Urban River Park Transforms Singapore's Water Infrastructure

In Bishan Park, one of Singapore’s most popular parks, a concrete drainage channel along the park’s edge has been turned into a naturalized river that meanders through the park, according to a press release.

A 1.7-mile straight concrete drainage channel has been restored into a sinuous, natural river 1.86 miles long. The park space has been redesigned to accommodate the dynamic process of a river system that includes fluctuating water levels while providing maximum benefit for park users. Three playgrounds, restaurants, a new look-out point constructed using the recycled walls of the old concrete channel, and plenty of open green spaces complement the ecologically restored river in the heartlands of the city.

This project is part of the Active, Beautiful, Clean Waters (ABC Waters) Program, a long-term initiative to transform the country’s water bodies beyond their functions of drainage and water supply into streams, rivers and lakes with new spaces for community bonding and recreation.