Conservation status: Listed for use as 'Open Space' in the URA Master Plan 2008, i.e., "Area to be used or intended to be used as open space". Status not indicated in Parks and Waterbodies Plan. Access to Pulau Semakau is managed by the National Environment Agency that runs the Semakau Landfill.

Mentioned in the Singapore Green Plan 2012 under "Marine Nature Areas":

"Singapore’s surrounding waters bustle with large ships and small all hours of the day, but thanks to effective pollution control, they also teem with a rich variety of marine life.

Among our marine treasures are the pockets of coral reefs which flourish to the south of Singapore, in particular around the St John’s Island Group, Pulau Hantu, Pulau Semakau and the Pulau Sudong Island Group. At these marine nature areas, numerous biological communities - corals, sea-grasses, fishes, mangroves, marine mammals, plankton and others - live in an abundance of aquatic harmony. They are a never-ending source of wonderment to divers from Singapore and elsewhere.

The government will keep these areas in their natural state for as long as possible."

Current conservation activities:

• On 16 Jul 05, Pulau Semakau was opened for nature-related recreational activities. Members of the public can now visit the island for birdwatching, sports fishing and intertidal walks.
• Since 1998, Pulau Semakau has been one of the survey sites of underwater coral reef surveys by ReefFriends of NParks and the Blue Water Volunteers.
• Since 2006, TeamSeagrass has been monitoring seagrasses at Pulau Semakau.
• From 2009 to 2011 Project Semakau collected data on the biodiversity of Pulau Semakau.
• In 2011, the mudflats on Pulau Semakau was surveyed during the Mega Marine Survey.
• A book featuring the biodiversity of Pulau Semakau has been published by the National Environment Agency that manages the Landfill.
  

History: In 1999, when the last remaining landfill on Singapore’s mainland was exhausted, the Semakau Landfill was created by enclosing part of Pulau Semakau and all of a small adjacent island (Pulau Sakeng) with a rock bund. All of Singapore's waste now ends up in this Landfill, i.e., ash from the incineration plants and all non-incinerable waste. The parts of Pulau Semakau that was not destroyed remains natural.

Links

• Pulau Semakau on wildsingapore.
• TeamSeagrass Volunteer led effort to monitor seagrass meadows in Singapore including Semakau.
• Project Semakau
• Coral Reefs of Singapore by Loh Tse-Lynn and the Reef Ecology Study Team, National University of Singapore.
• Names of (some) Singapore islands by Jeffrey Low on habitatnews