Wishing everyone Happy National Day! As we celebrate Singapore’s birthday, let us remember that this is our home and it’s our responsibility to make it better and greener.

“This is home truly, where I know I must be

Where my dreams wait for me, where that river always flows

This is home surely, as my senses tell me

This is where I won’t be alone, for this is where I know it’s home”

(From the lyrics of Home, the theme song of the 1998 National Day)

Image credit: raymondbPhotos.

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The Inter-Ministerial Committee on Sustainable Development (IMCSD) recently announced Singapore’s vision and initiatives for sustainable development, and is seeking public feedback and suggestions. The IMCSD is studying ways to be more sustainable in the way we Work, Commute, Live and Play. Visit the Sustainable Singapore website to find out more and give your feedback or suggestions.

In response to the call for green ideas, we came up with 20 suggestions that would help Singapore to be more sustainable. The 20 suggestions involve the following categories:

• Reduce Energy and Carbon Emissions
• Redesign, Reduce, Reuse and Recycle Waste
• Reduce Water Demand and Pollution
• Sustainable Transportation
• Sustainable Food, Materials and Products
• Protecting Natural Habitats and Biodiversity
• Greener Companies and Businesses

The 20 suggestions are compiled in a report and sent to the IMCSD Secretariat. To read the full report, download it from Green Business Times.

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ARTivate, the youth wing of local theatre company Drama Box, is organising free movie screenings on environmental issues, as part of the second installment of Project Mending Sky: The Green Man. More details at www.ARTivate.blogspot.com.

ARTivate presents:

AUGUST MOVIE SCREENING

ARTivate is bringing to you another environmental-related series! This year, we go beyond saving paper and recycling, and look into how we can protect our planet through exploring issues surrounding our Earth’s survival amidst the damages we are inflicting on her. These explorations will be done through movie screenings and post-movie discussion sessions. The movies will be screened in August and are FREE FOR ADMISSION!

The August Movie Screening is the second installment of Project Mending Sky: The Green Man, held in conjunction with Project Mending Sky: ME (补天计划之我).

Screening 1: Winged Migration

1 August 2008, Friday

Time: 7pm - 9:30pm

Venue: *scape Youth Centre

Language: in French with English subtitles

Facilitator: Mr Danny Yeo

Screening 2: The Greening of Cuba & The Power of Community

8 August 2008, Friday

Time: 7pm - 9:30pm

Venue: *scape Youth Centre

Language: English (English subtitles in non-English parts)

Facilitator: Mr Tay Lai Hock

All movie screenings are free for admission! As there are limited seats for each screening, we highly encourage you to make your reservations now! Email us at ARTivate@dramabox.org or call 6324 5434 / 8311 2028 to secure seats! For detailed synopsis of the movies, visit www.ARTivate.blogspot.com.

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Carbon Forum Asia 2008 will be held from 12 to 13 Nov 08 at the Suntec International Convention and Exhibition Centre. This annual conference and trade fair is jointly organized by the International Emissions Trading Association (IETA) and Koelnmesse. The event provides a platform for participants and exhibitors to explore and learn about carbon markets and financing, Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects, technologies, and regulatory developments in the Asia-Pacific region. Visit the Carbon Forum Asia website for more details.

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The inaugural International Energy Week (IEW) will be held from 3 to 7 Nov 08 at the Raffles City Convention Centre. This event is organised by the Energy Market Authority and the Energy Studies Institute, and provides a platform for the discussion of energy issues, policies and strategies among industry players, policy makers, and academics.

The IEW includes various concurrent exhibitions and seminars, such as the Singapore Energy Lecture, the Singapore Energy Conference, the A*STAR-UK Energy Workshop, the Energy Efficiency Investment Forum, and the Singapore Electricity Roundtable. Visit the IEW website for more details.

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The Inter-Ministerial Committee on Sustainable Development (IMCSD) will be announcing Singapore’s vision and initiatives for sustainable development at a press conference today. For a sneak preview of what to expect, visit the Sustainable Singapore website. Read the rest

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Singapore is not ready for renewable energy. This is the conclusion that we arrived at from the recent roundtable on “Is Singapore Ready for Renewable Energy?” organised by the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.

We agree with one of the speakers, Mr Stefan Mueller, Asia-Pacific Managing Director of Conergy Renewable Energy Singapore, who said that the two issues of jobs and research, and adoption of renewable energy should be looked at separately.

Singapore has been putting in much effort in attracting renewable energy companies to set up their operations in Singapore and create jobs, and encouraging research and development in renewable energy technologies. There have been several initiatives and funding to support the renewable energy industry ever since the government decided to focus on clean tech two years ago. Read the rest

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Moderator: Dr Benjamin Sovacool, Research Fellow, Energy Governance Program, Centre on Asia & Globalisation, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy

Speakers:

• Mr David Tan, Deputy Chief Executive, Energy Market Authority
• Mr Tan Tian Chong, Director, Technology Development Division, Building and Construction Authority
• Mr Edwin Khew, Chairman, Sustainable Energy Association of Singapore
• Mr Stefan Mueller, Managing Director, Asia-Pacific, Conergy Renewable Energy Singapore
• Mr Christophe Inglin, Managing Director, Phoenix Solar

Venue: Seminar Room 3-1, Level 3, Manasseh Meyer, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, 469C Bukit Timah Road, Singapore 259772

This roundtable forum discusses whether Singapore is ready for renewable energy amid complex energy challenges, and the role Singapore can play in promoting renewable energy and the required policies. More details and registration at the LKYSPP website.

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The New Paper ponders recently on whether Singapore needs a new Ministry of Energy to tackle energy issues more holistically and ensure our future energy security. The article says that “energy security lies in a muddy middle zone” and “there’s no one body fully in charge”. It also suggests some ideas on what a Ministry of Energy can do, such as:

• Buy our own oil field
• Buy overseas farms to grow food
• A law to set a minimum temperature in Singapore offices
• Forge closer relations with oil-producing countries

The government’s energy policies on energy conservation, energy efficiency, energy market regulation and energy industry are pursued by the different relevant ministries and agencies. This is understandable as energy issues are often complex and cut across different sectors and industries.

Nevertheless, the government recognises the need to have an integrated approach to dealing with energy and has outlined six strategies in the National Energy Policy Report. One of the strategies is to develop whole-of-government approach to energy policy which is led by the Energy Policy Group (EPG). The EPG consists of representatives from the:

• Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI);
• Ministry of Finance (MOF);
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA);
• Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources (MEWR);
• Ministry of Transport (MOT);
• Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR);
• Building and Construction Authority (BCA);
• Economic Development Board (EDB);
• Energy Market Authority (EMA);
• Land Transport Authority (LTA); and
• National Environment Agency (NEA)

The EPG has four working groups on Economic Competitiveness, Energy Security, Climate Change and the Environment, and Energy Industry Development, headed by the different agencies shown in the diagram below:

So, do we need a Ministry of Energy? On paper, it seems that there is no need for one as the energy policies are managed and coordinated by the EPG. But on the ground, the administrative difficulties and layers of bureaucratic red tape accumulated across 11 ministries and agencies in the EPG might pose a problem to the effectiveness and timeliness of the energy policies. We think that it might be better to have a Ministry of Energy which is accountable and focused, to ensure energy security and tackle the threat of climate change.

Source: The New Paper; National Energy Policy Report. Image: National Energy Policy Report.

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The PC Show over the weekend saw the annual ritual of mass purchase of IT products in Singapore with first-day sales of $3.5 million and $51.7 million in sales over four days. While citizens in other Asian countries gather in masses to protest about rising oil and food prices and worry about their livelihoods, Singaporeans gather in masses to worry about which laptop or plasma TV to buy and protest about having to cover three floors of IT products (the exhibition space was doubled this year to cater for a record 600 exhibitors).

Who cares about the recession and financial crisis? Who cares about increasing oil and food prices? Who cares about our love for electronic stuff that creates e-waste problems? Who cares about the large amount of paper waste generated? It seems that these problems are not our concerns.

Consider the idea of sufficiency before buying electronic products. Sufficiency is about what is needed, just enough and not too much. Do you need to surround your life with all these electronic stuff? If the old one is working, why do you need to buy a new one? Also consider what happens to the discarded electronic stuff. Does it go to the landfill? Is it given to a secondhand dealer for reuse? Is it sent for proper recycling? Or does it end up in developing countries? Next time when you visit an IT exhibition, think again before buying.

Quotes from The Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare:

All that glitters is not gold;
Often have you heard that told:

So may the outward shows be least themselves:
The world is still deceived with ornament.

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General waste from commercial and industrial premises are collected by licensed general waste collectors and sent to the incineration plants or landfill. For commercial buildings and industrial estates with recycling programmes, recycling bins or skips are placed at certain locations and the recyclables are collected by a recycling collector (usually the recycling service is provided by the same general waste collector). It is not mandatory for commercial buildings and industrial estates to have recycling programmes.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) has worked with the JTC Corporation to implement recycling programmes for JTC industrial estates. NEA has also published the Guidebook on Waste Minimisation for Industries to help companies reduce their waste and practise recycling through a waste minimisation plan, tips and case studies. The guidebook is available for download at the NEA website.

(This article was first published in SG Recycle.)

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We realised yesterday that Singapore Post (SingPost) provides an opt-out service to residents who do not wish to receive unaddressed mail in their letterbox. In the Straits Times Forum letter, “Junk mail: It’s easy to opt out“, SingPost explains that:

SingPost provides a service to residents who do not wish to receive unaddressed mail via an opt-out arrangement. However, unaddressed mail may or may not include items considered junk mail by recipients. Residents who wish to use this opt-out arrangement can call our hotline 6845-6210 or e-mail us at singpost@singpost.com.

Unaddressed mail in the letterbox can include junk mail received through the letterbox opening (if the anti-junk mail catch is not in place) or advertisement mail delivered by SingPost as part of their service to companies (you receive it whether you want it or not).

To prevent receiving unaddressed mail, you can use the anti-junk mail catch on your letterbox that shuts the opening. Or you can use the opt-out service as described above. However, SingPost noted that “unaddressed mail may or may not include items considered junk mail by recipients“. If you opt-out, some unaddressed mail or those without stamps may end up not being sent to you even though they are legitimate and are not junk mail (some letters are addressed “To the Resident” without any address or stamp). So, it’s not really easy to decide to opt-out. To save the trouble, most people will just choose not to opt-out.

On the same note, we wish that we could opt out from receiving junk mail received at our doorsteps. Because of the anti-junk mail catch, mail distributors have resorted to giving out junk mail door-to-door. These junk mail often end up on the corridor and become litter. We have anti-spam laws regulating emails but why are there no anti-spam laws for junk mail?

Maybe we can have a system where households paste an anti-junk mail sticker on their door to indicate that junk mail is not welcomed. Mail distributors are not allowed to give junk mail to those houses with the stickers or there will be penalties. But who is going to enforce? HDB, Town Council, NEA or the police?

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GO GREEN ONE BOX AT A TIME!

Starting from this World Environment Day (5 June), we are offering the Ecobox - an eco starter kit to help you make the first move and start using eco friendly products. In the Ecobox, you will find common and simple products that help you reduce energy, water, waste and chemicals. Go green and save costs at the same time! And don’t stop with these products, we hope that the Ecobox will inspire you to find and use more green products.

Do you want your friends and colleagues to go green too? Why not give them green gifts for a change? Instead of giving the usual stuff, you can also give the Ecobox as personal or corporate green gifts. Spread the green message through the Ecobox!

HOW TO BUY

The Ecobox costs S$30 (inclusive of a box and 8 products, plus delivery) and is available for sale only in Singapore. To order, fill in this form and click Submit. We will contact you within 3 working days. Payment is by cash on delivery and we deliver only on Fridays. We deliver only once a week so that we can minimise our fuel usage and carbon emissions, and keep costs down. For bulk purchase and enquiries, please use our Contact form.

ECOBOX

The Ecobox includes a box with eight products to help you reduce energy, water, waste and chemicals.

The box (L35 x W25 x H26 cm) is from IKEA and is made from corrugated board, which is 100% recyclable. Corrugated board has one of the highest recycling rates and old corrugated board is usually recycled into new ones.

The box is folded into shape from a one-piece corrugated board without the use of adhesives and staples. In addition, we did not paste any stickers or labels on the box. Therefore, if the box is recycled, there will be less contamination in the recycling process.

The box is suitable for storing A4 paper and other small to medium-sized items. You can also use the box as a recycling bin for used paper.

LESS ENERGY

1.  Compact Fluorescent Light Bulb (8W)

2.  Compact Fluorescent Light Bulb (11W)

The cool daylight and screw-in type compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) are from Philips. Replace your incandescent bulbs with the energy saving CFLs and save up to 80% of energy. CFLs also last up to 6 times longer than incandescent bulbs. You should also choose the lowest wattage light bulb needed for your specific lighting purpose. By using less energy and with less frequent changing of bulbs, you save money!

You can also save energy by using energy efficient products with the Energy Label. These products include air-conditioners and refrigerators.

LESS WATER

3.  Water Aerator

The water aerator is from Sani-Ware and can be easily installed to your sink tap. The aerator restricts the water flow from your tap and saves water.

You can also save water by using water efficient products with the Water Efficiency Label. These products include taps, showerheads, toilet cisterns and washing machines.

4.  Glass Mug

The glass mug (height 9 cm; volume 170 ml) is from IKEA. Use the glass mug to store water for rinsing when brushing your teeth and don’t keep your tap running. You can save up to 44.5 litres of water by using a mug of water when brushing.

Check out more water saving tips at the Public Utilities Board (PUB) website.

LESS WASTE

5.  Microfibre Cloth

The microfibre cloth (30 x 30 cm) is from Mr Clean. It is super absorbent and effective for cleaning dirt and grease from surfaces easily and without scratching. This reduces the need for water and chemical cleaners. You can also reduce the need to use disposable paper towels for cleaning since the microfibre cloth can be washed and reused many times.

6.  Recycled Paper Notebook

The A5 notebook is from MUJI and has a recycled content of 70%. Buying recycled products help to close the recycling loop. The complete recycling loop involves waste material collection, sorting, processing and manufacturing into a final recycled product that is sold. If there is no demand for recycled products, it might not make economic sense to collect the waste material and it will end up in the incineration plants or landfill.

Using recycled material also tend to consume less energy and water resources as compared to using virgin material in the product’s life cycle.

LESS CHEMICALS

7.  Dishwashing Detergent Refill

The dishwashing detergent liquid refill pack (600 ml) is from UIC and is awarded the GreenLabel by the Singapore Environment Council. Products with the GreenLabel are eco friendly and less harmful to the environment during its production and usage. You can find products with the GreenLabel logo at retail stores or from this list of products.

The dishwashing detergent meets the following GreenLabel criteria: (a) Biodegradability of the detergent must be at least 90%; (b) The detergent must not contain any carcinogenic, allergenic or teratogenic substances or substances that are considered hazardous to the environment; and (c) Certain substances in the detergents are to be excluded or limited.

A refill pack also uses less packaging and is cheaper compared to a normal detergent container. However, the normal container is usually recycled whereas the refill pack is disposed of.

8.  Organic Sunflower Seeds

The packet of organic sunflower seeds (250g) is from Nature’s Glory. Choose natural and organic food products that do not use chemical fertilisers and pesticides during its production. It is good for your health and prevents less chemicals from entering the environment.

You can check out this article on “A guide to organic shopping” for more details on organic products and local shops that sell them.

HOW TO BUY

The Ecobox costs S$30 (inclusive of a box and 8 products, plus delivery) and is available for sale only in Singapore. To order, fill in this form and click Submit. We will contact you within 3 working days. Payment is by cash on delivery and we deliver only on Fridays. We deliver only once a week so that we can minimise our fuel usage and carbon emissions, and keep costs down. For bulk purchase and enquiries, please use our Contact form.

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Condominiums and private apartments are not covered under the National Recycling Programme (NRP). But the National Environment Agency (NEA) are working with the Managing Agents and Management Councils of the condominiums and private apartments to introduce recycling programmes. Similar to the National Recycling Programme, recycling bags would be given to residents for their recyclables or recycling bins would be placed at selected locations.

As of Dec 2007, there are 353 condominiums and private apartments with recycling programmes. Recently, the ministry has also announced that it will make it mandatory to have recycling facilities in condominiums and private apartments. This mean that soon all the residential premises (HDB estates, landed properties, condominiums and private apartments) in Singapore will have some form of recycling programme and all residents have the opportunity to recycle.

(This article was first published in SG Recycle.)

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