Sungei Serangoon ( Malay for Serangoon River;

Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...

: 实龙岗河) is a

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

in the

north-eastern The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A '' compass rose'' is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—eac ...

part of Singapore. The 8-kilometre river starts as a

canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface ...

near Tampines Road, and flows through

Hougang Hougang () is a planning area and mature residential town located in the North-East Region of Singapore. It is the largest housing estate in Singapore based on land area, and is home to 247,528 residents as of 2018. Hougang planning area is bo ...

, where it is joined by tributary Sungei Pinang just before

Sengkang Sengkang (, , ) is a Planning Areas of Singapore, planning area and New towns of Singapore, residential town located in the North-East Region, Singapore, North-East Region of Singapore. The town is the second most populous in the region, being ...

, before flowing towards

Lorong Halus Lorong Halus is an area in Pasir Ris surrounding a road of the same name. The road leads to industrial buildings and farms in Pasir Ris Farmway. It starts from the Tampines Expressway (TPE) and ends at a pier. There is a road from Lorong Halus tha ...

, where it is joined by another tributary Sungei Blukar, before emptying into the

Serangoon Harbour Serangoon Harbour (; ) is a harbour in Singapore located between the mainland island of Singapore ( Pulau Ujong) and Pulau Ubin. History Before the founding of modern Singapore in 1819, the nearby Pulau Seletar and Pulau Ubin were home to the in ...

. The river is also known as the Serangoon Estuary. Since 2011, the river has been converted into a reservoir - Serangoon Reservoir.

Ecology

Although sections of the river have been canalized at Hougang and Lorong Halus, wildlife at the river is relatively unaffected. Birds like

heron Herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 75 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genus ''Botaurus'' are referred to as bi ...

tern Terns are seabirds in the family Laridae, subfamily Sterninae, that have a worldwide distribution and are normally found near the sea, rivers, or wetlands. Terns are treated in eleven genera in a subgroup of the family Laridae, which also ...

kingfisher Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly coloured birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species living in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, ...

s can still be found at the river. The area near Lorong Halus is considered one of the best

bird-watching Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device such as binoculars or a telescop ...

spots in Singapore.

Monitor lizard Monitor lizards are lizards in the genus ''Varanus,'' the only extant genus in the family Varanidae. They are native to Africa, Asia, and Oceania, and West African Nile monitor, one species is also found in south America as an invasive species. A ...

s and sometimes

otter Otters are carnivorous mammals in the subfamily Lutrinae. The 13 extant otter species are all semiaquatic, aquatic, or marine. Lutrinae is a branch of the Mustelidae family, which includes weasels, badgers, mink, and wolverines, among ...

s can also be found near the

banks A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. As banks ...

. The stretch of the river near Hougang has a 2.2 km

jogging Jogging is a form of trotting or running at a slow or leisurely pace. The main intention is to increase physical fitness with less stress on the body than from faster running but more than walking, or to maintain a steady speed for longer periods ...

track (known as the Serangoon Park Connector) running along its western bank. Although this stretch is close to residential areas, a variety of garden, grassland and estuarine birds can still be found there.

Developments

A number of development projects at Sungei Serangoon had been carried out, which include the construction of an overhead bridge linking Old Tampines Road and the KPE expressway to Sengkang and the metal bridge linking Punggol East and Lorong Halus. Another significant project was the damming of the

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

of Sungei Serangoon to form a

reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...

in 2011.

Notes

References

Rivers of Singapore Hougang Pasir Ris Punggol Sengkang {{Singapore-geo-stub

Ecology

Developments

See also

Notes

References