Singapore’s pioneering leaders had an ambitious vision: that its city-state would always feature plenty of greenery. Through public policy incentives, zoning regulations, and other planning instruments, they have upheld that ideal.
Reducing urban pollution may not be easy, but it is possible. Explore Singapore’s approach and draw lessons from their success.
From Concept to Reality
Singapore’s vision of sustainability goes far beyond green buildings or landscaping efforts; it encompasses every aspect of urban environment and encourages all citizens to contribute in keeping it green and clean.
Singapore’s sustainability work is driven by its desire to sustain and enhance quality of life, with initiatives like BCA Green Mark Scheme, Gardens by the Bay and National Parks Board designed specifically towards this end.
Singapore has demonstrated that sustainable urban development can occur simultaneously with economic and population growth. To achieve this goal, green infrastructure design and implementation were essential - featuring strong public transport services, efficient waste management procedures, responsible use of resources and an integrated environmental management approach.
Singapore’s efforts to decarbonise its economy rely heavily on creating a greener transport sector, so this country has intensified its efforts by building more electric vehicle (EV) charging points and shortening battery charging times to encourage drivers to opt for greener options such as hybrid or electric cars instead of using fossil-fuel ICE vehicles.
Singapore is taking steps to reduce emissions generated from its transportation sector by reinventing how people move within cities, including expanding public transit routes and encouraging car sharing and electric vehicle adoption. Shawn Huang, Member of Parliament for Jurong Spring Ward outlines how electric vehicles (EVs) are helping shape its shared mobility ecosystem.
Green Buildings
Singapore underwent an ambitious transformation during its formative years in the 1960s when Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew established an ambitious plan to turn it into an ecologically conscious and vibrant metropolis. He dreamt of an “ecocity,” with plants covering skyscrapers and parks scattered across every corner. Today, its iconic glass and steel buildings mirror this biophilic vision in their design and use.
To meet that goal, Singapore has earned itself a reputation for pioneering sustainable design. Their buildings utilize Green Mark building rating tool, with features including sunshading exteriors, energy-saving elevators and escalators, computer models that track carbon emissions and water flows, highly efficient air conditioning systems and highly effective sun shades. As a result, Green Mark is now being widely implemented throughout Asia by planners and developers in Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia and mainland China - quickly becoming a model to follow.
The government provides incentives for developers who build green, including bonuses on government land sales sites if the developments meet Green Mark standards and bonuses for private developments meeting them on government sales sites if they meet this threshold. It has set an ambitious goal to have 80% of new buildings meet super low energy (SLE) criteria by 2030 as part of its zoning rules, and SLE standards have already been integrated into many of their plans.
Singapore may set an example for all nations, says Esther Ng, director of a consultancy that assists companies incorporate sustainability into their business strategies. According to her, economic drivers associated with real estate discourage long-term investments in greener buildings; she warns that economic downturn could reverse recent gains made. Therefore she advocates governments creating clear environmental mandates supported by enforceable laws.
Sky Gardens
Singapore, as a small island nation, has undertaken an ambitious national strategy to foster greenery throughout all urban settings. Starting by cleaning polluted areas and creating agencies dedicated to greening and sustainability initiatives, they’ve now transformed themselves into a biophilic city where citizens can enjoy green spaces in daily life while acting as an example for other nations wanting to take similar approaches, showing that advanced economies can still preserve the environment.
Sky gardens, green rooftops that provide people with a tranquil green space to unwind in, have become increasingly popular features in modern buildings across Asia, especially dense cities where land is limited. Sky gardens not only aesthetically enhance modern buildings; they can act as cooling towers for buildings as well as improve air quality and even lower energy consumption by acting as cooling towers for buildings or reduce energy usage altogether.
Singapore sky gardens can be found almost anywhere - from private and public buildings to roadside verges and beyond. Sky gardens come in various forms: sky terrace, roof garden or sloping landscape - and are open for public enjoyment while providing opportunities to educate about greening and sustainability education.
Study of sky gardens in Shenzhen, Hong Kong and Singapore shows the differing spatial qualities between each green rooftop. Grey relation analysis was then utilized to analyze these gardens’ form characteristics (morphology, typology, size affordances and configuration) along with openness attributes such as accessibleness ownership permeability shape index and open space ratio to formulate general recommendations and approaches for sustainable planning of sky gardens in high rise buildings.
Water Management
As Singapore’s population expanded, so too did its need to strengthen water supplies. Realizing that relying on imports would be risky in the long term given climate change-linked rainfall irregularity, they instead focused on conservation measures including reuse and innovative technology solutions.
Singapore began efforts decades ago to replenish its supply by cracking down on littering, cleaning up rivers and canals, and creating reservoirs to harness storm waters. Today, nearly half of Singapore is used as water catchments to collect rainwater; additionally intelligent water meters that alert consumers of leaks or high usage and recycling wastewater into NEWater, one of four sources for clean drinking water are used by consumers as part of this system.
Singapore has installed nearly every household with a modern sanitation system that ensures their used water is collected and channeled to central wastewater reclamation plants for recycling, so none is released into reservoirs, rivers and canals, eliminating contamination between freshwater sources and treated wastewater treatment facilities. Furthermore, deep tunnel sewerage system will soon allow residents to enjoy clean, reliable used water management as the country continues to develop.
Water conservation initiatives such as public education campaigns and city-wide water efficiency programmes have allowed Singaporeans to reduce per capita household water consumption to just over 150 litres daily. Singapore is also an industry leader when it comes to tapping other sources for drinking water; for instance running desalination plants to convert seawater into clean drinking water can be costly in terms of energy use; in response, recycling rainwater is being considered as an energy-saving alternative solution.
Sustainable Transport
Singapore’s transport infrastructure stands out as an iconic representation of its sustainable initiative. Renowned for its public transport-friendly policies, congestion tax and commitment to sustainability principles in its Land Transport Master Plan 2040; this plan prioritizes people-centred solutions by multi modal integration that emphasize walking and cycling to enable citizens to lead less car-dependent lifestyles.
Singapore has made strides to green its transport landscape through the use of green roofs, verdant walls and corridors, as well as more eco-friendly vehicles in their fleets. Furthermore, Singapore is an industry leader when it comes to alternative fuel use as well as being one of the most prepared countries in terms of accepting self-driving cars.
Singapore’s journey from being an underdeveloped polluted backwater to global green powerhouse was not a straightforward one, and challenges still exist today. According to Singapore’s minister of environment and natural resources, making environmental progress is still integral to economic development, requiring long-term goals and collaboration among nations in tackling common problems such as climate change or transboundary pollution. With isolationism on the rise and protectionism increasing worldwide, Singapore believes the UN remains its best forum for dealing with these matters such as climate change or transboundary pollution issues.
Esther An is an advocate for greening construction and real estate as the Chief Sustainability Officer at CDL, which has been a Global Compact member since 2005. She actively participates in their local network as a local representative as well as various industry events such as Global Compact Asia Node meetings and CEO roundtables where her expertise was shared with new generations of stewardship champions.
In Conclusion
Singapore’s journey towards sustainable urban development has been a remarkable one. From a polluted, underdeveloped backwater to a thriving green city-state, Singapore has shown that environmental progress can go hand in hand with economic growth. Singapore has taken a comprehensive approach to sustainability, including green buildings, water management, sustainable transport, and sky gardens. It has also demonstrated the importance of strong public policy incentives, zoning regulations, and other planning instruments to uphold its vision for a green city-state.
However, Singapore’s journey towards sustainability has not been without its challenges. Balancing development and sustainability remains a key issue, and economic drivers associated with real estate can discourage long-term investments in greener buildings. Nevertheless, Singapore’s success in creating a sustainable environment offers valuable lessons for other cities looking to take a similar approach. By continuing to prioritize sustainability in its development plans, Singapore can serve as a beacon for other nations seeking to create a greener, more sustainable future.