A small team surveyed East Coast Park (Sailing Centre) to check for impact from the 400tonne
Pasir Panjang oil spill on 14 Jun 2024. This shore was cleaned of that oil spill. It was also probably impacted by the recent 5tonne
Changi East oil overspill 28 Oct 2024.
The tide was not super low but low enough that we could see the seagrasses seemed well. The team found many animals commonly seen here. Hopefully, this means life is returning.
Among the seagrasses and sandy area, there were lots of hermit crabs as well as many swimming crabs, shrimps and snapping shrimps. A variety of sea anemones were also seen. Many small fishes too: including a pipefish and a worm eel. There was one Garlic bread sea cucumber, a few live Cake sand dollars. In the sand bar, there were many Olive snails as well as Moon snails. On the rocky areas, lots of Nerites and other common snails. This is very similar to what we saw last month. We are still 'missing' animals we used to see here. Hopefully they will return soon.
 |
| Photos mostly by Richard Kuah, link to his album below. |
There is still lots of seagrass on the shore. They were mostly fresh and green and grew in dense patches. The tide wasn't low enough to properly see the whole shore. But there was still dense clumps of
Needle seagrass (both narrow and broad leaf blades) and
Spoon seagrass (large leaf blades). I saw one small clumps of
Tape seagrass with long leaves, no flowers seen today but last month, it had female flowers.
On the high tide line I saw some dead
Jania red seaweeds or
Halimeda seaweeds. But I didn't see large clusters of these as I did on previous surveys. This is similar to the situation observed yesterday at
East Coast PCN. We did not see any signs of oil on the shore.
On the low shore and further seaward, the patch of litter is still here. Among the litter were many 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.
What is the fate of this shore?East Coast shores slated for massive reclamation outlined recently in the
Long-Term Plan Review. There were additional details, plans for a 'Long Island' opposite East Coast Park is now official. In addition to more reclamation along that shoreline, already unveiled in 2013.
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 2018Check 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. More details in
"East Coast Park - Surprising intertidal adventures for the family".
Photos by others on this surveyRichard KuahMarcus NgFiora LiJames Dvc
