Catalysts for climate change in Singapore

One of the main catalysts for climate change in Singapore is the emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) as Singapore was one of the top countries in the 1990’s for total carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Base on a report by Earthtrends (2003), the primary factors that contribute to carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions came from the excessive use of liquid fuels, mainly the use of petroleum products. Sixty percent of these carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions were generated by electricity and heat production.

The negative impact of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions on our country is visible in many ways. Some of these effects are the warming temperatures and rising sea levels. If the situation is left unaddressed, Singapore will have more problems other than just the rising of temperature and sea level to deal with. Land loss, heat stress and public health impact from resurgence of diseases are just some of the upcoming problems Singapore will face if carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions continue to escalate.

Therefore, it is imperative that Singapore acts now and come up with solutions to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in our country. If our country is steadfast with their preventive measures, we should be able to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and in the process improve the country’s eco-status.

Reference

Climate and Atmosphere—Singapore (2003), EarthTrends.wri.org,

http://earthtrends.wri.org/pdf_library/country_profiles/cli_cou_702.pdf

Save the Moon Bears

As forests in the world are being logged, many bears in the world face extinction. In Asia, the Asiatic black bear is one of them. Asiatic Black Bear, a.k.a. Tibetan black bear or Moon Bear is a medium sized, black-colored bear with a distinctive white or cream patch that represents a "V" marking on its chest. The Asiatic black bear can be found in the eastern Asia regions in forested areas like hills and mountainous regions, but it’s facing the threat of extinction due to deforestation, hunting and habitat loss. The World Conservation Union's (IUCN's) has already listed these bears as ‘vulnerable’ under their Red List of Threatened Animals. So is there any way to prevent their impending danger?

Fortunately, it is not a dead end for these animals. Apparently, steps can be taken to prevent them from extinction. For example, the respective government bodies should restrict logging to some areas of the forest regions to protect their natural habitat. Other way of preserving these bears would be to substantially lessen the demand for bear products, and thus reduce hunting and trade. The respective governments could also propose a protected area for these bears to live in.

Therefore, it's not a dead end for the Asiatic black bear as measures can be taken to prevent them from being extinct. If the prevention measures are implemented successfully, I believe that the Asiatic black bears can be saved from extinction.

Reference

The World Conservation Union (http://www.iucn.org)

How do poeple spend Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year can be viewed as one of the long holidays in Singapore. Having two and a half days to celebrate including Chinese New Year's Eve, it's one of the busiest times for traditional Chinese as they will be preparing the usher in a happy lunar new year.

A traditional Chinese starts to prepare way before Chinese New Year. When the Chinese New Year Eve is here they would have their reunion dinner. On the first day of the New Year, A traditional Chinese will travel around the land visiting relatives and praying at temples. On the second day, traditional families will gather and go enjoy the festival that has been setup.

Well I'm Chinese, but not to the traditional sense. Therefore, some of the things I to do on Chinese New Year includes reading comics and manga, watching animation, clearing my room, sleeping, eating reunion dinner, etc..
What about others? Singapore is not just a 'traditional Chinese populated nation’; there are other people of different countries, race or religion who don't really celebrate Chinese New Year the traditional way. "Than what should I do with this long break?" they think to themselves.

I think some of the things they may do are to travel, for example foreign workers may take the chance to go back to their own country to visit their own relatives. Other locals may like to take the chance to get some good rest and relax at home, while some may think that is a good chance to catch up on things that they aren’t able to during work.

Well, the bottom line is: “everyone has there own ways of sending Chinese New Year, regardless who we are and where we come from. But no matter what we do, the important thing is that we enjoy this holiday to the fullest”.

So to everyone out there: have a Happy CNY and Best of Luck in this Year of the "RAT"!

Post is edited by Justin Wong.

How the government tackle the water consumption problem

Water, one of the most precious resources in Singapore, is one of the most tapped resources by our people. In the 1950’s, the demand for water was around 142,000 cubic metres per day for our population of about a million people. Now the consumption rate has gone up nine times whereas the population growth increase four times. It is obvious that as our population slowly grows, the amount of water needed to sustain our daily needs escalates as well. Knowing that our nation can’t just rely on importing water and our reservoirs to meet our daily needs, our government came up with a few solutions to improve the situation. Some of these solutions include the Marina Barrage, the desalination of seawater to drinking water and reclamation of used water (NEWater) plus campaigns to promote the importance of water saving.

One of Singapore’s main sources of water supply comes from the reservoirs. In order to increase the local water supplies the government came up with the Marina Barrage. The Marina Barrage is a dam that's under construction by the government across the Marina Channel. It acts as a tide barrier and at the same time creates a fresh water reservoir in the Marina Basin. This new Reservoir will add to the local water supply and increase the water’s catchment from half to two-thirds of Singapore’s supply providing more fresh water.

Other sources that the government is trying to tap are: seawater and used water. First, by putting seawater through a process called desalination, the seawater can be filtered into water for use as additional water supply. Secondly, it is possible to reclaim used water using advanced membrane technology. This reclaimed water (or NEWater) is ultra clean; having been through multi-barrier processes of micro-filtration, reverse osmosis and ultra-violet disinfection. NEWater also provides a sustainable and environmentally friendly solution to increasing water demand.

Besides searching for new water sources, the government also organize campaigns like the ‘save water’ campaign to raise the awareness of citizens on how important it is to save water. Commercials about saving water are also shown on TV. The government also publish websites the "10 Litre Challenge" that educates people on how to save water in a innovative way.

As the government works hard to find more ways to meet the demand of water in our raising population, we as citizens can play a part to and help lower the demand of water by practicing water saving habits. If we work hand in hand, I believe that the water consumption problem will eventually be solved.

Post edited by Justin Wong.