Written Reply to Parliamentary Question on Bird Nuisance at Hawker Centres by Ms Grace Fu, Minister for Sustainability and the Environment

16 FEB 2021

Written Reply by Ms Grace Fu, Minister for Sustainability and the Environment, to Parliamentary Question on Bird Nuisance at Hawker Centres

Ms Nadia Ahmad Samdin: To ask the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment (a) in the last three years, how many complaints of bird nuisance at hawker centres have been received; and (b) what new measures are in place to tackle this issue other than bird point deterrents and netting.

Answer:

  1. From 2018 to 2020, the National Environment Agency (NEA) received about 3,100 cases of public feedback relating to bird nuisance at hawker centres. This is an average of about 90 feedback cases per month.

  2. At hawker centres with bird nuisance issues, features such as bird spikes and anti-bird netting are installed where suitable to reduce the areas where birds can perch or deter them from entering the centre. Our new hawker centres are also designed to minimise areas for birds to perch, such as by concealing overhead pipes and ducts.

  3. These deterrent infrastructural measures will not be sufficient to eliminate bird nuisance at hawker centres unless patrons and stakeholders also play their part. It is the easy availability of food scraps which attract birds to public eating premises in the first place.

  4. To address this, NEA has been working together with Town Councils, Hawkers’ Associations, stallholders and cleaning contractors to manage waste properly and discourage littering. This serves to keep premises clean and reduce food sources for birds. NEA also carries out public education to remind hawker centre patrons and stallholders to clean up after their meals and minimise food sources for birds, such as through NEA’s Tray Return Programme as well as the National Parks Board’s (NParks’s) “Say No to Feeding Wildlife” campaign.

  5. Earlier this month, NEA launched the “Clean Tables Campaign”. Its key objective is to remind patrons to keep the tables clean for the next diner, by clearing their used tissues and wet wipes, and returning all used crockery and trays after dining. To foster greater community ownership, NEA is partnering the grassroots, volunteers and educational institutions to engage patrons and the wider community.

  6. Hawker centres are an integral part of our hawker culture and are community dining rooms meant for all to enjoy. I encourage everyone to play our part in maintaining the cleanliness of our hawker centres.