NATIONAL water agency PUB has called a public tender for work on Singapore's first floating island project in Sengkang.

With a large mangosteen pavilion, lime seats and peer-through orange slices, the fruitful haven will sit in the middle of the new Punggol Reservoir.

When ready in 2010, the floating wetland, about half the size of a football field, will be an education showcase as it becomes a natural habitat for fishes and birds.

PUB said the public can get close to nature by walking over from either bank which will be linked by a foot bridge on one side and a floating boardwalk on the other.

'The foot bridge will offer an aerial view of the reservoir and of kayakers rowing beneath it. The floating boardwalk gives an entirely different experience as it skims the water surface, allowing everyone to get very close to the water,' said PUB's director of catchment and waterways, Tan Nguan Sen.

The Sengkang Floating Island is one of the signature projects under the Active, Beautiful, Clean Waters (ABC waters) programme, which is in line with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's vision of Singapore as a City of Gardens and Water.

The initiative aims to transform infrastructural assets such as drains, canals and reservoirs into clean streams, rivers and lakes teeming with vibrancy.

With Singapore's pervasive network of 14 reservoirs, 32 major rivers and more than 7000 km of canals and drains, PUB said there are plenty of opportunities for people to interact with water.

The board has identified more than 20 projects to be carried out within the next five years.

Details of the tender are available at www.gebiz.gov.sg.

The public can also visit PUB's website at www.pub-abc.com.sg to give feedback or find out more about the ABC Waters project.

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