A contractor cleared about half of a tree planting site in Singapore's Central Catchment Nature Reserve without approval on May 29, 2026, officials said [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
The clearing took place at Lower Peirce Reservoir Park within the reserve, affecting an area of approximately 40 square meters, about half the size of a badminton court [4, 5]. The site originally held 87 native saplings and shrubs planted in January 2025 by citizen scientists from the Raffles’ Banded Langur Working Group in collaboration with the National Parks Board (NParks) [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. Two species were selected to provide food for the critically endangered Raffles' banded langur, native to Singapore and southern peninsular Malaysia [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
An NParks staff member discovered the unauthorised clearing during a routine inspection on the morning of June 2, 2026, prompting immediate action [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. NParks ordered the contractor to stop work and remove the stored materials from the site [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
Lim Liang Jim, NParks group director for conservation, said, "NParks had earlier communicated to the contractor’s site supervisor on a few occasions that the area was not suitable for their storage space and had advised them to use an alternative location. However, the contractor went against NParks’ direction and proceeded to clear the area on May 29 without informing NParks" [1].
The tree planting area was part of the OneMillionTrees initiative launched in 2020 to plant one million trees across Singapore by 2030 [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. The Raffles’ Banded Langur Working Group planted the native species in January 2025 as part of events to mark its 10th anniversary in 2026, said Dr Andie Ang, primatologist and group chairperson [3]. She said the planting site is near the Lower Peirce Reservoir Park entrance and was alerted of the clearing by a volunteer on June 2 [3].
It is illegal to cut, collect, or displace any tree or plant in a national park or nature reserve without approval. Offenders face fines up to S$50,000, jail terms up to six months, or both, Lim said [1, 2, 3, 4].
News of the incident spread rapidly via social media and conservation groups on June 2, drawing strong reactions from the local nature community [1, 2, 4, 5]. NParks continues to investigate the incident and enforce regulations related to the unauthorised clearing at the site [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
