Half of St John's Island closed after asbestos found

Half of St. John's Island was closed on 17 Apr 2018, a day after samples taken from the campsite, lagoon and holiday bungalow area tested positive for asbestos said the Singapore Land Authority (SLA).

More than half the island will be closed.
From Channel NewsAsia.

I've seen construction debris dumped on St John's and Lazarus Island, squashed into crevices in the natural cliffs. "Going forward, how will the authorities ensure future proper disposal of general trash and industrial and construction waste?" is the quote I shared with the Straits Times.

Ocean wanderers: pelagic birds in Singapore waters

In Singapore waters far from shore, fly amazing pelagic birds. Also dolphins and other fascinating marine creatures.

A juvenile Frigatebird seen during a Pelagic Survey.
From the Singapore Bird Group blog.

The Singapore Bird Group of the Nature Society (Singapore) conducts regular surveys to document pelagic birds. What are pelagic birds? Where can we find them? How can we join a pelagic survey?

Semakau South with dolphins!

Next to the Semakau Landfill are living mangroves, seagrass meadows and reefs on Pulau Semakau.

As we were leaving, we glimpsed dolphins briefly. One was a small Indo-pacific hump-backed dolphin, possibly a juvenile. No photos, but what a great encounter! Unfortunately, I also came across a large abandoned net.

Living seagrass meadows of Changi

Under the flight path of roaring planes from Changi, there are lush seagrass meadows.

Studded with Knobbly sea stars and other amazing marine life!

Cyrene surprises in the morning

Our first morning survey of 2018 is to Cyrene Reef! Although it lies in the middle of an industrial triangle and major shipping lanes, Cyrene has some of Singapore's best shores.

Besides giant sea stars, hidden fishes, strange snails, we also saw a large holey sand dollar for the first time there. And lots more!

Butane gas spill off Life Firing Islands, 17 Apr 2018

A collision between an LPG tanker and a tanker resulted in a spill of 1,796 metric tonnes of butane gas.

The accident happened on 17 Apr 2018 at 2.30am about one nautical mile south of Tuas Extension in Singapore waters. Some of our most pristine shores lie nearby, such as the Live Firing Islands and large 'Terumbus' or submerged reefs.