NParks opens the enhanced Sisters’ Islands Marine Park, and launches next phase of Comprehensive Marine Biodiversity Survey with NUS (LKCNHM & TMSI) to strengthen marine conservation efforts

The 40-hectare Sisters’ Islands Marine Park encompasses the Sisters’ Islands and the western reefs of St John’s Island and Pulau Tekukor. Big Sister’s Island provides the public with greater access to marine-based recreation and education, while Small Sister’s Island is a dedicated site earmarked for marine conservation and research to promote species recovery and habitat enhancement.

Visitors can enjoy an exciting array of new features at the enhanced Sisters’ Islands Marine Park, including a 220 m floating boardwalk that rises and falls with the tides, allowing visitors to observe marine life up close regardless of the tide level. In addition, it is the first floating boardwalk in Singapore that also serves as a coral habitat, coral nursery and research site, with panels on the lower sides of the boardwalk providing a suitable substrate for corals to establish and grow. Furthermore, the floating boardwalk provides shelter for marine fish, and visitors will be able to see a variety of fish scurrying in and around the shallow coral panels.

NParks also partnered various organisations to develop new and enhanced park features. For instance, the new Ocean Network Express Coastal Forest Trail, which stretches through the coastal forest habitats of Big Sister’s Island, allows visitors to learn more about the island’s coastal animal and plant species.  It culminates in a two-storey-high Hilltop View Deck, where visitors can enjoy panoramic views of the sea and surrounding offshore islands. The development of the trail was supported by a S$1 million donation from Ocean Network Express through the Garden City Fund, NParks’ registered charity and IPC. 

The smaller of the two existing lagoons at Big Sister’s Island has also been enhanced into a tidal pool that retains seawater during low tides, creating a sheltered water body that will encourage the establishment of mangrove propagules and seagrass inside the lagoon. The long-term aim is for the tidal pool to mature into an ecosystem with multiple habitats to support a wide range of marine biodiversity, such as the Spoon seagrass (Halophilia ovalis), Api-api Jambu (Avicennia marina) and the Common sea star (Archaster typicus). This will offer visitors the rare opportunity to get close to these marine flora and fauna through intertidal walks, and also enable educational and outreach programmes under the Singtel Marine Explorer Programme @ Sisters’ Islands Marine Park, turning the lagoon into an outdoor classroom. The development of the tidal pool and its programmes are supported by a S$1 million donation from Singtel through the Garden City Fund.

Ecological enhancements to safeguard biodiversity

Sisters’ Islands Marine Park is home to a variety of habitats such as coral reefs, sandy shores and seagrass meadows, and harbours a rich array of marine and terrestrial biodiversity, such as the Blacktip Reef Shark (Carcharinus melanopterus), an apex predator on the reef, the Copperband Butterflyfish (Chelmon rostratus) and Giant Carpet Anemone (Stichodactyla gigantea). To further expand and enhance the marine park’s natural capital, several habitat enhancements have been introduced. 

Reef enhancement units have been installed at the seawalls’ intertidal zone, creating additional habitats for corals and other marine life. Kingfisher burrows, bee hotels, bat boxes and wildlife piles have also been set up around Big Sister’s Island, supplementing the available nesting sites for wildlife.

In addition, habitat enhancement was carried out around the Ocean Network Express Coastal Forest Trail through the planting of critically endangered coastal species such as Putat Laut (Barringtonia asiatica) and Penaga Laut (Calophyllum inophyllum).

These efforts will help strengthen the marine park’s ecological resilience in the long run. 

Net-zero energy marine park

Sisters’ Islands Marine Park is now net-zero energy with the incorporation of sustainable infrastructure. A new solar farm on Big Sister’s Island will meet all the energy needs of the marine park, thus reducing carbon emissions from electricity consumption. Furthermore, a new solar-powered desalination plant converts seawater into clean water through reverse osmosis, providing the marine park with a reliable source of clean water without the need to import it from the mainland. 

This push for sustainability aligns with the Singapore Green Plan 2030, a nationwide movement that charts Singapore’s sustainable development.

CoralAID Mineral Accretion unit installed at Sisters’ Islands Marine Park

To support coral growth in local waters, NParks is trialling the use of mineral accretion technology to stimulate the growth of hard corals by subjecting them to low-voltage electricity – a first in Singapore. 

As part of this initiative under the Plant-A-Coral, Seed-A-Reef programme, a CoralAID Mineral Accretion (CAMA) unit has been installed along the floating boardwalk at Sisters’ Islands Marine Park. This follows the installation of two CAMA units in the waters of Bendera Bay in 2023. 

The CAMA units are connected to steel structures where hard coral fragments will be transplanted onto. The units will use electrolysis to accelerate the accretion of calcium carbonate, which is used by hard corals to build their skeletons. As natural coral recruitment and growth is a slow process, this will not only increase the hard corals’ growth rates, but also strengthen their resilience to environmental stressors.

The project was supported by donations from Aramco Asia Singapore (Aramco) through the Garden City Fund.

Launch of next phase of the Comprehensive Marine Biodiversity Survey 

Minister Desmond Lee also announced today that NParks and NUS (LKCNHM and TMSI) have launched the next phase of the Comprehensive Marine Biodiversity Survey (CMBS II), Singapore’s most extensive marine biodiversity survey. Through the survey of new areas and biomes, and the addition of quantitative surveys, CMBS II will build on the information collected under the first phase of CMBS completed in 2015 to provide a more complete picture of Singapore’s marine biodiversity, and inform our future marine conservation strategies and plans. 

CMBS II will also build local capacity in marine research by employing and testing novel techniques, such as Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structures and the use of seabed corers and mobile DNA labs. Staff and students under this project will be trained in these techniques, which can be used in further research projects beyond CMBS II.

To date, CMBS II has received over S$2 million in support, with contributions from Dalio Philanthropies, GSK-EDB Trust Fund, HSBC and ExxonMobil Asia Pacific, through the Garden City Fund and NUS. The community, including both corporate organisations and individuals, can further support the project through volunteering opportunities, or help to expand its scope by contributing via the Garden City Fund.

Strengthening marine conservation through partnerships

"Our coastal and marine habitats are vital ecosystems that serve dual purposes. They support a diverse range of biodiversity including marine life, birds, and coastal plants, while also providing crucial ecosystem services such as shoreline protection, which are essential for our survival and well-being. We are grateful to our partners for their generous support, and we look forward to working closely with them to continue this shared journey to protect and connect others with the rich marine biodiversity in our City in Nature," said Professor Leo Tan, Chairman of the Garden City Fund

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