HIDDEN_ADDENDA, MINISTRY OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND WATER RESOURCES

Column: 27

MINISTRY OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND WATER RESOURCES: DR YAACOB IBRAHIM
Minister for the Environment and Water Resources

INTRODUCTION: 1 Singapore has achieved good environmental standards that have resulted in a high quality of life for Singaporeans and contributed to our sustainable development. Our clean and high quality living environment has been cited as one of the key features visitors and investors appreciate most about Singapore.

2 Our challenge ahead will be to sustain and enhance our clean and healthy environment, to ensure a safe and secure supply of water for all in Singapore, and to create in the community a sense of ownership and enjoyment of our environmental resources.

A CLEAN ENVIRONMENT: 3 We will maintain high environmental standards so that Singapore will offer an attractive and conducive environment to people who live here and companies that do business here.

4 Singaporeans today enjoy an air quality that is one of the best among cities around the world. While we remain vigilant in controlling pollution, we will put in greater efforts to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions through energy conservation and efficiency, and encouraging the use of cleaner energy. Through these efforts, we can also contribute to regional and international efforts to address issues of climate change and global environmental sustainability.

5 We will reinforce efforts to reduce, re-use and recycle waste to minimise the volume of waste generated. This will further defer the need for additional landfills, which will be costly given the scarcity of land in Singapore.

Column: 29

6 We will further strengthen our surveillance and public health programmes to prevent and curb any spread of vector-borne diseases. We will extend vector control programmes and build up competencies and research expertise in this area to ensure that Singapore maintains a low incidence of these diseases.

7 To further improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the environmental sector, we will encourage and facilitate skills upgrading and job redesign. We will continue to embrace new environmental technologies and encourage companies to test-bed environmental innovations in Singapore.

WATER FOR ALL: 8 Today, we have diversified our water supply sources through our four national taps: local catchments, imported sources, NEWater and desalination. This will help to ensure the sustainability and security of our water supply.

9 We will put greater emphasis on managing water demand and conservation. We will also ensure affordability, service quality and reliability of our water supply, through adopting new technologies, improving operations, and facilitating public private partnerships. The Design, Build, Own and Operate (DBOO) arrangement for the supply of desalinated water will be extended to NEWater.

COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION AND OWNERSHIP: 10 We will create more opportunities for the community to enjoy our environmental resources. We will introduce more activities in and around our reservoirs, without compromising our high water quality standards, so that everyone can enjoy our water bodies and become more mindful of the need to value and conserve our water resources. As social bonds can be strengthened through shared experiences, we will continue to upgrade uniquely Singaporean institutions such as hawker centres for all to enjoy and be proud of.

11 Over the years, there has been greater community and corporate activism in protecting and enhancing our environment. We will strengthen the close partnership with schools, educational institutions, grassroots, as well as voluntary environmental organisations and businesses to advance the environmental agenda, so that community participation and ownership of environmental initiatives will grow. Because the future is in our youth, we will reach out to more young people and foster in them an active interest in environmental volunteerism and in enhancing and sustaining our environment.