Updating Safety Standards for Construction and Infrastructure Projects in Light of Climate Change

46 Ms Mariam Jaafar asked the Minister for National Development (a) whether regulations and safety standards for construction and infrastructure projects are being updated in light of climate change; and (b) if so, how.

Mr Desmond Lee: Under our building control regime, buildings must be designed and constructed according to relevant building standards. These include requirements to ensure the structural integrity of building works when exposed to extreme environmental conditions, such as high temperatures, intense rainfall and strong winds.

The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) has assessed that our prevailing building standards are sufficiently robust to ensure the structural integrity of our buildings under the projected climatic conditions for Singapore, based on the Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

BCA will continue to review its requirements regularly to ensure that the relevant building standards are on par with international standards and account for the latest scientific evidence, including the updated climate projections under the IPCC's Sixth Assessment Report (AR6).