The world is now facing a “sand crisis.” According to a report released in 2022 by the United Nations Environment Programme, the amount of sand extracted is increasing by about 6% each year, a rate deemed unsustainable. Sand may seem abundant on Earth, but it is actually the 2nd most used resource after water, and like oil and coal, it is finite. A 2017 GNV article covered the “race for sand,” highlighting environmental destruction from sand consumption and sand mafias engaged in illegal mining and sales.

In recent years, Singapore, located in Southeast Asia, has drawn attention regarding sand-related issues. In fact, Singapore is the world’s largest country by per-capita sand imports. This article adds new information to the previous piece and digs deeper into Singapore’s sand problem.

Sand for construction (Photo: Lio Voo / Pexels [Pexels license])

How sand resources are used

It is reported that 40–50 billion tonnes of sand and gravel are extracted globally each year. Where does this huge demand come from? Sand is widely used as a construction material in concrete, asphalt, and glass. For example, the concrete used in housing and infrastructure is made by mixing sand, cement, and gravel with water, so large-scale construction requires vast quantities of sand. Sand is also used as a raw material for smaller products—everything from metal castings and smartphone screens and microchips to detergents, toothpaste, and cosmetics is made with it.

Rapid urbanization is a main driver of massive sand consumption. Today, more than half of the world’s population lives in cities—up from about 1/3 in 1950—and it is projected to reach about 2/3 by 2050. In India, annual use of construction sand more than tripled between 2000 and 2017, and China’s sand use has also rapidly increased.

The United Arab Emirates offers an interesting example of sand use. In Dubai in particular, enormous quantities have been used to build artificial islands and skyscrapers and to reclaim land and expand coastlines, leading to large imports from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Belgium, and others imported. Although much of the UAE is desert, it imports vast amounts of sand because desert sand is unsuitable for construction. Prolonged wind exposure rounds and smooths desert grains, making them poor at binding with cement and thus unsuitable for producing construction concrete.

So where does construction sand come from? The sand required for concrete is not the fine, smooth desert sand, but angular sand. It is extracted from riverbeds, riverbanks, floodplains, lakes, and coasts, but most commonly from rivers. One reason is that sea sand contains high chloride levels that can corrode rebar and potentially cause severe long-term deterioration of structures. Another is practicality: river sand is easy to lift with suction pumps or buckets and transport by boat.

Illegal sand mining, Cambodia (Photo: Wikirictor / Wikimedia Commons [CC BY-SA 4.0])

The many impacts of sand extraction

In practice, much sand is taken from riverbeds—a process known as dredging. Dredging alters topography and changes water levels in rivers and lakes. In other words, it disrupts the natural functions that sand performs, increasing erosion and flood risk and causing severe environmental impacts. Habitats for fish, invertebrates, and plants are lost, affecting entire ecosystems. In Southeast Asia, there are particular concerns about impacts on the biodiversity of the Mekong River, which flows through Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, and China impact. Alongside such environmental damage, effects on fisheries and agriculture are also alarming, and the livelihoods of millions are projected to be destroyed.

As noted above, sea sand is not suitable for concrete, but large-scale reclamation entails seabed dredging. At sea, sediment plumes from dredging can settle on nearby coral reefs and muddy the water, with harmful possibilities.

Excessive sand extraction is occurring across Asia, Africa, and the Americas, causing immense environmental damage. Examples include India’s Pangong Lake, the disappearance of islands in Indonesia, and the Mekong River mentioned above—all under threat from sand extraction.

An expanding Singapore

We have looked at the global realities and impacts of sand. Here, we review the history and recent trends in Singapore, which is said to have imported more than 500 million tonnes of sand over the 20 years up to 2019.

Singapore is a port city-state at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula and one of Southeast Asia’s leading economies. Identified by the British as an ideal island for a port, it was colonized in the 1820s. With the expansion of the Federation of Malaya, which had gained independence from Britain in 1957, North Borneo, Sarawak, and present-day Singapore were added to form the Federation of Malaysia in 1963. Policies favoring Malays advanced there, provoking resistance and friction in Singapore, where many residents were ethnic Chinese. Singapore was also economically more developed than Malaysia, and political disputes intensified. As a result, in 1965 it was expelled from the federation, reluctantly separating to become an independent sovereign state.

Since the 1960s, Singapore has achieved remarkable economic growth through diversification. Behind the scenes, reclamation projects began to level hills and flatten areas on and around the main island. In addition to enlarging the main island, other islands were linked, expanding Singapore’s land area. The islands have been redeveloped to support key sectors of the economy, from manufacturing to tourism and foreign investment. In other words, expansion and redevelopment transformed many islands and greatly affected the people who lived on them.

For example, in the 1960s Semakau Island, 8 kilometers south of the main island, was home to Malays and the Orang Asli—an indigenous minority of the Malay Peninsula—who made their living through fishing, harvesting bananas and tapioca, and collecting and selling coral. Later, oil tank farms and refineries were built, and residents worked as technicians. The petrochemical industry, along with electronics manufacturing, supported Singapore’s early economic development. In the 1970s, some residents left their home island seeking stable incomes in industrial areas on other islands or on mainland Singapore, while others were forced to move due to changes in land use. Today it is uninhabited and functions as a landfill.

Beyond reclamation, rising concrete demand for infrastructure and buildings led to imports of 38.6 million tonnes of sand in 2016 imported. Uses are wide-ranging, including the SMRT Trains-operated Circle Line project slated for full opening in 2026 planned, and the construction of integrated resorts such as Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World Sentosa built.

As a result of extensive reclamation, Singapore’s territory expanded from 585 km² in 1959, before independence, to 724 km² in 2022—an increase of 24%. Further expansion is planned: in 2023, the Long Island project was announced to reclaim 800 hectares. Technical studies began in 2024, and it was noted that sea levels could rise by 4 to 5 meters due to climate change. Concerned about threats to Singapore’s low-lying coastline, the goal is to begin construction in the 2030s.

Marina Bay Sands resort under construction on reclaimed land, Singapore (Photo: Choo Yut Shing / Flickr [CC BY-NC-SA 2.0])

Impacts on neighboring countries and smuggling sparked by restrictions

For reclamation and infrastructure, Singapore has long required vast amounts of sand. Since such volumes cannot be sourced domestically, most has been imported from nearby Southeast Asian countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Myanmar.

However, sand extraction has caused various problems in each country. In 2007, the Indonesian government reported that 26 islands had disappeared. This is especially serious because small islands serve as natural breakwaters that protect larger ones from storms and tsunamis. In Riau province, Sumatra, unrestricted sea-sand exports have muddied waters, shrunk beaches, and driven large-scale island erosion. In Banten province, western Java, sand mining has eroded coastlines and destroyed coral reefs. Much of this sand has been exported to Singapore.

These environmental damages prompted some countries to act. Malaysia banned sand exports in 1997 for environmental protection. Indonesia also banned sand exports in 2003, reportedly as a measure aimed specifically at Singapore. The ban is said to have been triggered by such heavy dredging of Nipah Island on the maritime border that it submerged at high tide.

In response, a “sand crisis” hit Singapore, and construction activity nearly halted. Yet demand did not abate. After bolstering stockpiles, the government began importing through networks of contractors and subcontractors in Vietnam, Cambodia, the Philippines, and Myanmar. The repercussions spread: Vietnam in 2009 and Cambodia in 2017 banned sand exports.

Fishing boats on a Malaysian shore (Photo: Bernard Spragg / Flickr [CC0 1.0])

Beyond environmental issues, a past GNV article also reported smuggling problems such as the illegal mining and sale of sand in India, which have been linked to Singapore’s sand demand smuggling. For example, in 2008 the Singapore government claimed it had imported 3 million tonnes of sand from Malaysia, but according to the Malaysian government, the sand that actually reached Singapore from Malaysia totaled 133 million tonnes, most of it smuggled. The reality of smuggling has been repeatedly reported by investigations in outlets such as Malaysia’s The Star. Such illegal extraction and exports have also been reported in Indonesia.

Meanwhile, in 2023 Indonesia lifted its ban on sand exports to Singapore after more than 20 years, under the government of President Joko Widodo. The backdrop is rising global demand; lifting the ban was expected to increase state revenue and create jobs, contributing to economic development. However, critics and researchers protested the decision, arguing it poses long-term threats to the environment and society.

Addressing sand problems at the regional scale

Despite these concerns, Singapore’s demand persists, and the government has set a goal of expanding its territory by an area equivalent to 30% of its land at independence by 2030. However, Malaysia, which had allowed limited exports, fully banned sea-sand exports in 2018.

How is Singapore responding to the sand issue? First, the government has announced tighter enforcement against smuggling. In 2019, the Ministry of National Development (MND) said it had set strict criteria for sand imports, requiring suppliers to “source sand from legally permitted areas and comply with all environmental laws of the source country.” In 2021, the government also responded to reporters’ questions, stating there was no evidence of illegal sand smuggling into Singapore, that it investigates all reports of illegal smuggling, and that it would take enforcement action against errant importers as necessary.

Reclamation work on Sentosa Island (Photo: Ria Tan / Flickr [CC BY-NC-ND 2.0])

Nonetheless, even after Malaysia’s blanket ban, it was reported in 2023 that the annual volume of sand extracted remains enormous. Questions remain as to where Singapore is importing the sand it seeks. Even with Indonesia lifting its export ban, Singapore needs to diversify its sand sources.

Given Singapore’s economic wealth, neighboring countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia may be pressured to part with sand—a resource—for short-term gains. There are no UN regulations on sand exports and imports, and Singapore can act according to its own rules without necessarily considering environmental damage in other countries.

Thus, there are calls for an international framework and for regional regulations under groupings like ASEAN. Proposals include better data and transparency on sand consumption and introducing a unified tax on river sand extraction proposed. At the same time, it is noted that ASEAN currently lacks the basic governance capacity to implement such measures, leaving many challenges.

One study shows that a coordinated sand production tax could significantly reduce extraction while imposing small economic costs on importing countries and slightly benefitting exporters; as a new policy approach, a “tradable sand mining permit system” has been proposed. If adopted, such proposals could help sustain a balance between the economic growth of importing countries and the development of exporting countries.

Construction site in Singapore (Photo: Paul Joseph Rio Daza / Flickr [CC BY-NC-ND 2.0])

Alternatives to sand

Projects planned or underway in Singapore are adopting various measures to reduce sand demand. For example, the Tuas Port project, slated to open by 2040, will use 88 million cubic meters of material to reclaim an area equivalent to 383 football fields. The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said it is using materials sourced from various resources other than the sand traditionally mined from rivers and seas.

Another technology drawing attention for reducing sand demand is the Dutch-developed polder method, which reduces the need for sand by enclosing underwater and subsurface areas with steel sheet piles, channeling seepage to collection points, and pumping it out. This approach is expected to reduce sand quantities and construction costs by 40%. It has already been used in reclamation on Tekong Island. The Housing & Development Board (HDB), which provides public housing, is currently exploring reclamation techniques better suited to Singapore.

Among substitutes for sand used in construction is 3D-printed concrete, which uses waste glass and is expected to reduce sand consumption. Recycling construction spoil and Ore-Sand—an artificial sand produced from processed mine tailings, of which Brazilian iron ore major Vale produced 1 million tonnes in 2023 100万トン—also deserve attention Ore-Sand. Given the scale of Indonesia’s metals sector, there are hopes it could produce artificial sand in similar ways.

As noted, new techniques for reclamation and land expansion can reduce sand demand. At the same time, because sand remains indispensable for strengthening other materials and forms, securing large volumes is still important. Singapore frames reclamation as a climate adaptation measure, but obligations to propose alternatives often fall on exporting neighbors. Policies that regulate the importing side—Singapore—will therefore be crucial.

Writer: Lynn Sugita

Graphics: Ayane Ishida

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