Royal HaskoningDHV helping protect Singapore’s coastline

In response to the increasing risk of coastal flooding Singapore’s National Water Agency (PUB) has appointed Royal HaskoningDHV to conduct a flood risk assessment for the country’s coastline.

Using their Global Flood Risk Tool, Royal HaskoningDHV will evaluate the likelihood of economic and social risks and explore the benefits of various adaptation measures to an optimal protection standard.

Following the third National Climate Change study by the Centre of Climate Research Singapore (CCRS), projections suggest that Singapore’s mean sea levels could rise by up to 1.15m by 2100.

In extreme scenarios, this rise could reach 4 to 5 meters due to transient events such as high tides and storm surges. This poses a significant threat to Singapore, a low-lying island city-state with limited land.

Approximately 30 percent of the island is less than 5 meters above sea level, making it highly vulnerable to rising sea levels.

The objective of the study is to determine the optimal protection methods for the country’s entire coastline, establishing risk and identifying protection standards that will inform future development policies.

The company will conduct a flood risk and economic optimization assessment to recommend the protection standard for each section of Singapore’s coastline.

The results of the consultancy study will be useful for the government to set the protection standard, e.g. with minimum height requirements of coastal protection measures.