Concerned about climate change? This week (26th) is the deadline to have your voice heard on Singapore's climate ambition!
As you may be aware, globally we are not on track to meet the scientific targets to limit global warming to safe levels. Recently the Singapore government has raised it's ambition by raising their carbon tax targets for 2030 to as high as S$80/ton (from earlier $24/ton) and also adjusting the wording to leave open the possibility of setting a net zero by 2050 target. But to get to that, they are asking for validation from the public, that's where your voice comes in! So submit your response and let your voice be heard.
Resources
I'm including for reference my submission response here. Most of the response fields are completely optional so please don't feel obligated to type as much as I have. Less is more. I have a lot to say and they may be more likely to be receptive to responses with fewer words.
Submission response on Singapore's climate ambition
RESPONSE ID: 632b1313634d170012239c43
Name: Taylor W Hickem
Organization: Green New Deal Singapore
Age group: 30-39
1. Singapore has stated that we intend to achieve net zero emissions by or around mid-century. Reaching net zero emissions by 2050 is:
(a) Just right <--
(b) Too ambitious
(c) Not sufficiently ambitious
3. Should we enhance Singapore’s 2030 NDC which currently pledges to peak emissions at 65 MtCO2e around 2030? What should our 2030 NDC ambition be and why? (Refer to Paras 3 - 4 of Consultation Document)
based on the latest IPCC report, SR15, figure SPM 3A, developed economies should aim to reduce their emissions by at least 50% by 2030. Singapore is certainly a developed economy, so that would be a minimum target, 50% reduction from the 10 year average from 2000-2010 levels.
4. What can the Government do to support Singapore’s transition to a low carbon future?
For details, please refer to the reference report "Decarbonizing Energy in Singapore" https://www.researchgate.net/publication/340135972_Decarbonizing_energy_in_Singapore
The three point strategy (carbon tax, industrial policy, and energy grid) described in section 11 "Our Mitigation Strategy" of the preamble to this survey is a good framework to begin with, and most of the specific strategic directions are all good measures.
Each of the measures targets however, with the exception of the carbon tax, are probably not in line with what would be required to meet the scientific targets. As stated in the preamble, and also highlighted in the reference report, Singapore has unique geographic context that limit the available technologies, however they are still achievable and the transition investments can be financed within a budget of 1-2% of GDP per annum in line with expectations of other countries of a similar development maturity.
A few highlights to emphasize on specific areas that would have a large impact on closing the gaps between the current stated policies and what it would take to achieve the reductions. None of these strategies is without risk, but also it is important to remember that the risks of negligently warming the earth are far greater.
1. There are many ways for Singapore to meet the climate targets, none of them are free, so one of the largest obstacles is to raise the political will for shifting modes from private to public financing models and a return to Singapore's earlier days that placed more value on local production and utilized state industrial policy. A similar related obstacle is the preoccupation with GDP impacts. There may be short term trade-offs between publicly financed energy transition and GDP, however if invested well, the new green industries will be relevant in the future Singapore economy. So if GDP is getting in the way of setting more ambitious emissions reduction targets, then develop a method for measuring national prosperity that harmonizes the multiple national objectives of improving social mobility and meeting energy transition targets. The current method of measuring GDP, while it served a purpose for a time, is inadequate to measure what matters for future Singapore economic growth going forward. There are several alternatives such as a discounted GDP,
and a similar Genuine Progress Indicator. Discarding the measure completely and focusing on household level KPIs such as inflation, unemployment and emissions reduction targets may be good enough.
2. Raise the priority of nuclear energy as a strategy both for sustainability and national security. Singapore's dependence on the Natuna Gas fields are increasingly at risk from China's provocations in the South China Sea. Compared to Natural gas, Uranium ore is easier to diversify feedstock and can be purchased and stored in advance to cover future periods of supply disruptions. There are safe technologies available today being deployed around the world in Korea, Japan, China, France and the US. Many of them are within just a few kilometres of populated areas. So what remains to be done is to raise the political will through strategic engagement diplomatic channels to neighbouring countries, and to the public. One of the major limitations of nuclear deployment is lack of public awareness and education about the real risks of nuclear. Fund a public education and outreach campaign to educate the public about the safety and environmental benefits of nuclear energy.
3. Focus more resources on the Energy and Chemical transformation as this represents the vast majority of Singapore's emissions. The Jurong Island report cited mentions targets that
do not line up with the scale of the emissions reductions that would be required to meet a net zero 2050 target. To meet such a transition either the scale of operations in terms of barrels a day would need to be dramatically reduced, or otherwise emissions capture facilities would need to be scaled up to cover a larger percentage of total emissions. 2 million tons is only a small fraction of total emissions from the sector. There is no other viable feedstock alternative to fossil fuels such as biofuels or recycled plastics to meet the scale-up requirements, so CCS is the only option that can meet this scale-up.
4. consider a more ambitious allocation of domestic land area for solar deployment. There are golf courses and military reserves that could add substantial capacity which are not currently considered in the plans.
5. create a Singapore Standard for carbon emissions reduction that has a similar degree of specifity accountability as the Work at Height program.
5. What can businesses and industries do to support Singapore’s transition to a low carbon future?
1. incentivise industry cooperation and increase transparency of carbon emissions disclosure reporting in sufficient detail that 3rd party entrepreneurs are able to co-create and propose solutions.
2. encourage shifts in workplace norms that are aligned with walk-cycle-ride such as shower facilities, more shuttle busses, or normalizing sweating and wearing sweatable clothes at work as alternative to formal attire.
3. prioritize employee welfare more generally such as four day work week, for the purpose of freeing up Singaporeans with the time and space opportunity to focus on quality of life goals like the environment
6. What can individuals and communities do to support Singapore’s transition to a low carbon future?
For individuals a good report is the Anatomy of Action https://www.anatomyofaction.org/
Specific areas for individuals to focus on are: family planning (the fewer the better), meat consumption (as little as you can tolerate), mobility (no car), renewable home electricity plan, and travel (less flights). Focus less on waste as it has less impact on emissions compared to these big factors. Given what most people have become accustomed to, this may seem a bit much, its not so bad since most of the really pleasurable things in life aren't on this list anyways. So start with whatever you are comfortable with, find a buddy, be curious, and make it an adventure. Education and research are important first steps as there is a lot of greenwashing out there.
Communities can play a critical role in the transition by facilitating social comparison, coordination, mutual support, and transition away from materialistic and self-destructive to sustainable cultural norms.
8. Do you have any other thoughts on Singapore’s climate ambition that you wish to share?
It's important that the transition is just. Two groups of Singaporean's to consider in particular are low income households, and workers in sunset industries, such as Energy and Chemicals,
that may need to make more dramatic shifts than other industries. Given the rapid transition ahead, and other global developments, energy prices will likely be rising in the future, so it
is important to factor in safety nets so that low income households do not bear the brunt of these changes.
On career transition, I am speaking from personal experience as a Chemical Engineer from Jurong Island transitioning to Software Development. It's not easy to go at it alone, so the more government programs there are to aid workers like me, the better.