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The
New Paper, 31 Mar 04
Road
to link Sentosa to St John? | Plans for
the Southern Islands | Visibility problems
Visibility problems
by Teh Jen Lee
About 1,000 people visit the Southern Islands every year. They include
divers, boaters, picnickers and temple devotees to Kusu.
Since 2001, Miss Elsie Wong has been diving near the islands at least
once a month to conduct surveys for her work. The 27-year old research
assistant with the National University of Singapore's marine biology
laboratory complains that reclamation reduces water visibility. "Sometimes
it's so bad, I can't see anything and I have to abort the dives. These
days, visibility is less than one metre". Miss Wong said.
Miss Jani Thuaibah, 23, a research assistant with the Tropical Marine
Science Institute, which has a facility on St. John's Island, said
visibility improves to four metres when reclamation stops.
Mr Mark Ray, 54, marine manager at the Republic of Singapore Yacht
Club, said leisure boats used to anchor at Lazarus on weekends. "Boaters
have stayed clear of the reclamation area because you don't know the
water depth any more. It's dangerous, plus there are always strong
currents there." Mr Ray said.
A notice from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore yesterday
extended the period of work at the Southern Islands until the end
of September.
Related
articles: Road
to link Sentosa to St John? | Plans for
the Southern Islands |
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