First phase of Cross Island Line to be completed by 2029

FARIS MOKHTAR Today Online 25 Jan 19;

SINGAPORE – Construction of the first phase of the new Cross Island Line (CRL), which will have 12 MRT stations starting from the Aviation Park in Changi to Bright Hill in Bishan, is expected to begin next year and completed by 2029.

The 29km long line will benefit more than 100,000 households and cut travelling time by 50 to 70 minutes, Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan said on Friday (Jan 25).

The stations on the first phase of the CRL will be located at: Bright Hill, Teck Ghee, Ang Mo Kio, Tavistock, Serangoon North, Hougang, Defu, Tampines North, Pasir Ris, Pasir Ris East, Loyang and the Aviation Park.

To support this MRT line, Mr Khaw said that a new 57-hectare depot at Changi East will be constructed to provide stabling and maintenance facilities for up to 80 trains.

Read more!

Listening to trees to care for them better: The work of an NParks arborist

About 200 National Parks Board (NParks) staff look after some two million trees in public places around Singapore, including along roads and streets, fields and over 300 parks. Here’s a look at how they carry out their work.
Fann Sim Channel NewsAsia 26 Jan 19;

SINGAPORE: “A lot of trees hold stories that they can’t tell you,” said National Parks Board (NParks) arborist Robin Ong.

“For example, 'I’ve been hit by a car 20 years ago and therefore I have this defect at my feet',” he added.

The 33-year-old is one of 200 arborists or tree doctors employed by NParks to manage about two million trees growing in public spaces around Singapore.

“They can’t speak (so) we need to come in and speak on their behalf to ensure that they have all the care they require,” Mr Ong told Channel NewsAsia at a field along Evans Road where several towering rain trees are being checked.

Read more!

Malaysia: Wild orchids under threat

Nur Aqidah Azizi New Straits Times 25 Jan 19;

SEREMBAN: The Negri Sembilan Forestry Department is monitoring the illegal harvesting of wild orchids after receiving information from villagers and Orang Asli.

“Undoubtedly, wild orchids have high demand due to their unique and distinctive colours. They can also be cross-bred to produce new orchid varieties,” said director Salim Aman.

“The price of wild orchids can reach thousands of ringgit.

“The result from cross-breeding can be sold on the commercial market locally and internationally at a very high price.”

Salim said illegal harvesting could lead to the extinction of scarce wild orchid species.

Read more!

‘Worrying’ rise in global CO2 forecast for 2019

Levels of the climate-warming gas are set to rise by near-record amounts, Met Office predicts
Damian Carrington The Guardian 25 Jan 19;

The level of climate-warming carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere is forecast to rise by a near-record amount in 2019, according to the Met Office.

The increase is being fuelled by the continued burning of fossil fuels and the destruction of forests, and will be particularly high in 2019 due to an expected return towards El Niño-like conditions. This natural climate variation causes warm and dry conditions in the tropics, meaning the plant growth that removes CO2 from the air is restricted.

Levels of the greenhouse gas have not been as high as today for 3-5m years, when the global temperature was 2-3C warmer and the sea level was 10-20 metres higher. Climate action must be increased fivefold to limit warming to the 1.5C rise above pre-industrial levels that scientists advise, according to the UN. But the past four years have been the hottest on record and global emissions are rising again after a brief pause.

Read more!

Best of our wild blogs: 25 Jan 19

Seagrass meadows in Seringat-Kias artificial lagoon
wild shores of singapore

Read more!

Sembcorp, Singapore Polytechnic team up to develop pilot solar panel recycling plant

DARYL CHOO Today Online 23 Jan 19;

SINGAPORE — Sembcorp Industries and Singapore Polytechnic (SP) have teamed up to commercialise the first-ever technology for recycling used solar panels and develop a pilot recycling plant.

The two parties signed a memorandum of collaboration on Wednesday (Jan 23) at SP which was witnessed by officials from the Singapore Economic Development Board, Energy Market Authority and National Environment Agency.

Photovoltaic recycling, a technology developed by a team of three SP researchers, recovers resources from used solar panels such as glass, silicon and metals. The partners will work together to bring this technology from the “laboratory to market” and speed up plans for its plant, said Sembcorp and SP in a joint press release.

Read more!

Indonesia: Overflowing dam kills at least 30 in South Sulawesi

REUTERS 24 Jan 19;

JAKARTA (Reuters) - An overflowing dam has killed at least 30 people in Indonesia and forced thousands to flee their villages, authorities said on Thursday. Twenty-five people are missing.

Indonesia’s disaster mitigation agency has set up temporary shelters and field kitchens for residents fleeing floodwaters over a meter high that inundated riverside settlements in South Sulawesi province, including in the provincial capital Makassar, on Wednesday and Thursday.

“So far we have found 30 people who drowned or were caught in landslides triggered by heavy rains and when the Bili-Bili dam started overflowing,” said agency official Hasriadi.

Read more!

2018 was fourth hottest year on record: researchers

AFP Yahoo News 25 Jan 19;

Washington (AFP) - The last four years have been the world's hottest since record-keeping began, with 2018 the fourth warmest on record, according to data published Thursday by US research group Berkeley Earth.

Temperatures in 2018 were around 1.16 degrees Celsius (2.09 degrees Fahrenheit) above the average temperature of the second half of the 19th century, from 1850-1900, often used as a pre-industrial baseline for global temperature targets.

"Global mean temperature in 2018 was colder than 2015, 2016, and 2017, but warmer than every previously observed year prior to 2015," the report said.

"Consequently, 2016 remains the warmest year in the period of historical observations. The slight decline in 2018 is likely to reflect short-term natural variability, but the overall pattern remains consistent with a long-term trend towards global warming."

Read more!

Best of our wild blogs: 23 Jan 19

Cyrene affected by nearby reclamation?
wild shores of singapore

Review of Beneath Tide, Running Forest: The Best and Worst of Singapore’s Marine Biodiversity
EnVoice

Read more!

S$2 million grant to encourage zero-waste living

Junn Loh Channel NewsAsia 22 Jan 19;

SINGAPORE: A new S$2 million grant has been launched to help people and organisations raise awareness of zero-waste living in Singapore.

The Ministry of Environment and Water Resources (MEWR) announced on Tuesday (Jan 22) that the Towards Zero Waste grant will be made available from Feb 1 as the country accelerates its efforts to become a zero-waste nation.

More than seven million tonnes of waste was generated in Singapore in 2017, according to the latest statistics from the National Environment Agency (NEA).

Funding will be issued for initiatives that drive two components - waste reduction and recycling. They must focus on any of the three areas: packaging waste, food waste and electrical and electronic waste, or cover efforts that encourage right recycling in households.

Members of the public, interest groups, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), grassroots organisations and corporations are eligible to apply for the grant.

Read more!

Financial institutions key in directing funds towards green development: Masagos Zulkifli

Michelle Teo Channel NewsAsia 22 Jan 19;

SINGAPORE: Financial institutions play an important role in directing capital flows towards sustainable development, Environment and Water Resources Minister Masagos Zulkifli said on Tuesday (22 Jan).

Speaking at a forum organised by Eco-Business and the United Nations Environment Programme, Mr Masagos added that the success of economies and businesses will depend on how well they manage the transition to a low carbon economy.

He added that he was encouraged to see growing numbers of investors who want to "do well" and "do good".

To date, more than S$2 billion of green bonds have been issued in Singapore by both local and foreign issuers.

Read more!

Thailand: Investigation finds Thai wild tigers targeted by foreign professional gangs

The Nation 22 Jan 19;

New findings from a three-month investigation have revealed that professional gangs were dispatched across Thailand’s borders to target the Kingdom’s wild tigers.

Freeland, a Bangkok-based international non-governmental organisation working in Asia on environmental conservation and human rights, on Tuesday congratulated Thai authorities for making this discovery and already arresting one of the gangs.

The investigation was initiated after the successful arrest of two Vietnamese men by Thai police in late October following a tip-off from a Thai driver-for-hire.

Read more!