EcoXplore is working alongside a prison officer to monitor utilities usage, including water supply usage, within Singapore Changi Prison.

Beginning back in 2014, where educational activities and videos were introduced to the inmates to spread the word about the importance of water conservation, the message has since been ingrained in the mindsets of those living in the Singapore Prison Service(SPS) facilities.

Now, they are very proactive in alerting the officers of any water leakages. Furthermore, SPS has introduced a system to monitor daily water usage and installed presto taps or thimbles in water taps to reduce the water flow. These efforts have resulted in the prison reducing its water consumption by 12.8% last year as compared to 2013, helping them become on of the four winners of the 2017 Watermark Awards.

This annual award, which is in its 10th year running, recognizes individuals and organizations for their contributions to the conservation of Singapore’s water resources.

The other three winners, chosen from a pool of 35 by national water agency, PUB, are Tampines North Primary School, Pratt & Whitney, and the Nee Soon South Clean and Green Committee.

The prize ceremony will take place tomorrow at Marina Barrage.

Deputy Commissioner of Prisons and SPS Chief of Staff Shie Yong Lee said described the award: “It’s an affirmation of not just the efforts of our staff, but also our inmates and our partners.”

Another of this year’s winners, aero-engine firm Pratt & Whitney, decreased its water usage by 8 per cent, or more than 10.2 million liters of water, as compared to last year.

One thing they did to achieve this was to install vacuum distillation units to recycle waste water in four of its facilities here.

Using a baseline year of 2006, the firm – which employs more than 2,000 people in Singapore – aims to reduce its water consumption by 80 per cent by 2025.

Executive director Kevin Kirkpatrick said: “We’ve been on this journey of sustainability for a long time and it’s nice to get recognition.

“When it comes to sustainability, it goes across all our processes, whether it’s electricity, water, waste – it’s something that is ingrained in the culture.”