Prevailing over floods, drought and water pollution, PUB has constantly kept an eye on the future, focusing on long-term sustainability. We look at how it has turned vulnerability into a strategic advantage
Written by Jennifer Denby & Produced by Craig Daniels
A small tropical island-state, Singapore has a land area of about 700km2 and a population of 4.8 million people. With no natural aquifers or an abundance of land, ensuring a sustainable supply of water for its people is a vital issue.
Presenting itself as a truly modernised water agency, PUB manages the country’s entire ‘Water Loop’, from collection, production and distribution, to treatment and reclamation.
“PUB is an integrated water agency. In other words, every aspect of water management in Singapore comes under us, whether it is drainage, water supply or used water treatment. This integrated approach has actually allowed us to optimise and manage water in a more holistic manner,” explains Yap Kheng Guan, Director of BarragePUB’s 3P Network, who talked to Energy Digital on the country’s “water journey” and how the agency came to manage water supply, water catchment and used water in an integrated way.
According to Yap, Singapore’s water situation a few decades back was “vastly different” from what it is today. He says water resources were, and still are, especially precious given the small amount of land in Singapore coupled with a large urban population in the city state.
“As the city grew in the 1960s and 1970s, we faced and overcame drought, floods and water pollution. These challenges have inspired us to innovate and develop capabilities in this area, turning our weakness into strength.” Yap explains.
Through a journey of half a century, PUB has, through investment in research and technology, found an integrated, effective and cost-efficient way to solve the nation’s water challenges. Its experience in effectively addressing water challenges has earned Signapore international recognition as a model city for water management and an emerging global hydrohub.
WEAKNESS INTO STRENGTH
Today, the future looks more positive. “We’ve created a robust, diversified and sustainable water supply based on four sources of water, as opposed to two in the past,” says Yap, referring to what is known as the Four National Taps, which comprise local catchment water, imported water, highly-purified reclaimed water known as NEWater, and desalinated water.
Multiple water projects were initiated to create a sustainable water supply for Singapore. These include the clean-up of the Singapore River as well as building the Marina Barrage and Deep Tunnel Sewerage System.
The Marina Barrage, a dam built across the Marina Channel was completed in 2008, creating Marina Reservoir. More than just an ordinary dam, the Marina Barrage serves three benefits: it creates a freshwater reservoir to boost Singapore’s water supply, acts as a tidal barrier to prevent flooding in the low-lying areas in the city and offers a venue for water-based recreation in the heart of the city centre.
In Singapore, they have maximised a lot of the land area as water catchment. The nation is one of the few countries where such a large extent of the land mass is converted into water catchment, most of which is in urbanised parts of the island.
Its latest water icon, the Marina Barrage, is a project where the urbanised part of Singapore was tap as water catchment, and creates a reservoir in the city meeting 10 percent of Singapore’s current 59water needs. Marina Reservoir combines with the future Punggol and Serangoon reservoirs will increase Singapore’s water catchment areas from half to two-thirds of Singapore’s land areas.
Besides its strategic role, the reservoir and waterways work to “beautify Singapore’s landscape” and therefore improve Singaporeans’ quality of life. “Imagine a city of green integrated with blue; beautiful landscaping and clean water filled with aquatic life flowing at every turn of the corner. This is the vision of the Active, Beautiful, Clean (ABC) Waters programme, launched in 2006 by PUB,” says Yap.
The ABC Waters Programme will transform Singapore’s reservoirs and water bodies into beautiful and clean streams, rivers and lakes, creating a vibrant City of Gardens and Water. Over 100 projects will be realised in the next 10-15 years, out of which more than 20 projects will be developed by 2012.
“This is one of the ways we’re attempting to get people more connected with water and be guardians of water,” adds Yap.
“The other project is what we call the Deep Tunnel Sewerage System (DTSS), which costs about S$3.65 billion. The DTSS is an efficient and cost-efficient solution to meet Singapore’s long-term needs for used water collection, treatment, reclamation and disposal.”
An important component of Singapore’s water management strategy, DTSS allows every drop of used water to be collected, treated and further purified into NEWater, Singapore’s own brand of reclaimed water.
ENGAGING PEOPLE
Achieving an adequate and affordable water supply is not enough. Equally important, Yap says, is public “buy-in”. “We want our people to have greater ownership of and to value our water resources,” he explains. In response, PUB has launched a host of public outreach programmes.
SINGAPORE INTERNATIONAL WATER WEEK
The Singapore Water Story is a success story of how a small nation’s relentless effort to overcome its constraints in natural resources has transformed itself from a water-scarce city into an emerging global hydrohub.
Singapore’s experience in solving water problems has helped the nation build its capabilities in water management, and created a thriving water industry. The nation has also successfully hosted the Singapore International Water Week (SIWW) twice in 2008 and 2009. It provides a global platform for policymakers, industry leaders, experts and practitioners to address challenges, showcase technologies and celebrate achievements in the water world.
Last June, over 10,000 people attended SIWW to talk water. About S$2.2 billion worth of deals were signed and sealed, evidence that the Water Week is an effective platform in matching asset-owners and solution providers. This event has become the most watched event in the global water business and its success has shown that Singapore can play a role in sharing our experience in urban water management with the rest of the world.
With the Singapore Government identifying water as a new growth sector, having invested about S$330 million in water R&D over a period of five years, it seems an abundance of development opportunity awaits PUB. And with Singapore’s fifth NEWater plant due to be completed by 2011, it is clear that this opportunity will not pass PUB by. This plant, together with the expansion of the existing plants, will be able to meet 30 percent of the nation’s water needs.
With the public supporting and working alongside PUB’s goals, a well thought out set of management systems, and a dedicated workforce and management team leading the way, PUB is set for a promising year.
FACTS AT A GLANCE
COMPANY NAME: PUB
OPERATIONS: Manages the country’s entire water loop, from collection, production
and distribution, to treatment and reclamation.
HEAD OFFICE: Singapore
EMPLOYEES: 3000
www.pub.gov.sg