URA's green ideas get experts' approval

Plans to expand green spaces in Singapore and link them up have won the support of nature activists and experts here. They called for more such links but said the execution will have to be carefully managed.

More green spaces and corridors can lower the island's temperature, foster greater appreciation of nature and help to retain rainwater and reduce flash floods, they said.

But if mismanaged, the links can boost the population of unwanted animals such as wild boars, lead them to more habitats and increase the risk of human-animal conflicts.

The experts were interviewed by The Straits Times on the new Urban Redevelopment Authority blueprint that includes plans to expand green spaces such as nature areas and parks, and new, natural pathways to link them.

This Draft Master Plan 2013 guides land use in the next 10 to 15 years with revisions every five years.

Under the master plan, the National Parks Board will introduce more than 60km of "nature ways" by 2015.

These are routes planted with specific trees and shrubs to help the movement of birds, butterflies and small animals between two green spaces.

In the longer term, a larger eco-corridor will be built through the future Tengah town to let wildlife pass between the Western Water Catchment and the Bukit Timah and Central Catchment Nature Reserves.

The chairman of Seletar Country Club Nature Group, Mr Foo Jit Leang, said linking green spaces creates a larger foraging area for animals such as monkeys, and they may be less likely to venture into residential areas in search of food.

Other experts said the expanded habitats keep the fauna healthy.

Animals trapped in small, fragmented spaces may breed within their families, leading to genetic defects in their offspring. The drop in genetic diversity also makes them more vulnerable to disease and habitat changes.

The green spaces also cool the city since man-made building materials absorb and radiate more heat than natural surfaces, said Associate Professor Tan Puay Yok from the National University of Singapore's department of architecture.

But Nature Society council member Tony O'Dempsey said ecological studies are needed to determine each link's "customers" as well as optimum size.

"The risk is that feral species will use the links to get into the nature reserves and damage the habitats, so we need to know what species are in the terminal locations as well as along the way. Some wildlife management may be needed," he added.

The vegetation along the links should also match those of the connected areas to sustain the animals and critters throughout, said Nanyang Technological University's environment club, Earthlink.

"Some examples would be fruit trees that provide food for birds, squirrels and other small mammals. Climbers and lianas that link up one tree to another can also provide an 'aerial highway' for tree-dwelling animals."

zengkun@sph.com.sg

audreyt@sph.com.sg

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