Missing: Water conservation
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Jul 8, 2011 - ST Forum
INTERNATIONAL WATER WEEKAMONG the points raised in the interesting series of articles about Singapore Water Week thus far are that demand for water is expected to double and Singapore aims to be self-sufficient by 2061, when the second of two water agreements with Malaysia lapses.
One issue that has not had enough publicity is examining ways to forge private and public partnerships to curtail future demand of water, not only in Singapore but also globally.
Singapore can indeed be the catalyst to lead the change in saving water. Agencies such as the Economic Development Board and PUB, the national water agency, are the likeliest key agents to lead the change in curtailing water demand in Singapore; and to provide model cases for other countries to copy.
Naturally, meeting demand and ensuring quality water delivery are important goals which Singapore will succeed in achieving. However, if we fail to address the issue of saving water - through taming insatiable consumer demand and cutting it - we will not be able to have adequate supply in the future.
Harry Cheng
Tokyo
IT IS International Water Week in Singapore and there has been much discussion on current and future supply of water, water technology and water pricing.
Unfortunately, there is hardly any mention of water conservation.
Of late, we have been experiencing not just thunderstorms in the afternoon but also tempestuous storms resulting in serious floods.
There are no visible efforts to collect the 'buckets' of water from above.
Those in landed properties can collect a lot of it, which can be used for watering plants on other days, washing and even for doing laundry.
Those living in apartments can also do so easily from their balconies. The Housing Board and town councils can use collected water for watering and for cleaning void decks, drains and other amenities.
It has been a long time since we had water rationing and the expectation is that there will be no need for it.
But let us not allow rain water to go to waste. Our water bill will also go down if we use rain water and less piped water.
Tay Koon Tek
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Geography fail leh...failing to collect the rainwater physically doesnt mean it would not end up in reservoirs.
And why would they encourage people to collect rain water for own use when the rainwater could end up in the reservoirs to charge people for usage?
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Aren't they trying to link up e drains to the water usage channel?
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floods or drainage?
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seriously not for as joke, but the places that will usually flood like Keng Lee Rd are mostly flooded due to river, slow clearance of water.. not drainage
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if Keng Lee Road is forest nobody will care.
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if Keng Lee Road is forest nobody will care.
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Originally posted by sbst275:
seriously not for as joke, but the places that will usually flood like Keng Lee Rd are mostly flooded due to river, slow clearance of water.. not drainage
It's a once in 50 years event.
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Jul 11, 2011 - ST Forum
Conservation a key element of nation's water sustainability
PUB, the national water agency, thanks Mr Harry Cheng and Mr Tay Koon Tek for their letters last Friday ('Missing: Water conservation').
Held annually, the Singapore International Water Week (SIWW) is the global platform for water solutions. While the key focus is on business and technical solutions, it also covers a wide spectrum of water issues, including water conservation. For instance, there were sessions at the technical conference which touched on the strategies for public education and engagement as well as water conservation.
There were also various 'water showcases' - events or activities organised by the community to showcase best practices and contributions towards greater water stewardship. An example is a constructed treatment wetland at Commonwealth Secondary School, which recycles used water for watering plants in its urban agriculture project.
Water Week participants could also take part in the technical tours to visit some of our canals, parks and reservoirs under PUB's Active, Beautiful, Clean Waters (ABC Waters) Programme to learn how we engage the public and community by bringing them closer to water so that they can better appreciate and cherish this precious resource.
During the week, PUB launched the second edition of the ABC Waters design guidelines, which provides designers with technical details on how rainwater harvesting and storm water management systems can be incorporated into development projects so that rainwater can be used for non-potable uses, such as irrigation and general washing.
Water conservation is an important element of Singapore's water sustainability and will continue to be an important topic at all SIWW events. Through PUB's ongoing water conservation programme, Singapore's per capita domestic water consumption has dropped from 165 litres a day in 2003 to the current 154 litres. We aim to lower this to 147 litres by 2020 and 140 litres by 2030.
Members of the public can request free water-saving kits through PUB's 24-hour call centre on 1800-2846- 600. Simply by installing thimbles in taps and shower heads at home, each person can save 5,400 litres a year.
Students can also learn on our website (www.pub.gov.sg) how to conduct water audits at home and start water conservation habits from a young age.
Michael Toh
Managing Director
Singapore International Water Week -
Teach all these students about water conservation also no point. Most of the wastage comes from commercial outlets and SAF
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Originally posted by Taroham:
Teach all these students about water conservation also no point. Most of the wastage comes from commercial outlets and SAF
.teach FTs not to waste water.