Keppel Club
Address
Keppel Club
Bukit Chermin Road
Singapore 109918
Name of contact for environmental and social issues:
Desmond Chua, Senior manager, golf course and golf operations
Phone +65 63755501 
Fax +65 62781448
Email click here
Website www.keppelclub.com.sg
Course description
Championship 18 holes, 5,959 metres, par 72 . Designed by Ronald Fream and later modified by Chris Pitman.
Established in 1904, the course is the oldest in Singapore still in its original location. It was given a facelift in 2004 and re-opened by the then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong. It has since received numerous awards.
Special features/accolades
The club signed a partnership with Singapore’s Public Utility Board to establish the "Friends of Water" programme which involved adopting the 104-year old Berlayer Creek, which is on Club property. This is the oldest and only sea water mangrove swamp left at the southern tip of Singapore. The club takes this responsibility seriously and has developed numerous conservation activities to protect this part of Singapore’s heritage, see below.
Key achievements
In December 2005, our Landscape Master Plan for the golf course earned a Bronze Award for Design & Building Projects – Commercial, Industrial, Recreational & Institutional by the Landscape Industry Association (Singapore). The Landscape Master Plan, developed by our in-house team, created an environment that draws golfers to the rich cultural heritage of the Club while preserving the natural setting to allow the native flora and fauna, birds and animals to flourish.
The Keppel Club was ranked number seven in a regional Asian Golf Monthly readers’ poll of the Best Courses in Singapore in 2005, 2006 & 2008.
Key Achievements-environment
The Keppel Club is located in the middle of one of Singapore’s last remaining natural areas, a stretch ranging from the dense forest at Mount Faber and Sentosa to the grass lands of the Keppel golf course and the salt water mangrove of Berlayer Creek, a 5.6 hectare mangrove forest about one kilometer in length. The strategic location of the Keppel Club serves as a critical connector for the three-point flight plan (Sentosa-Labrador Park-Mount Faber) of both migratory and non-migratory birds.
Since 2004 we have implemented a number of projects to preserve the natural beauty of the golf course. We have created many attractions such as bird sanctuaries and planted pockets of natural vegetation to allow more birds and animals to reside in the golf course.
Our Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program has undergone continuous improvement and helps minimize the use of chemicals and harmful insecticides.
The Keppel Club’s management staff was inspired by the success of our golf course conservation efforts and decided to go further by creating the "Go Green" Programme. This programme, which involves all staff, strives to develop a culture for caring, preserving and conserving the earth’s resources, starting with the work place. The Keppel "Go Green" plan has four main pillars:
1. Flora and Fauna
2. Waste Management
3. Outreach
4. Green Building/Operations
Through our "Go Green" programme, we want to show how the Keppel Club has contributed greatly over the past one hundred years to preserve the unique biodiversity of this area and how the Club continues to conserve natural ecosystems. Modern development consistently threatens nature in Singapore, and with planned major developments such as Reflections by the Bay and the Integrated Resort complex, the preservation of such a green belt becomes even more critical.
Some highlights:
Flora and Fauna (including energy and water conservation)
- Major tree, shrub, flowering plants and aquatic plants planting, particularly native species to enhance biodiversity.
- Shoreline protection and sediment accretion in the Berlayer Creek mangrove, one of only two mangroves in southern mainland Singapore. Berlayer Creek mangrove is home to hundreds of species.
- Bird census indicated some 30 species, including many rare species such as brahminy kite, black-naped oriole and Asian paradise flycatcher.
- Worked with Jurong Bird Park to provide natural plantings and nesting boxes to encourage breeding of rare birds, bird release program, with related planting of appropriate plants.
- Improvement of habitats for fauna, ranging from fish and insects to reptiles and mammals.
- Extensive energy saving initiatives.
- Recycle rain water, work closely with National Environment Agency to minimize water usage based on meteorological conditions.
- Regularly check for water leaks.
Waste Management
- Recycling of food waste and organic waste such as grass clippings and other horticulture debris.
- Recycling organic waste saves some Sin$ 5,760 per year.
Outreach
- Extensive internal education.
- Special school programs on mangrove conservation, energy conservation.
- A Go Green with Keppel Club website provides information for those who wants to better understand the go green process. (dedicated website to be launched in February 2009).
- Regular nature walks for members, staff and schools.
- Nature photography competition for members.
- Eco-Christmas Tree Design competition, using recycled materials.
- Earth Day exhibition to create awareness among the members and community on Keppel Club’s
"Go Green" efforts for the past year and how the club sustains its relevance in its present location, which has been designated as a green belt area. - Public clean-up of the Berlayer Creek.
Green Building/Operations
- Recycling in all office and clubhouse operations.
- Use of ozone-free cleaning chemicals.
- Low energy lighting, special efforts to reduce electricity consumption.
Philosophy
"The club aspires to be the greenest golf club in the region. The club believes that this philosophy
should involve all staff, from top to bottom, working according to a creative management plan, which we call Go Green. In order to be a truly green and socially-responsible club, we need to work with various environmental agencies and NGOs to learn and share experiences."
Edwin Khew
President