Realising A Liveable Singapore

By BCA

Biophilic designs, which refers to a building concept that includes elements of nature in the built environment, has been integrated in the buildings around us. In Singapore, Ang Mo Kio Linear Park, Canberra Station and Surbana Jurong Campus are some examples of how biophilic designs help us to live, travel and work more sustainably while creating a more productive and healthier built environment for people.

Living Well with Nature Features

Ang Mo Kio Linear Park

The Ang Mo Kio Linear Parkwas designed with people in mind. The park is accessible to people of all mobility, age and interests, bringing the community closer together with biophilic designs.

Communal spaces and green lawns are large and generous with wide access footpaths, staircases, barrier-free rest areas and toilet facilities to accommodate wheelchair users and their caregivers. Footpaths are also designed with minimal steep surfaces so that wheelchair users can easily manoeuvre the park, and benches allow the elderly and those with mobility impairments to explore the park more comfortably.

The 6.2 hectares community park also includes a children’s playground, biophilic play area and green lawns integrated with earth mounds for community activity and play. Parents can safely supervise their children from seating areas built adjacent to the activity area. Those who practice a more active lifestyle can also go for a jog at the park, with distance markers indicating their progress.

Making Travel Sustainable

Canberra Station

Singapore is slated to expand its rail network to 360km by 2030. The introduction of the BCA Green Mark for Transit Stations will encourage developers to build a more sustainable transit system with greener commuter experience in a bid to reduce resulting carbon footprint.

Canberra Station, the first to be awarded the Green Mark for Transit Stations Platinum award, is fitted with green features that provides thermal comfort and visual relief from Singapore’s tropical weather. Natural daylight brightens the station and reduces energy consumption from lights and fixtures. Vertical greenery, a green roof and edge planting provides insulation for the station and helps lower urban air temperatures.

In addition, such design and provision of greeneries should also take into consideration future operations and maintenance, such as having safe and ease of access for workers. This also includes choosing suitable materials and species to last longer and reduce waste over the building’s lifespan.

Creating Green Working Spaces

Surbana Jurong Campus

When we think of working spaces, we think of office buildings dominated by glass and concrete. Instead, the Surbana Jurong Campusis designed with biophilic design principles to harmonise with surrounding natural spaces.

The working ecosystem located in Western Singapore, expected to be completed in 2021, avoids intrusive architectural elements and blends well with its surrounding greenery.

Indoor and outdoor garden spaces are integrated seamlessly throughout the development, and the building also incorporates passive design strategies such as designing the façade. This maximises daylighting and views whilst minimising heat gains and reducing the power demands for lighting.

Singapore’s a bustling urban city-state with towering residential structures, a well-connected transport system and vibrant working ecosystems. The adoption of biophilic designs in the future of built environment can help towards achieving targets under the Singapore Green Building Masterplan (SGBMP) and set us on a path of transformation into becoming a global city of sustainability. The SGBMP is part of the Singapore Green Plan 2030 which aims to enhance our existing national sustainability efforts.