Lower Peirce Reservoir Park site where conservationists planted 87 saplings flattened for storage, NParks investigating

Volunteers saddened after 40 saplings at Lower Peirce Reservoir site cleared by contractor

In Jan 2025, the wildlife conservationists of the Raffles’ Banded Langur Working Group (RBLWG) carefully planted 87 native saplings at Lower Peirce Reservoir Park.

Several of the fragile plants will grow to serve as food for the rare, endangered langurs in Singapore.

Yet on 2 June, a volunteer arrived at the site and found, to their horror, that the area had been flattened for construction storage.

Group plants 87 native trees and shrubs at Lower Peirce Reservoir Park

Dr Andie Ang, chairperson of RBLWG, told MS News that on 22 Jan 2025, the group gathered their 10 longest-serving volunteers for their first tree-planting event.

The working group had worked with NParks for the latter’s OneMillionTrees Movement.

They requested the site to be at the Casuarina Entrance of Lower Peirce Reservoir Park, since the langurs could be found there.

The group planted 87 native trees and shrubs from five different species.

Two of these are food species for the Raffles’ banded langur as found in their research. Meanwhile, the other three species could still serve as food or shelter for wildlife in the forest.

Two of the five species were even considered critically endangered in Singapore.

Working Group formed to help conservation of Raffles’ banded langurs

For RBLWG’s citizen scientists, the event was something special. They got to see the fruits of their research labour taking root in the langurs’ habitat.

The Raffles’ banded langur, which once lived in abundant numbers throughout Singapore, went into decline when the island underwent rapid urbanisation.

Without their forest homes, their population in Singapore plummeted to a low of just 15 to 20 individuals, before recovering to 70 in 2022.

Given their critically endangered status, the Raffles’ Banded Langur Working Group was formed in 2016 to ensure the protection and restoration of langur habitats.

Their work includes gathering data on the monkeys and securing resources for the conservation efforts.

Since planting the trees, everything progressed normally for the next year and a half.

Citizen scientists also frequented the area for data collection.

As a result, it came as a shock when a volunteer arrived at the site some time before 2pm on 2 June 2026 and found the area completely altered.

Around 40 growing saplings cleared for construction storage

“Yesterday, we were notified based on the photos that the whole place was flattened,” said Andie to MS News on 3 June.

Instead of healthily-growing tree saplings, the volunteer saw a diverse array of construction materials stored there.

A worker in a hard hat was also seen at the site.

Andie initially suspected that all 87 plants had been destroyed.

However, NParks later informed MS News that the construction contractor cleared around 40 saplings and shrubs.

Andie also noted two tree trunks on the ground in the photos, but did not know the context behind their presence.

“Honestly, I was quite angry, because how could that happen?” she said, pointing out that the area was within a nature park.

When Andie reached out to a contact in NParks, she was told that an investigation was underway.

Within two hours, NParks personnel arrived and had the construction materials cleared out. They also cordoned off the site.

Volunteers who planted trees in Lower Peirce Reservoir saddened

Andie hoped that NParks will conduct a proper and transparent investigation to get answers on what happened.

If there are no proper protocols in place, how can we ensure that other tree-planting sites under the OneMillionTrees Movement are also properly taken care of?

She subsequently messaged the 10 volunteers who had planted the saplings to inform them of what happened and apologise.

“A lot of care is put into it,” said Andie. “The volunteers put in a lot of effort to make sure they take care of each of the saplings.”

They reacted with a mix of emotions: anger, disappointment, confusion.

However, all of them shared a sadness that so many of the fragile saplings, which had been growing for a year and a half, were gone just like that.

NParks previously warned contractor against using site for storage

Lim Liang Jim, Group Director for Conservation at NParks, told MS News that an NParks staff carrying out routine inspections came across the site on the morning of 2 June.

A contractor had allegedly cleared half of the site for temporary storage of materials without approval.

“NParks immediately instructed the contractor to stop its work and remove the storage items,” Mr Lim said, adding that they intend to replant the site.

NParks claimed that they previously communicated with the contractor’s site supervisor several times that the site was not suitable for storage.

However, the contractor allegedly still cleared the area on 29 May 2026 without informing NParks.

“NParks will investigate this incident and will not hesitate to take action against the errant parties,” Mr Lim stated.

Cutting or displacing any plant within a national park or nature reserve without permission is an offence.

Offenders may receive a fine of up to S$50,000 and/or a maximum jail term of six months.

Also read: NParks to relocate mainland leopard cats in Changi to ‘more suitable habitats’

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Featured image adapted from Raffles’ Banded Langurs on Facebook and Facebook.