Singapore water

Singapore water

The seawater being turned into fresh water through a membrane separation process is Singapore's very own. This is a rare ownership right that is to be savored.

There are encouraging precedents. Reverse osmosis (a much cheaper method of desalting than distillation, which uses more fuel) is a technology that has a history of about four decades. American research reports show that pure water had been produced using this method for industrial, military and laboratory uses.

Drinking water began coming onstream after the mid-1980s. The same membrane and energy-saving advances that allowed the Hyflux plant to be built at moderate cost could evolve continually to make replications feasible. Oil price is a bugbear, as experts keep forecasting new price benchmarks.

But scientists' ingenuity in improving membranes and pumps knows no bounds. Desalination need not remain a niche method forever. -- The Straits Times, Singapore