WATER SUPPLY (Improvements and status)

Mr Rohan bin Kamis asked the Minister for Trade and Industry, with regard to our water supply by the Public Utilities Board, (a) what improvements have been made to-date; (b) what further improvement,g are being planned; (c) what is the status of our supply; and (d) when and what steps will be taken to avoid water shortage in the event of a prolonged dry season.

Dr Tony Tan Keng Yam: (a) Improvements to-date

PUB has been constantly seeking new water sources and improving its storage and distribution facilities to ensure there is adequate water supply for Singapore. To date, there are 15 water reservoirs, 3 river sources, 8 treatment plants and more than 3,480 kilometres of water transmission and distribution pipelines in the water supply system.

During 1980-1982 alone, 4 new impounding reservoirs with a combined storage capacity of 31.4 million cubic metres and related works were completed at a total cost of $66.9 million. These are Sarimbun, Murai, Poyan and Tengeh reservoirs. The storage capacities at the existing Seletar and Upper Peirce reservoirs were also increased by 6 million cubic metres at a cost of $2.3 million.

Over the same period, 303 kilometres of water mains were laid to improve the transmission and distribution network. New service reservoirs with a combined capacity of 306,000 cubic metres were also constructed at Kent Ridge, Nanyang and Bukit Kallang to regulate supply to Lim Chu Kang/Jurong, Ang Mo Kio, Yishun and the North Eastern part of the island.

(b) Further Improvements

To cope with the increasing demand for water, PUB plans to spend some $666 million over the next 5 years on water development projects. These projects will enlarge the reservoir storage capacity and extend and improve the transmission and distribution network.

Amongst the projects in hand are the Sungei Seletar/Bedok Water Scheme, which will be completed in 1984 and the service reservoirs at Bukit Kallang, Jalan Petua and Jalan Mariam, which will be completed by 1986.

(c) Supply Status

There is adequate supply to meet present demand and, provided that there is no severe drought or major disruption to any of our current water development projects, PUB expects to be able to meet future water demand.

(d) Avoiding Water Shortage in a Prolonged Drought

Nevertheless, there is no ground for us to be complacent in regard to water supply. Because we have limited land to set aside for water catchment, water is a very precious commodity in Singapore. We can ride over short periods of dry weather or temporary interruptions to supply through the construction of more reservoirs. This we have done. However, in a prolonged dry spell, water stocks in reservoirs will evaporate rapidly and, in the final resort, there is no choice but to enforce water rationing. Knowing the inconvenience this will cause to our population and to industry, PUB will try to avoid water rationing for as long as possible. Consumers can help by reducing their water usage to enable the stocks in the reservoirs to last until the rain comes.

To avoid water shortage, consumers should learn to conserve water even during normal times. PUB has been encouraging and will continue to help consumers to practise water conservation until it becomes second nature with everyone in the Republic.