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VENESA DEVI The Star 7 Sep 19; What went wrong?: Some of the dead fish found along Pantai Lido. JOHOR BARU: Land reclamation along Pantai Lido could potentially be the main cause of mass fish deaths in the area. State Local Government, Urban Wellbeing and Environment Committee chairman Tan Chen Choon said the Department of Environment (DoE), along with the Fisheries Department, were still investigating the matter and not ruling out land reclamation as the contributing factor. �The DoE visited the location on Thursday upon receiving complaints about the occurrence and found that the dissolved oxygen level of the water was very low at 1.2mg/l,� he said. �The hot weather and disturbance of the water flow here due to land reclamation are believed to be contributing factors, but we are still investigating the matter.� In a statement, Tan said he had instructed the DoE to look into the Environment Impact Assessment for the reclamation project to avoid a recurrence of such incidents. Dozens ...

JUSTIN ONG Today Online 4 Sep 19; SINGAPORE � One hundred newly-hatched hawksbill turtles were released into the sea from Tanjong Beach in Sentosa on Wednesday morning (Sept 4). According to a Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) spokesperson, the eggs were hatched on Tuesday at approximately 10pm. SDC carried out measurements and checks on the hatchlings before they were released into the sea at about 7am on Wednesday. The hawksbill turtle nest was discovered at Tanjong Beach on July 14, said SDC. A protective barrier was erected around the nest within the day of the discovery to �keep the eggs safe from natural predators such as monitor lizards and crabs, as well as other potential disturbances during the incubation period,� said SDC. SDC also worked with the National Parks Board (NParks) to conduct checks to ensure that the nest was safe. Hawksbill turtle hatchings are rare; this is only the fifth time since 1996 that eggs of the critically-endangered turtle have hatched on Sento...

NG JUN SEN Today Online 3 Sep 19; SINGAPORE � To finance the fight against climate change, smaller-scale infrastructure such as flood barriers can be funded from the Government�s Budget each year, while �long-lived major� infrastructure � including sea walls � could involve borrowing, said Second Finance Minister Lawrence Wong in Parliament on Tuesday (Sept 3). When land reclamation is involved, the costs will come from Singapore�s past reserves and the value of the reclaimed land after it is sold in the future will be fully returned to the reserves, said Mr Wong, who is also the National Development Minister. �The reclamation of land is in essence a conversion of past reserves � from financial assets to state land. This use is not a draw on past reserves,� said Mr Wong, adding that this arrangement is part of the Reserves Protection Framework agreed between the Government and the President, whose constitutional role is to safeguard the national reserves. Mr Wong was answering a parli...

NABILAH AWANG Today Online 30 Aug 19; SINGAPORE � Food lovers who enjoy a delicacy called �shark head� in Singapore restaurants may want to think again as the animal has just been classified as critically endangered. �Shark head� is the sea creature known locally as the shovelnose ray � also known as the white-spotted wedgefish � and is usually promoted as a dish rich in collagen, which is meant to promote skin elasticity. The creature was added to Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites) by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The Cites meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, ended on Wednesday (Aug 28). The rays can be found in the waters of South-east Asia, including Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand, and the Northern coast of Australia, said Ms Sue Ye, founder of marine conservation group Marine Stewards � whose mission is to protect marine resources by promoting sustainable fishing practices...

Kevin Kwang Channel NewsAsia 30 Aug 19; SINGAPORE: If you see drones flying about when visiting Singapore�s Southern Islands, don�t be alarmed. They are part of a wider trial by authorities to bring �low-cost, reliable and long-range connectivity� to these far-flung areas using an under-utilised radio spectrum known as TV White Space. A six-month trial to use TV White Space for data transmission on five Southern Islands - Kias Island, St John�s Island, Pulau Seringat, Pulau Hantu Besar and Kusu Island - started in August. The spectrum was chosen as it is less affected by external conditions like sea waves, weather conditions and obstacles like ships, according to a joint release by the Singapore Land Authority (SLA), Government Technology Agency of Singapore (GovTech) and the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS). It is also currently under-used here, they explained. TV White Space, sometimes known as Super Wi-Fi, is the white static seen when tuning analogue TV channels. The a...

TESSA OH Today Online 28 Aug 19; SINGAPORE � Singapore is not alone in assessing measures to mitigate the threat of rising sea levels. During the National Day Rally on Aug 18, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced that Singapore is prepared to invest about S$100 billion or more over the next 50 to 100 years to strengthen its coastlines against the threat of rising sea levels. Significant areas of Singapore are 4m above mean sea level or lower, and they will increasingly be at risk of going underwater when sea levels rise, he warned. To combat the looming threat, various climate change measures are being considered by the Government. They include plans to build polders � low-lying reclaimed land protected by embankments � along with reclaiming offshore islands or building dykes. TODAY looks at some of the coastline and river defence measures that have been considered or implemented in other cities across the world that are also seeking to strengthen their flood prevention systems. 1...

NAVENE ELANGOVAN Today Online 24 Aug 19; SINGAPORE � A �50- to 100-year problem� was how Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong described the �grave threat� of rising sea levels to Singapore. While a hundred years from now seems far away, Singapore has already started to feel the impact of climate change with hotter weather and heavier rainfall in recent years. Studies have also shown that Singapore could experience more extreme weather patterns as soon as 2050. Indeed, steps are already underway to mitigate the impact of rising sea levels. For example, Singapore has introduced a carbon tax to nudge companies to cut down on greenhouse gas emissions. It has also begun building infrastructure such as train stations on elevated ground. More measures are in the pipeline. How much time does Singapore have to make sure that it is sufficiently ready? TODAY takes a closer look. HOW WAS THIS TIMEFRAME DERIVED? The 50- to 100-year timeline is based on the findings of a study by the Centre for Climate ...

Even as Singapore strives to adapt to rising sea levels, let�s not win that battle yet end up losing the larger war against climate change, says the Singapore Management University�s Winston Chow. Winston Chow Channel NewsAsia 25 Aug 19; SINGAPORE: Singapore isn�t alone in confronting the consequences of rising seas. Several other coastal cities and small islands also face this hazard, and lessons can be drawn from how they plan for and adapt to it. Recent research shows three general approaches can be considered when dealing with the threat of sea level rise. First, accommodate the threat, which includes flood-proofing existing buildings and infrastructure, or designating areas that would be allowed to flood during high tide. Second, retreat from the threat, which includes the removal and reallocation of key infrastructure and assets to areas that the sea cannot inundate. Third, protection from the threat, which includes planting and managing mangrove coasts, or engineered options li...

NAVENE ELANGOVAN Today Online 22 Aug 19; SINGAPORE � One was so assured that she would encourage her children to live near Singapore�s eastern coastline even 50 to 100 years from now. Another wondered if construction work being done to deal with rising sea levels would block the views from his flat. In getting a quick gauge of how residents living in the eastern part of Singapore think about the future impact of climate change, TODAY found that for some of them, climate change was too far down the road to be a cause for worry. Others were impressed that the environmental issue was finally getting national attention, but all were generally supportive of the measures to counter the problems related to it. In his National Day Rally speech last Sunday (Aug 18), Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had addressed the consequences of climate change, calling it a �life and death� matter. He also warned that the areas along the east coast from Changi to the city, as well as Jurong Island, are �more ...

BENJAMIN HORTON Today Online 21 Aug 19; I watched Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong�s National Day Rally speech on Sunday (Aug 18) night. It was the single most impressive talk about the threat of sea-level rise by a political leader. In particular, Mr Lee balanced talk of urgency with hopeful and creative ideas to inspire positive change. Mr Lee made it clear that climate change is a matter of life and death for Singapore. Having studied the issue for 25 years, I am also very worried about sea-level rise and strongly believe that we must urgently act on it. I am the only scientist in Singapore to be part of the United Nation�s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) working group that produced a report on the physical science of climate change. There is a phrase �if you knew what I knew�. Mr Lee noted that the UN has projected that sea levels will rise by 1m by the end of this century but that scientists� estimates have been going up and sea levels may rise higher and faster th...

About 150 baby turtles were hatched last year at Singapore's first and only hatchery for these marine creatures, the National Parks Board (NParks) said on Wednesday (Aug 21), nearly a year since its official launch in September 2018. Junn Loh reports. Junn Loh Channel NewsAsia 21 Aug 19; SINGAPORE: About 150 baby turtles were hatched last year at Singapore's first and only hatchery for these marine creatures, the National Parks Board (NParks) said on Wednesday (Aug 21), nearly a year since its official launch in September 2018. The turtle hatchery at Sisters� Islands Marine Park was built as part of efforts to provide a safe space for incubating eggs, which faces threats caused by human traffic, light pollution and predators such as monitor lizards. Singapore is home to two species of turtles: the hawksbill turtle and the green turtle, both of which are critically endangered. The turtles visit various shores around Singapore to lay eggs during the nesting season from May to Oc...

The Minister for the Environment and Water Resources also shared more on the citizens� workgroup, saying one problem it will look at is how to increase the recyclability of items in neighbourhood blue bins. Kevin Kwang Channel NewsAsia 21 Aug 19; SINGAPORE: Calamity could befall Singapore if it does not start dealing with the climate change threat to its coastlines today and leaves it until it is too late, warned Minister for Environment and Water Resources Masagos Zulkifli on Wednesday (Aug 21). In an interview with CNA938, Mr Masagos reiterated the threat of rising sea levels to Singapore that Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had spoken about in his National Day Rally speech on Sunday. Mr Masagos said that scientists have concluded that sea levels will rise by 1m by the end of the century, and when faced together with high tide and heavy rain, will become a �very difficult problem to overcome�. The long-term impact will not just be on the environment, but also on Singapore�s economy a...