Water supply and sanitation in Singapore are intricately linked to the historical development of Singapore. It is characterised by a number of outstanding achievements in a challenging environment with geographical limitations. Access to water in Singapore is universal, affordable, efficient and of high quality.
Innovative hydraulic engineering and integrated water management approaches such as the reuse of reclaimed water, the establishment of protected areas in urban rainwater catchments and the use of estuaries as freshwater reservoirs have been introduced along with seawater desalination in order to reduce the country's dependence on untreated imported water.
As a result of such efforts, Singapore has achieved self-sufficiency with its water supply since the mid-2010s. Examples include its "Four National Taps" for its water supply. Five desalination plants have been opened throughout the country since 2003, which in total are able to produce a maximum capacity of approximately per day.
Singapore's approach does not simply rely on physical infrastructure, but it also emphasises proper legislation and enforcement, water pricing, public education as well as research and development. In 2007, Singapore's water and sanitation utility, the Public Utilities Board, received the Stockholm Industry Water Award for its holistic approach to water resources management.Stockholm International Water Institute:Stockholm Industry Water and sexAward:PUB Singapore
Singapore was also the first country in Asia to institute a comprehensive fluoridation programme which covers the entirety of its population. The water was fluoridated at 0.7 ppm using sodium silicofluoride.Loh T. (1996). Thirty-eight years of water fluoridation--the Singapore scenario. Community dental health, 13 Suppl 2, 47–50.
History Early local water supply (until 1979) The history of common water supply in Singapore began with the construction of the MacRitchie Reservoir, which was built by the British in 1866.
During the drought of 1902 the Water Department cut supply to just 2–3 hours per day. Singapore faced a severe shortfall in water and stored water was estimated to be 70 million gallons, or less, against consumption of 2.5 million gallons per day. Evaporation from the reservoir made the situation worse and there were daily records of the falling water level in the reservoir.
There was public pressure to prioritise the town's water supply over 'shipping interests'. The leader writer in the Singapore Free Press Weekly recognised the needs of the port and shipping industry for fresh water had to be considered as 'most important' otherwise '[Singapore] may as well be shut up'.
Water meters were already in use in Singapore in 1902. In an article during the 'Water Famine' a householder complained of his meter whizzing round even though only air came through the pipe. The householder feared being charged the tariff (20 cents per 1,000 gallons or 4.4 cents per m3) but was assured by the Water Department that his bill would be corrected to the average consumption over previous months. The same article highlights that, in searching for water and drilling artesian wells, it was discovered that no geological survey of the island of Singapore had ever been undertaken.
Another faulty water meter resulted in a court case involving attempted bribery of a Water Department official. A large water consumer was convicted of offering a bribe to have his faulty water meter left alone and uncorrected.
Lower Peirce Reservoir and the Upper Seletar Reservoir were completed in 1913 and 1949 respectively, in order to supply the rapidly modernising colonial city with sufficient water. In 1927 the municipal leadership of Singapore and Sultan Ibrahim of the state and territories of Johor in neighboring Malaya signed an agreement that allowed Singapore to rent land in Johor and use its water for free. The Municipal Water Department, under David J. Murnane, began importing raw water from Gunong Pulai in 1927 and filtered water on 31 December 1929. The water filtration and pipeline capacity from Gunong Pulai was doubled in 1939.David J. Murnane
In 1938, another pipeline was built to return a quantity of treated water to Johor. During the Fall of Singapore in 1942, the causeway that linked Singapore with the Malay Peninsula was blown up by retreating British troops to slow down the Japanese advance, thus destroying the pipeline, which left Singapore with decreased water reserves that could last at most two weeks."Singapore’s Water Cycle Wizardry," by Sandra Upson, IEEE Spectrum, June 2010, retrieved on 9 August 2012 According to Lee Kuan Yew, this was one of his motives to envision water self-sufficiency for Singapore going forward when he became the country's first prime minister.
Expansion of water imports and of local reservoirs (1965–1997)
After the war, Singapore continued to grow rapidly and more water was needed to sustain the city's growth. The 1927 agreement was superseded by two new agreements signed in 1961 and 1962 between the independent federation of Malaya and the self-governing British territory of Singapore. They foresaw the payment of a water rate in addition to the rent for the land.
Under these agreements Singapore built two water treatment plants in Singapore and a new, expanded pipeline from Johor. Singapore also supplied treated water to Johor far below the cost of treating the water. At the time of the agreements it was expected that Singapore would become part of Malaysia, as it did for a brief period beginning in 1963.
When Singapore separated from Malaysia in 1965, then Malaysian Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman said that "If Singapore’s foreign policy is prejudicial to Malaysia’s interests, we could always bring pressure to bear on them by threatening to turn off the water in Johor". Decades later, Malaysia clarified that the statement should be seen in context that at the time, Malaysia and Indonesia were engaged in a confrontation and that the remark referred to the possibility of Singapore siding with Indonesia.
This was another motive for Singapore to further develop its local water resources, according to Lee Kuan Yew. Therefore, in parallel to the gradual expansion of water imports from Johor the Public Utilities Board, created in 1963, embarked on the construction of more water schemes inside Singapore. They included the damming of river estuaries to allow for greater storage volumes. For example, the Kranji-Pandan Scheme, completed in 1975, included the damming of the estuary of the Kranji river and the construction of a reservoir at Pandan. In the same year, the Upper Peirce Reservoir was completed. As part of the Western Catchment Scheme, completed in 1981, another four rivers were dammed.Development of Water Supply Infrastructure: MacRitchy Reservoir History , retrieved on 7 June 2012
In 1983, a dam was built across the estuary of the Seletar River to form the Lower Seletar Reservoir. But these amounts were still not sufficient, and seawater desalination was too expensive at the time to be considered. Singapore was thus interested in building a dam on the Johor River in Malaysia and an associated new water treatment plant. After six years of difficult negotiations, the Prime Ministers of Singapore and Malaysia signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in 1988 paving the way for an agreement in 1990 with Johor that allowed the construction of a dam (Linggiu Dam) in the state that will be operated by Singapore.Valerie Chew: Singapore-Malaysia water agreements , Singapore Infopedia, retrieved on 7 June 2012 Ever since, Singapore's Public Utilities Board has operated a water treatment plant in Kota Tinggi, Johor, known as the Johor River Water Works.
Water negotiations (1998–2002)
In 1998, Singapore began new negotiations with Malaysia to extend its water agreements beyond 2011 and 2061 respectively. In return, Malaysia initially asked to increase the raw water price to RM0.60 (S$0.26) per , corresponding to 4 US cents per cubic meter.The Star: WATER: The Singapore-Malaysia Dispute: THE FACTSCecilia Tortajada and Kimberly Pobre:The Singapore–Malaysia water relationship: an analysis of the media perspectives , Hydrological Sciences Journal, July 2011 This price was still much lower than the cost of desalinated seawater or of NEWater. However, in 2002 Malaysia asked for a much higher price of RM6.40 (S$3) per (US$0.45 per cubic meter), arguing that Hong Kong paid the equivalent of RM8 (S$3.76) per for water from China.BBC:Malaysia raises water stakes , 15 February 2003, retrieved on 21 July 2012Baradan Kuppusamy Water war makes small splash , Asia Times, 1 August 2003
The new price proposed by Malaysia was close to the price of desalinated water. The government of Singapore said that Malaysia had no right to alter the price of water because of the deal that they have, which included Malaysia receiving treated water from Singapore. It further clarified that the price paid by Hong Kong included payment for substantial infrastructure provided by China, while Malaysia provided only access to raw water and the infrastructure necessary to convey the water inside Malaysia was entirely paid for by Singapore. Singapore decided to refuse to accept a higher price and its initial goal to extend the agreements beyond 2061. Instead, Singapore decided to achieve a different path of self-sufficiency in its water supply before 2061. Subsequently, negotiations would end in 2003 without result.
Towards water self-sufficiency (2002–2011)
While the negotiations were ongoing however, Singapore was already prepared for greater water self-sufficiency through an integrated water management approach including water reuse and desalination of seawater. In 1998, the government initiated a study, the Singapore Water Reclamation Study (NEWater Study), to determine if reclaimed water treated to potable standards was a viable source of water. In order to facilitate the new integrated approach, the Public Utilities Board, which had previously been in charge of water supply only, was given the responsibility for sanitation as well in 2001. Previously sanitation had been under the direct responsibility of the Ministry of Environment. The new policy was called the "Four Taps": The first and second taps were local water catchments and water imports.
In 2002, Singapore commissioned its first reclaimed water plant, thus opening a "Third Tap". This was done carefully, after a monitoring period of two years to ensure safe water quality. There was also an active marketing campaign that included the opening of a visitor center, the sale of NEWater in bottles and the Prime Minister drinking a bottle of NEWater in front of the cameras. In 2005 Singapore opened its first seawater desalination plant, the "Fourth Tap". In the meantime it also further expanded its reservoirs, the "First Tap". Today's largest reservoir, the Marina Bay reservoir, was inaugurated in 2008. It is located in the estuary of a river that has been closed off by a barrage to keep the seawater out. Two similar barrages were completed in July 2011, forming the Punggol Reservoir and the Serangoon Reservoir. When the 1961 water agreement with Malaysia ended in August 2011, Singapore could thus afford to let it expire without any issues to its water supply.
Singapore's water usage reaches a demand of about 430 million gallons per day. Of the Four Taps of Supply, Imported water from Johor satisfies about 50 percent of the demand, NEWater can meet up to 40 percent, Desalination up to 25, and the local catchments help to make up the rest."Finding ways to increase water supply from Johor River", The Straits Times, 17 January 2018 Furthermore, Singapore has become a global water research and technology hub with active support from the government.
Self-sufficiency and outlook (2011–present)