Waste Management

Waste Collection

The public waste collection in Singapore is divided into nine sectors managed by four licensed Public Waste Collectors (PWCs) as shown below.

• Pasir Ris-Tampines; Bedok; Tanglin-Bukit Merah (by Veolia ES Singapore Pte Ltd)
• Jurong (by Colex Holdings Ltd)
• Clementi; City; Hougang-Punggol; Woodlands-Yishun (by SembWaste Pte Ltd)
• Ang Mo Kio-Toa Payoh (by 800 Super Waste Management Pte Ltd)

The PWCs are responsible for the collection of waste from residential and trade premises in Singapore. They are also required to provide recycling services under the National Recycling Programme (NRP). For commercial and industrial premises, the waste are collected separately by licensed general waste collectors.

Waste Disposal

The waste collected by the PWCs and general waste collectors are disposed of at the four incineration plants (Tuas, Tuas South, Senoko and Ulu Pandan) and the offshore Semakau Landfill. Waste that are incinerable are sent to the incineration plants while non-incinerable waste and incineration ashes are sent to the landfill. About 90% of waste are incinerated and 10% are landfilled.

In 2008, about 2.63 million tonnes of waste was disposed – 57% was generated from residential premises, food centres and markets; and 43% was generated from commercial and industrial premises. Each person generated about 0.84 kg of domestic waste per day.

Watch a short video on the Semakau Landfill:

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Waste Recycling

Waste that are not disposed of are sent for recycling. In 2008, about 3.3 million tonnes of waste was recycled and an overall recycling rate of 56% was achieved. The quantity and recycling rate for each type of waste are shown in the table below:

Watch this video to learn about waste management from SULO (now known as Veolia ES):

Image source: NEA.