Speech by 2M Indranee Rajah at Opening Ceremony of ACUUS 2023
Nov 1, 2023
It’s a great pleasure to be with all of you here this morning, and I’d like to welcome all our international guests to Singapore.
Introduction
2 Singapore last hosted the ACUUS conference more than a decade ago. There have been many developments since then.
a. Globally, cities continue to grow upwards and outwards at a rapid pace.
b. Urban areas currently accommodate more than half of the world’s population, and the United Nations anticipates this proportion to reach 70% by 2050.
c. With cities becoming more densely populated, effective urban and underground planning become increasingly important.
d. As such, cities worldwide are exploring and experimenting innovative ways to intensify their development of underground spaces to reduce surface congestion. This includes novel concepts of utilising underground spaces, such as “earth scrappers” and underground parks powered by remote sunlight systems.
Singapore’s Experience
3 For Singapore, land constraints are even more acute, given our small size.
4 We must optimise our limited land resources, not just for the present, but also for future generations. It is therefore imperative for us to tap into the potential of our underground space, so that surface land can be prioritised for uses that improve our living environment.
(A) Centralised Planning Approach
5 To do so, Singapore adopts a centralised approach towards planning and developing our underground space. A “first come, first served”, laissez-faire approach could lead to a sub-optimal use of underground space, as such, we need to plan for our underground level use systematically and in advance.
a. One of our government agencies, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) oversees and co-ordinates underground land development. URA’s initiatives involve creating a 3D underground map marked with safeguarded and planned uses, otherwise referred to as “Underground Special and Detailed Control Plans”, or SDCPs in short, to guide long-term planning in key areas in Singapore. My colleague, Adele, will share more about the SDCPs later in her keynote speech.
b. In addition, the Government puts in place the necessary legislation and regulatory controls to facilitate long-term planning of underground spaces. For example,
i. We passed legislative amendments to our State Land Act and Land Acquisition Act to clarify underground ownership issues, and to give the State acquisition powers to acquire only a specific stratum of space that is needed for underground public projects, instead of having to acquire the entire column of land which includes the surface land and airspace.
ii. We released best practices and standards to guide surveyors and utility providers on how underground data should be captured and shared with the private and public sector. Over time, this will allow us to build an accurate and up-to-date database on what exists underground, and allow better upstream planning.
iii. We also regularly review our guidelines for underground design and construction works to ensure that our underground developments are held to high safety standards.
6 This centralised approach allows us to optimise and ensure efficient use of our underground space over time. It also supports industry players, by ensuring that they have the tools, for example, underground data and maps, that they need for their underground development projects.
(B) Public Engagement
7 As we make bold, long-term plans for our underground space, it is also important to get public buy-in. Apart from the players in the industry, it is critical that the public understands the importance of underground development, and that they support our underground plans.
8 As such, in Singapore, we regularly engage the public on their views and ideas on the use of land, including underground spaces.
a. URA regularly consults the public on our Masterplan, which is a land use plan which guides Singapore’s land use and underground development over the next 10 to 15 years.
b. The consultation takes place every five years, and it is an opportunity to share the Governments plans for the underground, hear the public’s views, and tap on their ideas to improve our underground land development.
c. For the upcoming Draft Master Plan or DMP2025 review, one of the themes is Strengthening Urban Resilience. A key part of building resilience is better utilisation of our underground space, and URA intends to consult the public on future plans for basement space utilisation and cavern development, as well as seek their views on potential nascent use cases.
(C) Capability Building
9 Finally, Singapore has been pushing the boundaries for underground space development by investing in technology and innovation.
a. We have commissioned and funded research studies on a range of issues. This includes geological mapping studies, feasibility studies on specific underground uses, such as for storage and goods movement, as well as engineering innovation studies to reduce the cost of underground construction and maintenance.
b. We will continue to do so, to find suitable solutions and innovative use of underground space.
10 We will also continue to learn from the experience of cities and experts from around the world, such as yourselves. In this regard, today’s ACUUS conference is an important platform to facilitate knowledge sharing across organisations and countries, and we hope to learn from all of your experiences and expertise in the underground arena.
Conclusion
11 On that note, I hope that everyone will have fruitful and engaging discussions in the days ahead, and will leave with new ideas for underground development.
12 We are at the crossroads of rapid urbanisation, and the conditions make it imperative for us to find innovative solutions. I look forward to seeing new ideas, research and solutions that will push the boundaries of underground space.
13 Thank you all very much.
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