Singapore on Tuesday launched its first national research centre dedicated to residue and toxic industrial waste management as the city-state seeks to extend the lifespan of its only landfill site.
The new centre, known as Towards Resource Efficiency and Sustainability for Urban Environments (TREASURES), was announced by Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment Janil Puthucheary at Catalyst 2026, an environmental services industry event organised by the National Environment Agency (NEA).
Jointly established by the NEA and Nanyang Technological University (NTU), the centre will receive S$35 million (US$27.4 million) in funding under Singapore’s Research, Innovation and Enterprise 2025 programme. NTU will host the centre through March 2030, while the National University of Singapore (NUS) and other higher education institutions will participate as research partners.
The launch comes as Singapore reviews its Zero Waste Masterplan 2030 — first launched in 2019 — after recycling rates moved further away from national targets.
Janil shared at the event that Singapore’s overall recycling rate fell to 52 per cent in 2025 from 59 per cent in 2019, against the national goal of reaching 70 per cent by 2030. Domestic recycling dropped to 11 per cent from 17 per cent over the same period, while non-domestic recycling fell to 67 per cent from 73 per cent.
The European Union’s average municipal waste recycling rate was 43.3 per cent in 2023, while Japan and South Korea reported municipal waste recycling rates of 79 per cent and 72 per cent respectively, according to government and OECD-linked data, although reporting methodologies differ across jurisdictions.
Authorities are reviewing whether recycling targets should be adjusted and how to improve the quality of recyclable materials, as Singapore’s only landfill at Pulau Semakau, located south of the island, is projected to run out of space around 2035. The review, which is expected to be completed by 2027, will also examine measures to ensure sufficient landfill capacity beyond that date.
TREASURES will focus on four areas: analysing waste flows to identify resource recovery opportunities, developing technologies to recover materials currently sent to Semakau Landfill, advancing treatment and recovery methods for toxic industrial waste, and establishing safety and environmental standards for repurposed materials.
The centre will also launch its first grant call from 17 June to 17 August, inviting universities, research institutes and companies to propose projects on toxic industrial waste management and landfill transformation.
Janil said the centre would help recover value from complex waste streams and support efforts to transform Semakau Landfill from a waste disposal site into a future resource recovery hub.
“Over time, this will support our transition towards a more circular and resource-efficient waste management system, including our long-term ambition to transform Semakau Landfill,” said Ng Keng Wei, group director at the NEA in a separate statement.
Chu Jian, co-director of TREASURES and chair of NTU’s School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, said waste management remained a long-term challenge for Singapore because of its limited land area.
The announcements formed part of a broader push by Singapore to strengthen its environmental services sector. The government unveiled a refreshed Environmental Services Industry Digital Plan featuring artificial intelligence-enabled technologies such as robotic toilet cleaning systems to help address labour shortages and improve productivity.
NEA and Germany’s Messe Berlin also signed a partnership agreement to expand CleanEnviro Summit Singapore 2027 through a collaboration with CMS Asia, a new regional trade exhibition platform focused on environmental services, sustainability innovation and circular economy solutions. The organisers said the partnership aims to deepen industry collaboration and create new opportunities for business partnerships and knowledge exchange across Asia-Pacific.
