With Singapore’s limited land and dense urban population, NEA prioritises the effective and targeted management of our respective waste streams as we progress towards a Zero Waste vision and circular economy, contributing to the Singapore Green Plan 2030.
Setting Targets to Reduce and Recycle
Under Singapore’s Zero Waste Masterplan, we aim to increase the national overall recycling rate to 70 per cent and reduce waste-to-landfill per capita per day by 30 per cent by 2030. This goal will be frontloaded to achieve a 20 per cent reduction in waste-to-landfill per capita per day by 2026 under the Singapore Green Plan 2030. Targets are set with plans of extending the lifespan of Singapore’s only landfill beyond 2035.
We also have 2030 targets to increase non-domestic recycling rate to 80 per cent and domestic recycling rate to 30 per cent.
Harnessing Waste Process Synergies
As part of NEA’s long-term plan to meet Singapore’s solid waste management needs, we collaborated with PUB in 2013 for the planning and development of the Integrated Waste Management Facility (IWMF). We embarked on a joint preliminary engineering design study to assess the potential of harnessing process synergies by co-locating a solid waste treatment facility with a used water reclamation facility. This led to the co-location of two mega facilities – the IWMF and Tuas Water Reclamation Plant, now collectively known as Tuas Nexus – which will be able to reap co-location synergies across the water-energy-waste nexus to optimise energy and resource recovery, and land use.
Developed in phases, we have since made several important strides in this greenfield project. Under the first phase, NEA commenced the construction of the Waste-to-Energy Facility (2,900 tonnes/day) and Materials Recovery Facility (250 tonnes/day) in May 2020, and the Sludge Incineration Facility (800 tonnes/day) and Food Waste Treatment Facility (400 tonnes/day) in August 2021. Phase 1 is expected to be completed in 2025 to 2026, with the development of Phase 2, which comprises another waste-to-energy Facility (2,900 tonnes/day), to follow thereafter.
In August 2021, NEA also announced the establishment of our $3 billion Multicurrency Medium Term Note (MTN) Programme and Green Bond Framework. Proceeds from the issuance of Notes under the MTN Programme will be used to finance sustainable infrastructure development projects including the IWMF.
Closing the Waste and Resource Loops
The Closing the Waste Loop (CTWL) Funding Initiative (FI) is a research and development (R&D) programme announced in December 2017, along with the Environmental Services Industry Transformation Map. NEA has been administering the $45 million CTWL FI to develop innovative solutions in resource recovery, conservation of landfill space, and sustainability of our waste management system. As of 31 March 2022, we have committed $37 million to fund 15 R&D projects on the treatment of and resource recovery from priority waste streams – electrical and electronic waste (e-waste), food waste and plastic waste, and diversion of residues such as incineration bottom ash and non-incinerable waste from Semakau Landfill. Several projects have attracted industry interest, leading to 10 industry project collaborations and $2.1 million industry spending pledged to date.
One of these innovative solutions was developed by the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore-CEA Alliance for Research in Circular Economy (SCARCE), which employs green chemical processes that avoided the use of hazardous substances to recover precious metals from e-waste. Using fruit peel, SCARCE has successfully recovered 90 per cent weight of metals, such as nickel, manganese, cobalt and lithium, from spent lithium-ion batteries.
In February 2022, NEA secured $80 million for the Closing the Resource Loop FI, which will build upon the R&D efforts under the earlier Waste-to-Energy FIs and the CTWL FI. This will support waste-related initiatives under the Singapore Green Plan 2030, through research and innovations.
Taking E-waste Recycling to the Next Level
On 1 July 2021, NEA implemented the Extended Producer Responsibility scheme for e-waste management with multiple collection avenues islandwide. The move encourages the public to recycle their e-waste, such as IT equipment, large appliances, light bulbs and tubes, and batteries. The five-year e-waste collection contract was awarded to ALBA E-Waste Smart Recycling Pte Ltd. As the appointed operator of the Producer Responsibility Scheme, ALBA will send all e-waste collected to licensed e-waste recyclers.
Exploring Chemical Recycling Solutions
NEA is exploring chemical recycling solutions to close the plastic waste loop in Singapore. Chemical recycling is able to process plastics that cannot be mechanically recycled, such as contaminated single-use plastics, and convert these into higher-value products such as pyrolysis oil, that can be used as feedstock to manufacture new plastics and chemicals.
To gain a better understanding of the technical and commercial aspects of a chemical recycling value chain in Singapore, a joint NEA-Shell study explored the feasibility of chemically recycling plastic, and concluded that chemical recycling of plastic waste was technically viable with the appropriate plastic feedstock. There would also be carbon savings from the diversion of plastic waste from incineration. Concurrently, we embarked on a feasibility study for a Plastic Recovery Facility (PRF). As there are currently no local facilities to recover contaminated plastics from domestic waste, the PRF will fill this gap by taking in domestic waste collected from households and trade premises, to sort and recover various plastic polymer types such as Polyethylene and Polypropylene for further treatment in chemical recycling plants. Completed in end-2021, the study provided an understanding of the design, suitable waste management technologies and equipment, as well as site requirements and scalability potential for a PRF. NEA will further assess the findings from both studies before proceeding with the next stage of development.
Improving Industry Energy Performance
On 22 December 2021, the energy management system (EnMS) requirements took effect as an enhancement of the Energy Conservation Act to support Singapore’s climate pledge under the Paris Agreement. Energy-intensive companies in the industrial sector, accounting for more than 60 per cent of Singapore’s GHG emissions, are required to implement an EnMS as part of corporate energy management practices, to achieve continual improvement in energy performance. The EnMS is based on the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle and comprises key elements of ISO 50001 - Energy Management System standard. Companies operating the most energy-intensive facilities (≥500TJ/year) have submitted their first EnMS reports by 31 December 2021, while the remaining companies operating the next tier of energy-intensive facilities will submit their EnMS reports by 31 December 2022.
Going Forward |
In the short-term, NEA’s focus is to implement regulatory measures for our priority waste streams, develop our chemical recycling capabilities, and increase recycling rates. We also seek to reduce GHG emissions to meet our obligations under the Paris Agreement, and enhance energy efficiency efforts in households, industries and the private sector. Internally, we will drive initiatives within the organisation to align to GreenGov.SG.
Our medium-term priority is to innovate and develop the next generation of waste management infrastructure and capabilities, as we work towards becoming a Zero Waste Nation. NEA will also look into circular economy initiatives that seek to extend Semakau Landfill’s lifespan, such as exploring the use of landfilled mixed material as reclamation fill, studying the development of a commercial NEWSand, and developing solutions for non-incinerable waste.
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Mitigating the Impact of Hydrofluorocarbons
In September 2021, the Environmental Protection and Management (Amendment) Bill was passed in Parliament to mandate measures to mitigate the GHG impact of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), which are used as refrigerants in Refrigeration and Air-conditioning (RAC) equipment.
The regulatory measures, which come into effect from October 2022, will restrict the supply of RAC equipment that use high Global Warming Potential refrigerants, and require at least one certified technician to supervise or carry out servicing work on water-cooled chillers that involve refrigerant handling.
In June 2022, Singapore ratified the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol. To meet these obligations, Singapore will phase down the consumption of HFCs by 80 per cent over the next two decades. NEA will continue to work closely with industry stakeholders to support them in reducing HFC consumption, and shift them towards climate-friendly alternatives.
Reducing Disposable Carrier Bags
Starting from mid-2023, supermarket operators will be required to charge for disposable carrier bags, to encourage shoppers to adopt more sustainable habits such as bringing their own bags and reducing the use of disposable bags. Supermarket operators with an annual turnover of more than $100 million will need to charge a minimum of five cents for each disposable carrier bag provided at their physical stores. To uphold transparency and accountability, the supermarket operators will also be required to publish information on the number of bags issued, amount of proceeds collected, and how the proceeds are used. The operators are strongly encouraged to use the proceeds to support charitable or environmental causes.