Fish farm structures, wooden planks strewn along shoreline of Pulau Ketam, near Pulau Ubin

SINGAPORE – Abandoned fish farm structures, barges, large wooden planks and even a boat have been found along the shoreline of Pulau Ketam, close to Pulau Ubin.

During a visit earlier in October, The Straits Times also discovered that large pieces of debris were strewn in the forested areas of the island, and at low tide previously submerged structures became visible.

The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) said it is aware of the clutter and that clean-up is in the works.

“Dismantling and proper disposal of these structures are planned to be completed by December, dependent on weather conditions and the availability of volunteers,” said a spokesman. 

“SFA is also working with coastal farms to manage farm structures and loose equipment. Farms are required to ensure their farm structures are secured.”

ST understands that the fish farm operator who towed the debris to the island is Mr Phillip Lim of Sea Angel Marine.

SFA said the farm operator is also helping to secure other unidentified drifting structures by placing them on the coast temporarily to prevent navigational hazards.

The debris is found along the southern shoreline of Pulau Ketam, which is opposite Sea Angel Marine.

In response, Mr Lim said that he looks out for large floating objects as a fish farmer and a member of the coastal neighbourhood watch. “This is our responsibility as sea users. These drifting structures can be life-threatening hazards for small vessels,” he said. 

“Whenever I encounter drifting structures on the sea, I notify the authorities and follow their advice to tow the items to Pulau Ketam as it is the nearest safe location with minimal visitors. The items are placed there for a few months to allow the owners to retrieve the items, before they are dismantled,” he added. 

Mr Lim said the Pulau Ketam shore has been used “for decades” as a safe area to dismantle, repair and salvage farm structures. The wood from the dismantled farm structures is also recycled and reused in existing farms, he added. 

Dr Tay Choon Nghee, a senior director at Prime Group International, which owns a fish farm on Pulau Ketam, said the clutter on the island’s southern shoreline has been “growing steadily” in the past few months, likely due to many fish farms moving out of the East Johor Strait. 

ST reported on Oct 25 that the number of fish farms has fallen over the years, from 98 in 2023 to 74 as at Oct 4. SFA had

offered a support package of up to $100,000

to ease the financial burden of winding up their operations.

Dr Tay said there is still sufficient space for boats to navigate despite the clutter. 

“Presently, it is not imposing on our farm operations as we draw clean water from the northern part of the island, in a channel between Pulau Ubin and Pulau Ketam,” he said.

Ms Sue Ye, founder of Marine Stewards, a marine conservation non-governmental organisation, noted that the clutter appeared in 2024, suggesting that a fish farm may have been abandoned there. 

Some materials from the farm structures, if left there for a long time, may degrade and leach into the waters, affecting the habitats of native biodiversity, she added.

Mr Yasser Amin, chief officer of not-for-profit organisation Stridy, said: “Major parts of the clutter seem to be large rafts that are made up of wooden structures tied to blue barrels. This is not something that a voluntary group can or should work with to remove.”

He added: “To the best of my knowledge, (this) would require professional waste removal services.”

Stridy regularly organises clean-ups in urban areas in collaboration with corporations and schools.

While beach clean-up groups sometimes deal with large items such as fridges, huge tyres and blue barrels, the scale of the clutter on Pulau Ketam would likely be beyond their abilities, Mr Yasser added.

Mr Yasser and Ms Ye said they have not been approached to help remove the clutter on Pulau Ketam.

Ms Ye said: “We recommend that they engage a professional removal or salvage company to safely remove and dispose of it.”

Mr Ivan Francis Danakody, operations director of Singapore Salvage Engineers – which specialises in sea-based wreck removal and disposal – noted that demolishing and disposing of each fish farm structure is “very expensive”, potentially costing between $60,000 and $70,000.

Clearing all the clutter would therefore cost a few times of that, depending on the amount of debris on the seabed. 

Mr Danakody said the process would entail sending out a crane barge to dismantle the infrastructure, and taking it back to the company’s shipyard in Tuas. 

The structures will then be sorted according to material – wood, metal or plastic – and cut into small pieces for disposal, according to specific requirements by the National Environment Agency. 

In 2021, a question was raised in Parliament on the kind of waste generated by Singapore’s fish farms and the collection processes to ensure that the waste does not end up in the sea. Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu said the waste included organic matter like fish faeces and dead fish, as well as general refuse. 

“As waste from fish farms is commingled and collected with other waste, data is not available on the amount of waste produced by fish farms,” she added.

SFA’s licensing condition requires sea-based fish farms to bag, transport and dispose of their waste on land, with waste collection points available at the Lim Chu Kang and Lorong Halus jetties for farms located in the western and eastern Strait of Johor, she noted.

Correction note: An earlier version of this story did not include comment from Mr Philip Lim as the newsroom had used an outdated number to contact him. The story has since been updated with Mr Lim’s clarification that he and his company Sea Angel Marine had moved the clutter to Pulau Ketam upon advice from the authorities, as it was the nearest safe location with minimal visitors. We are sorry for the omission.