For the past 50 years, Singapore has been struggling to expand its territories. At a time when many countries are trying to achieve this in aggressive ways, here they chose another option, namely – mounds of sand. Thus, the area of Singapore is planned to increase by 4% by 2030.
In the modern world, people often fight with the armies of their neighbors, but here, the “enemy” is different, although no less serious – the sea. The main goal of the Singaporeans is to move the coastline artificially. It is planned to build a new line along the entire coast.
They risk disappearing
The main reason for such grandiose projects is that almost 2/3 of Singapore is less than 4.8 m above sea level. This makes it very vulnerable to flooding during floods or storms. Moreover, the scale of the problem is impressive: now, the value of buildings at risk is about 50 billion dollars.
At the same time, sea level rise is happening quickly, and Singapore is more susceptible to it than other countries in the world.
Drown or earn?
However, such a decision has its opponents, who neglect the safety and risks of buildings. These are the owners of real estate, which is now located on the first line from the sea. Among such buildings, there are:
– several skyscrapers overlooking Marina Bay;
– shopping center;
– DBS Group Holdings Ltd. bank;
– Bank Standard Chartered Plc. etc.
Now, the cost of each square meter here exceeds the limit. In fact, it is the most expensive real estate in the country. After the coastline is expanded, something new will be built on the newly created territories. It will not be giant skyscrapers or other large-scale architectural structures. However, the automatic distance from the sea will affect the price of buildings now closer to the first line.
On all fronts
The protection plan began to be implemented in 2019. It is planned for 100 years and requires an amount of 100 billion local dollars.
The first phase of the program was the construction of the dam, which cost 226 million local dollars. This is a unique dam Marina Barrage with the following characteristics:
– it is a system for pumping out water during high tides or rainfalls;
– it combines 7 giant pumps;
– it protects 70% of the coast of the country.
But this is not enough because tropical storms are intensifying, and the sea level is rising. To assess all possible risks, the National University of the country created a computer model that modifies the effects of precipitation and rising water levels. In 2025, the data will be able to be evaluated. It will be known which regions are in the greatest danger and how serious the threats are predicted.
