SINGAPORE: Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has announced that there will be a review of the Sustainable Singapore Blueprint.
The aim is to update it with new initiatives which include building more environmentally-friendly hawker centres and reducing carbon emissions next year.
Launched in 2009, the blueprint outlines strategies to achieve twin objectives of economic growth and a good living environment.
Mr Lee said this at the launch of the year-long Clean and Green 2014 campaign on Saturday.
He said more Singaporeans have a greater consciousness of green issues.
For example, recycling rates have been increasing and more people are using energy-efficient appliances.
While the government will be reviewing penalties for litterbugs, Mr Lee said the best way is to put social pressure on them.
Mr Lee said: “We have to set the right example, if your see somebody who is littering, tell them to pick up after themselves. And make sure that we ourselves don’t do it. Keeping Singapore clean isn’t just about fines and regulations. We must also keep Singapore clean because it must reflect our values – to be house-proud, considerate, environmentally conscious.”
Mr Lee added that the environment also depends on Singapore’s neighbours and highlighted haze problems earlier this year.
But he said that should the haze return, the government will do what it can to minimise the impact such as improving its monitoring and surveillance capabilities as well as putting in place contingency plans to ensure that masks and essential supplies can be distributed to vulnerable groups.
Mr Lee also presented Community-In-Bloom ambassador awards at the event.
One recipient was 50-year-old Wendy Tan, who carries out a self-sustainable gardening method of producing fertilisers from kitchen waste.
The youngest Environment Champion was 22-year-old Daniel Tan, who used wall murals to spread the importance of reducing, recycling and reusing.
Mr Tan said: “I’ve all along been a fan of street art so I wanted to incorporate street art into my project. I hope that by starting young, I can set an example because I think recycling is a habit and it has to start young.”
Also displayed at the Clean and Green carnival were mobile applications that help to address environmental issues.
For instance, the Parent Pool app enables parents in the neighbourhood with children attending the same school to form a community so that they can make carpool arrangements. It also has useful information such as weather data.
Sustainable Singapore Blueprint to be reviewed
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