Policy paper addressing:

PROPOSITIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

ON CLIMATE CHANGE STRATEGY IN SINGAPORE

Environmental Challenge Organisation (Singapore)

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Introduction: ECO’s position on climate change
Shrinking polar caps. Floods in the Philippines. Droughts in India.

All three occurred in different regions but connected by one common cause-climate change.
This is a serious global issue and like other events which have threatened our way of life
such as viral pandemics and terrorism, we have to come together to mitigate the situation
with what we can control.

Climate change is real, urgent and severe. In the past few years, developments in climate
science and increasing observable occurrences of extreme weather events have brought
climate change to the forefront of the global agenda. The 4th Assessment Report of the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has conclusively demonstrated climate change
is unequivocally human-induced. Despite this, measures being implemented so far have
been woefully inadequate.

Climate change is perhaps the gravest issue our generation has yet to tackle. Global
greenhouse gas emission levels have increased by 70% between 1970 and 2004. Following
this trend, it is expected that the global average temperature will rise by 1.8 to 4.0°C by
2100. It has been further speculated that an increase in temperature by 2°C can have
catastrophic effects on our climate and ecosystem.

Effects will be experienced, at worse, in our future and definitely by future generations.
Climate change is therefore an issue that must be tackled by our generation now.

The impacts of climate change range from sea level rise, melting ice caps and glaciers,
biodiversity loss along with increased incidences of drought and flooding. This in turn is
already leading to more agricultural shortfalls, endangered water security and the spread of
vector-borne diseases.

Yet, climate change is no longer solely an environmental problem. Rather, it is a challenge

that spans the economic and geopolitical horizons. Changes in earth’s atmosphere which
increasingly destabilizes the global climate will have a significant bearing on the future of
food scarcity, water stress, the prevalence and intensity of diseases and the loss of
homelands, natural wonders and livelihoods around the world. In this regard, climate
change will have a profound impact on human rights as enshrined in the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights such as the right to life, security, food, and health. At the same
time, efforts to mitigate the causes and effects of climate change are raising complex
questions on the economic rights of nations to prosper and improve the lives of their
people.

There is not only an environmental imperative to act but also a moral, social and even
economic one as the world targets to support around 9 billion people in 2050.

Thus, ECO Singapore believes that the Singapore Government should demonstrate greater
initiative and commitment towards the climate change movement, placing consistently
increasing emphasis on environmental concerns in view of stable economic development.

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Perceived limitations and shortcomings in existing policies
and initiatives
In evaluating Singapore’s existing policies and initiatives tackling climate change, we will be
looking at these 4 aspects in detail, namely education, carbon emissions, clean energy
research and development, as well as energy efficiency.

Education
Climate change education in Singapore targets either the public through media publicity
and mass events, or students in schools through the incorporation into formal syllabus and
various school activities. However, we feel that these are woefully inadequate due to their
various limitations.

Public education is usually very passive in nature as it involves holding events, and creating
publicity but not sufficiently engaging the public. It is true that public education has
somewhat reinforced the message that going eco-friendly is cost-effective, a primary
concern of households, with NEA tying up with several companies to sell eco-friendly
products and offer discounts to show that going green is sustainable in the long term.

However, such community events such as Clean and Green Week do not really engage
individuals higher up the income ladder. These individuals are the ones whose lifestyles are
usually more taxing on the environment, in terms of having more cars and larger houses
which increase the carbon emissions and waste per household, and they are usually the one
who have the capacity to make the change. Even media campaigns are somewhat
superficial, such as NEA’s recent commercial “Let’s Make Our World The Most Beautiful
Home”, which simply took viewers through key milestones in Singapore’s transformation
into a clean and green city.

In addition, there is the issue of how Singaporeans have equated environmental

consciousness to cleanliness, causing most to be apathetic towards environmental issues.
This is further reinforced by the media through the use of the phrase “clean and green city”
and reflection of changes in the environment – a very government-centric approach –
neglecting any focus on what individuals can do for the environment.

The incorporation of climate change issues into formal curriculum is rather limited at
present, isolated to lower level education due to curriculum time constraints and based on a
solution-centric approach. This not only makes it ineffective in consistently reinforcing the
pertinence of climate change in the world today, it is unable to impress upon students the
rationale behind such solutions and make climate change a relevant issue to the local
context.

Nurturing a culture of eco-friendliness has also been restricted to few schools such as
Commonwealth Secondary and Marsiling Secondary, making it highly improbable that such
education will translate into real change in their lifestyles. In addition, school-initiated
activities are limited due to lack of incentive for schools to implement on their own, and are
lacking at higher levels due to curriculum time constraints. Community-level initiatives
targeted at students such as the South West Community Development Council's Junior

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Environment Ambassador programme are not useful in fostering eco-friendliness in youth
as its outreach is limited to only those who are interested in serving as peer advisers.

Partnerships with other stakeholders to further in-school education of climate change are
also relatively ineffective. For example, the National Weather Study Project (NWSP), a
collaborative effort allowing students in participating schools to undertake weather and
environmental study projects, is heavily reliant on companies’ willingness to support as it
necessitates much funding. Also, the NWSP is not aimed at the wider, more apathetic
student population and hence does not deal with the root cause of ignorance and apathy.

The Singapore Environment Council’s Schools’ Green Audit programme is a clear reflection
of the flawed general perception that having much greenery is eco-friendly, as seen by the
indicators used in evaluation such as the number of trees and plants in the school and the
amount of paper it uses each year. It is important to note here that a good living
environment does not necessarily equate to high environmental consciousness, hence the
SEC Schools’ Green Audit Programme is an inaccurate gauge.

Also, the Government’s refusal to acknowledge its un-environmentally friendly practices

causes an inherent contradiction in the messages it sends out to Singaporeans – promoting
environmentally-friendly lifestyles yet informing the public that Singapore’s contributions
to global warming are rather insignificant. This is clearly not the case, as Singapore’s per
capita emissions are the 18th in the world, contributing significantly to the global tally. Thus,
education is rendered ineffective as individuals are unable to reconcile the mixed messages
and become apathetic and ignorant about the truth of climate change.

Carbon emissions
Based on CO2 intensity levels, a steady decrease from 1990-2005 seems to assure that
carbon reduction targets in 2012, 2020 and 2035 will be successfully met. However, this
steady decrease has not been achieved by the actual decrease in carbon emissions, but
rather by allowing GDP to rise at a faster rate in comparison. Even as efficiency plays a
major role in the approach taken to emission reduction, an increase in emissions seems to
defeat the purpose of having set targets at all.

Furthermore, without legally binding agreements with the respective industries, the
efficiency seems to be profit-driven, causing the targets set to be not something to aim
towards, but something that would be conveniently reached with rises in efficiency.

Another point to note is that the inherent cost-savings of emitting less CO2 serves as an
incentive. The lack of a decrease or even maintenance of CO2 emission levels prove that this
factor is no longer useful or acknowledged as an incentive to reduce emissions. Legally
binding limits set upon industries by the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources
control the volume of CO and SO2 present in the air for all industries, but none have been
implemented for CO2, as the former are seen more toxic than the latter.

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Clean energy research and development
Clean energy is arguably one of Singapore’s more successful pitches in combating climate
change as it receives more support from the government in terms of funding. It is welcome
because of its perceived economic benefits: the clean energy industry is expected to
contribute S$1.7 billion to Singapore’s GDP and 7000 jobs by 2015. Singapore wants to ride
the alternative energy market boom by becoming a global hub with an emphasis on solar
energy, biofuels, wind energy, tidal energy, energy efficiency and carbon services, which
involves services such as storing CO2 underground or giving advice on offsetting CO2
emissions.

The Economic Development Board (EDB)’s comprehensive blueprint to grow the industry
highlights 5 key pillars: R&D, developing manpower, grooming Singapore-based
enterprises, branding the industry internationally and growing a vibrant industry
ecosystem of engineers, architects and developers.

The measures to groom local companies to become world-class players and encourage
start-ups in this industry are currently sufficient in funding, as new sponsorships are being
doled out to worthy projects each season. The issue now is to raise the standards such that
these technologies are passed on to existing buildings that can be upgraded and expand the
area of improvement, such as solar panels on HDB flats. Having a wealth of cutting-edge
technology that cannot be effectively made use of only contributes to a waste of resources.

Singapore is also currently a major semiconductor and electronics hub, and this has
parallels with the manufacture of solar wafers, cells and modules. Our position with all-
round capabilities from the precision engineering and chemicals industries, gives us a
headstart in the solar panel manufacturing industry. However, the race to build a solid solar
energy industry is against other major players such as China and South Korea.

In addition, the issue of economic benefits as the main motivation behind the development
and funding of the clean energy industry makes it clear that the Government’s focus is still
fixated on economic development, rather than true environmental concern and recognition
for the cause of climate change.

Energy efficiency
As the most direct way of tackling climate change, there have been many initiatives
implemented by the Singapore Government regarding energy efficiency, being its primary
focus in tackling climate change. Thus far, they have been perceived to be rather successful
in reducing energy intensity levels, contributing to carbon emission reduction targets.

Also, using energy efficiency as a primary strategy in tackling climate change takes into
account Singapore’s land constraints, as switching to alternative energies are significantly
more challenging e.g. wind and solar energy, and the effectiveness of incentives, as
minimising energy consumption reduces both economic and environmental costs for both
individuals and firms and makes financial sense. Incentives can motivate firms towards
energy efficiency e.g. economic benefits, corporate image and use these to their advantage
for a win-win situation.

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The four-pronged approach adopted by the government in tackling energy efficiency issues
– promoting adoption, building capability, raising awareness, supporting research and
development – is commendable, as it caters to the various stakeholders involved, and seeks
to tackle both structural and cultural issues i.e. both “hard” and “soft” strategies are utilised
in both the short-term and long-term.

However, even though there are efforts that aim to educate the general public more about
energy efficiency and encourage them towards embracing it, there is still more that can be
done. In addition, the rationale of promoting energy efficiency to the general public usually
emphasises on how they can save money and cut costs.

In addition, Singapore’s emphasis on energy efficiency is perceived as a “soft” option in

tackling climate change, as compared to hard strategies such as adapting alternative
energies or strict regulations cutting carbon emissions, which may actually yield more
concrete and effective outcomes.

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Proposed recommendations and modifications
We believe that with more commitment on the Government’s part, making the following
changes in the various aspects can greatly enhance the effectiveness of current initiatives
and further improve Singapore’s standing as an environmentally friendly city with a high
quality of living.

Education
Public education is limited as it can only go as far as to change the pragmatic mindsets of
Singaporeans, and its impacts vary for individuals at different levels of the income ladder.
Thus, we wish to place more emphasis on the importance of effective climate change
education from young that can better inculcate and ingrain environmental consciousness.

Environmental education related activities should be expanded to more schools, and

climate change education should be included in Civics lessons up to JC to ensure consistency
and continuity in reinforcing the pertinence of the climate change issue. The content of such
climate change education should go beyond its solution-centric focus to look at the
relevance of climate change to the local context, allowing students to better grasp the
urgency of the issue. More field trips can be promoted e.g. trips to Semakau Landfill,
NEWater, Senoko Power Plant as a method to minimize the abstract and somewhat distant
nature of climate change. In doing so, it ensures both greater outreach of climate change
education and the simultaneous creation of an environmentally friendly culture, unlike the
fragmented one we see today.

Regarding primary school level education, due to greater flexibility of curriculum time,
more visible implementation should be done. As students at the primary education level are
picking up the foundations of learning and life skills, practicing environmentally friendly
measures such as recycling will enable such good habits and values to be inculcated in
children from a young age.

In addition, to cope with the general attitude of cynicism and apathy among youth, making
alternatives to un-environmentally friendly practices available and convenient in schools
can be useful in changing general mindsets that going green is difficult and troublesome.
Also, correcting the misconception that being green is being clean can be done by the
modification of survey questions such that they truly probe into the environmental
consciousness of the school, immersing into the school culture and monitoring students’
daily practices. More stringent criteria should be required as well for schools to pass the
green audit and make sure the standards are maintained throughout the year instead of
being isolated just for the duration of the green audit.

Carbon emissions
With regards to carbon emissions and reduction targets, our recommendations are focusing
on both cutting emissions and the misleading nature of carbon intensity.

Firstly, Singapore’s approach to promoting environmentally conscious behavior is primarily

profit-driven, with new opportunities and cost-savings. Thus, another alternative may be to

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limit the emissions at a level that complies with the international standards, even if such
standards are not formally adhered to. Even if these limits are set at the current levels, they
will be more beneficial than the steady increase seen now. Also, trade emissions can be
implemented as they set a legal limit to the emissions and this policy does not place a
burden on the government to go against their policy of not provide incentives or subsidies.
Firms in the industry can trade their pollution permits and the limits will still be upheld.

We also feel that a more accurate gauge in carbon emissions is needed. The rapid carbon
intensity decreases seem to reflect the high rate of GDP growth and the research and
development incorporated rather than the curbing of emissions. The lack of efficiency is not
the problem at hand, and any rise still contributes to global emissions. Thus the targets
should be set based on actual reductions in emissions to show the actual change and serve
as proof for the efforts taken.

Clean energy research and development

More focus on improving efficiency and making use of clean technology and research for
mass production can be achieved, such that the benefits of clean energy have a greater
outreach.
The use of clean energy on a national level is most promising in solar energy, which can be
implemented through legislation to install solar panels on all buildings – both existing and
new, depending on their availability, and offsets for installation and cost. For example, solar
panels are only used commercially by owners of private houses. Thus, incentives can be
made for setting up solar energy generator systems, both in corporations and in housing.
Excess electrons generator can be sold back to the grid at a fixed cost.

Energy efficiency
Energy efficiency is generally pushed forward as a means to cutting costs and electricity
expenditure, to encourage Singaporeans to embrace energy efficient technology. However,
on retrospect, is that the right kind of mindset we seek to establish in Singaporeans –
committing towards environmental improvement, with the motivation still deeply rooted in
selfish economic concerns?

It must be acknowledged that economic concerns are the easiest way, and most effective
incentive towards motivating certain behaviour, however, the government should begin to
shift away from such pragmatic, selfish kind of thinking and go beyond its limited
perspective to embrace the environment as a necessary obligation. Efforts for the
environment, including those for energy efficiency, should not be done entirely like an
afterthought or an enhancement to environmental conservation, but should be coordinated
as a concerted strategy towards improving the environment with equal priority to
economic concerns. Only in promoting such a rationale then can mindsets of people change
and environmental initiatives work.

There should also be more efforts made in terms of active education for the younger
generation. Energy efficiency should be assimilated into part of the formal syllabus rather
than as campaigns and competitions, as mentioned earlier under our recommendations for
climate change education, which may be effective in raising awareness but not in instilling

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the compelling, habitual nature or tendency towards embracing energy efficiency. Laying
foundations in the young is crucial to ensure a continuation and consistency of this trend.

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Looking beyond the local context to ASEAN
In the year 2000, carbon emissions in the South East Asian region were 5187.20 MT. In
addition, emissions have been rising steadily with the 2000 levels having increased by 27%
of the 1990 levels. As of the year 2000, South-East Asia emits 12% of the global share of
carbon emissions. This is indeed quite a feat, considering that Annex I nations had just 4
times that share in total.

Of these emissions, 75% can be attributed to the land use and forestry sector. From 1990 to
2005, the region converted 41 million hectares of rainforest into areas for agriculture and
other land-use practices. In 2005, the area of primary forest had decreased by 27%
compared to 1990. This has caused a significant reduction in forest carbon and the
degradation and clearing of the forests for the burning of biomass has also resulted in the
production of 5.8 GT of carbon dioxide annually during the 1990s.

To combat climate change, ASEAN has implemented practices and measures in various
aspects, particularly in the forestry sector. An example of successful adaptation is the 5
Million Hectare Reforestation Program (5MHRP) adopted by the Viet Nam National
Assembly in 1998. As of 2003, the 5MHRP had achieved the restoration of about 2m
hectares. A fellow ASEAN country, Indonesia, has more than 20 Reducing Emissions from
Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) projects in Kalimantan, Papua and Sumatra, in
addition to its National Movement for the Rehabilitation of Forests and Lands launched in
2003. This National Movement aimed to reforest 5 million hectares of forestland by 2009,
with the re-planting of 100 million trees by May 2008 brought about by planting
movements conducted by the community, local governments, and the private sector.

Current official stand of ASEAN

At present, ASEAN has indeed expressed support in contributing towards a successful
outcome at COP16, with various programs and policies regarding mitigation and adaptation
in place, as well as extensive research planned for both areas in the South-East Asian region.
However, it has no legally binding agreements with regards to carbon emission reductions.

Why ASEAN should do more

The effects of climate change have become increasingly visible over the years. Occurrences
of extreme weather have increased, with the number of typhoons in 2004 increasing to 21,
above the median of 17.5 for the years 1990 through 2003.

In addition, droughts in Viet Nam, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Myanmar and the Phillipines have
caused forest fires, crop failures and water shortages. From 2002 to 2007 alone, South East
Asia produced 140 million tones of grain per year. South-East Asia is also one of the world’s
largest producers of palm oil. These climatic changes could cause a dangerous decline in
agricultural output, which the region depends heavily on, causing problems for economic
development and trade within and between ASEAN and other countries.

If no action is taken to tackle climate change, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam
could suffer a loss equivalent to more than 6% of GDP annually by 2100.

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Proposed recommendations and modifications
Firstly, the effects on the environment and climate change should be of primary or high
priority during policy making and development planning. Private firms should also be
required, incentivized or highly encouraged to choose more environmentally sustainable
alternatives when considering expansion or further development.

To achieve this, sufficient information on environmentally sustainable practices as well as

their benefits for both private firms and the environment should be made available and
accessible. This would clearly educate and incentivize citizens as well on why and how they
can choose environmentally sustainable options.

ASEAN cooperation should also be strengthened in this area so as to improve the rate of
technology, finance transfer and information on climate change in the region. The
undertaking of more extensive research to provide accurate information on climate change,
as well as mitigation and adaptation efforts could also prove useful in policy making for all
countries in ASEAN. With this, a collective goal can be established in tackling climate change
and build even closer, deeper ties between countries through cooperation and
collaboration.

In addition, according to “The Economics of Climate Change in Southeast Asia: A Regional

Review” by the Asian Development Bank, climate change is the biggest form of market
failure that the world has ever witnessed. Thus the intervention of public policy is essential
to regain a socially efficient outcome. To do this, governments will need to devise cost-
effective implementation strategies that would allow for both the environment and the
private firms to benefit. These strategies should encourage the initial implementation of
adaptation and mitigation measures through the creation of strong incentives.

Also, governments should raise greater public awareness on climate change and its effects
to aid in garnering support for the successful implementation of environmentally
sustainable policies. This is important as government intervention alone cannot successfully
address climate change and the active participation of the households, firms, individuals,
non-government organizations and the civil society are necessary to tackle climate change.

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