12:42 AM Saturday, September 12, 2009
Part A : Introduction to Jurong Lake Park
Jurong Lake :
A freshwater lake and reservoir located in the western region of Singapore.
Formed with the damming of Sungei Jurong further downstream..
Serves as a reservoir contributing to the water supply of the country.
Lies next to the Lakeside MRT Station, which derived its name from the geographical feature.
Jurong Lake Park :
Built around the perimeter of the lake.
Completed in Jan 2006.
The 2.8 kilometre water promenade along Jurong Lake Park allows residents to participate in watersports.
Group reflection :
The experience to Jurong Lake Park was very enriching. We arrived to be greeted by the fantastic lake and beautiful nature. We saw different types of plants and animals there. For example, some were growing on wood while some were floating in the lake. It was interesting to see how the living organisms can adapt to their natural habitat. There were also lots of flowers, all different species, colours and sizes. Also, we were fascinated by the number of living organisms living on land. We felt happy, excited as we could finally go outdoors to learn instead of indoor learning.
Part B : Grouping and naming organisms
Helix aspersa - (known as snail)
They bury their eggs in shallow topsoil primarily while the weather is warm and damp, usually 5 to 10 cm down, digging with their foot. They live about 2 to 3 years, eating a variety of food.
Pomacea canaliculata's egg - (known as apple snail's egg)
Apple snails are exceptionally well adapted to tropical regions characterized by periods of drought alternating with periods of high rainfall.
Bayawak or Goannas - (known as monitor lizard)
Monitor lizards are generally large reptiles, although some can be as small as 12 centimetres in length. They have long necks, powerful tails and claws, and well-developed limbs. Some species can even count.
Cerbera odollam - (known variously as pongpong, sea apple tree etc)
Has alot of seeds but they are poisonous. If you eat the fruit, you will fall ill or even die. However, it can be useful to us when we use it to poison rats.
Agaricus bisporus - (known variously as the common mushroom, button mushroom, white mushroom etc)The cap of the original wild species is a pale grey-brown in color, with broad, flat scales on a paler background and fading toward the margins. It is commonly found in fields and grassy areas after rain, and it is widely collected and eaten.
(the flowers in pink)
Part C : Focus community
Bridge Community : The bridge community provides shade and a place for the animals to live in. The animals would then be able to live in comfort. Also, it provides a very good hiding spot for prey to hide from their predators. Moss, shrubs, dragonflies can be found there.
Part D : Impact of man on the Jurong Lake Park
The many features (eg. adventure playground, skate park, water-sports center, fitness stations) results in the increase of park users. These results in more and maybe inconsiderate users coming in. The main cause of impact in the park is littering by the park users. Take the photos above for example. Inconsiderate park users litter without caring about other living organisms. Littering in the lake with plastic bags etc may suffocate the living organisms living in the lake, causing the water to be murky and not safe for consumption. Littering on land might affect the image of Singapore as a garden city.
We think that the park officials did not put in much effort in maintaining the park. This is because from our past visits, there were still as many litters as before, and the amount continues to increase. Also, we did not see any park officials trying to clean up the place, or doing their part to help in the cleanliness of the park.
Part E : Conclusion
We feel that the drastic increase in activity at Jurong Lake Park has disturbed the natural environment and biodiversity there. This is because after the opening of Jurong Lake Park, resulting in the heavy flow of park users, has resulted in more litters found lying around Jurong Lake Park. And so, the selfish acts of the park users has affected the park. For instance, when the park users pollute the lake with plastic bags, plastic bottles and etc, they tend to pollute the lake till the water is murky. Also, there would also be dangers of living organisms dying because there is too much rubbish in the lake. Yet, the park users just come and go whenever they like, throw rubbish wherever they like just to satisfy their comfort and laziness to just walk to the dustbin to throw it. One word : inconsiderate.
The park has done things to spread the conservation in the park to the community. For instance, they have added in quite a number of dustbins along the route of Jurong Lake Park. Also, there is signs that shows 'no littering' in the park. The signs would constantly remind the park users that to throw litter whenever and wherever they like. Nevertheless, they have also tried ways to reduce the negative impact of activites at Jurong Lake Park. For instance, one of the commendable efforts that they did was to preserve some of the old mangroves and trees. This is a very good effort made by Jtc, as such old trees are now rarely found in Singapore.
Yet, when we were on our trips to Jurong Lake Park, what was rarely or seldomly seen was the number of park officials patrolling around. This would mean that there would be lesser people who can assert their authority on those who try to litter in the park. Some suggestions that we have is that Jurong Town Council can hire more park officials to patrol around and take care Jurong Lake Park. Also, those who litter can be fined. They would then learn that littering is wrong.
Part F : Credits and Acknowledgements
Information on Jurong Lake, Information on mushroom, Information on snail, Information on monitor lizard, Information on pong pong, Information on apple snail, Information on features of Jurong Lake Park.
Ivan - Photographer
Kelly - Blog/Research
Umi - Blog/Photo
Yiming - -NIL-