...We are driven by our desire to deepen our understanding of the Arctic as global warming and rising sea levels will have a profound and direct impact on low-lying Singapore.
As a low-lying coastal nation, Singapore is especially vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Much of Singapore lies only 15m above sea level, while 30 per cent of the island is less than 5m above sea level.
If global temperatures continue to rise, many parts of Singapore could eventually be submerged under the water. Singapore has started making preparations to adapt to the impact of a rise in sea levels. For example, Nicoll Drive, which runs for 1km along Changi Beach, is being raised by up to 0.8m. In 2011, the minimum height for land reclamation projects was raised from 3-4 m above the mean sea level. At the same time, a warmer Arctic will result in the opening of new water channels, which will significantly reduce travel time between Asia and Europe by two or three weeks.
The possibility of the Arctic sea routes becoming a seasonal complement to traditional trade routes therefore presents Singapore with both challenges as well as opportunities.
On the one hand, Singapore has one of the world’s busiest ports and these new routes are likely to change maritime transportation patterns.
At the same time, our marine industry has built up strong credentials in sectors such as shipbuilding and repair, offshore engineering, and marine support services, and we are well-placed to provide enabling technology for Arctic development.
Some of our companies are developing Arctic capabilities to leverage on the economic potential of the region. For example, Keppel Corporation has constructed a number of ice-class vessels, including the first icebreakers built in Asia in 2008, and is now working with oil majors and drilling contractors to develop the world’s first Arctic-grade, environmentally-friendly “green” rig.
If countries do not look at the possible global challenges that may emerge 30 to 50 years down the road, their eventual preparations would be inadequate to deal with these challenges when they do strike.
One of Singapore’s key strengths is our ability to scan the horizon and start preparing solutions to these challenges, sometimes 50 to a hundred years before they surface. If we lose this important survival instinct, we will become history when the challenges strike us in our face.
Excerpt of interview of Sam Tan by TODAY
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Sam Tan has personally attended the Conference of Parliamentarians of the Arctic Region (CPAR) in 2012 in Akureyri, Iceland and 2014 in Whitehorse, Canada; the Arctic Circle Assembly in Reykjavik, Iceland in 2013 and 2014; the Arctic Frontiers Conference in Tromso, Norway in 2015 and January 2016, and most recently the Arctic Circle Greenland Forum in Nuuk last month.
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