Residents of all ages enjoy community gardening activities. It not only teaches us to be self-sufficient but also creates bonding opportunities.

I was pleasantly surprised to know that the area I live in, under Holland-Bukit Panjang Town Council, is the first town council to have a sustainability report. The existing sustainability-driven initiatives, including the change of lighting to LEDs and various recycling programmes, are a step in the right direction. Some new initiatives that I feel can be explored range from moving towards a single-use plastic free town, and understanding our town’s carbon footprint from which we can identify areas of improvement. On a larger scale, we can look into the sustainability of our built environment, such as the source of construction materials and techniques used.

One way to reduce waste is to buy goods unpackaged. You can easily find them in our own neighbourhoods, such as sundry shops and wet markets that often sell edible items by weight. Instead of getting them in plastic bags, simply bring your own containers to fill. Doing so helps to reduce the amount of packaging waste. A tried and tested shop that you can get freshly ground coffee is Huat Soon Heng Coffee Powder at Bukit Timah Market. The friendly uncle will even mix beans so you can make your own special blend! This enables us to support local as well as be eco-friendly.

I personally feel that Bukit Panjang has fared well in many of the sustainability goals, especially with the PV installation on rooftops, the large number of community gardens and nature parks, recycling initiatives and also recreational activities available, along with its residents’ involvement. Being a community gardener, I believe that preserving the rustic look rather than sprucing up the gardens will foster a stronger community, as local gardeners associate themselves with the identity of the gardens that they have built over the years.

I feel it is important to talk about recycling, sorting, and the transparency of recycling results in the Town Council and beyond, as well as the steps towards achieving a circular economy for the future. However, even prior to recycling, there needs to be more awareness about reducing onetime- use materials such as plastic food containers and drinking cups. I hope to see HBPTC adopting some of the suggestions, such as educating hawkers and setting up composting programmes.

ALBA is honoured to work with the Town Council to make circularity a reality for e-waste. We have set up disposal channels such as e-bins across the town to collect and recycle e-waste.

Dairy Farm Nature Park

Formerly a cow shed, the Wallace Education Centre now houses an education gallery where visitors can learn about the biogeography and biodiversity of our region.

Bukit Panjang Butterfly Garden

Situated along Bukit Panjang Road, it is linked to the Pang Sua and Zhenghua Park Connector network that links to biodiversity- rich areas like Dairy Farm Nature Park and, further south, the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve. Red Tree Bush (Leea rubra), a butterfly nectaring plant, sits right in the centre of the “VIP” planter bed, which attracts forest butterflies.

Ulu Pandan Park Connector

Starting from Commonwealth Avenue West, this connector runs through the Ghim Moh estates, Dover MRT station, Holland Grove estates and the Van Kleef Centre, a water research centre. During the flowering season of Tabebuia rosea, visitors can sight flowering trees such as Callerya atropurpurea and Saraca thaipingensis, as well as Red- Capped Woodpeckers, Kingfishers,  White Egrets and Grey Heron.

Chestnut Nature Park

It is located at the eastern end of Chestnut Avenue. The 81-ha nature park – Chestnut Nature Park (south) and Chestnut Nature Park (north) – serves as a green buffer for the Central Catchment Nature Reserve and is Singapore’s largest nature park to date. Braided Chestnut (Castanopsis inermis), Singapore Walking-Stick Palm (Rhopaloblaste singaporensis) and the Jelutong (Dyera costulata) are some of the trees found here.

Sustainability has always been one of the cornerstones of our focus on town management. Since Dr Teo Ho Pin’s time as the chairman of the Holland-Bukit Panjang Town Council, it is enshrined in our work pertaining to township governance. Whether it is driving recycling efforts, stepping up our biophilic initiatives, and making our town more energy- efficient, we sustain the momentum by launching initiatives and technological innovations that make sustainability a fact of life for all. 

Noteworthy here is the fact that all this is done against the backdrop of changing demographics. For instance, Bukit Panjang is home to Together, we embark on this sustainability journey a predominantly ageing community. There are more seniors now and our estates are also getting older – many precincts are entering the 30-year mark and some are even older. 

In the next stage of our green plan, we have to dovetail our green initiatives with our rejuvenation plans. As such, our Neighbourhood Renewal Programmes have a green focus. We rethink the way our community centres, for example, are being designed so as to allow for better natural ventilation, which further brings down energy consumption. We have invested in energy-efficient LED lighting and encouraged the proliferation of community gardens and green spaces throughout our town.

Energy-efficiency not only reduces carbon emission but also keeps it affordable for our residents. We also want to explore water saving solutions through the use of devices such as jet equipment by our cleaners to wash the common areas. These devices can minimise water usage. Similarly, for households, we advise our residents on how they can minimise water consumption by installing water-saving devices on their taps and reducing their utility bill expenses.

An integral aspect of our approach towards sustainability is how we procure materials for our Town’s rejuvenation programmes – the entire supply chain ecosystem has to be aligned with our sustainability objectives that emphasise materiality and circularity. For example, the paint that we use for the Repair and Redecoration works in our estates are environmentally friendly and don’t contain harmful chemicals. We ensure that the suppliers from whom we procure goods in the course of our town management work have the green accreditation mark. In the past few years, there has been a palpable shift in our town planning and management work. It is also intrinsically linked to the SG Green Plan 2030 as well as the Action for Green Town initiative.

We are also looking at synergies between sustainability and mobility. Many of our residents have embraced cycling as their main mode of transportation. We are working closely with Land Transport Authority and pressing on with our cycling network to connect our Town as well as the various park connectors better, and make them more user-friendly and accessible.

One growing area of concern is the increase in the amount of waste generated during the pandemic. Our cleaners have witnessed the bins filling up fast, both in residential areas as well as the Town’s commercial centres and food markets. We hope to create awareness about responsible consumption and its impact on reducing our carbon footprint.

We are talking to companies about the potential of waste composting. As a progressive town council supported by our community of residents who are actively seeking ways to live a greener and healthier lifestyle, we are always open to new and innovative ideas that add value to our sustainability objectives.

MR LIANG ENG HWA
MP for Bukit Panjang SMC
Chairman of Holland-Bukit Panjang Town Council

Bukit Timah Nature Reserve

It is home to Singapore’s highest hill, Bukit Timah, which is 162.5m above sea level. The 163-ha nature reserve contains 40 per cent of the local flora and fauna. One specimen of Shorea curtisii (seraya) is estimated to be over 370 years old. Others include Red Dhup (Parishia insignis), Hanguana neglecta and Para Rubber (Hevea brasiliensis). Two freshwater crab species that are native only to Singapore – Johora singaporensis and Irmengardia johnsoni – can be sighted here, as well as the Greater Racket-tailed Drongo and Malayan Colugo.