Oiled East Coast shore: seagrasses still there

I did a quick 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 is still there, but doesn't glisten as much; sand seems to be piling up thus making the 'drip' less obvious. Seagrasses are still growing lush. The tide was not low enough for me to check on the corals.

Before I share all the gory photos, there are still some signs of life. Many workers were relaxing on the shore, and this small pile of fish and crabs were caught by some of them with a net. Life on the oiled seawall was rather sparse: I did see tiny snails, tiny crabs and one slug. Among the seagrass, there were lots of Bazillion snails and a few Dubious nerites. But I didn't see anything much else. The shore is definitely much quieter than in the past.

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. Today is the first time I'm seeing the seagrasses in some daylight. They are still growing lush at the mouth of the canal. The seagrasses still seemed healthy, leaves long and not cropped. Those growing lower on the shore seemed fresh and green, though those growing higher up on the shore seemed more covered in ephiphytes. I didn't see any bleaching seagrasses and there was no sign of oil anywhere among the seagrasses. similar to the past and on 22 Jun, 7 Jul, 4 Aug.

Seagrasses still grew well inside the canal to the first bridge over it. There were still Tape seagrass with long leaves - although I didn't see any with flowers. As in the past, there was lots of Spoon seagrass (large and small leaves); Needle seagrass (broad and narrow leaves). I also saw lots of Smooth ribbon seagrass. The tide wasn't very low - I didn't get to explore much of the low shore. Although coverage is still good, I sense the seagrasses are a little less fresh and green.

There was a very large pile of recently dead Jania red seaweeds washed up into the canal - still red, not yet bleached white. We saw this too during our survey of Jul 2024, though not in such a large amount.

On the bridge 'legs' and along the canal walls, the oil still glistens as the first time I saw it a week after the oil spill. 

There is still oil in the sand on the high shore, but I didn't see any in my footprints in the canal. The litter washed up on the high shore also didn't have oil. High res photos of this survey on wildsingapore flickr.

Today, the tide wasn't low enough to cross the canal, and the corals were not exposed anyway. September is usually our 'rest' period because there are usually no super low tides. But I had a quick look as I want to check on the oiled shore every month. Let's hope the corals are okay when the tides are low enough to visit next month.

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.