27 August 2021

How much do you know about NEWater? Besides the fact that it is reclaimed from used water?

NEWater is Singapore's Third National Tap and a key pillar of Singapore's water sustainability. As a climate resilient water source, it cushions our water supply against uncertain weather and strengthens our water resilience. Think you know NEWater? Read on now!

5 things you may not have known about NEWater

9 August 2002 marked the public debut of NEWater, but the journey started more than 2 decades ago

When Singapore celebrated its 37th National Day, more than 60,000 Singaporeans came together to toast to the public debut of Singapore's very own brand of recycled water – NEWater. Today, we continue to celebrate NEWater as a Singapore success story that exemplifies our determination in turning challenges into opportunities.

The journey of NEWater can be traced much further back to the 1970s. The Singapore government commissioned a study to determine the feasibility of producing reclaimed water. However, the high cost of production and unproven reliability meant it could not be rolled out at that time.

By the 1990s, the cost and performance of membrane technology has improved by leaps and bounds. In 2000, PUB commissioned a full-scale demonstration plant that could produce 10,000 cubic metres reclaimed water a day. PUB named this high-grade, recycled water NEWater, and a battery of tests and audits showed it can be a safe and sustainable water source.

Image: The public drinking NEWater at the National Day Parade (NDP) 2005

NEWater is ultra-clean and pure

NEWater is entirely wholesome and safe to drink. In fact, did you know that NEWater is highly sought after by wafer fabrication and manufacturing companies, which require ultra-pure water for their production processes? This is a testament to the quality of NEWater, which has passed more than 150,000 scientific tests and is well within the World Health Organisation (WHO) Guidelines for drinking-water quality (GDWQ) and United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) drinking water standards.

Today, NEWater is primarily supplied to non-domestic sectors, industrial estates and commercial buildings for non-potable industrial and air-cooling purposes. It is also used to top up reservoir levels where the blended water is further treated at the water treatment plants before it is supplied to the population.

Image: The biggest users of NEWater are wafer fabrication plants, which require water quality that is even more stringent than water for drinking.

Used water travels by a superhighway – the Deep Tunnel Sewerage System (DTSS)

Did you know our used water is transported by gravity via the DTSS to the water reclamation plants for treatment? Used water is then further purified into NEWater. Imagine the DTSS as a superhighway for used water, deeper than our underground malls and most of our MRT lines. They are deep tunnels with diameters of up to 6 metres and stretch across Singapore up to 55 metres underground! DTSS Phase 1, which serves the eastern part of Singapore was completed in 2008. DTSS Phase 2, that serves the western part of the island, is currently undergoing construction and expected to complete in 2025.

Image: Deep Tunnel Sewerage System (DTSS) 2

Click here to find out more!

…And goes through a 3-step process before it is transformed into clear and sparkling NEWater

You may have seen these large infrastructures before. These are egg-shaped digestors at Kranji Water Reclamation Plant (KWRP), which break down organic waste in used water and is an essential step of used water treatment.

Treated used water from KWRP is sent to Kranji NEWater Factory for NEWater production. The NEWater treatment consists of three main processes – microfiltration (MF), reverse osmosis (RO) and UV disinfection. At the MF stage, microscopic particles including bacteria are filtered out while undesirable contaminants including viruses are removed during the downstream RO stage. The water at this stage is of high-grade quality, which then passes through ultraviolet light which is capable of killing organisms as a back-up to ensure the purity of NEWater.

Image: Egg-shaped digestors present at Kranji Water Reclamation Plant

Reusable NEWater bottles are now available, so you can toast to the nation's 56th birthday in style!

To commemorate Singapore's 56th birthday and in line with PUB's key sustainability efforts, we have produced a new reusable 600ml NEWater bottle, made from polypropylene plastic (PP) and is BPA-free.

The specially designed shrink wrap label features Singapore landmarks (spot the Esplanade and Marina Bay Sands), together with various water icons representing water resilience and sustainability that Singapore has proudly achieved over the years. The water icons collectively represent the rigorous treatment process in the production of NEWater.

If you have received these special edition bottles, don't bin them - Reuse them for your daily hydration needs!

Image: Sustainable and reusable NEWater bottle taken with NEWater Visitor Centre (NVC) in the background

Interested to learn more? Drop by Sustainable Singapore Gallery to learn more about NEWater and our Singapore Water Story.

Image: The public drinking NEWater at the National Day Parade (NDP) 2005

Image: The biggest users of NEWater are wafer fabrication plants, which require water quality that is even more stringent than water for drinking.

Image: Deep Tunnel Sewerage System (DTSS) 2

Click here to find out more!

Image: Egg-shaped digestors present at Kranji Water Reclamation Plant

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5 things you may not have known about NEWater

27 August 2021

5 things you may not have known about NEWater

1. Debut of NEWater

2. Pure and clean

3. Deep Tunnel Sewerage System

4. Clear and sparkling NEWater

5. Reusable NEWater bottles