On the 10th of February 2021, the government unveiled its new comprehensive national plan, the Singapore Green Plan 2030. It was spearheaded by the five ministries, and supported by the whole government:
- Ministry of Education
- Ministry of National Development
- Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment
- Ministry of Trade and Industry
- Ministry of Transport
The Green Plan seeks to achieve concrete key targets over the next 10 years, strengthening Singapore’s commitments under the UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and Paris Agreement, and to achieve long-term net zero emissions aspiration as soon as viable.
It comprises of five key pillars:
- City in Nature – Creating a green and beautiful City in Nature for Singaporeans.
- Energy Reset – Utilising cleaner and better energy to tackle climate change in Singapore.
- Sustainable Living – Become a circular economy, with high rate of recycling, effective resource management and waste reduction.
- Green Economy – The Singapore government will introduce a new Enterprise Sustainability Programme, to help enterprises, especially SMEs, embrace sustainability and develop capabilities in this area.
- Resilient Future – Singapore will put physical defences to protect coastlines along City-East Coast, around Lim Chu Kang, Sungei Kadut, and Jurong Island.
The Green Plan also aims to reinforce national sustainability efforts and mitigation measures with several initiatives and targets, including:
- Reduce waste sent to our landfill per capita per day by 20% by 2026, with the goal of reaching 30% by 2030.
- “80-80-80 by 2030” for infrastructure and building. This target include:
- Greening 80% of all buildings by 2030 (covering buildings with vegetation)
- 80% of building to be classified as Super Low Energy by 2030
- Best-in-class buildings to see a 80% energy efficiency improvement compared to 2005.
- Produce 30% of our nutritional needs by 2030 locally (30-by-30 target).
- Introduce an Enterprise Sustainability Programme, to help enterprises, especially SMEs, embrace sustainability and develop capabilities in this area.
You can access the list of initiatives and targets under each pillar by visiting this website: https://www.greenplan.gov.sg./key-focus-areas/our-targets/
The information below (also available on this link: https://www.greenplan.gov.sg./cos/) offers a simple way to visualise the targets and goals.
Due to its geography as a low laying state, Singapore is particularly vulnerable to the impact of climate change, hence the main reason for strengthening its commitments on sustainability. As a business in Singapore, you can take advantage of this government initiative to:
- Adopt environmentally friendly habits in the workplace – waste, water and energy reduction and proper management can make a huge difference.
- Practice 3R
- Boost Energy Efficiency
- Encourage Recycling
- Conserve Water
- Build Organisational Awareness
- Conscious Purchasing
- Empower businesses by upskilling staff and adopting innovative practices – the government is committed to working with enterprises throughout their transformation journeys (rules and licensing framework, speed up processes and other new business ideas). International Enterprise Singapore and SPRING came together on 1 April 2018 as a single agency to form Enterprise Singapore. It is a government agency championing enterprise development. They offer financial or non-financial assistance for start-ups, local companies, etc. Visit their site to learn more: https://www.enterprisesg.gov.sg/financial-assistance/grants
Overall, the Green Plan reiterates government’s previous programmes, schemes, and initiatives which were already highlighted in the Zero Waste Masterplan, such as:
- New regulatory obligations:
- Funding program from the NEA: 3R Fund.
The information above is a summary taken from the Singapore Green Plan 2030 website: https://www.greenplan.gov.sg/
Watch the official video – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNFeOl7pW9s
Want to share your ideas for the Singapore Green Plan 2030? Click the link: https://form.gov.sg/#!/6013d365bedd790011bb9c86