Written Answer by Ministry of National Development on ecological impact of the increased footfall on the core nature areas

Jul 26, 2021

Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) as visitorship at Bukit Timah Nature Reserve has increased from 400,000 to 700,000 people in 2020, what is the ecological impact of the increased footfall on the core nature areas; (b) what are the visitorship rates at adjacent buffer parks like Hindhede, Dairy Farm and Bukit Batok Nature Park; and (c) whether the Ministry will consider limiting the traffic to core nature areas through strategic trail closures and by redirecting the public to less sensitive buffer parks.

Answer: 

We have seen high visitorship to our parks and nature reserves during the COVID-19 pandemic, including nature parks adjacent to Bukit Timah Nature Reserve. 

NParks has taken steps to mitigate ecological impact to our core nature areas. For instance, NParks has re-aligned trails in Bukit Timah Nature Reserve to direct human traffic away from the Reserve’s core conservation areas, allowing these areas to serve as wildlife refuges undisturbed by human activity. NParks has also installed railings along the trails to help visitors keep to designated trails. In addition, our nature reserves and many of the surrounding nature parks are closed to the public from 7 pm to 7 am daily. This protects the nocturnal rhythms of the animals from human activity. 

NParks will continue to expand the network of parks, including nature parks, so that more Singaporeans can enjoy nature-based recreation. This will help to spread out the demand for such recreational experiences. We would also like to remind park users to be responsible towards our flora and fauna, so that our native biodiversity can continue to thrive in our green spaces.