The Long Island project is arguably one of the most consequential climate-defense initiatives in Singapore’s history. However, in today’s The Straits Times Forum, our Founding President Lim Soon Heng poses a critical question: Do we really need to import millions of tonnes of sand to make it a reality?
While Long Island is essential for barricading our coastlines against rising sea levels and seawater surges, traditional sand reclamation comes with immense hidden costs:
❌ Ecological destruction: Smothering bottom-dwelling marine life and starving seagrass of sunlight through persistent sediment plumes.
❌ High maintenance: Increased risks of soil liquefaction, sinkholes, and the long-term sinking seen in mega-projects like Japan’s Kansai Airport.
❌ Urban heat:Adding significant heat load to our environment, requiring even more energy to cool.
The Floating Alternative: Instead of burying our foreshores in sand, we can form the Long Island lagoon using gravity-based concrete caissons. These structures can easily last 200 years with minimal maintenance. Inside the enclosed lagoon, we can deploy Very Large Floating Structures (VLFS) to support buildings, parks, beaches, and jogging tracksBy adopting floating solutions, we can secure our coastline, create new recreational spaces, and preserve the natural character of our marine environment simultaneously.
It is not too late to study a solution that works with our oceans rather than against them.
Let us know your thoughts on the future of Singapore’s coastal defense in the comments! 👇
🔗 Read Founding President (2017-2019) Lim Soon Heng’s full forum letter here: https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/forum/forum-not-too-late-to-study-if-long-island-can-be-formed-without-land-reclamation
This is a SFSS member opinion and does not represent an official SFSS view.
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