MSE Committee of Supply 2021 Press Release

RALLYING COLLECTIVE ACTION FOR A CLEANER AND GREENER FUTURE

Everyone has a part to play in keeping our public spaces clean,

and in saving resources as a way of life in Singapore

4 MARCH 2021 –During the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment (MSE)'s Committee of Supply debates on 4 March 2021, Minister Grace Fu, Senior Minister of State Dr Amy Khor and Minister of State Desmond Tan spoke on the Ministry's key initiatives to accelerate Singapore's move towards a cleaner and greener future.

Cleaner premises through collective efforts

2 Even as we manage the immediate challenges brought about by COVID-19, we must seize the opportunity to raise cleanliness and hygiene standards for the long term to shore up our public health defences and guard against future threats. This is in line with our SG Clean movement.

3 Following the passing of amendments to the Environmental Public Health Act in Parliament, the National Environmental Agency (NEA) will roll out the new Environmental Sanitation regime from mid-2021, starting with higher-risk premises with high footfall and/or immuno-vulnerable occupants. More than 2,000 premises are expected to implement the regime by end FY2021. NEA will release a Technical Guide with national baseline Environmental Sanitation guidelines, along with sector-specific standards to guide premises owners. The first batch of Environmental Control Coordinators will start their training from March 2021, to support the implementation of Environmental Sanitation programmes at their premises. (Download Factsheet)

4 NEA will continue to work with the environmental services (ES) industry to raise professionalism and productivity, and enhance jobs in the sector. To promote the adoption of better procurement practices, it will roll out a refreshed outcome-based contracting (OBC) guide for cleaning services in Q1 2021. This will help service buyers in assessing service outcomes, and better prepare cleaning companies and service buyers to deal with any additional cleaning and disinfection work when required. An OBC guide for the pest management sector is targeted to be ready by end 2021. NEA will also facilitate the adoption of automation in the ES industry by extending the Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG) to September 2021. (Download Factsheet)

5 As more people dine out during Phase 3 Safe Reopening, we must continue to keep our public dining places safe by keeping them clean. NEA launched the Clean Tables Campaign in Feb 2021 to galvanise individuals and the community to do our part to return used crockery and trays, and clear and bin our own litter such as used tissues and wet wipes. This shows consideration for the next diner, and allows cleaners to focus on the most important task of cleaning and disinfecting tables. This self-service approach is also a more sustainable way of keeping our dining places clean.

Ambitious sustainability targets under Singapore Green Plan 2030

Green Government: Public service to peak emissions around 2025

6 As a small, island city-state with no natural resources, Singapore is particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. The Government will lead efforts to ensure Singapore remains a green and liveable home by putting sustainability at the core of everything we do. New and ambitious sustainability targets will be set for the public sector. This includes a target to peak our emissions around 2025, ahead of the national target. We will also use tools and levers at our disposal, including procurement, to influence those within and outside of the public service to adopt sustainability practices and to raise awareness. (Download Factsheet)

Sustainable Living: Accelerating efforts to reduce waste

7 In an increasingly carbon- and resource-constrained world, we must continue to reduce, reuse and recycle our resources, and pursue circular economy approaches. We will frontload our waste reduction efforts over the next five years, to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill per capita per day by 20 per cent by 2026. This will accelerate progress towards the 30 per cent reduction target by 2030, as outlined in our Zero Waste Masterplan.

8 As part of efforts to address packaging waste, including plastics, we will introduce the legislative framework for a Deposit Refund Scheme (DRS) by 2022. NEA will continue to engage the community and industry when designing and implementing the DRS framework. Preliminary findings from NEA's and Shell's joint feasibility study indicate that chemical recycling in Singapore is technically feasible, and would result in carbon savings by diverting plastic waste away from incineration. We look forward to the conclusion of the study, which will inform us on the commercial viability of chemical recycling in Singapore. (Download Factsheet)

9 To address food waste, NEA is exploring a framework for large industrial and commercial (I&C) premises to measure and report the amount of food waste to be segregated for treatment. This will complement requirements for large I&C premises to segregate food waste for treatment. NEA will commence industry consultations in the second quarter of 2021. (Download Factsheet)

10 To address electrical and electronic waste (e-waste), we will implement an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme for e-waste in July 2021. NEA appointed a Producer Responsibility Scheme (PRS) Operator for e-waste in February this year, and is working with the operator to set up the collection network. Residents can look forward to more avenues to recycle their e-waste later this year.

11 We will continue to encourage water conservation and water efficient practices for industries. From 1 January 2022, the Mandatory Water Efficiency Labelling Scheme (MWELS) will be extended to water-closet flush valves. A minimum 2-tick water efficiency rating will be mandated for the sale and supply of water-closet flush valves in Singapore. Minimum water efficiency requirements will also be mandated for the sale and supply of new commercial equipment, namely washer extractors, dishwashers and high-pressure washers from 1 January 2022. (Download Factsheet)

Resilient Future: Moves to protect coastlines, strengthen food security and keep Singapore cool

12 We will continue to undertake forward planning to adapt to the challenges posed by climate change. Studies to explore measures to protect the coastlines of City-East Coast and Jurong Island will commence this year. PUB will also develop a purpose-built model capable of analysing the combined effects of extreme sea levels and intense rainfall-induced inland floods. This Coastal-Inland Flood Model will enable PUB to holistically assess inland and coastal flood risks. (Download Factsheet)

13 To further safeguard Singapore's food security, the agri-food sector will receive enhanced funding support to transform and meet our '30 by 30' goal. A $60 million Agri-Food Cluster Transformation (ACT) Fund will be established to support the transformation of the sector into one that is highly productive, climate-resilient and resource-efficient. It will better cater to farms of different scales and developmental needs, and replace the Agriculture Productivity Fund. The Fund will be open for application later this year. (Download Factsheet)

14 The Singapore Food Agency will also partner our aquaculture sector to unlock the potential of sea-based fish farming. SFA will tender out new sea sites on leases and encourage farms to adopt technology for higher productivity and review fish farming practices to enhance business resilience and sustainability over the next few years. (Download Factsheet)

15 We will mitigate the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect through a three-pronged strategy: (a) Understand the UHI effect better by deploying an island-wide network of climate sensors to collect data; (b) Conduct research and modelling on UHI effects, e.g. the Cooling Singapore 2.0 project; and (c) Partner the industry and public to implement a UHI mitigation action plan, including piloting the use of cool materials and reducing human-generated heat. (Download Factsheet)

Safeguarding our hawker culture and transforming the hawker industry

16 We will continue with our efforts to uplift our hawker centres, sustain the hawker trade and support our hawkers. NEA will develop a Hawker Centres Transformation Programme (HTP), which aims to make hawker centres cleaner, more productive and more sustainable. The HTP will be applied at upcoming new hawker centres, and hawker centres which will be undergoing redevelopment. NEA will also pilot the Hawkers Succession Scheme in 2021 and form an independent advisory panel to assist in identifying and matching veteran hawkers with suitable aspiring successors. Three new hawker centres will be opened — Bukit Canberra Hawker Centre and Fernvale Hawker Centre & Market in fourth quarter of 2021, and Senja Hawker Centre in early 2022.

Everyone has a part to play

17 Pursuing sustainable development is a whole-of-nation effort.MSE is committed to work with Singaporeans and partners to build a climate-resilient, resource-efficient and sustainable Singapore. Together, we can realise the Green Plan, and make Singapore a city of green possibilities.