Effort to restore 100,000 corals under way, using 'HDB-style' tanks

Grown to a healthy size, they will be planted in the sea to create reef habitats

- Shabana Begum

The Republic has launched its most ambitious coral-restoration project, growing corals from fragments in "high-rise" special tanks on St John's Island.

Once grown to a healthy size, 100,000 of these corals will be planted on degraded reefs or empty sea spaces to create new reef habitats.

The first step of this decade-long effort began at a new facility in the island's Marine Park Outreach and Education Centre home to six specialized tanks that can be used for large-scale coral cultivation.

The six tanks can hold up to 3,600 coral fragments, or nubbins, at any one time. To date, more than $2 million has been raised for the restoration project.

The facility is still in the works and is targeted to fully open in the second quarter of 2025. For now, there are about 600 nubbins growing in two of the tanks.

While the initial stages of the project will be helmed by researchers, marine enthusiasts will be later invited to the lab to grow corals and monitor them, said National Development Minister Desmond Lee on Dec 10, as he announced the launch of the initiative on St John's Island.

The National Parks Board (NParks), St John's Island National Marine Laboratory and the Friends of Marine Park community will train members of the public to cultivate corals, monitor their growth and do weeding work to remove algae from the corals, among other things.

More details on public participation will be shared when ready.

When the coral-restoration project was announced in 2023, NParks said it would take at least 10 years to complete.

At the launch, Mr Lee was joined by world-renowned British primate expert Jane Goodall, who was on a working visit to Singapore.

Over the decades, about 60 per cent of Singapore's coral reefs have been lost to coastal development and land reclamation. Most of its remaining intact coral reefs are found in the Southern Islands.