Oiled East Coast shore: Corals dead, seagrasses okay?

I did a solo check on this shore which was not cleaned after it was impacted by the 400tonne Pasir Panjang oil spill on 14 Jun 2024. The 'House of Horrors' under the bridge in the canal still glistens as the first time I saw a week after the oil spill.

The corals situation seems worse than what we saw a month ago - it seems 90% of the corals are already dead. But seagrasses don't seem to be as severely impacted. There are also still signs of life!

Before I share all the gory photos, there are still some signs of life. Among the corals, I saw crab, sea cucumber, Arabian cowrie and eel-blenny. In the sandy pools there were prawns, swimming crabs, moon crabs. And some small fishes. There were also Acorn worms, Olive snails in the sandy areas. In the seagrasses Fan shell clams and some Bazillion snails. On the high shore, I saw some Ghost crab burrows. But the shore did feel a little less lively than usual.

One of the nicest patch of seagrasses in Singapore is at the mouth of this canal. Almost all the seagrass species for Singapore can be found here. Similar to the past and on 22 Jun and 7 Jul, today the seagrasses still seemed healthy, green and fresh without much epiphytes, leaves long and not cropped. I didn't see any bleaching seagrasses and there was no sign of oil at the mouth of the canal. There were still Tape seagrass with long leaves - although I didn't see any with flowers (male or female) there was one with well developed fruits. As in the past, I also saw Spoon seagrass (large and small leaves); Needle seagrass (broad and narrow leaves); Noodle seagrass; Smooth ribbon seagrass; Serrated ribbon seagrass. But I didn't see any Sickle seagrass, perhaps the tide wasn't low enough. Although coverage is still good, I sense the seagrasses are a little less lush.

Our shores are currently being impacted by mass coral bleaching. So it was not surprising to see this happening on the corals that have settled naturally on this artificial shore. I do not know how to distinguish whether bleaching is due to the stress of higher water temperature or impact of the 400tonne Pasir Panjang oil spill on 14 Jun 2024. We saw mass coral bleaching on our first survey here on 22 Jun, a week after the oil spill during a not-so-low tide. During a super low tide on 7 Jul, we estimate 90% of the corals here are bleaching or highly stressed, and about 50% already have dying/dead portions.

Today, during a not-so-low tide, I could only see a small portion of the corals after the canal crossing - about 10% of the corals that can be seen at super low tide. Today, I estimate 90% are dead. Many colonies had a thin layer of live corals at the bottom-most portion, with the bulk of the upper colony dead. Today, there were even still some colonies with dying tissues (bluish grey that smells very bad).

But I did see a few corals that were alright. Not bleaching or with only a small dead patch. Or just bleaching with no dead patches. I saw one small cluster of Anemone corals and it seemed okay.

Although the oil stains still glistened, I no longer smelled oil inside the canal, and I didn't see small slicks of oil along the water line like I did a month ago. I saw only a few small oil slicks among seagrasses at the mouth of the canal. I saw some clusters of tiny oil clumps in the canal.  Footprints higher up in the canal still signs of oil (suggesting oil has seeped into the sand here), but at the mouth of the canal and beyond, footprints were clear. Oiled litter is still seen, including single-use water cups, which commonly wash up on beaches along the ferry routes. These are not commonly used by beach goers or the local boating or fishing community. But these single-use water cups are apparently given out to passengers on 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. More in this post.

The oiled canal wall still had life! Although nothing was seen on the oiled band (some oysters there have died but not all, it seems). Above the band there were little periwinkle snails, small nerite snails, limpets. Below the band there were many small Purple climber crabs, and even a larger Stone crab in a drain hole. There were also squishy animals like little Onch slugs and some Lined bead anemones.

On the high shore, the oil stained sand glittered in the torchlight. I will try to survey this shore every month to check on oil spill impact on a shore which was not cleaned. High res 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.