A quick update for the past months

I would like to convince myself (and you) that my packed work schedule has prevented me from posting anything since the end of May. I know it is a shame but I am also sure that inertia has played a large part - not having posted for so long propagates the said behaviour :-)

In part to prove that I am really "busy" and to update you on the past activities, here is a summary of my "work".

June - July
Conducted "Freshwater quality and biodiversity" course for Crescent Girls, Henderson Sec Sch, Clementi Woods SS, Queensway SS. It was back to a tributary (sort of a naturalised drain) of Sg Ulu Pandan for more water quality testing and bug hunting.

Figure: The group hunt (for bugs)

Figure: Don't forget the water quality parameters

Figure: Sorting out the spoils of the hunt

Figure: A rare find - freshwater eel - too small for unagi though

Figure: The common Dragonfly nymphs though perhaps not so commonly seen by the students

Conducted a round of 6-day intensive AEM (advanced elective module) "Water quality and pollution".

Figure: On first sight, nothing wrong with the scene. But if you look closely enough, lots of people are looking down on their pants and shoes. This is what happens when you venture out in the wilderness in the rain and through knee high vegetation. All manner of creepy-crawlies are out their homes, latching on to the hapless passer-by (i.e. us).

Figure: Part of Ngee Ann Stream. Looks like another canal except that this used to be a natural stream with thick secondary forest on both edges. See next figure.

Figure: The same part of Ngee Ann Stream as the figure above but a year back. Note the vegetation stretching right to the edge of the secondary forest stream

Figure: An unusual find - a catfish struggling against the current in the "canalised" Ngee Ann Stream. Why was it doing so? I have no idea. Perhaps it should have just flowed along with the tide of change as what the rest of the stream did when it gave way to "development".

Figure: Due to the earlier heavy rain (what else is new in Singapore?), the whole canal was flooded, preventing the students from sampling the water (too dangerous).

Figure: The same part of the canal as the figure above but in drier times and more than a year back.

Figure: I simply can't resist putting in this routine group photo. Must show that the participants are in good spirits, right?

Singapore International Water Festival (27 Jun 2010)

Once again, I was roped in to organise the event "Amazing Greenviron Challenge" - an environmental quiz of sorts with indoor and outdoor components at the Marina Barrage. Weather was terrible in the morning so the outdoor part has to be moved indoors. (Right, rain was indeed heavy in June, giving rise to the shocking floods in downtown Singapore.)

Figure: Only 1 photo to show you here - the super group photo with organisers, student helpers and participants.

(Are we not done with the summary yet??? Afraid not... Did I mention that I had a tight schedule then?)

Water Quality Monitoring (WQM) (19 Jun 2010)

Amidst the tight schedule, I managed to sneak in a round of WQM with Team Seagrass at Chek Jawa.

Figure: On this rare sunny June morning, my students prepared their equipment for WQM.

To top it off, I attended the 4-day Wilderness Medical First Responder (WMFR) Course by OBS (Outward Bound Singapore) on Pulau Ubin. More on this in a later post.

Figure: WMFR participants and our dummies

WQM at Pasir Ris

Ah yes, the problematic kid on the block with regards to water quality - Pasir Ris Beach. (The latest advisory on its "fair" water quality is found here.) We checked out this notorious locale on this rainy July morning. Perhaps unknown to most people, this stretch of sand hosts 2 significant patches of seagrasses even though they are not monitored by Team Seagrass. (Some of the Team's members do however check out the seagrasses here in their own capacity.) And since there are seagrasses here, my team will of course be interested in the WQ.

Figure: 1 patch of seagrasses near Sg Loyang

Figure: The 2nd patch of seagrasses near Sg Tampines. I was told that there is a smaller patch further west near the end of Pasir Ris Park. We did not check this one out though.

Fish kill at Pais Ris: do you have a million bucks to spare?

Apparently, the recent fish kill at Pasir Ris (Dec 09) and Pulau Ubin (Jan 10) was not the only event concerning negative water quality in that area.

Other events include:

1. 2008, 2009 - Pasir Ris Beach was found unsuitable for swimming because of the high bacateria (Enterococcus) count
2. Dec 2006/ Jan 2007 - mass death of marine creatures in Chek Jawa due to drop in salinity caused by heavy rainfall
   (Update: a comment from "Death Note from Chek Jawa" recorded the salinity at 22ppt (parts per thousand). I believe this was  measured using a portable conductivity meter. I personally find measuring the salinity this way can be rather confusing to readers as the salinity is calculated by the meter based on the conductivity multiplied by a conversion factor. Unfortunately, this conversion factor can be quite different for different waters, ranging from 0.5 to 0.7. Hence, I personally find it more useful to report the salinity as the base measurement of electrical conductivity adjusted to 25oC.)

According to AVA, a monitoring programme has already been in place to test the water quality in the said area. Without elaboration from AVA about its programme, I shall not comment on its effectiveness but here are my suggestions for AVA/NEA for a price tag of (you got it!) a million bucks.

Since this Pasir Ris/ Pulau Ubin/ Changi is such a problematic area in terms of water quality, install a continuous monitoring system with maybe 3 to 5 monitoring stations to provide real time data for immediate response. The technology is there... you just need money. Even manpower is saved since staff only go down to the field for further investigation or to do sampling for a more detailed analysis.

1. 3 - 5 buoys containing water quality and metereological sensors, telemetry package, solar panels and batteries. See previous post. They should be strategically placed for maximum monitoring effectiveness - 1 at north of Pulau Tekong, 1 south of P. Tekong, 1 between P. Tekong and P. Ubin, 1 north of P. Punggol and 1 north of Pasir Ris Beach
2. One/two water quality sensor packages installed on each buoy. See previous post. They should be able to measure depth, dissolved oxygen (DO), turbidity, electrical conductivity (EC), temperature, pH, chlorophyll, nitrate, ammonia. I was told that each package can cost about S$15000.
3. Remote server (perhaps in the agency's HQ) with the capability to receive data via cellular signals from the buoys/sensors.
4. To handle these vast amount of water quality data, GIS (geographic information system) should be installed on a workstation linked to the remote server to document and analyse the data. See previous post. A GIS can also provide a visual display of the water quality with colour coding. Any unusual or out-of-spec event should trigger an alarm. 
5. Better still, install a modelling software to tie in with the GIS. Some free models can be found at USEPA. A properly calibrated model can make predictions and simulations on the water quality in the area to prepare for future events of similar or worse magnitude.
6. Qualified and trained manpower to use and maintain all the above goodies.

All the above may not even amount to $1M. I am sure this system will reduce the guesswork involved in future events e.g. whose fault? and probably allow for rapid remediation if required.

Reminiscing Chek Jawa (2004)

Chek Jawa can't seem to get out of my head after my visit last Saturday so I flipped through my ancient photographs of the place.

Guess what? The same iconic tree was there in 2004 but compare it to what it looks like now... what has happened in the intervening 5 years?!? Does the tree (and the surrounding substrate) look barer now or what? Too much impact from visitors? Deteriorating water quality? Or is the tree simply going through old age?

I also found some of my favourite photos - sunrise at Chek Jawa on a clear morning. Check out how the fascinating egg yolk rose out of the sea.

Figures (L-R, T-B):

The lonesome one now; the lonesome one in its splendour (2004);

These 4 photos captured the progress of a sunrise at Chek Jawa (2004)

Checking out the water quality of Chek Jawa (27 Jun 09)

Another day of predawn awakening to perform water quality monitoring. I guess time and tide wait for no man since seagrass monitoring has to be done at low tide and us water people have to match that timing.

Besides almost missing the seagrass people at the jetty (some of us were late), the boat trip and van ride to Chek Jawa was uneventful. Maybe "uneventful" sounds a bit bland because the best thing about waking up predawn is the chance to see the sun rise. How many of us actually still appreciate such simple joys? I always relish the experience of witnessing the beautiful egg yolk climbing up the horizon on a cheerful day. (I enjoy and cherish beautiful sunsets too.)

The other great thing about being early is we have the whole seagrass meadow to ourselves! And being part of Team Seagrass, we get to check out the whole place without being restricted to the designated areas for Nparks led tours. Yes, guys and girls, if you want to really experience Chek Jawa in its full glory, join Team Seagrass!

I must commend my water quality team for their efficiency. They seem to be able to finish their testing faster and faster each time. Of course, further testing will have to done on the water samples they brought back to the lab. Let me compile the data from the various seagrass sites before announcing how they compare to one another. (Sorry folks, I will only describe the water quality in qualitative terms. The real hard data will be submitted to Team Seagrass and Nparks and published officially elsewhere.)

As usual, you may check this Team Seagrass post for an alternative viewpoint of this monitoring session.

Figures (L-R, T-B):
My favourite moment of each day - sunrise (actually on par with sunset);
Trying to capture a popular photographer's stunt - mirror image of the seagrass landscape (ok, it was a bit off but still a good try, right?);
The water quality team (Nuan Qin is the shy one with the head turned);
I couldn't resist taking this photo of Ria during her briefing with a soaring jet in the background;
A good low tide exposing the sandbar delineating (possibly protecting) the seagrass meadow from the sea;
An icon of Chek Jawa, you won't miss it and if you see it, you know you are there (anyone knows what tree that is?);
Late morning - crowds coming in for the guided tours