New condo developments to have recycling chutes
Today
By Neo Chai Chin
08 March 2017
SINGAPORE — Amid calls by Members of Parliament to give recycling a
badly needed boost, Senior Minister of State for the Environment and
Water Resources Amy Khor said the Government will mandate the provision
of recycling chutes at some private residential developments.
Future condominium buildings taller than four storeys will be required
to install dual chutes for refuse and recyclables. This will apply to
all new non-landed residential development applications submitted from
April next year, she said during the debate over the ministry’s budget
on Wednesday (March 8).
Households in apartments with dual chute systems recycle up to three
times more than those without such facilities, said Dr Khor. Since
2014, all new Build-To-Order flats have had recycling chutes adjacent
to centralised refuse chutes at every level. The Government is ready to
increase adoption of the system, as part of efforts to meet the
domestic recycling target of 30 per cent by 2030. The rate has
stagnated at 20 per cent in recent years.
The three waste streams of greatest concern are electronic waste,
packaging waste and food waste, said Dr Khor. The Government is
consulting industry stakeholders on an enhanced national e-waste
management system, which should cover both collection and disposal of
e-waste, she said.
It is exploring regulations for businesses on packaging waste, such as
the submission of reduction plans, over the next two to four years.
As for food waste, source-segregated waste from nine sites including
schools and army camps have been trucked to a demonstration facility at
Ulu Pandan Water Reclamation Plant since the end of last year. About
three tonnes are collected daily and the aim is to increase it to 15
tonnes a day, to recover energy from food waste more efficiently.
pneumatic
waste conveyance system
MPs Louis Ng (Nee Soon) and Cheng Li Hui (Tampines) called for better
waste collection in housing estates. Dr Khor said future condominium
developments with at least 500 dwelling units will use a pneumatic
waste conveyance system – an automated system that transports waste by
air suction through a network of pipes to a centralised collection
station. This will also apply to all new non-landed residential
development applications submitted from April next year.
The pneumatic waste conveyance system was piloted at Yuhua estate and
will be installed in new HDB areas such as Tampines North and Bidadari.
It is also in place at over 100 condominium developments such as Sky
Habitat in Bishan.
Litterbugs
On public cleanliness, Dr Khor said the National Environment Agency
issued more than 31,000 tickets to litterbugs last year, nearly 18 per
cent more than 2015. Over the past five years, less than 6 per cent of
litterbugs who have undergone Corrective Work Orders have been caught
littering again.
surveillance cameras for high-rise littering
And since the adoption of surveillance cameras for high-rise littering
in August 2012, the NEA has taken more than 3,300 enforcement actions
against culprits. “These cameras create an effective deterrent effect,
as only 1 per cent of high-rise litterbugs care caught offending
again,” said Dr Khor.
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