NEWater Visitor Centre to close on Jul 31

SINGAPORE: After more than two decades, the NEWater Visitor Centre will cease operations at the end of July.

The visitor centre in Bedok will be closing its doors on Jul 31, said national water agency PUB in a media release on Monday (Jun 24).

Since opening in 2003, the visitor centre has promoted water sustainability to visitors through interactive displays, tours, exhibits and workshops for free. 

PUB added that the Bedok NEWater Factory (BNF), adjacent to the visitor centre, will also close on on the same day when it reaches the end of its "operational lifespan". Launched in 2003, it is Singapore's oldest NEWater production plant.

There are currently five NEWater factories - Bedok, Kranji, Ulu Pandan, and two at Changi.

The Bedok factory will be replaced with a third one at Changi Water Reclamation Plant, which will have more than double the production capacity of the Bedok plant, said PUB. 

With the closure of the visitor centre, PUB said it would "look into leveraging other sites and deepening collaboration with our partners to develop the next iteration of NEWater education".

"Meanwhile, Singaporeans can visit the Marina Barrage's Sustainable Singapore Gallery to learn more about NEWater and the Four National Taps," it said.

PUB chief executive Ong Tze-Ch’in said: “NEWater symbolises Singapore’s spirit of innovation in leapfrogging our natural constraints. Over two decades, Singaporeans young and old have made the journey to the NEWater Visitor Centre to learn about how we recycle used water endlessly, allowing us to overcome our lack of natural water resources. With its closure, PUB will explore new platforms for education on our NEWater story.”

NEWater was first introduced to the public on National Day in 2002, and the first two NEWater plants were opened at Bedok and Kranji the following year.

The quality of NEWater is well within standards set by the World Health Organisation for drinking water, according to PUB.

NEWater is currently supplied to more than 850 non-domestic customers, including wafer fabrication plants, petrochemical refineries, power stations, and commercial premises, said PUB.

During dry periods, PUB adds NEWater to Singapore's reservoirs. The blended water is then treated at waterworks before it it piped to households as tap water.