Singapore’s 2017 per capita domestic water consumption is about 143 litres per day. It has been previously brought down from 165 litres per day in 2003. The target is to lower it to 140 litres by 2030. 

You may find more information on the water story at PUB's website here.

Our statutory board, PUB Singapore's National Water Agency (PUB), works with communities to improve their water consumption habits. We take a multi-pronged approach:

- putting a price on water that reflects its scarcity value;
- mandating water efficiency standards; and
- encouraging water conservation practices

In the recent years, PUB also rolled out a series of demand management initiatives, such as the Water Closet Replacement Project and the Smart Shower programme. Launched in 2017, the Water Closet Replacement Project helps eligible households save water by replacing their inefficient 9-litre water closets with more water-efficient ones, free-of-charge. Households who have benefited from the project see an average 10 per cent reduction in their monthly water usage. Under the Smart Shower Programme, some 300 families in Bukit Batok have moved into homes that come fitted with a smart shower device, enabling them to track their real time water use during showers. With showering taking up approximately one-third of a household’s water consumption, they can reap potential savings just by being informed. More such devices will be installed in about 10,000 Build-to-Order flats in the next 2 years.

From April 2019, PUB also mandated the sale, supply and installation of at least 2-tick water fittings in all new and existing premises undergoing renovation and non-water efficient fittings and appliances will eventually be phased out by 2019 for all new developments. The Mandatory Water Efficiency Labelling Scheme was also extended to include dishwashers from October 2018.

You may read up more about the water story here.

With increasing urbanisation and greater weather uncertainties, our statutory board, PUB Singapore's national water agency, recognises that more must be done to ensure that Singapore’s drainage system remains robust and adaptable. As far as the weather is concerned, we could expect greater volatility and greater intensity of rain, and our drainage systems will therefore need to cope with future uncertainty. The intensity of rainfall within a specific duration is the critical factor in determining whether the drainage capacity will be overwhelmed during a storm, and result in flash floods.

PUB announced in January 2012 its action plan to strengthen Singapore’s flood resilience via a multi-pronged plan that covers the entire spectrum of drainage and flood management. For example, to better protect the Stamford Canal catchment, PUB announced in July 2012 that a detention tank and a diversion canal will be completed by 2018. PUB acknowledges that it is not possible to predict the future. Nevertheless, its drainage planning team will make the necessary investments in infrastructure to cope with a more volatile and uncertain future.

More information on flash floods can also be found on PUB’s website here. 

With climate change, we can expect more intense rainfalls to be the norm in future. PUB has taken a system-wide approach to introduce flexibility and adaptability to Singapore’s drainage system to cope with higher intensity storms.

Known as the “Source-Pathway-Receptor” approach, measures are not only carried out along the pathway (e.g. through widening and deepening of drains and canals) but also implemented at the source where runoff is generated (e.g. through on-site detention) and at the receptor where floods may occur (e.g. through platform levels, crest protection and flood barriers).

The Government has invested $1.2 billion in drainage improvement works since 2012, and will spend another $500 million in the next two to three years to upgrade more drains. Despite these continuous efforts in upgrading our drainage infrastructure, we cannot expect zero floods as the design capacity of the drains may be exceeded temporarily during very intense rainfall. This is especially so as climate change impacts intensify.

Hence, in addition to widening and deepening of drains, PUB continues to work with developers/building owners to develop and maintain the necessary drainage and flood protection system within their premises. For example, they mandated developer/business owners to build on-site detention tanks for all new and redevelopments projects that are larger than 0.2hectares (2,000 square metres) and stipulated higher platform levels, crest protection and flood barriers at the receptors where floods may occur.

Everyone has a part to play in protecting Singapore from flash floods and building resilience to climate risks. For more information, you may wish to visit the PUB’s website here.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) conducts weekly sampling of water quality from the seven recreational beaches in Singapore:

• Sentosa Island Beaches (Siloso beach, Palawan beach, Tanjong beach)
• Seletar Island Beach
• Sembawang Park Beach
• Changi Beach
• East Coast Park Beach
• Pasir Ris Beach
• Punggol Beach

All the popular recreational beaches monitored by NEA are assessed to be suitable for primary contact activities as they are graded “Good” or “Very Good”. These seven beaches continue to meet the WHO water quality guidelines for recreational use. The results of the water quality for recreational beaches are based on the weekly sampling results of water samples over three years. 

You may read more about water quality in Singapore here.

The ABC Waters Programme is part of PUB’s strategic objective to bring Singaporeans closer to water, so that they can better appreciate and cherish this precious resource. At the same time, by creating new community spaces, ABC Waters projects enhance liveability in residential areas, and improve the experience along the waterways, in line with the vision of transforming Singapore into a ‘City of Gardens and Water’. 

You may read more about the ABC Waters programme here.

We have been enjoying good quality water for the last five decades. Our tap water is well within the World Health Organization’s drinking water guidelines and is safe for drinking from the tap without further filtration.

Currently, two-thirds of Singapore’s land surface is dedicated for local catchment area. With all the major estuaries already dammed to create reservoirs, PUB aims to harness water from the remaining streams and rivulets near the shoreline using technology that can treat water of varying salinity.

Another source is rainwater, which is collected through a comprehensive network of drains, canals, rivers and stormwater collection ponds before it is channelled to Singapore's 17 reservoirs for storage. This will boost Singapore’s water catchment area to 90% by 2060. 

To find out more about the Singapore Water Story, you may visit the PUB's website here.

With limited land to collect and store rainwater, Singapore faced drought, floods and water pollution in the early years of nation building. These challenges inspired Singapore to strategise and seek innovative ideas, develop capabilities and secure a sustainable supply of water.

Today, Singapore has a robust and diversified supply of water known as the ‘Four National Taps’. Our water supply comprises the following:

(1) Water from Local Catchment
(2) Imported Water
(3) NEWater from highly-purified reclaimed water   
(4) Desalinated Water

You may read more about the Singapore Water Story at PUB's website here.

Singapore's 4 National Taps refer to the 4 sources of water supply, i.e. (1) Local Catchment, (2) Imported Water, (3) NEWater, and (4) Desalinated Water.

• The 1st 'tap' Local Catchment, refers to the supply from our local water catchments and reservoirs.

• The 2nd 'tap' Imported Water, refers to the import of water from Malaysia under the 1962 Water Agreement. Under the 1962 Water Agreement, Singapore can draw up to 250 million gallons of water a day from the Johor River, and Singapore is obliged to provide Johor with treated water up to 2% of the water we import. The 1962 Water Agreement will expire in 2061. Constructed by PUB under a 1990 agreement with Johor supplementary to the 1962 Water Agreement, the Linggiu Reservoir is located upstream of the Johor River Waterworks and releases water into the Johor River to supplement its flow. This enables abstraction of raw water at the Johor River Waterworks which is owned and operated by PUB for treatment.

• Our 3rd 'tap' NEWater, is ultra-clean, high-grade reclaimed water produced from treated used water that is further purified using advanced membrane technologies and ultra-violet disinfection.

• Our 4th 'tap' is seawater desalination where freshwater is obtained by removing salt from seawater through the reverse osmosis process. Desalination is the process of turning seawater into drinking water. Singapore currently uses reverse osmosis for its desalination. This process produces pure drinking water by passing seawater through membranes to remove dissolved salts and minerals. Producing desalinated water is energy intensive. Moving ahead, PUB is exploring technology to bring down the energy needed for desalination, such as electro-deionisation and biomimicry. Electro-deionisation is a method that uses an electric field to pull dissolved salts from water. Biomimicry is the mimicking of biological processes by which mangrove plants and euryhaline fish extract freshwater from seawater using small amounts of energy.

Diversification of our sources of water through the 4 National Taps ensures a reliable and resilient water supply. For more information, you may visit the PUB's website here.

Under the 1962 Water Agreement, PUB has the full and exclusive right and liberty to draw off, take, impound and use the water from the Johor River, up to a maximum of 250 million gallons per day. Imported water currently meets about half of Singapore’s needs and remains an important source of water. However, we are already feeling the effects of climate change and we could face more extreme weather vagaries of dry spells or droughts. Considering that imported water is dependent on weather, we need to progressively build up weather-resilient sources – i.e. NEWater and desalination to ensure the sufficiency and resilience of the water system. 

For more information, you may wish to visit the PUB's website here. 

1. Non-Potable Use
As it is ultra-clean, NEWater is used mainly for industrial and air-con cooling purposes at wafer fabrication plants, industrial estates and commercial buildings. The biggest users of NEWater are wafer fabrication plants, which require water quality that is even more stringent than water for drinking. 

2. Indirect Potable Use
NEWater is also added to our reservoirs to blend with the raw water collected at the reservoirs. The raw water from the reservoir is then treated at the waterworks before it is being supplied to consumers as tap water. 

For more information, you may wish to visit the PUB's website here. 

NEWater is not directly channelled to our households and into our tap water currently, as we are mindful of consumers’ perception about the consumption of used water that has been treated. A small percentage of NEWater is blended with raw water in the reservoir. The raw water from the reservoir goes through treatment at the waterworks before it is supplied to consumers as tap water. There is no immediate need for PUB to directly supply NEWater to households as PUB is currently managing the water demand holistically from other sources such as local catchment areas, imported water, and desalinated water.

For more information on NEWater technology, please visit PUB’s website here.