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RECOMMENDATION |
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REsponse |
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Better and Cleaner Sustainable Environment |
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Inter-Ministerial Committee for Sustainable Development (IMCSD) |
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1. Optimise density around public transport nodes, with further increase of urban density in and around areas near MRT stations and bus interchanges, particularly in the city areas.
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We have consciously planned for optimisation of land around transportation nodes such as MRT stations. This is also a strategy to enhance greater reliance on public transportation as a more sustainable means of travel.
In distributing development intensities island-wide, land around such transportation nodes are typically zoned for very high density developments, with development intensity gradually lowered for sites further away from the nodes.
The intensity of development is also the highest in the city centre which is the most well-served by MRT networks.
The extent to which development intensities can be raised however depends on other localised factors such as constraints imposed by aviation height limits and road infrastructure, as well as the need to provide for a variety of housing and development choices.
In addition, we also plan for a mix of uses such as residential and commercial uses around the vicinity of transportation nodes, to capitalise on the high commuter catchment around such nodes, provide convenient access to amenities and minimise traveling for residents. |
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2. Incorporation of nature in the built environment and fully explore a new model of integration involving High Density, Nature and Transportation. |
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When planning for development, we consciously factor in considerations about nature. At the same time however, we need to look at other considerations for development, (i.e. the need to accommodate economic and social needs for housing and facilities). Given Singapore’s limited land resources, tradeoffs will have to be made between competing uses. Despite these limitations and competing demand for land, we have gazetted 4 Nature Reserves and safeguarded 18 Nature Areas which will be kept for as long as possible. Today we have over 3,000 hectares of Nature Reserves, and about 10% of our land is committed as green space. As part of our development strategies, we also adopt a Land Conservation approach by building up existing urbanized areas, before considering opening up new areas for development. This allows us to, as far as possible, retain the undeveloped areas and keep our development options open for meeting our long term needs.
NParks and URA had introduced a series of initiatives to promote skyrise greenery for a lusher, greener Singapore, such as the LUSH programme launched by URA. NParks has introduced a pilot incentive scheme to encourage owners of existing buildings to green up their rooftops. The cash incentive offers a payout of up to 50% of the roof installation. In addition, URA, NParks and HDB, together with the National University of Singapore, have embarked on a research project that will study the relationship between the urban environment and ecology. The study will provide recommendations on how urban greenery can be planned to improve the living environment and enhance biodiversity within our urban environment, as well as how we can develop sensitively around areas of significant biodiversity. This study is part of a cluster of seven research projects on sustainable urban development issues, which is supported by a grant from the MND Research Fund.
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3. Clear and strong policies to restrict more land given for road space in Singapore, vis-à-vis other land uses. |
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Approximately 12% of our land is taken up by roads. New roads will be needed to serve new development areas such as Marina Bay, Punggol and Tuas. Some roads will also need to be expanded to cater for the expected increase in travel demands arising from a growing population and in support of economic development. However, given our limited land, the land that can be set aside for roads will also be limited. The rate of road growth will be halved to 0.5% per annum over the next 10 to 15 years. Instead of building more roads, demand for road space will need to be moderated through measures such as regulating vehicle growth, promoting the use of public transport, and electronic road pricing. |
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