Green Plan 2030 to see S'pore set new sustainability targets

Singapore will ramp up its sustainability drive, with agencies across ministries setting "ambitious and concrete targets" under a new initiative called the Singapore Green Plan 2030.

The plan will be continually refined as circumstances change, new opportunities emerge, and input is sought from citizens, businesses and communities, Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu told Parliament yesterday.

"Ministers and political office-holders will be actively involved in the development of comprehensive programmes, as part of this national engagement process," she said, adding more information will be given in the coming weeks.

Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat will speak about the nation's sustainability agenda during the debate on the Budget, she said.

Ms Fu did not give details on what these targets could be. But national sustainability targets have been set before. The Sustainable Singapore Blueprint 2015, which contains a series of environmental goals to be met by 2030, has set targets for recycling, cycling path lengths and park connectors.

"The Government has every intent... to partner the private sector and the people of Singapore, to deepen and accelerate efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change, and to embrace sustainability," said Ms Fu. She was speaking at the debate on a motion filed by six People's Action Party backbenchers seeking to deepen and speed up national efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change.

Mr Louis Ng (Nee Soon GRC), Ms Poh Li San (Sembawang GRC), Ms Cheryl Chan (East Coast GRC), Ms Hany Soh (Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC), Mr Gan Thiam Poh (Ang Mo Kio GRC) and Mr Don Wee (Chua Chu Kang GRC) had filed the motion calling on the Government to partner the private sector and the people of Singapore to tackle climate change, and 18 MPs spoke.

Following amendments by the Workers' Party's Mr Dennis Tan (Hougang) to include mention of a climate emergency as well as civil society as a stakeholder, and by Ms Chan to indicate that climate change is a global emergency and a threat to mankind, the motion was unanimously endorsed by all MPs.

The six MPs behind the motion made 10 recommendations, including getting the public sector to take the lead in environmental sustainability initiatives with higher and expanded standards, and having an industry transformation map for the sustainability sector.

Other recommendations include making public the emissions data of top-emitting private and public entities, more public electric vehicle charging points, expanding climate education in schools and adding climate defence as a seventh pillar of total defence.

The MPs, who sit on the Government Parliamentary Committee for Sustainability and the Environment, also called on the authorities to embark on a regular review of Singapore's carbon tax.

"We are pushing hard for changes but at the same time, we are mindful not to push people and businesses away. We are mindful of the trade-offs," said Mr Ng. "All of us believe that a healthy economy and a healthy planet can, and should, go hand in hand."

In response, Ms Fu noted that sustainability has always been a focus for Singapore. She pointed to initiatives that go back to the country's early years, such as the 1971 Clean Air Act, which imposes stringent pollution controls so industrialisation does not come at the expense of the environment.

"We have been able to come this far by safeguarding not just the environment, but also ensuring economic growth and social inclusion; and galvanising Singaporeans to build a fair and just society, of hope and opportunity, that is sustainable, inclusive and resilient," she said.

But as Singapore pursues sustainability, Ms Fu said that candid discussions on the costs and trade-offs involved will have to be had.

"These costs may manifest in the change in the price for a good or service, the cost of producing a product, the need to allocate scarce resources to a new solution, the investment in new infrastructure, or some inconveniences in changing our habits and the way we do things," she noted.

She thanked the MPs who spoke for their suggestions, saying each will be considered seriously.

"Sustainability is not just about doing more, but doing more together, in an inclusive way, with all our stakeholders on board."