Singapore plans to create artificial islands to protect its territory against rising seas

Impact studies will be launched to assess the possibility of creating 800 hectares. It will take decades to complete this pharaonic project.

Singapore plans to build artificial islands off its east coast to protect part of its territory from rising sea levels caused by climate change, one of its ministers announced. Engineering and environmental impact studies for a project called “Long Island” will begin in 2024 and last five years, National Development Minister Desmond Lee said. The new territories thus created could extend over 800 hectares, giving the densely populated city-state more space for homes, parks and industry.

Singapore, which comprises 63 islands and has a population of 6.2 million, covers 724 km2 and has one of the highest population densities in the world. In 2019, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had already warned of rising sea levels which, according to him, constituted a “serious threat” for Singapore. The work needed to protect the coast could amount to or even exceed 100 billion Singapore dollars ($75 billion) over the next 100 years, he added.

This project could take decades

The development of the project could extend over several decades. Artificial islands could form a “line of defense” against rising sea levels, Singapore’s planning agency, the Urban Redevelopment Authority, said. Government agencies had also studied the possibility of building a three-meter-high sea wall along the entire waterfront. But its construction would entail “long periods of disruption” for park users, while the necessary pumping stations would occupy the equivalent of 15 football fields.

For coastal scientist Adam Switzer, “various in-depth studies” must be carried out regarding the “Long Island” project, in particular by examining the impact on coastal currents and the seabed. “The potential impact on the built and natural environment will need to be considered very carefully.”, said Adam Switzer, a professor at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. He recalled that Singapore had a long experience in the field, citing Changi Airport, the Marina Bay financial district and Tuas Port.

Koh Chan Ghee, a professor at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the National University of Singapore, said natural solutions such as the development of mangroves, marine vegetation and coral reefs should also be considered.