Vietnam halts sand exports to Singapore

Although some say the ban is not expected to affect construction in Singapore, one source said there will be an impact as 25% of our sand supply comes from Vietnam each month.

Unlike the Indonesian ban on sand exports, the Vietnamese ban did not appear to have political undertones. Instead, the ban is primarily due to the environmental degradation that sand extraction caused to the Mekong River, such as major landslips along rivers.

Where does the sand for Singapore's reclamation come from?

According to the Building and Construction Authority (BCA), the Government buys such sand through private contractors "who in turn obtain the sand from diverse sources in various countries, so as to enhance the reliability of supply".

The BCA said recent restrictions on sand exports have not affected the supply of construction sand as the industry has been importing "from various countries in the region".

Full report: Vietnam halts sand exports to Singapore Tan Hui Leng Today Online 8 Oct 09.

Related posts

• Sand mining off Kusu Island Aug-Dec 09
• Surge in Vietnam sand exported to Singapore
• Sand mining in Vietnam to be regulated
• Cambodia bans sand exports due to environmental impact of dredging
• Sand for Singapore taken from Cambodian Wildlife Sanctuary?
• Sand mining on Changi East
• Singapore's sandy footprint
  

Related links

• Cambodian villagers call for sand dredging halt Cheang Sokha and Sebastian Strangio Phnom Penh Post 21 Oct 09;
  
• Singapore's sand shortage The Economist 8 Oct 09;
  
• Vietnam minister seeks ban on sand exports Business Times 17 Sep 09;
  
• Call to probe sand transfer from Thailand to Singapore Apinya Wipatayotin, The Bangkok Post 17 Sep 09;
  
• Illegal sand dredging in the Mekong Delta investigated Vietnam News 9 Sep 09;
  
• Vietnam to investigate booming sand exports thanhniennews.com 25 Aug 09;
  
• River sand is Vietnam's latest endangered resource monstersandcritics.com 31 Aug 09;
  
• Sand dredging "a problem on all the Vietnam’s largest rivers": Vietnam’s rivers call for help VietNamNet Bridge 28 Aug 09;
  
• More media articles on sand exports to Singapore on the wildsingapore news blog.