The Flying Saucer At Sunset

Lenticular clouds (Altocumulus lenticularis) are stationary lens-shaped clouds with a smooth layered appearance that form in the troposphere, usually above mountain ranges. One was spotted in Singapore recently...

Eyes Of 30,000 Honeycombs

With 30,000 individual facets, dragonflies have the most number of facets among insects. Each facet, or ommatidia, creates its own image, and the dragonfly brain has eight pairs of descending visual neurons to compile those thousands of images into one picture...

A Kaleidoscope Of Colours, Shapes And Patterns

Spectacular and innovative in design, the Flower Dome replicates the cool-dry climate of Mediterranean regions like South Africa, California and parts of Spain and Italy. Home to a collection of plants from deserts all over the world, it showcases the adaptations of plants to arid environments...

Lightning Strikes, Not Once, But Many Times

Unlike light, lightning does not travel in a straight line. Instead, it has many branches. These other branches flashed at the same time as the main strike. The branches are actually the step leaders that were connected to the leader that made it to its target...

Are You My Dinner Tonight?

A T-Rex has 24-26 teeth on its upper jaw and 24 more on its lower jaw. Juveniles have small, sharp blade-shaped teeth to cut flesh, whereas adults have huge, blunt, rounded teeth for crushing bones. Is the T-Rex a bone-crushing scavenger?

Ubin Oil Spill - Along The Way

Part 6 - Along The Way
Pulau Ubin
East, Singapore
May 2010

Along the way, there were lots of heartwarming and interesting sights. While waiting for the tides to recede, we had time to admire Ubin's flora and fauna...

A touch of beauty along the beach as I waited with the workers...


A bunch of bananas grows alongside a coconut leaf...

A grasshopper chomps on its breakfast...
A tiny wild boar streaks past our path. Note the stripes on its back...


First time seeing weaver ants in a webbed nest...


The workers were mainly from Bangladesh. Their way of life was simple - Start work early in the morning, relaxed pace along the day, and a brief siesta and a timely lunch at noon.



No work was too hard or dirty for them. They cleaned the debris, braved the mosquitoes, and worked in the hot sun without complaint.

A positive working attitude despite the difficult conditions...



When it comes to taking photos, they were shy...
but always ready with a warm smile.


Tua Pek Gong Birthday Celebrations 2010
|   Part 1 - The Chronology   |   Part 2 - At Changi Beach   |   Part 3 - Executive Decisions   |
|   Part 4 - Devastating Effects Of Oil   |   Part 5 - Cleaning Up The Mess   |

Ubin Oil Spill - Cleaning Up The Mess

Part 5 - Cleaning Up The Mess

Pulau Ubin
East, Singapore
May 2010

It is generally agreed that mangroves are particularly sensitive to oil and that they are priority areas for protection. The main protection options are:
  • Mechanical recovery offshore from the mangroves;
  • Dispersal (using oil spill dispersants) offshore; and
  • Booming of mangrove shorelines and inlets.
Oil-containing booms surrounded the inlets to Chek Jawa...


Speed boats shuttle between Changi Point Ferry Terminal and the booms...


The NParks officers knew the area well.
They each led a team to the affected areas...

If oil enters mangroves, the main clean-up options are:
  • Booming and skimming of oil on the water surface in mangrove creeks;
  • Pumping of bulk oil from the sediment surface, depressions and channels;
  • Water flushing of free oil from sediment surface and mangroves, into areas where it may be collected; and
  • Use of absorbent materials, with subsequent collection and disposal.
Bagging the scooped-up sand and leaves.
The workers also had to clear up the leftovers from yesterday's clean-up...


A sticky brown residue remains after the chemical dispersant spray dried up...

Bagging the trash in more resistant sacks to prevent leakage...


Some moments of frustration as a miscommunication occurred...

There were thousands of leaves and twigs along the shores.
All these had to be swept up and cleared...


Taking a much-needed break at half-time...

Ubin Oil Spill - Devastating Effects Of Oil

Part 4 - Devastating Effects Of Oil
Pulau Ubin
East, Singapore
May 2010

Mangroves can be killed by heavy or viscous oil that covers the trees’ breathing pores thereby asphyxiating the sub-surface roots which depend on the pores for oxygen. The toxicity of substances in the oil is also lethal.

The organisms among and on the mangrove trees are affected in two ways. First, there may be heavy mortalities as a direct result of the oil. For example, oil may penetrate burrows in the sediments, killing crabs and worms, or coat molluscs on the sediment surface and aerial roots. Second, dead trees rot quickly, leading to loss of habitat for organisms living in the branches and canopy of the trees, and in the aerial root systems.

There was visible signs of the oil in the water...

The oil foamed into brown clouds after it was sprayed...

Even the leaves were coated with oil...


Why Cleaning The Mangroves Is Difficult

Oil slicks enter mangrove forests when the tide is high, and are deposited on the aerial roots and sediment surface as the tide recedes. This process commonly leads to a patchy distribution of the oil and its effects, because different places within the forests are at different tidal heights. Some mangrove forests are virtually impenetrable, and heavy clean-up operations may cause physical damage.

The oil had spread to many parts of the mangrove forest...



There were layers of oil stains on the sand...

The Importance Of Mangroves

Mangrove forests in optimum conditions are one of the most productive ecosystems; for example a net primary productivity of 23.3 tonnes/ha/year and litter productivity of 10 tonnes/ha/year was measured for a 15-year-old stand of Rhizophora at Matang, Malaysia. The litter (such as fallen mangrove leaves) is broken down by bacteria, fungi and herbivores, and the resulting detritus supports food webs including large populations of invertebrates and fish. The calm waters in the forests are ideal breeding and nursery grounds for young fish and shrimps, while the aerial roots, lower trunks and mud surface usually support a varied fauna of oysters, snails, barnacles, crabs and other invertebrates. The upper part of the mangrove trees is an essentially terrestrial environment with a fauna of birds, mammals and insects.

Mangroves are affected by the freshwater and nutrient supply which they receive from their catchment area, and on the other hand have a strong influence on the adjoining coastal waters and associated ecosystems such as coral reefs, seagrass beds and tidal marshes. For example, they trap and stabilize sediment which might otherwise limit the growth of corals.

A thick film of oil coated the roots of the mangrove trees...

Chek Jawa Is More Than A Mangrove

Chek Jawa is a cape and the name of its 100-hectare wetlands located on the south-eastern tip of Pulau Ubin, an island off the north-eastern coast of the main island of Singapore. Chek Jawa is among the last few places left with a natural rocky shore. The wetlands are unique as several ecosystems can be observed in one area - sandy beach, rocky beach, seagrass lagoon, coral rubble, mangroves and coastal forest.

Sources

Ubin Oil Spill - Executive Decisions

Part 3 - Executive Decisions
Pulau Ubin
East, Singapore
May 2010

On arrival at Chek Jawa, the NParks personnel were very clear with their directions - Even though 90-95% of the oil spill was contained, any remaining oil could still cause a significant ecological impact to the fragile ecosystems of Chek Jawa. All efforts must be made to clean up what had already hit the shores.

Headed by good management...




Listening to the clear directions...




Instructions given at the top were translated and propagated downwards…



Preparing for the long day ahead...

The workers were divided into teams of 30/40 each and assigned to different areas. As it was near mid-tide, they would be working on the mangroves first.

Heigh-ho, heigh-ho...