Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean officially opened the Lorong Halus Wetland and Riverside Walk of Punggol Promenade, the latest leisure additions to Punggol Town, which has been envisaged as a unique waterfront town with a range of social, commercial and recreational facilities for residents.
A part of the Public Utilities Board’s (PUB) Active, Beautiful, Clean (ABC) Waters Programme, the Lorong Halus Wetland uses an innovative bio-remediation system to collect and treat water that passes through the former landfill and prevent it from flowing into Serangoon Reservoir. The wetland also creates a new haven for biodiversity providing opportunities for research, education and recreation.
“The Lorong Halus Wetland will provide a new space for members of the public to enjoy not just the tranquility and greenery of the wetland but also the new habitat that this wetland has created for birds, butterflies, dragonflies and other wildlife,” said Mr. Tan Nguan Sen, Director of Catchment and Waterways at the national water agency.
Meanwhile, the Riverside Walk, developed by the Urban Redevelopment (URA), is part of the larger 4.9 km long Punggol Promenade being constructed to create more waterfront recreation opportunities for residents. This stretch of promenade is designed with lookout points, allowing visitors to get closer to the water’s edge, as well as exercise stations dedicated for bicycle and jogging tracks.
The Punggol Promenade is part of the URA’s Parks and Waterbodies and Identity Plans. Under these plans, Punggol’s coastal and waterfront areas were envisaged as a major leisure and recreational destination for residents in the Northeast of Singapore.
When fully completed at the end of 2011, the Punggol Promenade will offer public access to the entire Punggol waterfront, as well as serve as a recreation corridor to support future waterfront housing and recreation developments.