Task 4 for week 6/7

New plant ensures no rain water goes to waste
The Straits Times, Thursday, February 1 2007

Singapore, being a small black dot on the world map, is very vulnerable under many circumstances. This is due to the fact that Singapore has no natural resources; therefore we have to depend on other countries for resources to ensure our survival. The water issue is one of our main concerns since water is needed in many areas such as industrial works, domestic and recreational uses.

Now our water comes from mainly four “taps”: local catchment water, imported water from Johor, Newater, and desalinated. Recently in Singapore, the water engineers have made a breakthrough; both rain and seawater can be made drinkable using the same treatment plant, ensuring that no drop of rain that falls in Singapore goes to waste. This new technology adds to the last “tap” of the four existing ones that make up Singapore’s water supply.

I feel that the steps taken by the government are trying to make Singapore self-reliant. In the past, when Singapore just gained independence in 1965, we had to worry whether Malaysia would supply us with the water we needed. However, now we can rely on ourselves for water by treating wastewater. In this way, Singapore will become less vulnerable since the water issue is solved.