Oil spill check at lush seagrass patch at East Coast Park

A reef has settled at a seawall on the other side of Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal next to the East Coast PCN. While one of our nicest seagrass patches is growing at the mouth of a canal here.

On the first brief low spring tide after the 400tonne Pasir Panjang oil spill on 14 Jun 2024. Well before sunrise and in rain (which create sparkles in flash photos), a tiny team survey for oil spill impact. I surveyed the side closer to the access point, while Kelvin bravely checked out the further shore.

Next to the long seawall on the other side of the canal, a variety of hard corals have settled naturally on this artificial shore. The tide was  briefly just low enough for Kelvin to get a glimpse of them. Some were alright, others were pale or had stress-colours (pink patches) or outright bleaching. The plate-forming corals had pools of oil at the bottom of their 'cup-shaped' forms.

Kelvin saw the 'Nemo' that we often see here. Unfortunately, it's home the Giant carpet anemone was bleaching. I have no idea how to distinguish whether bleaching is due to the ongoing Global Mass Coral Bleaching 2024, or due to the oil spill. He also saw some living animals commonly seen on our reefs, although the Bottleneck sea cucumber is usually deeply hidden in a crevice - maybe the oily water made it emerge?

Kelvin also saw some sponges that were completely covered in oil. Perhaps because they are filter feeders? He also noticed freshwater snails and a frog - washed down from fresher upstream areas in the canal?

One of the nicest patch of seagrasses in Singapore is at the mouth of this canal at East Coast Park! Lights in the photo are on the bridge over the canal. Almost all the seagrass species for Singapore can be found here.

As in the past, today, the seagrasses were lush and healthy, green and fresh without much epiphytes, leaves long and not cropped. I didn't see any bleaching seagrasses. I saw Spoon seagrass (large and small leaves - a small patch in the canal was bleaching); Needle seagrass (broad and narrow leaves); Noodle seagrass and lots of Tape seagrass with long leaves. One of the Tape seagrasses had a large fruit and female flowers. 

I didn't see large quantities of broken off seagrass blades washed up on the high shore (a sign of impact on seagrasses in deeper waters). But did see many dead broken off Halimeda seaweeds. Kelvin also noticed this on the other side of the canal which he surveyed.

There was heavily oiled litter up in the canal. Probably because these were floating in oil slick trapped in the canal for some time.

On the beaches facing the bay, there were some oil and some unoiled litter. There were single-use water cups as well as other kinds of litter that might have come from ferries. It seems no facilities are provided at any of the piers/terminals under MPA's charge for vessels to responsibly dispose of trash generated during their operation. This includes huge ferries carrying hundreds of passengers from Pasir Panjang Ferry Terminal and Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal, work boats that operate out of Marina South Pier. More in this post.

Oil can also seep into the sand, especially oil that has been treated with dispersants. Today, I didn't see oil in my footprints in at the very mouth of the canal. But upstream in the canal, there was oil in my footprints in the sand. Dispersants are basically detergent sprayed on crude oil to break them up, like using soap on greasy dishes. When the oil is dispersed into tinier bits, we don't see them but the oil is still there. The study found that this oil-dispersant mixture is 52 times more toxic to bacteria than just the oil alone or dispersant alone. The study also found that dispersants interfered with other natural processes that degrade oil, such as effects from sunlight and ground-level ozone. Dispersants also caused sediments to absorb more of the harmful compounds, lengthening their effects on the environment. More in this old blog post.

There was not a lot of oil at the mouth of the canal. But upstream in the canal, there were narrow bands of floating oil (30-50cm wide) gathered next to the sand. Together with a few heavily oiled floating litter.

Further upstream in the canal there is a narrow band of oil, probably coinciding with a recent neap tide. On the walls of the canal throughout, and on the pillars supporting the bridge. Further downstream, there is more marine life on the canal walls, and the band of oil was lower on the wall.

In the rain and dark, I could hardly see any animals. Kelvin pointed out some common animals on the oiled part of the canal wall. Common crabs, slugs, tiny snails. They were still alive. 

My photos of this survey on wildsingapore flickr. 


Where did corals at East Coast Park come from?

The babies of these corals are from Singapore reefs! This chart shared in the Long-Term Plan Review shows coral larvae (babies) dispersal in our waters from mass coral spawning. This highlights the importance of protecting our 'mother reefs' so that they can continue to produce babies that settle all along our shoreline.

The same currents that brought the oil spill to East Coast Park from Pasir Panjang also bring coral babies to this shore!

Map by Channel NewsAsia 19 Jun 2024.

What is the fate of these shores?

These shores lie west of Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal and are slated for massive reclamation outlined recently in the Long-Term Plan Review.

Technical studies for 'Long Island' 800ha reclamation off the East Coast were recently announced to begin.

Natural regeneration on Singapore's artificial shores and structures is already happening now. Unintentionally, with zero replanting. Can we plan coastal works to allow reefs, mangroves and seagrasses to naturally regenerate? Naturalise canals leading to the sea for a continuum of freshwater wetlands to mangroves? Imagine what's possible! Reefs and natural marine ecosystems at our doorstep, for all in the City to enjoy. More about this idea in my feedback to the Draft Master Plan 2013.

The Singapore Blue Plan 2018

Check out the Sinapore Blue Plan 2018 which outlines community recommendations for all these shores. DOWNLOAD the Plan, SUPPORT the Plan! More on the Singapore Blue Plan 2018 site.

See these and other East Coast shores for yourself!

It's fun and easy to explore these shores. After the shores are reopened when oil spill cleanup is completed, you can explore them for yourself. More details in East Coast Park - Surprising intertidal adventures for the family. 

Today, we chased the tail of Sumatras as we headed to the shore. Although this storm is fierce, we know it is not long lasting. Fortunately, we managed a brief look at the situation on one of our favourite shores on the East Coast despite the rain and short low tide window. More about the Sumatras.

Hopefully, the recent storms will help to resolve the oil spill situation. Together with the ongoing clean up, hope that the shore will be recovered when we next return.

Photos by Kelvin Yong on this survey