes of plastics enters the marine environment every year – the weight of more than 80 of the largest aircraft carriers. They are blamed for ensnaring sealife and birds, and have been found in the guts of dozens of species.

A UK levy of 5p per bag introduced in 2015 has already reduced single-use plastic bags given out by major retailers by 85% – down from 140 to 25 bags for the average person each year.

The policy applies only to major retailers, but government is consulting on extending it to almost all shops.

The marine pollution study has been trawling the seabed for 25 years, recording the number of items of pollution found in each square kilometre. Two-thirds of all trawls have found at least one item of plastic, and while the number of plastic bags has fallen, other plastic pollution has increased, especially fishing gear.

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Best of our wild blogs: 5 Apr 18

Mass coral spawning 2018
wild shores of singapore

First Autumn Raptor Migration Count in Singapore
Singapore Bird Group

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