MacRitchie Reservoir

The MacRitchie Reservoir ( Chinese:麦 里 芝 蓄水池, Pinyin: Maìlǐzhī Xùshuǐchí ) is Singapore's oldest reservoir. It was built in 1868 with an earthen wall and was also known under the name Erdwallstausee or Thomson Reservoir.

History

Until the early 19th century, the largest part of Singapore's main island of jungle was covered. Soon after the founding of the first British settlement in 1819 there was a demand for fresh water. But it would take decades to build a drinking water supply.

Between 1820 and 1870 a substantial part of the forest was cleared to develop Singapore into an important trading center. 1886 was only 10 % of the original forest area available. The first proposal to build a drinking water reservoir already existed in 1823, but only in 1857 did - especially through financial support from the Chinese businessman Tan Kim Seng - enough money for the construction of a dam to be present. The costs were estimated at U.S. $ 100,000. With the death of Tan Kim Seng, 1864, the construction work came to a halt and were likely to be completed until 1868. The installation of water pumps and pipes, however, were completed until 1877, which meant that public confidence was struck in the ability of the government.

In 1882 a fountain was erected in honor of Tan Kim Seng. In 1891 the capacity of the lake, which was now after its builder, the British engineer John Turnbull Thomson, called Thomson Reservoir, expanded to 2.11 million cubic meters. The engineer James MacRitchie led this expansion, which cost $ 32,000, and the reservoir was renamed in his honor in 1922.

However, the supply capacity of 18,000 cubic meters per day was not enough to meet demand. Other drinking water supplies were developed in 1912 and 1920 respectively. However, the government realized that Singapore was not able to cover its own fresh water demand. In 1927, a water treaty with the Sultan of Johor was signed. Singapore received its first shipment of water from Johor in 1932.

The development of MacRitchie reservoir could stop the dying forests around the area. The forest was made as a water catchment area under protection.

During the Second World War, built the Imperial Japanese Army that had occupied Singapore, a Shinto shrine, Syonan Jinja, in the middle of the MacRitchie area. As the British forces retook Singapore, the sanctuary was destroyed. What remained were ruins of the shrine as a quaint piece of history, but only available to those who were willing to look for it. The National Monument Institute put the place in 2002 under protection, but there were first made no plans to get it to open to the public or to protect the ruins from further decay.

Today's state

More than a square kilometer forest is preserved in Central Catchment Nature Reserve, especially around the MacRitchie Reservoir. Here grow rubber trees, and remnants of the plantations from the 19th century can still be seen at the edges around the reservoir.

There are ways to boardwalks along the edge of the picturesque lake and hiking through the woods. They have a length of 3 to 11 km, respectively. Signs along the way allow a self-guided tour along the edges of the MacRitchie forest.