Singapore’s rural island Pulau Ubin grapples with uncertain future, dwindling residents

The outlying island of Pulau Ubin, a rare rural spot amid the futuristic architecture of the Southeast Asian financial hub, is a treasure trove of biodiversity and home to wetlands once under threat of reclamation until the plans were postponed.

Though electricity was expensive, said Chu Yok Choon, one of 30 people living on the island that spans just 10 sq km (4 sq miles), he loved the fact that the solar grid let him hit a button by the village well to pump water to his home.

“Life on the mainland doesn’t feel natural,” said the 79-year-old, who had to draw water from the well and use generators to provide electricity until 2013. “Life here is quieter.”

For those living in the busy city, the island is a relaxing getaway just a 10-minute ferry ride away, offering hikes amid lush greenery and lakes in former quarries, bicycle rides on roads free of vehicles and seafood meals by the water’s edge.

Yet, apart from mail delays and trips to the city to buy groceries and electrical gadgets, the ferry rides can also sometimes prove inconvenient for island-dwellers.