Tuesday 15 September 2015

Does Singapore protect her wildlife?

So I was thinking about how Singapore has more wildlife than one would expect for a small, urbanised island one day, and this question (up there, the title of this post) popped into my mind. I went on to research and find more information about the conservation efforts in Singapore, and the conservation plans and projects we have far exceeded my expectations.

For starters, the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) was launched by National Parks Board (NParks) in 2009. The plan, managed by National Biodiversity Centre (NBC), provides a guideline as to how conservation activities could be carried out in Singapore as well as to promote conservation of plant and animal wildlife on the island. Another action plan - the Nature Conservation Masterplan (NCMP), lay out what Singapore is going to do for biodiversity conservation in the next half of the decade. The NCMP includes biodiversity and wildlife research, community outreach and education, conservation programmes and the development of green areas in Singapore.Under these national policies, plans for recovery of critically endangered species that are native to Singapore have been put in place.

The Singapore Ginger, Zingiber Singapurense, one of the native plants of Singapore
Image by Jana Leong-Škorničková via My Green Space, NParks 

Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) have managed and funded many conservation projects in Singapore. Some projects conducted by WRS are studies on Singapore's pangolins, leopard cats and the Banded Leaf Monkey. Awareness programmes informing the public about the illegal wildlife trade and the harm it is doing to the environment are also carried out by WRS.

A Pangolin
Image via Wikimedia Commons

These environmental policies and programmes, while great, may not be heard or seen by many Singaporeans. Those who have read about these policies can be considered the 'minority', as many Singaporeans are unaware of the wildlife that has made Singapore their home. While this is slowly changing with outreach efforts like guided walks conducted by Naked Hermit Crabs, Herpetological Society of Singapore and even Bachelor of Environmental Studies (BES) Drongos in nature parks, the people signing up to these events often are caught up in Singapore's nature scene.

Perhaps as more environmental agencies spring up, environmental issues will become better known to the public and better understood. With better understanding, the public is likely to see the significance of biodiversity and of the ecosystem, and hence the importance of conservation even in an area as small as Singapore.


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References obtained from:
NParks, "Our National Plan for Conservation", https://www.nparks.gov.sg/biodiversity/our-national-plan-for-conservation
NParks, "Nature Conservation Masterplan consolidates Singapore's biodiversity conservation efforts", 27 Jun 2015, https://www.nparks.gov.sg/news/2015/6/nature-conservation-masterplan-consolidates-singapores-biodiversity-conservation-efforts
NParks, "Nature Conservation Masterplan", 27 Jun 2015, https://www.nparks.gov.sg/news/2015/6/nature-conservation-masterplan
The Straits Times, "September school holidays: sign up for 'green' environmental events this week", Audrey Tan, published 7 Sep 2015, http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/break-out-in-green-this-holiday-week
Wildlife Reserves Singapore, "Conservation Projects", http://www.wrscf.org.sg/Content.aspx?menuid=75

1 comment:

  1. Chee weng here. The efforts brought out by the nature conservationist are definitely commendable. One example i would quote is the effort by nature society and toddycats to reroute the cross island line such that it doesn't cut through the central catchment nature reserve (ps i did a blog post on that u can take a look :p). The point i'm trying to drive to is this. Efforts by nature conservationist alone is not enough. Say for the case of the CRL, the government are most likely going to go ahead with the construction despite knowing the fact that the nature reserve is pristine and home to many exotic species of wildlife in singapore. Without governmental support, envirommentalist efforts are futile. Im going to leave u with this, can the government ever strike a balance between economic development and environmental policies? Think about it and thats all!

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