Singapore is recorded as the country with the highest proportion of\nreclaimed land in the world, where man-made land already accounts for\nmore than a quarter of its total 744 square kilometres. According to\nChannel News Asia on Thursday (03\/09\/2026), this proportion is projected\nto swell soon due to plans for massive reclamation works in the\nfuture.<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, during the 2026 National Day Rally,\nannounced that Singapore is seriously considering merging several\nislands south of Jurong Island into a much larger western island in the\ncoming decades. Additionally, preparatory work for a giant coastal\nprotection project titled \u2018Long Island\u2019 is scheduled to begin in late\n2026, serving as the foundation for an 800-hectare project that will\nspan several decades.<\/p>\n
However, experts are beginning to warn that conventional land\nreclamation methods, such as infilling, are now being hindered by\nskyrocketing costs and increasingly limited supplies of fill material.\nFurthermore, concerns regarding fatal environmental impacts continue to\nloom. Professor Chu Jian, Head of Civil Engineering at Nanyang\nTechnological University (NTU), detailed Singapore\u2019s reclamation\njourney.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor land reclamation in recent years, we no longer have hills to\nquarry, so we have begun importing sand,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n
Given the limited availability of imported sand, Singapore has been\nforced to switch to using marine clay from seawall construction and\nexcavated material from MRT and high-rise building construction.\nProfessor Chu emphasised that sand remains the most ideal material.<\/p>\n
\u201cIdeally, sand should be used because it is easy to handle and less\ncompressible. If you use clay, it will be very difficult to process\u2026 and\nthe cost of remediation will also be higher,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n
The challenge of obtaining sufficient fill material is further\ncomplicated by the need for much larger volumes, as Singapore must now\nreclaim increasingly deeper sea areas. David Ng from the Institution of\nEngineers Singapore (IES) estimates that every one hectare of sea with a\ndepth of approximately 10 metres requires about 100,000 cubic metres of\nfill material.<\/p>\n
Assuming an average seabed depth of 20 metres, the 800-hectare Long\nIsland project is estimated to require at least 160 million cubic metres\nof infill material, roughly equivalent to the volume of 64,000\nOlympic-sized swimming pools.<\/p>\n
To tackle this material crisis, Singapore began a shift last\nSeptember by reclaiming 800 hectares of land on Pulau Tekong using the\npolder method. This revolutionary method has proven successful in\nreducing sand usage by almost half, although it incurs much higher\nmaintenance costs.<\/p>\n
Associate Professor Edward Park, a lead investigator at the Earth\nObservatory of Singapore, stated that using recycled materials such as\nexcavated soil or processed marine clay as a substitute for sand is an\nexcellent sustainability initiative. However, the volumes produced are\noften only a small fraction of the hundreds of millions of cubic metres\nrequired.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey often cannot meet large-scale demand,\u201d he asserted.<\/p>\n
Park also added that producing manufactured sand from crushed rock on\na reclamation scale is highly energy-intensive and expensive, meaning\nnatural sand is expected to continue dominating demand in the future.\nFor the Long Island project, engineers will likely adopt a hybrid polder\nsystem, using protective boundary embankments and drainage networks to\ncreate land below sea level to drastically reduce the required volume of\ninfill.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the plan to merge islands in the western region, if\napproved, will likely follow the Jurong Island blueprint by constructing\nheavy retaining embankments and infilling the surrounding shallow\nwaters.<\/p>\n
On the other hand, environmental experts have long warned that\nmassive reclamation projects will permanently destroy ecosystems.\nResponding to these concerns, Singapore\u2019s Ministry of National\nDevelopment has ensured that in-depth technical studies and\nenvironmental assessments will be conducted to guide all development\nplans. Ng from the IES also emphasised the importance of a sustainable\napproach.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor these upcoming land reclamation projects, it is crucial to study\nand explore the use of more sustainable design and construction methods\nand materials to minimise the impact on the surrounding marine and\ncoastal environments,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/singapore-plans-massive-land-reclamation-projects-1788400425", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }