Using EMMP to protect Singapore’s natural heritage

Located off Singapore’s southwest mainland is the Bukom Refinery, formerly operated by Shell and now taken over by CAPGC. In 2005, Shell required more land to expand their petrochemical plant to develop a new world class ethylene cracker. To create this space, they decided to reclaim additional land by connecting three islands: Pulau Busing, Pulau Ular and Pulau Bukom Kechil.   

 

Shell worked closely with Singapore’s national developer of industrial infrastructure, JTC, to plan and carry out the Pulau Ular reclamation work. To ensure that the land reclamation would not harm the environment, JTC asked DHI to execute an Environmental Monitoring and Management Plan (EMMP). The EMMP enabled JTC to detect unexpected effects on the environment at a very early stage. As such, JTC could take the necessary actions to address the impact of the reclamation work. The result: minimal long-term impacts of land reclamation activities on the surrounding marine environment.

 

Challenge

The three islands contained a diverse ecosystem with a variety of terrestrial and marine plant and animal species. In addition, the reclamation works took place across from the island of Pulau Hantu. High in biodiversity, this island is one of the few recreational diving locations open to the public in Singapore. To ensure the works had minimal potential environmental impact on the surrounding area, JTC asked DHI Singapore to execute an EMMP. 

 

Solution

The EMMP investigated the impact of the reclamation work on the surrounding islands. It also established the requisite Environmental Quality Objectives (EQOs). Based on recommendations from the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), the EQOs indicated the maximum level of impact allowed on each relevant marine habitat around the reclamation works. DHI’s EMMP ensured that the works met the EQOs for the relevant marine habitats (corals, seagrass and mangroves) and other environmental receptors – including recreational beaches, industrial water intakes and aquaculture facilities. 

 

Helping to mitigate the effects of the reclamation work

 

DHI’s EMMP included:

• Establishing an environmental baseline and monitoring key habitats
• Sediment plume forecast, spill and hindcast modelling
• Control monitoring of environmental indicators
• Sediment spill and environmental indicator monitoring
• Real‑time data collection, information management and daily compliance reporting
   

It was set up to be highly responsive and reported the effects of the reclamation activities within 42 hours of reclamation trips, seven days a week. This allowed JTC to take actions to mitigate any unexpected impact of the reclamation work on the environment before it became a serious threat.

 

The sequence of the reclamation activities varied from what was predicted during the EIA. This required the EMMP to be very flexible in terms of daily assessment of potential impacts, environmental monitoring and managing the client’s and stakeholder’s expectations.

 

DHI applied international best practices for feedback monitoring systems. This ensured a reliable response system in compliance with the project’s environmental objectives on a daily basis. In addition, the EMMP’s sediment spill modelling allowed JTC to separate the project’s impact from any other potential impact caused by third parties. Extensive documentation throughout the project ensured that developers and contractors were not exposed to unwarranted claims from external parties of harming the environment.

 

Supporting coral relocation

The Terumbu Bayan reef is an undisturbed coral reef with high coral cover and rich biodiversity. Located close to Pulau Ular, just off the fairway between Pulau Ular and Pulau Hantu, the reclamation work’s footprint covered most of this reef. 

To preserve this coral biodiversity, JTC undertook a coral relocation project prior to the start of the reclamation works. More than 3,500 coral colonies – 35% of the live hard coral cover of the Terumbu Bayan reef – were moved from Terumbu Bayan to other designated receptor sites in Singapore. The coral relocation ensured the preservation of Singapore’s marine biodiversity, while the EMMP helped safeguard the overall marine habitats around the project site.