miyagi.sg

Green neighbourhood. Not.


Here in Singapore, we send our trash overseas – Photo by Where is Clifford The Big Red Dog?

I asked our apartment block’s cleaner where the recycle bins were and he said there weren’t any. Just chuck everything into the big wheelie bin, he said.

What made me sicker was a friend of ours telling me he saw his neighbourhood’s rubbish truck dump everything from their block’s recycle bins into the same truck as the other regular rubbish.

I would like to think that the private company that collects our trash for a monthly fee has some super-duper system at their trash depot that does the sorting for us, but it is hard to give anyone the benefit of doubt these days.

My flu-induced headache was exacerbated by researching “green cars” over the weekend, trying to find out if the carbon footprint of a CNG car was significantly less than that of a conventional one, and how many CNG dispensing stations there were in the country besides the three in very far flung parts of the island which require a CNG car owner to use up a significant amount of gas just to get to.

The flu medication does stave off some of the gluggy feeling, but it doesn’t stop me from being delirious enough to think about such things as the total square footage of all the rooftops of all the HDB blocks in the country, and how many solar panels can be fitted on them.

I think the good people at HDB and NEA would have thought of it already, with or without the flu. Then again…

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Mr Miyagi

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9 responses to “Green neighbourhood. Not.”

  1. yongwei92 Avatar
    yongwei92

    u moved overseas?

    Reply
  2. Mr Miyagi Avatar
    Mr Miyagi

    Don't be rude.

    Reply
  3. yongwei92 Avatar
    yongwei92

    nono, i mean really,cause you showed a photo of air plane,so i'm wondering.

    Reply
  4. Hun Boon Avatar
    Hun Boon

    Hi,

    So how goes the CNG car research?

    From what I've read, CNG is only 20% cleaner than petrol in terms of CO2 emission. The mileage isn't great, you get about 90-120km per tank (which is heavy and lowers your economy).

    The only proper CNG station on Singapore mainland is at Mandai. Unless you stay or work around there, it won't make sense to drive all the way to fill up. If you stay in Pasir Ris, the tank would be half empty by the time you get home from the station!

    So, in the end you will use petrol most of the time, and the CNG tank becomes a white elephant. Registering a CNG car entitles you to the hybrid car tax benefits, but do keep in mind you'll get back less when you eventually scrap your car.

    A hybrid car like Prius is a better choice, but I would buy a diesel myself. When I change my car in a few years, I believe the diesel tax would no longer be prohibitive.

    Hope this helps. 🙂

    Reply
  5. lincoln Avatar
    lincoln

    Forget CNG because there's not enough filling stations…http://www.cng.com.sg/cng.html Opening soon does not necessarily mean it's opening soon. Like some MRT stations we know.

    Full electric cars won't be allowed into Singapore because there are no charging stations and the Government cannot earn sufficient petrol tax off you. But they will still get you on the ERP and road tax. My choice would be the tesla of course http://www.teslamotors.com/

    Diesel is a good choice and I hear they might be bringing in some to Singapore. I hear Subaru has an excellent diesel http://www.boxerdiesel.com/en/index.html or if you got some cash to burn.. http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/news/autoexpressne…

    Right now… your best bet would be a Hybrid. The Toyota Prius or the Honda Civic Hybrid. Both are excellent cars. I tend to the Honda because it looks like a normal car. For the families, the Estima Hybrid has just launched their latest Hybrid technology for the Estima… parallel imported of course (make sure you are getting the E-four ones http://www.toyota.co.jp/en/news/06/0612_2.html). And for the HK movie star wannabe, the Alphard Hybrid http://www.toyota.co.jp/en/news/06/0612_2.html.

    I am hoping for the Diesel Hybrids but I guess I have to wait a little longer.

    Another thought would be this little baby… http://www.efuel100.com/ make your own fuel add it to your tank every morning an go. it's simple… only problem there are not many 100% ethanol cars in the world and none in Singapore, else this would be cool alternative.

    and finally

    Get a bike like Kin Mun, extra change of clothes and you are good to go.

    Reply
  6. auntieblog Avatar
    auntieblog

    You are not alone… I take a bus every 2 weeks or so with my recyclable trash to throw them in the recycling bins at the nearest HDB estate. I wonder all the time if my efforts are worth it.

    Reply
  7. Hun Boon Avatar
    Hun Boon

    Hi,

    So how goes the CNG car research?

    From what I've read, CNG is only 20% cleaner than petrol in terms of CO2 emission. The mileage isn't great, you get about 90-120km per tank (which is heavy and lowers your economy).

    The only proper CNG station on Singapore mainland is at Mandai. Unless you stay or work around there, it won't make sense to drive all the way to fill up. If you stay in Pasir Ris, the tank would be half empty by the time you get home from the station!

    So, in the end you will use petrol most of the time, and the CNG tank becomes a white elephant. Registering a CNG car entitles you to the hybrid car tax benefits, but do keep in mind you'll get back less when you eventually scrap your car.

    A hybrid car like Prius is a better choice, but I would buy a diesel myself. When I change my car in a few years, I believe the diesel tax would no longer be prohibitive.

    Hope this helps. 🙂

    Reply
  8. lincoln Avatar
    lincoln

    Forget CNG because there's not enough filling stations…http://www.cng.com.sg/cng.html Opening soon does not necessarily mean it's opening soon. Like some MRT stations we know.

    Full electric cars won't be allowed into Singapore because there are no charging stations and the Government cannot earn sufficient petrol tax off you. But they will still get you on the ERP and road tax. My choice would be the tesla of course http://www.teslamotors.com/

    Diesel is a good choice and I hear they might be bringing in some to Singapore. I hear Subaru has an excellent diesel http://www.boxerdiesel.com/en/index.html or if you got some cash to burn.. http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/news/autoexpressne…

    Right now… your best bet would be a Hybrid. The Toyota Prius or the Honda Civic Hybrid. Both are excellent cars. I tend to the Honda because it looks like a normal car. For the families, the Estima Hybrid has just launched their latest Hybrid technology for the Estima… parallel imported of course (make sure you are getting the E-four ones http://www.toyota.co.jp/en/news/06/0612_2.html). And for the HK movie star wannabe, the Alphard Hybrid http://www.toyota.co.jp/en/news/06/0612_2.html.

    I am hoping for the Diesel Hybrids but I guess I have to wait a little longer.

    Another thought would be this little baby… http://www.efuel100.com/ make your own fuel add it to your tank every morning an go. it's simple… only problem there are not many 100% ethanol cars in the world and none in Singapore, else this would be cool alternative.

    and finally

    Get a bike like Kin Mun, extra change of clothes and you are good to go.

    Reply
  9. auntieblog Avatar
    auntieblog

    You are not alone… I take a bus every 2 weeks or so with my recyclable trash to throw them in the recycling bins at the nearest HDB estate. I wonder all the time if my efforts are worth it.

    Reply

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