Singapore unveils national Climate Change action plan

Singapore -- The government of Singapore has released a national climate change action plan that seeks to stabilize greenhouse gas emissions beyond 2020 while continuing to grow the economy.

The document was released by Deputy Prime Minister, Teo Chee Hean, who is also  Coordinating Minister for National Security and Minister for Home Affairs and Chairman of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Climate Change (IMCCC).

The National Climate Change Strategy 2012 (NCCS-2012) was developed by the National Climate Change Secretariat (NCCS) in collaboration with IMCCC agencies, with inputs from the private sector and public consultations.

It describes our projections for carbon emissions up to the year 2020 and the plans to reduce emissions to meet the nation's target of 7% to 11% below Business as Usual levels. It also outlines the direction post-2020 to stabilize Singapore's long-term emissions.

Other elements of the strategy document include building capabilities to adapt to the impact of climate change, harnessing green growth opportunities as well as forging partnerships on climate change action. (See factsheet Here for more information).

Speaking at a National Climate Change Youth Conference, DPM Teo highlighted Singapore's efforts to address the challenges of climate change and to prepare for a low-carbon future by further enhancong energy efficiency, developing technological solutions to harness renewable energy more effectively, as well as enhancing Singapore's resilience to climate change.

'With a pro-business environment, and strong emphasis on R&D, Singapore is also well placed to develop as a green growth hub that develops and provides green solutions to the world,' he said.

Singapore has taken proactive steps to reduce our emissions as pledged. This is significant given our limited access to renewable energy sources. 'We are now studying how we can stabilise emissions beyond 2020, while continuing to grow the economy,' said DPM. He added that much work remains to be done on a new global climate change framework beyond 2020, and all countries will need to play their part to address this challenge.

DPM Teo elaborated that the NCCS-2012 is an important document which demonstrates that Singapore is serious about tackling climate change.

'It outlines clearly what Singapore has already done, what we are doing now and what we intend to do in the future. But it should not be a static document. It should evolve as our understanding of climate change improves.'

He hoped that the document would spark even greater interest and further discussion among all stakeholders on aspirations and responsibilities and how to individually and collectively address climate change more effectively and efficiently.

NCCS-2012 is accompanied by a brochure 'The Fight Against Climate Change Begins With You', which highlights the impact of climate change and the actions that individuals can take in easy-to-read snippets.

The brochure will be available in the four official languages. It will be distributed to schools, public libraries and community centres. The NCCS-2012 document and brochure are also available on NCCS' website at www.nccs.gov.sg.

The National Climate Change Secretariat (NCCS) was set up as a dedicated agency under the Prime Minister's Office on 1 July 2010 to coordinate Singapore's domestic and international policies, plans and actions on climate change so as to secure a sustainable living environment for our future generations.

Singapore has been at the forefront of ecological change for decades. In two weeks this tiny Asian nation will host the world ar the CleanEnviro Summit 2012 taking place from July 1 to 4 at the Marina Bay Sands in Singapore.

The National Climate Change Strategy 2012 can be downloaded here

Under the theme of Innovative Clean Enviro-Solutions for Asia's Growing Cities, the event will highlight such solutions as it draws attention to the role of governance, leadership and technology to meet future environmental challenges, especially in the exploitation of energy, water and waste nexus for a more efficient design of future cities.

(See GLOBE-Net article 'Singapore - The little Nation that could and did - has something to show the world').