Where are the Tanah Merah beaches?
Tanah Merah is the newest zone in the ICCS programme as it was added to Singapore’s shoreline relatively recently. This stretch is host to a bunch of Singapore’s non-recreational beaches which are not cleared of marine debris regularly, as they are not setup for public use as yet. As such, it is a good place to get an education about the load of marine debris which washes up on Singapore’s shores.
ICCS Google Map of Tanah Merah’s beaches, 1-10 sites
There is life on the shore!
![086iccs-tanah_merah-18sep2011[adinesh] | Flickr - Photo Sharing!](https://img.skitch.com/20111123-cgmxg56hx2a3m1dxngwbgrhfqg.jpg)
In the eastern end of these beaches lie the most recently reclaimed beaches of Tanah Merah East, TM6-TM10. Though recent, marine life returning to the shore is subject to numerous stresses including a very high load of plastics and other debris as well as tar balls which persist and wash up from oil spills long forgotten.
These areas have been well recce’d by ICCS Recce Captain Andy Dinesh over the years, who also assists ICCS Zone Captains Xu Weiting and Cai Hongxia oversee the cleanup in September.
Trash from the Beach
114,709 trash items were removed from 4.6km of Tanah Merah’s beaches (1-10) last September. The top three trash items collected were:
- Styrofoam pieces – 8,1465
- Beverage bottles (plastic) 2 liters or less – 14,676
- Bags (plastic) – 1,775
The ICCS Year-Round Cleanups at Tanah Merah East
In response to interest expressed by groups who tackled Tanah Merah East beaches (TM6-TM10) during the last international coastal cleanup in September, ICCS intends to initiate a programme of year-round cleanups at Tanah Merah East in order to grapple with the magnitude of trash on that shore.
These cleanups, separate from our data-driven September cleanup, will be either managed directly or in support of an Organiser of a corporate group or institution interested in contributing to this effort.
To initiate this programme, we are recruiting motivated individuals from amongst ICCS Organisers and Site Buddies, National Volunteer and Philantrophy Centre’s ICCS Site Buddies and Green Champions as well as ICCS alumni and members of the public.
From this pool, we hope to have enough volunteer Site Buddies who can manage cleanups at Tanah Merah at least four times a year. Once this mechanism is set up, the ICCS Year-Round Cleanups at Tanah Merah East will be integrated into the National Volunteer Oil Spill Action Plan which we are developing, in order to prepare volunteers to better respond in a crisis on our shores.
To kick off the programme, we are meeting interested individuals in January 2012:
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Recruitment Briefing
Wed 04 Jan 2012: 7.00pm Conducted by N. Sivasothi (Coordinator, ICCS) |
On 17 September 2011, a total of 411 volunteers from nine organisations collected, categorised and counted 25,980 items weighing 3,607 kg along 1,300 metres of shoreline. This was disposed of in a total of 752 trash bags and carted away by NEA contractors, destined for incineration and disposal.
Below are some photos to give you an impression of the site.
| Tanah Merah 6 – link
Tanah Merah 7 – link |
Tanah Merah 8 & 9 (18 Sep 2011)
Tanah Merah 10 (18 Sep 2011)
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Trash-filled shores!
More trash, covered in oil!
Coastal cleanup may be back-breaking work, but it is satisfying!
Trash bags from Tanah Merah 8 & 9
More photos from ICCS 2011 be found here:
News from the International Coastal Cleanup Singapore 
Gee , Gosh !!! As a long stay visitor to Singapore, I am shocked and appalled , that most Singaporeans , just turn their heads and look away ,,,, may be with the conviction , that it isn’t their mess ,,, they themselves ,didn’t cause it !!!
Singaporeans are growing – up as a participating , global population , and that opulance , comes with education and appreciation for protecting our finite and precious environment , marine and otherwise.
I am aware that Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia , entered into an agreement to fund clean-up of oil spills and other catasphrophes along our mutual marine borders,,,, it , so saddens me that a thourough oil spill clean-up , has not taken place, yet !
So I say , Shame , Shame , on those who are empowered to police and protect our waters and seashore from polution , as you have shown little regard to your citizens and our environment !
Douglas
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