The Nature Society Singapore (NSS) is a non-government, non-profit organisation centered towards the preservation and appreciation of Singapore's natural heritage, as well as that of the surrounding region. Run by volunteers, the NSS depends financially on its members' contributions as well as companies, institutions and individuals.
History NSS has its origin in 1940 when a handful of colonial civil servants got together to form the Malayan Nature Society (MNS). Its activities were mainly educational - organising talks by visiting scientists, conducting nature walks, etc. Headquartered in today's Malaysia, the Singapore group became known as the Malayan Nature Society (Singapore Branch). It had its headquarters in the National University of Singapore as most office holders were from the then Departments of Botany and Zoology, now merged into the Department of Biological Sciences. As such, there were always close collaborations with academics, who had the necessary scientific background. In 1991 the society split from MNS and re-registered itself as NSS. Following the re-registration, NSS moved its base from NUS leading to a decline in the number of academic members of the society. The society has recently reinforced its links with academics.
Data breach (2020) In November 2020, the Nature Society discovered that it had suffered a data breach. According to investigations carried out by the Personal Data Protection Commission of Singapore (PDPC), the personal data of 5,131 individuals who had created user accounts on the society's website had their personal data affected, and potentially exfiltrated and made available on hacking forums.
The PDPC found that the Nature Society had not complied with its data protection obligations under the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) because, amongst other matters, it had not designated any individuals responsible for compliance with the PDPA and, had not developed and implemented any data protection policies prior to the incident, and had failed to put in place reasonable measures to protect personal data.
The society's website had been designed and developed by an external vendor in 2011, but following that, the society had not engaged any party to maintain the website's security, and did not take any steps to ensure the security of its website itself.
The Nature Society was fined a total SGD14,000 for its non-compliance with the PDPA.
Organisation The President of the society is Yeo Seng Beng. The Patron of the Nature Society is Tommy Koh.
Major conservation issues Activities had always been education-related until about the 1980s when members found themselves thrust into the role of environmental activists.George, C., 2003. The nature of politics and the politics of nature. In: George, C., Singapore the air-conditioned nation. Landmark Books, Singapore. Pp. 139-143. The Serangoon estuary, home to tens of thousands of migratory birds, had just been reclaimed for development. Members were yet to be sensitised to conservation and only journalist Ilsa Sharp wrote a piece in The Straits Times protesting its demise.
The society only got seriously involved in conservation soon after when its Conservation Committee led by Richard Hale successfully persuaded government to develop a piece of degraded mangrove in Sungei Buloh into a bird sanctuary.Francesch-Huidobro, M. (2006). Statutory Bodies, Land Use Planning and Conservation in Singapore: Issues and Challenges for Governability. Public Organization Review 6(3):277-288. Flushed with success, the Conservation Committee began documenting various nature areas to eventually publish "A Master Plan for the Conservation of Nature in Singapore"Avadhani, P.N., Y. C. Wee, L. M. Chou, C. Briffett, R. Hale, H. C. Ho, K. Lim, K. K. Lim & R. Subaraj, 1990. Master Plan for the Conservation of Nature in Singapore. Malayan Nature Society, Singapore Branch. that was enthusiastically received by government. Subsequently, led by locals who had enthusiasm but no behind-the-scene contacts, the exercise to get these areas protected turned into a series of media confrontations. Eventually, every one of the newly documented areas were rejected.
In 1991 the society was presented with the Green Leaf Award by government when the former was still the Malayan Nature Society (Singapore Branch). This complemented the previous year's award when Richard Hale won the individual category. These awards were given to organisations and individuals for outstanding contributions to environmental protection and preservation.
To date, the NSS can boast of at least four conservation successes: Sungei Buloh, in persuading government to conserve an area. Lower Peirce, in persuading government not to destroy a piece of mature forest for a golf course. Kranji Marshes Park for cooperative restoration as a wildlife habitat. The Green Corridor in persuading the government to retain the former railway land as a continuous stretch of green public and wildlife space.
Sungei Buloh In 1986, Richard Hale, a banker and birder, stumbled on a degraded mangrove area rich in migratory birds when out birdwatching.Briffett, C., 2004. The genesis of Sungei Buloh. Nature Watch 12(5):5-9. However, the area was also scheduled for development. Hale led a group of members documenting the richness of the birdlife and setting out suggestions for its conservation.Hale, R., S. Subharaj, R. Ngim, H. C. Ho, C. Briffett & C. Hails, 1987. A proposal for a nature conservation area at Sungei Buloh. Malayan Nature Society (Singapore).
This was the first conservation proposal by the newly formed Conservation Committee headed by Hale. The President of Singapore Wee Kim Wee, Deputy Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong and Minister of National Development S. Dhanabalan were personally escorted to the site. This convinced government and so in 1989 the Sungei Buloh Nature Park came into being, now Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve.Hale, R., 2004. From backwater to nature reserve. Nature Watch. 12(1):2-4.Francesch-Huidobro, M., 2008. Governance, Politics and the Environment: A Singapore Study. ISEA, Singapore. 395 pp.
Lower Peirce NSS's other success was in persuading government not to destroy a patch of mature forest in the Lower Peirce water catchment for a golf course. Unlike the Sungei Buloh affair which Francesch-Huidobro refers to as "the power of persuasion", the Lower Peirce was "the power of protestation".Francesch-Huidobro, 2008. This catchment has always been a legally protected nature reserve and the announcement to clear a 142-ha area of forest for a golf course saw members up in arms. A report was hastily put together in 1992 detailing the biodiversity and the damage a golf course could do to the water quality in particular and the environment in general.Wee, Y. C. (ed.) (1992). Proposed golf course at Lower Peirce Reservoir - An environmental impact assessment. Nature Society (Singapore). 80 pp. When this 80-page "environmental impact assessment" failed to get any response from government, a signature campaign was organized that resulted in thousands of signatures. The almost daily media confrontations led to increasing public support against the construction of the golf course. Eventually, government shelved the proposal.
Chek Jawa The controversy of Chek Jawa surfaced in 2001 when the discovery of its rich marine biodiversity coincided with the planned reclamation of this intertidal area. NSS was by then working closely with government and as the reclamation was already decided, it kept a low profile. However, individuals like Joseph Lai, Ria Tan and N. Sivasothi organised a team of volunteers to help document the biodiversity of the area. Among the volunteers were many NSS members, but they came as individuals. And the NSS's Conservation Committee declined to participate, as its focus is birds, not marine organisms, and the NSS had already decided not to officially get involved in the controversy.
The resulting media and internet publicity attracted thousands of visitors, most unaware that such rich marine life could still be seen in a highly urbanized Singapore.Tan, C. M., 2001. Chek Jawa and Pulau Ubin, what does your heart tell you? An open letter to the media and Nature Society (Singapore). 6 August.Sivasothi, N., 2001. Chek Jawa – lost forever? Asian Geographic 10: 12-25. The then Minister for National Development, Mah Bow Tan, visited the area and was surprised at the number of Singaporeans visiting it. The groundswell of public opinion was too strong for government to proceed with the reclamation and at the last moment it agreed to give the area a reprieve. The decision took everyone by surprise. It was only then that the NSS was roped in, together with other NGOs, to assist in developing the area for public visits.
Kranji Marshes Park A freshwater marshland, derived from the damming of the Kranji River to form a reservoir, became seen as an important habitat. NSS drafted a proposal highlighting its conservation value in 1990. This was accepted and included in the government Singapore Green Plan 1993. The site includes woodland and wetlands. NSS adopted the stretch of wetlands in 2008 and supported by sponsorship carried out a restoration program in cooperation with PUB and NParks. It was in 2005 that the area was re-categorised as a park and named Kranji Marshes Park. The parkland is now open to the general public. NSS has published a guide "Introduction to Kranji Marshes Park".
The Green Corridor
A Proposal to Keep the Railway Lands as a Continuous Green Corridor. Presented to the Singapore Government 9 October 2010. In July 2011 a government spokesman assured the public that the greenery surrounding the railway line would be preserved and subsequently appeared in the 2013 URA (Urban Redevelopment Authority) Master Plan. An exhibition jointly organised by NSS and Friends of the Rail Corridor and supported by URA was held at the URA Centre in October 2011 titled "Re-Imagining the Rail Corridor" January 2012 The Rail Corridor Reopens for Public Visits. August 2013: The Green Corridor Monitoring and Support Group. A group of volunteers supported by NSS regularly monitor the corridor status for issues and file reports directly to the Singapore Land Authority in case remedial actions need to be taken.March 2015 The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) launched a request for proposals from design professionals to develop a Concept Master Plan and concept proposals for Singapore's Rail Corridor which retain its identity as a "green corridor" for relief, respite and recreation. NSS has published a guide "Green Rail Corridor - a guide to the ecology and heritage of the former railway land" in cooperation with Singapore Heritage Society.
Committees
Conservation Committee This committee was initiated by the Bird Group in the late 1980s with Richard Hale as chairman and R. Subaraj, Rexon Ngim and Ho Hua Chew as members. It successfully lobbied for the conservation of Sungei Buloh (see Sungei Buloh above) before the chairmanship was passed on to Ho. Subsequently, the areas listed in the society's masterplan were systematically surveyed and reports prepared. Government was lobbied for their conservation through media confrontations, with the fight for Marina South ending with the group losing credibility. Marina South was, after all, a piece of reclaimed land that turned into a wetland as a result of poor drainage with waterfowl taking up residence soon after. For the next few years the group laid low, providing feedbacks to government agencies, assisting in the review of the Singapore Green Plan, etc.