Green Space Conflict(s): Bringing in the Animal Perspective (Part 2)

“The Clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness.”

John Muir

In this continuation from my previous post, I will resume looking into food sources for animals, but focus on what happens should their food sources disappear.

Food is one of the most important necessities for any organism, being sources of energy and essentially necessary for organisms to survive. For animals, almost all their food originates from the natural environment. However, as explained with my last post, natural environments all around the world are experiencing increased stress, coming as a result of changes in human needs such that more resources are required, and less is left for animals to consume.

Singapore today is driven to develop not by the need for food, but the need to address an increasing population (which has grown by 1.6% in 2013), brought about by both natural increase and by in-migration (Population Trends 2013, 2013). As commented by various authors writing on Singapore history, to create more space to house people in urban environments, development has come at expense of existing forests, which would get deforested. Flora and fauna residing in these forests then either get chased away to other nearby forests, or die because they lose their food source and habitat (Chong, 2010; Wong, Yuen and Goldblum, 2008).

“Our metaphorical hunger for space leads us into eating our forests” 

(Source: http://www.cartoonmovement.com/cartoon/1173)

Perhaps the bigger question to ponder about is where these animals will go for their food should green spaces in Singapore dwindle with time? As our small island geography makes many animals unable to leave, one extreme end of animal adaptation stems from this satirical video I have found online, as a polar bear is depicted to be adapting to the city’s lifestyle. 

A more probable scenario would be animals searching for food from human environments. Termed as urban wildlife, the residential areas of cityscapes presents many sources of food for fauna, ranging from fresh food stored in homes to garbage left outside for disposal (Cecil, n.d.). In Singapore we might be familiar with crows and pigeons taking shelter within our HDB flats or hawker centres, but one particular story I would wish to highlight would be the tale of macaques, monkeys residing in our Bukit Timah and Central Catchment Reserves.

Long-tailed macaques – once peaceful dwellers of our reserves, now the latest inhabitants in our neighborhoods
(Source(s): http://mygreenspace.nparks.gov.sg/long-tailed-macaque/; http://travelfish-sg.s3.amazonaws.com/)

Just a year back, these creatures were portrayed as pesky villains as they pillaged nearby homes and were rumored to have attacked peaceful trekkers, leaving much complains and calls for their culling to restore peace for homeowners living near forests (for more info click here). However, this came under fire by the online community, who believed that the encroachment of such property near wildlife habitats suggests that homeowners had it coming, and rather than merely calling for their culling to solve their problems, they could have found ways to integrate monkeys into their home environment. However, it is becoming easier to suggest such reductionist approaches, whereby little care for our surrounding biodiversity is justified by our own circumstances of scarcity.  

Scarcity however, can be an impetus for innovation in Singapore as well. Mentioned in URA's Master Plan (2014), many places in Singapore today are planned with the intention to serve multiple purposes. Green spaces are no exception, with many being used as recreational sites and some even seek to educate visitors on our historical past. (NParks has a list of parks based on their secondary purpose, to learn more click here). This way, flora and fauna in these forests and parks do not necessarily lose their home at expense of human development. 

Labrador Nature Reserve, situated at the southwestern shores of Singapore, combines nature with history, showcasing remnants of our colonial and ancient past, yet also being a hangout for human recreational activities, such as fishing. 

(Source(s): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labrador_Nature_Reserve; Choo Yut Shing (2008) - https://www.flickr.com/photos/25802865@N08/sets/72157606775753395)

Such seems suggestive of an Environmental Kuznets Curve set into motion, where Singapore has grown to consider more for its environment once living standards and income per capita has improved. However, innovation alone will be but a means to buy time, and measures to promote environmentally friendly development strategies have to be in place as well, to recover our green spaces even if it leads to human inconvenience. One such strategy being considered in Singapore is the clear demarcation of man-made environments from natural environments, which would be left untouched. This was recently discussed on TODAY (2014), whereby nature groups in Singapore have called for ‘buffer zones’ to be created between man-made environments and natural ecosystems, relating this to the upcoming development into the Mandai area, one of Singapore's few remaining forests. (for more information see here).

In my opinion, the human populations of today might have made much progress, but even this does not entitle us to have complete ownership of our environment's remaining resources, just because we possess greater intelligence. If anything, we need to develop greater stewardship for our environment, precisely because our intelligence would allow humans to have life-changing impacts onto our environments. While animals have no voices that can be comprehended by us, let us have the courage to be their voice, to be morally responsible for them and factor our rich biodiversity into our planning better. The sooner we embrace the reality of co-existing with them in the same ecosystem and environment, the better we will fare for our future.

References

Cecil, K. (n.d.). Urban Wildlife: Challenges and Opportunities - Other Resources - Local Community Resources - University of Illinois Extension. [online] Available at: http://urbanext.illinois.edu/lcr/wildlife.cfm [Accessed 20 Sep. 2014].

Chong, T. (2010). Management of success. 1st ed. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, pp.387-400.

Population Trends 2013. (2013). 1st ed. [ebook] Singapore. Available at: http://www.singstat.gov.sg/publications/publications_and_papers/population_and_population_structure/population2013.pdf [Accessed 21 Sep. 2014].

TODAY, (2014). Buffer zones should be part of Mandai redevelopment, say green groups. [online] Available at: http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/buffer-zones-should-be-part-mandai-redevelopment-say-green-groups [Accessed 19 Sep. 2014].

Urban Redevelopment Authority, (2014). Master Plan. [online] Available at: http://www.ura.gov.sg/uol/master-plan/View-Master-Plan/master-plan-2014/master-plan.aspx [Accessed 20 Sep. 2014].

Wong, T., Yuen, B. and Goldblum, C. (2008). Spatial planning for a sustainable Singapore. 1st ed. New York: Springer, pp.183-205..