Alternative Sources of Energy in Singapore (Gracia Lee 2-1)

An alternative source of energy is energy fuelled in ways that do not use up the earth's natural resources or harm the environment. There are some kinds of alternative energy sources used in Singapore...

Biodiesel
Biodiesel is used in cars and can be used alone or blended with conventional diesel. It is compatible with all diesel engines used in Singpore and made with either vegetable oil or a mixture of oils and residual animal fats from the food industry. Singapore has a few biodiesel plants that produces NExBTL diesel using a tecnique slightly different from the usual production of biodiesel, which is said to reduce carbon emisisons by 40-80% depending on the percentage of blending of the conventional diesel. I feel that it is quite effective in Singapore because people can use this source to power their cars and moreover, it helps lower the carbon emissions of a normal car using conventional diesel. If everyone uses this, it would bring the total amount of carbon emissions in our environment down. However, it is more expensive than the usual diesel which may deter some people from using it ad also there are very few biodiesel stations around Singapore.

Solar Energy
Singapore makes use of Solar energy in Changi Airport. To improve energy efficiency, the Changi airport group has implemented the use of natural lighting in passenger areas where possible and have double glazed glass and solar shading devices that lets in natural light while minimising heat gain from the sunlight which reduces the need for artificial lighting and stronger air conditioning. There are use of solar panels which can convert solar energy from the Sun into electricity for use. I feel that this is effective though very expensive. In Changi Airport's budget terminal, the savings from solar panels is $60,000, 10% of the cost annually for lighting. However, the payback period, or the return on invesment time is estimated to be around 10-20 years to recuperate the amount of money spent to purchase and implement the use of the soalr panels. In the long run, this would be effective since Singapore is a tropical climate country with sunshine almost all year round.

Hybrid Cars
Some people in Singapore do drive Hybrid cars manufactured by major companys like Honda, Toyota, Nissan and Audi. They reduce carbon emissions and these cars help fuel to last longer and puts the pressure off of oil and petrol. This is effective but may be expensive for some to afford. However, the government gives more tax rebates to those with hybrids.

Overall, I feel that Singapore has made good use of the alernative sources of energy available for usage. Even though all the options available seem expensive, they do save the environment in the long run. It is a pity that Singapore cannot use other forms like hydroelectricty, wind energy or tidal energy as we do not have strong waves or winds to allow the process of converting these types of energy into electricity.