# Nature groups call for stronger environmental safeguards over Sunset Way, Gillman Barracks housing plans

- **Source:** Channel NewsAsia
- **Published:** 2026-07-10T13:13:00.000Z
- **Author:** Erin Liam, Natalie Ong
- **Original:** https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/gillman-barracks-sunset-way-housing-environment-safeguards-nature-groups-6246426
- **Topics:** HDB & Public Housing, Sustainability & PropTech

## Featured rationale

Environmental concerns may influence final housing yields, layouts and timelines as public feedback could prompt stronger safeguards for retained forests and ecological corridors.

## AI summary

Housing plans could clear about 15ha of Maju Forest at Sunset Way and at least 10ha of forest at Gillman Barracks.

## Original article

SINGAPORE: More than three decades after the old Jurong railway ceased operations, its tracks have given way to Maju Forest, a regenerating secondary forest next to Clementi Forest and the Rail Corridor. “If you look around, you see tree ferns and all, and just above us is the busy Clementi Road. Just a step off, and you are immersed into a magical world,” said Mr Leong Kwok Peng, president of the Nature Society Singapore (NSS). But that landscape may soon change, with plans to clear about 15ha of the forest – the size of about 21 football fields – to make way for a new residential estate. The Housing and Development Board (HDB) announced on Friday (Jul 10) that Sunset Way, along with Gillman Barracks, will be developed for housing . It follows the completion of environmental and heritage studies commissioned to better understand the sites' ecology and guide redevelopment plans. While mitigation measures have been planned to reduce environmental impacts, some nature groups say the developments will still result in the loss of valuable green spaces and are calling for stronger environmental safeguards.

SUNSET WAY The Sunset Way site sits within the existing Maju Forest and has been largely zoned for residential use since the Master Plan 1980. It comprises five habitat types, including 4.7ha of native-dominated secondary forest, almost 10ha of abandoned land forest, and three natural streams. The study recorded several native and conservation-significant species, including the critically endangered straw-headed bulbul. After mitigation measures, the environmental study found the project could have "major negative to no significant" impacts on biodiversity during the pre-construction and construction phases. Based on findings, HDB will retain about 8ha of the 23ha study area, including a freshwater stream and its surrounding riparian buffer, to provide refuge for wildlife and facilitate fauna movement. Mr Leong said large patches of secondary forests like Maju Forest are “very few and far between”. “Once it's cleared, it's irreversible. You can't replace it. It takes decades for secondary forest to grow,” he said, adding that secondary forests also contribute to the ecosystem by cooling the air and retaining rainfall.

HDB has proposed retaining a forest stream and most of the native-dominated secondary forest, which makes up about a quarter of the study area. Mr Leong said that with a smaller forested area, animals might be forced out, increasing the likelihood of roadkill. Mr Ho Xiang Tian, co-founder of LepakInSG, said the presence of nutmeg found deep within Maju Forest suggests it remains well connected to nature reserves. “Keeping it allows animals to move from Bukit Timah Nature Reserve down to Southern Ridges and have habitats in between to stay at rather than be forced to keep moving,” he said. After the development, the remaining forest will function less as a habitat and more as an ecological connectivity corridor, he said. As part of mitigation measures, a directional clearance plan will allow animals to move to adjacent greenery. Mr Ho said that LepakInSG, which was among the nature groups consulted, has raised that shepherding wildlife only means they will not be killed during development. “But they would need to compete for space and resources with whatever animals are already in the place they are being shepherded to, so something is still going to die or get displaced by this development,” he added.

GILLMAN BARRACKS At Gillman Barracks, the study area includes 21.8ha of forest – about the size of 30 football fields – and 10ha of urban vegetation and scrubland/grassland. CNA understands that at least 10ha of forest could be cleared for the upcoming developments. According to the study, the development could have "no change to major negative" impacts on habitats and food sources for fauna during the construction phase, even after mitigation measures. Mr Lester Tan, chairperson of the Marine Conservation Group at NSS, said that if the environmental monitoring and management plan is carried out properly, most of the trees will not be affected. “However, there will be some connectivity issues because we are still clearing a huge portion of the forest. “We are now limiting them to a small corridor … between the upper parts of the Southern Ridges all the way to the lower parts of the Southern Ridges,” he said. To maintain ecological connectivity and minimise impact on biodiversity, HDB said agencies will safeguard ecological corridors with a minimum width of 30m. These corridors connect Telok Blangah Hill Park to HortPark in the west and to Berlayar Creek and Labrador Nature Reserve in the south, and will keep the site linked to the broader Southern Ridges ecological network. Mr Tan said it is “great news” that the authorities are keeping the native-dominated forest and maintaining a slim corridor from the north to south of Gillman Barracks to Berlayar Creek. He added that the proposed retained freshwater stream is also important because it provides diverse habitats and allows different flora and fauna to thrive. “So, all these measures being proposed are great for this area. We're not losing the area in total, however, more could be done in terms of widening the connectivity if space were given,” he said.

OPEN TO PUBLIC FEEDBACK The full reports for Gillman Barracks and Sunset Way have been published on the HDB InfoWeb. Members of the public can share their feedback from Jul 10 to Aug 6. HDB said the findings of the environmental studies and public feedback will inform the development plans for the sites, including the eventual housing yield, housing mix, flat classification, and development timeline. In response to queries from CNA, HDB said it has engaged various stakeholders, such as nature groups and has incorporated their suggestions where feasible. NSS was among the nature groups consulted. “Following the publishing of the study reports, members of the public can share their feedback for agencies to consider in the development plans for both sites,” the agency said. HDB added that the final list of mitigation measures for both sites will be decided after agencies have reviewed all public feedback, and where appropriate, additional measures or monitoring requirements may be incorporated. The finalised mitigation measures will also inform the environmental management and monitoring plan. The National Parks Board (NParks) said that it will review the plan prior to the commencement of works. It will coordinate with relevant agencies and consultants to ensure the mitigation efforts are cohesive and sufficiently address potential impacts from the respective projects, NParks added.

## Chinese translation

> Translation model: grok

### 自然团体呼吁对日落路、吉尔曼军营住房计划加强环境保障

日落路与吉尔曼军营或分别清除约15公顷与至少10公顷森林。

新加坡：裕廊旧铁路线停运三十多年后，轨道已让位于马裕森林（Maju Forest）——一片毗邻金文泰森林（Clementi Forest）与铁路走廊（Rail Corridor）的再生次生林。“环顾四周，可见树蕨等植物，头顶不远处就是繁忙的金文泰路。只一步之遥，就沉浸在一个奇妙世界，”新加坡自然学会（Nature Society Singapore，NSS）会长梁国平（Leong Kwok Peng）说。

但这一景观可能很快改变：计划清除约15公顷森林——约相当于21个足球场——为新建住宅区腾出空间。建屋发展局（HDB）于周五（7月10日）宣布，日落路（Sunset Way）与吉尔曼军营（Gillman Barracks）将开发为住房。此举是在完成受委托的环境与遗产研究之后，研究旨在更好了解场地生态并指导重建计划。尽管已规划缓解措施以减少环境影响，部分自然团体仍认为开发将导致宝贵绿色空间流失，并呼吁加强环境保障。

日落路

日落路场地位于现有马裕森林内，自1980年总体规划起大体已划为住宅用途。场地包含五种栖息地类型，包括4.7公顷以原生植被为主的次生林、近10公顷废弃地森林，以及三条自然溪流。研究记录到若干原生及具保育意义的物种，包括极度濒危的稻头鹎（straw-headed bulbul）。

在采取缓解措施后，环境研究发现项目在施工前与施工阶段对生物多样性可能产生“重大负面至无显著”影响。基于研究结果，建屋发展局将保留约23公顷研究范围中的约8公顷，包括一条淡水溪流及其周边河岸缓冲带，为野生动物提供庇护并促进动物迁徙。

梁先生表示，像马裕森林这样的大片次生林“非常稀少”。“一旦清除，就不可逆转。你无法替代它。次生林需要数十年才能长成，”他说，并补充次生林也通过降温与涵养雨水贡献生态系统。

建屋发展局提议保留一条森林溪流及大部分以原生植被为主的次生林，约占研究范围的四分之一。梁先生表示，森林面积缩小后，动物可能被迫外出，增加路杀风险。LepakInSG 联合创始人何向天（Ho Xiang Tian）表示，在马裕森林深处发现肉豆蔻，说明它仍与自然保护区保持良好连接。“保留它可让动物从武吉知马自然保护区南下至南部山脊（Southern Ridges），并在途中有栖息地停留，而不是被迫持续移动，”他说。开发后，剩余森林将较少作为栖息地，而更多作为生态连通走廊发挥作用。

作为缓解措施的一部分，定向清除计划将允许动物迁往相邻绿地。何先生表示，LepakInSG 作为受咨询的自然团体之一，已提出：引导野生动物只意味着它们不会在开发过程中被杀死。“但它们需要与被引导地点原有动物竞争空间与资源，因此仍会有生物因这次开发死亡或被挤出，”他补充道。

吉尔曼军营

在吉尔曼军营，研究范围包括21.8公顷森林——约相当于30个足球场——以及10公顷城市植被与灌木/草地。CNA 了解，即将进行的开发可能至少清除10公顷森林。根据研究，即便在采取缓解措施后，开发在施工阶段对动物栖息地与食物来源仍可能产生“无变化至重大负面”影响。

新加坡自然学会海洋保育组主席陈礼达（Lester Tan）表示，若环境监测与管理计划妥善执行，大部分树木将不受影响。“不过，仍会有一些连通性问题，因为我们仍在清除大片森林。”“我们现在把它们限制在一条狭窄走廊……连接南部山脊的上部到下部，”他说。

为维持生态连通并尽量减少对生物多样性的影响，建屋发展局表示，各机构将保障最小宽度30米的生态走廊。这些走廊向西连接直落布兰雅山公园（Telok Blangah Hill Park）与园艺公园（HortPark），向南连接柏礼雅溪（Berlayar Creek）与拉柏多自然保护区（Labrador Nature Reserve），使场地与更广泛的南部山脊生态网络保持联系。

陈先生表示，当局保留以原生植被为主的森林，并维持从吉尔曼军营北至南通往柏礼雅溪的狭窄走廊，是“好消息”。他补充，拟保留的淡水溪流也很重要，因为它提供多样栖息地，让不同动植物得以繁衍。“因此，所有这些拟议措施对该地区都很有利。我们并没有完全失去这片区域，不过若有空间，在拓宽连通性方面还可以做得更多，”他说。

开放公众反馈

吉尔曼军营与日落路的完整报告已在建屋发展局 InfoWeb 发布。公众可于7月10日至8月6日提交反馈。建屋发展局表示，环境研究结果与公众反馈将为两地开发计划提供依据，包括最终住房产量、住房组合、组屋分类与开发时间表。

回应 CNA 询问时，建屋发展局表示已与自然团体等各方利益相关者沟通，并在可行处纳入其建议。新加坡自然学会是受咨询的自然团体之一。“研究报告发布后，公众可分享反馈，供机构在两地开发计划中考虑，”该局表示。

建屋发展局补充，两地缓解措施的最终清单将在机构审阅所有公众反馈后决定，适当时可纳入额外措施或监测要求。最终缓解措施亦将指导环境管理与监测计划。国家公园局（NParks）表示，将在工程开工前审阅该计划。它将与相关机构及顾问协调，确保缓解工作协调一致，并充分应对各项目的潜在影响，国家公园局补充道。