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| Graphic from the Straits Times |
SFA will defer putting out a tender on sea spaces for fish farms around Pulau Satumu and Pulau Jong until further studies, conducted in consultation with researchers and nature groups, are completed.
More about my thoughts on these plans in Why is Singapore producing fish for export? and SFA's reply to my questions.
SFA delays plans to set up fish farms at 2 sites over coral reef concerns
Ang Qing Straits Times 2 Jul 2023.
SINGAPORE – The tenders for two fish farm sites near pristine coral reefs in waters south of Singapore will be delayed indefinitely following concerns about the farms’ potential environmental impact, The Straits Times has learnt.
This comes after a May 2022 environmental impact assessment, which identified the waters around Pulau Satumu, Pulau Jong and Pulau Bukom as possible spaces to scale up local fish production, sparked outcry from academics and nature groups about the toll that the farms would take on marine biodiversity.
The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) told ST that it will defer putting out a tender on sea spaces for fish farms around Pulau Satumu and Pulau Jong until further studies, conducted in consultation with researchers and nature groups, are completed.
It did not provide a timeline.
These ecological modelling studies will encompass the possible impact on corals in the area by water quality changes expected from the farms and the effects of climate change, SFA said.
Marine scientists and conservationists welcome the prospect of follow-up studies before targeting biodiversity-rich sites like Pulau Satumu, which is ringed by one of Singapore’s last undisturbed coral reefs and has been crucial for understanding coral health here.
National University of Singapore (NUS) marine biologist Toh Tai Chong said: “Pulau Jong is one of the few designated recreational diving sites – the others include Pulau Hantu and Sisters’ Islands Marine Park – and it is popular for intertidal walks.
“The presence of endangered giant clams renders this site important for conservation.”
He noted that the use of sea spaces around Singapore needs to be planned as a whole to account for the connectivity of marine habitats. Disruption to such connectivity may impact the flow of coral offspring between these sites, which maintains genetic diversity and the long-term survival of corals.
Meanwhile, SFA plans to call a tender for aquaculture activities in the third site, which is off Pulau Bukom, which houses a petrochemical refinery, possibly in late 2023.
This will be part of Singapore’s efforts to produce 30 per cent of its nutritional needs locally by 2030 amid the mounting threat of supply disruptions from import sources.
Development of the Bukom site will proceed because of its low live coral cover and the 2022 environmental impact assessment indicated that other important biodiversity areas nearby will not be affected, the agency said.
The area will be designated for the first closed containment aquaculture system in Singapore’s southern waters. It will join open-cage fish farming sites in the southern waters off Pulau Semakau, Pulau Senang and St John’s Island, operated by Barramundi Group.
Mr Ho Xiang Tian, co-founder of environmental group LepakInSG, pointed out that the proposed closed system would have a smaller impact on marine life in the area.
He said: “Once you have an open-cage farm... the impact on the marine ecosystem is going to be substantial, and damaging the ecosystem might lead to lowering yields in the area in the long term.”
Closed containment systems are expected to be less pollutive than open cages deployed by most fish farms here, as fish faeces and excessive fish food are not directly discharged into the sea, said James Cook University associate professor of aquaculture Matthew Tan.
Prof Tan, a co-chair for sustainable development in agriculture and fishery sectors at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation’s Policy Partnership on Food Security, added: “Having full control of water also reduces the problem of fish in closed containment farms spreading diseases to their surroundings.”
However, it may be difficult to get sea-based farmers to bid for the Pulau Bukom site amid rising energy costs, he said, adding that offshore closed-containment farms need more energy to pump and filter water.
Such systems that run on diesel may also lead to higher carbon emissions.
The delay of the tenders at Pulau Satumu and Pulau Jong is the latest development in the tussle between conservation in the southern seas and food security, which began in 2020 when SFA announced its intention to expand aquaculture in the southern waters after some sites in the north were nearing their maximum production levels.
Conservationists and marine scientists questioned the need to introduce fish farms at pristine coral reefs in the southern waters, instead of keeping most of the fish production to the Johor Strait – the narrow body of water north of Singapore where almost all the Republic’s 109 sea-based farms reside.
The southern waters are more open than the Johor Strait, and home to unique habitats not found in the north, such as coral reefs that support marine creatures such as dolphins and sea turtles.
Marine enthusiast Ria Tan was among those who recommended optimising the productivity of existing sea spaces for fish farming instead of carving out new sites that could impact Singapore’s limited natural reefs.
“Setting up farms on a coral reef is just like putting a chicken farm there, all the fish waste will go everywhere on the reef,” she said, calling for transparency on how much each local fish farm produces as well as the amount that is exported overseas and consumed here.
According to SFA, the majority of locally produced fish is sold here, with some farms allowed to export, too, to ensure commercial viability.
NUS Tropical Marine Science Institute fellow Jani Tanzil said: “If there is insufficient space or carrying capacity in the Johor Strait, supporting farms that are contributing to Singapore’s 30 by 30 target and sustainability goals and reviewing out those that aren’t will definitely help to optimise things.
“New policies for how licences are administered, revised or revoked based on production and environmental targets may also be needed.”
Conserving biodiversity should not come at the cost of Singapore’s food security in the long term, said Professor William Chen, director of Nanyang Technological University’s food science and technology programme.
Prof Chen, who is also a consultant with the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation, added: “Imported food might be cheaper now, but this may not last forever because of factors such as global warming.
“If local consumers wait for prices to be comparable to overseas produce before purchasing, local farms may not survive till then.”
