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  Straits Times 4 Apr 07
Let's help to rejuvenate this planet which we call home
Letter from Lester Lam Yong Ling

RECENTLY Sydney had a 'Blackout' night when the government encouraged the people to switch off unnecessary lights to conserve energy.

This leads me to think about how Singapore can learn from the Australians on their increased efforts to combat global warming.

Singapore is an island state, and global warming is of more concern to us than large countries. Imagine what any increase in sea level can do to our country.

Singapore finally rectified the Kyoto Protocol years after it was proposed in 1997. Although it may seem late, it is finally a realisation by our Government that global warming is of grave concern.

However, the practices of our people in terms of energy usage need to be changed. Here are some examples of concern.

Just last year, the Government put forward a scheme to encourage building owners in the Central Business District to brighten their buildings' facade and improve the aesthetic of our city at night. Needless to say, more energy will be consumed if we set up more lighting to beautify the facade of these buildings.

In HDB estates, amphitheatres and precinct name signages are brightly lit. Bright lights also shine onto the facade of a newly completed multi-storey carpark next to Kallang MRT station.

Air-conditioners hummed in many homes, buildings and even buses, with temperatures as low as 18 degrees.

Many Singaporeans consider plastic bags to be free and rightfully theirs and so they demand double bagging often. When incinerated, plastic bags release carbon into the atmosphere for they are petroleum products.

There are many more energy wastage practices which we are guilty of.

To show our sincerity to combat global warming, we need to put our actions together. There are many ways for us to conserve energy and release less greenhouse gases, such as keeping our cars at home and taking public transport, using electric fans, using fewer plastic bags, and switching off unnecessary lights.

We need to think about how our actions can affect the environment and cause dire consequences.

Humans do not live alone on this planet. We are part of a larger web of life here. Let us not be selfish anymore and help to rejuvenate this planet which we call home.
links

Switching on the city: URA's masterplan to light up the city
Business Times Singapore 15 Dec 06

Related articles on Singapore: general environmental issues
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