NO BLASTING: The government has put off quarrying works in Pulau Ubin (above) because the granite supply situation has improved significantly over the months. -- ST PHOTO: CHEW SENG KIM
THE government has decided to put off a plan to quarry granite in Pulau Ubin because of diversification in the building industry and adequate regional supplies.
'As the industry is able to diversify and import adequate granite from many sources, we have decided that there is no need to commence the physical extraction of granite from the quarry for the time being,' according to a Building and Construction Authority news release on Saturday.
The BCA said that 'the granite supply situation has improved significantly over the last one to two months'.
'There is adequate granite supply coming in from both nearby and new distant sources in the region.'
The BCA said 'as a result of this diversification of supply, there has not been any drawdown from the national stockpile from May'.
It said prices of granite have also moderated and stabilised.
In April this year, the Government announced plans to carry out limited quarrying works at the Kekek Quarry in Pulau Ubin.
Over the past few months, the BCA carried out preparatory works for reactivating the Kekek Quarry. These included carrying out an environmental impact study, conducting water quality tests and regulatory reviews.
The BCA added that it is 'still keeping all our options open, including reactivating our own quarries if necessary'.
'The reactivation of our local quarries remains a part of our contingency plan to ensure supply resilience of essential construction materials.'
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