Refelctions- Jia Ying

What is ABC Programme?



ABC Programme refers to Active, Beautiful, Clean Waters Programme, natural features designed, such as rain gardens and bioretention swales aim to keep our waters clean. They help detain and treat rainwater on site before allowing it to flow into reservoirs. They also transformed our global hydrohub into a City of Gardens and Water. The water benifits our ecological habitats, creating vibrant parks and green space, and bringing people a step closer to nature and outdoor learning of our waters and the diversity of life there.



Station 1:



At this station was a Heritage Desk's structure shaped like a fishing net to resemble the past activity at Lower Seletar Reservoir and preserve the heritage.



We wrote a brief description of the beauty of Lower Seletar on a postcard to be posted to a friend overseas. Also, we brainstormed synonyms of the words "Active", "Beautiful" and "Clean". Inspired by nature, we expanded our vocabulary and learnt new words such as pristine and tranquil. The activities were pretty enriching and one-of-a-kind. We had much fun scratching our heads and racking our brains, most importantly, improving our English. (:



Station 2:



As time rewond, we travelled in a time machine, back to the past, learning about the history of Lower Seletar Reservoir. We completed speech bubbles in the comic strip, learning that people used to trade for tobacco kerosene down the straits, in malay, Selita, Sletar or Salaeta (now Lower Seletar Reservoir). People cultivated rubber and pineapple then, as well.



Similarities - Water had been a source of supply for the people and is still the case. Greenery was maintained from the past.












Difference: 1)Physical Environment.
2)Activities
3)Transportation




Past:1)Rural settlement (Kampongs).
2)Fishing & plantation for sustainance.
3)Boats



Present:1)Urban settlement (High-Rise buildings, satellite dish for telecommunication and MRT, our own transport system.).
2)Educational tours, recreational (windsurfing, dragon boating, canoeing, sailing).
3)MRT, motor boats, bus.



Station 3:



Testing of water quality by observation and analysis, showed clean water! Algae in the water, but no litter on the surface and no odour! Hence, water is clean, unpolluted and safe to drink. From this station, I learnt that algae meant no harm to the water and diversity of life. They suspend in the water, forming a greenish-yellow colour, indicating an algal bloom, usually caused by high nutrients in the water, fertilisers or organic matter. So, algae is good! (: also, the water is less turbid, of 40 JTU. The water is between 27 - 28 Degree Celsius, like room temperature. Amount of dissolved oxygen in the water, about 4ppm, is enough for marine life to survive. At a pH of 7 - 8, Lower Seletar is a healthy reservoir! (: in conclusion, overall quality of water is clean. However, water cannot be drunk from the reservoir. There is still bacteria in it.



Station 4:



At the exit of the canal near the wooden bridge, facing the jetty, we learnt that activities such as life baits contaminate the water because they decompose. The water exits from Yishun and Ang Mo Kio housing estates and there is a litter trap in the mouth of the canal to reduce pollution in the reservoir. We learnt, too, that trapped pollutants such as plastic bags from people may lead turtles to mistaking them as jellyfish, causing death. Cans release chemicals into the water while bottles suffocate fishes.



Station 5:



Here, we came into contact with the rain garden also known as the bioretention basin where rainwater runoff that flows from the park is collected, detained and treated. It is then filtered and further treated before reusing in the water play area and wading stream. The rain garden not only enhances quality of rainwater runoff, but they also reduce flow velocities, encourage habitat creation, promote diversity, beautify surrounding landscape, and allowing water to be filtered and cleansed naturally without use of chemicals. Extimated 10 species of plants have been planted.



Last but not least, in my opinion, this learning journey at Lower Seletar was enriching and fun-filled. This once in a blue moon hands-on opportunity was an eye opening and I learnt too many things about our water, some points linking back to the chapters we study in our Geography textbook. It was different. It was unique. It was off-the-beaten-track. And I thoroughly enjoyed it! May we have more of such learning journeys in the future! (: