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Serious Shopping
Boutique Fairs Singapore has launched eBoutiques, a new e-commerce platform available all year round. You’ll be able to browse a wide variety of products, from women’s and men’s fashion and accessories, to children’s toys, décor and fashion, plus home décor, lifestyle products, and food and drinks. With 80 percent of brands championing social responsibility, each Singapore-based store featured has been specially chosen by founder Charlotte Cain. Shoppers are able to live chat with designers and brand owners and enjoy direct shipping from locally made brands.
Head to shop.boutiquefairs.com.sg
Italian Escape
Looking for a change of scenery? Book the Italian Summer Staycation Special at Mandarin Oriental and you might just feel like you’ve been whisked away to the Amalfi Coast! After checking in to a luxurious Marina Bay View Room, you’ll kickstart your tailored getaway with a complimentary Italian-inspired cocktail. Next, enjoy a refreshing dip in the hotel’s 25-metre outdoor pool and dry off in a private cabana while you browse the poolside menu for your complimentary meal for two – perhaps the Pizza alla Buffala or the Pasta Pomodoro? Round off the day with evening cocktails at Bay@5, an alfresco lounge offering panoramic views of the city skyline, and make the most of your $75 dining credit and 15 percent discount at Italian restaurant Dolce Vita. Then it’s just a matter of waking up to stunning views and breakfast for two.
Book your Italian Summer Staycation at Mandarin Oriental from $399 at mandarinoriental.com/singapore. Valid until 30 December 2020
Nintendo Nostalgia
Those who grew up playing Nintendo will love LEGO’s new Nintendo entertainment system building kit. It showcases intricate and realistic details, including a controller, a slot for the game cartridge and even a retro television set with a Mario figure! It’s made up of a total of 2,646 pieces and retails at $329.90. Find it at LEGO Certified Stores in Singapore.
Fresh Features
Komoco Motors has refreshed and updated the Hyundai Venue 1.6 right here in Singapore. New additions to the SUV include an electric heated side mirror, a front radiator cascading grille in black and chrome, and Hyundai SmartSense safety features like lane-keeping assist and blind-spot collision warning.
Singapore’s latest green space is now open!
By Faith Chanda
Photos: Keppel Corporation
Thanks to its massive grass-topped roof, the new Keppel Marina East Desalination Plant (KMEDP) looks a lot like Marina Barrage, its larger and more famous neighbour a kilometre or so to the southwest.
Opened last month, the Marina East rooftop space is approximately the size of three football fields, and allows public access from 8am to 9pm daily. Bikers and runners will be happy to discover that the desalination plant’s grounds also act as a long-awaited natural connector between East Coast Park and Gardens by the Bay East. Kite-enthusiasts, however, will have to stick with Marina Barrage – the KMEDP is along the flight path of the Paya Lebar Airbase, so flying kites isn’t allowed.
The facility’s sleek, modern look seamlessly incorporates sustainable elements like rainwater harvesting ponds and stormwater management systems. These conserve and reuse the collected water onsite to irrigate greenery and supply the area’s water features.
The environmentally friendly design has earned the desalination plant the Active, Beautiful, Clean Waters Certification (Gold). An initiative of the Public Utilities Board (PUB), “ABC Waters” is a programme that encourages the public to enjoy recreation in and around Singapore’s water resources so that we can directly appreciate their value to the community.
The aim of endless water
Singapore has been planning for sustainable water sources from its very beginnings. According to the PUB, there are now more than 8,000km of canals and drains across the island. Laid end to end, that’s enough to reach well beyond Sydney, Australia! These help to channel floodwaters away when there’s too much rain, collecting in Singapore’s 17 catchment reservoirs for use when we need it. By 2060, PUB predicts water usage will rise to about double the current rates. So, it’s a good thing Singapore isn’t reliant on rainwater alone for its water resources. There’s also water imported from Johor, NEWater reclaimed water, and desalinated water from the ocean. (Together, these are known as the “Four National Taps”.) The goal is to have approximately 80 percent of Singapore’s water come from the combined resources of NEWater and desalination by 2030.
The KMEDP is the fourth of five desalination plants expected to start up by 2022. What’s remarkable about this Marina East facility is its flexibility. As a dual-mode plant, it can produce up to 137,000 cubic metres of drinkable water daily, sourcing freshwater from Marina Reservoir or seawater off the East Coast as necessary.
Looking after a precious resource
As a small country with very few natural groundwater resources, Singapore needs to treat its water supply with care. Thankfully, the massive reservoir network means an ever-increasing majority of the island falls into a catchment area. Yet this also means we need to be cautious about what flows into our reservoirs – and that, in turn, means reducing potential water pollutants. So, construction sites must keep dirt and debris from washing away; corporations must dispose of waste chemicals properly; and we as individuals can do our part to keep waterways clear of litter. That way, Singapore’s water resources will be kept clean and safe, so they can be used and enjoyed for generations to come.
For more information about the Marina East plant, including the latest safe-distancing measures, visit kepinfra.com/kmedp. The green space is built to accommodate 500 people, but the current maximum number of visitors is 100.
ABC Waters: pub.gov.sg/abcwaters/explore
Water-saving habits: pub.gov.sg/savewater/athome/watersavinghabits
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