Circular No : URA/PB/2017/06-DCG

Our Ref : DC/ADMIN/CIRCULAR/PB_17

Date : 9 Nov 2017

CIRCULAR TO PROFESSIONAL INSTITUTES

Who should know

Architects, landscape architects, engineers, developers, building owners, and property

managers

Effective date

With effect from 9 Nov 2017

UPDATES TO THE LANDSCAPING FOR URBAN SPACES AND HIGH-RISES (LUSH)

PROGRAMME: LUSH 3.0

1. Planning for greenery in Singapore has always been important to provide a quality
living environment, and as a strategy to strengthen our City in a Garden identity. In
2009, URA introduced the Landscaping for Urban Spaces and High-Rises (LUSH)
programme to encourage pervasive and accessible greenery in our high-rise urban
environment. In 2014, the LUSH programme was extended to cover more
geographical areas and development types under LUSH 2.0.

2. Today, with the support of building owners and developers who similarly see the
benefits of incorporating greenery into their developments, two in three new
residential developments and one in two new offices, shopping centres and hotels
have taken up a LUSH incentive scheme.

3. LUSH 3.0 builds on the achievements of the earlier phases of LUSH. It seeks to
further enhance the quality of greenery in developments, as well as encourage more
sustainability features. The refinements are as follows:

A. To count vertical greenery and extensive green roofs towards the Landscape
Replacement Area requirements;
B. To support rooftop urban farming through the Landscape Replacement
scheme;
C. To encourage rooftops to be used for sustainability-related features; and
D. To set Green Plot Ratio standards for private developments to safeguard
sufficient density of greenery.
 More details on the refinements are below.

A. Vertical greenery and extensive green roofs as Landscape Replacement Areas

4. Under LUSH 3.0, vertical greenery and/or extensive green roofs1 will now qualify as
Landscape Replacement Areas. This is in response to feedback from the industry
that such features also contribute to quality greenery within the built environment.

5. As a guide, vertical greenery and/or extensive green roofs can make up to 10% of
the overall Landscape Replacement requirements (as a percentage of site area).
They can be counted either as part of the softscape or hardscape components.
Requests to use vertical greenery and/or extensive green roofs for more than 10%
of the Landscape Replacement requirements can be considered based on the
merits of the proposal.

6. Such vertical greenery and/or extensive green roofs should be well-designed,

lushly-landscaped and integrated with the overall form and architectural treatment
of the building. In assessing such features, URA will also consider if they are well-
externalised and visible to the building users and general public.

B. Landscape Replacement scheme to support rooftop urban farms

7. Under LUSH 3.0, rooftop urban farms2 can now be counted as part of the Landscape
Replacement Areas, under the hardscape component allowed for developments in
Strategic Areas3. This is to facilitate the use of urban farms to optimise under-utilised
rooftops, as they have the potential to be a space-efficient way to augment
Singapore’s food supply.

1
Extensive green roofs are generally not designed for accessibility and active recreational use. Such roofs are mainly for ecological
and aesthetic benefits and are installed at inaccessible rooftops. They are usually lightweight systems comprising low maintenance
plants.
2
Rooftop urban farms come in various forms, ranging from smaller scale community-based farming activity and edible gardens, to
larger-scale, highly intensive farming activities conducted on a commercial basis.
3
Developments within the identified Strategic Areas must provide replacement landscaped areas at least equivalent in size to the
development site area (for details on the Strategic Areas, see the ‘Landscape Replacement Area Policy in Strategic Areas’ section in
the relevant Development Control handbooks). The replacement landscaped areas should comprise minimum 40% softscape, and up
to 60% hardscape which can be communal facilities like event plazas, water features and playgrounds.
8. Rooftop urban farms can make up to 10% of the Landscape Replacement
hardscape requirements in Strategic Areas4. URA will exercise flexibility on the 10%
guideline for proposals with merits.

9. For crop protection, covers over such rooftop urban farms can be allowed. The
covered urban farm area will be allowed on Temporary Permission and counted as
Gross Floor Area (GFA)5.

10. Prevailing building height controls will continue to apply to any structures and
equipment proposed at the roofs. In addition, proposals within areas subject to
Urban Design guidelines or Conservation requirements will be evaluated according
to prevailing controls.

C. Encourage rooftops to be used for sustainability-related features

11. In 2004, URA introduced guidelines where covered mechanical and electrical (M&E)
equipment that is transferred from the roof to one of the top three floors directly
below the roof could be exempted from GFA computation, if the rooftop is used for
activity-generating uses6.

12. LUSH 3.0 will extend this scheme to allow more uses on rooftops, like urban farming,
communal roof gardens, greenery and solar panels, to qualify for the M&E GFA
incentive. Such developments will be allowed to transfer their rooftop M&E services
from the roof to one of the top three floors directly below the roof, and the covered
M&E areas can be exempted from GFA up to one floor.

13. To qualify for the GFA exemption, the urban farm area, communal roof gardens,
greenery and solar panels should take up a meaningful part of the roof. M&E
services and circulation spaces that need to remain on the rooftop, such as lift motor
rooms or staircase cores, should be clustered and neatly integrated with roof design
so that more of the roof can be used for other purposes. The roofs occupied by

4
The 10% for rooftop urban farms is allowed in addition to the 10% allowed for vertical greenery and extensive green roofs. Uncovered
rooftop communal gardens that may subsequently be converted to small scale community farms will continue to be counted as
greenery replacement (softscape).
5
As a temporary use incurring additional area, covered farms will be subject to Temporary Development Levy. URA can consider
the additional GFA over and above the maximum permissible GFA under the Master Plan.
6
The guidelines do not apply to commercial and hotel developments that share common boundaries with residential developments.
For such developments that do not share common boundaries with residential developments but are in close proximity to them, activity
generating uses at the rooftops will be evaluated on a case by case basis.
 urban farms, solar panels, extensive green roofs and communal roof gardens that
remain uncovered will not constitute GFA7.

14. The guidelines will apply to all new commercial and hotel developments, and
redevelopment or major Additions and Alterations proposals for the same8. The
incentive may be applied for other types of developments on a case-by-case basis.

15. Applicants should consider the site context in deciding the most appropriate use for
the rooftop. URA will also take into consideration whether the use will pose
disamenity concerns to neighbouring developments (e.g. noise, glare) in the
assessment of the proposal. The guidelines will apply on a per roof basis. Prevailing
building height, setback and urban design controls will continue to apply.

16. Roof plans submitted should clearly show and annotate the proposed uses, layout
and the area occupied. Landscape plans will also be required for communal rooftop
gardens and extensive green roofs. Designers, developers and building owners are
strongly encouraged to give due consideration to technical, structural and
maintenance requirements for the proposed rooftop uses and the relocation of M&E
equipment.

D. Green Plot Ratio standards for private developments

17. Under LUSH 3.0, Green Plot Ratio (GnPR) standards will be introduced for
developments providing Landscape Replacement Areas. GnPR is a measure of the
density of greenery within a site9, and the new GnPR standards seek to introduce a
transparent and objective standard for landscaping provided within Landscape
Replacement Areas.

18. The formula for computing GnPR is:

Total leaf area of greenery counted as Landscape Replacement (softscape)

Green Plot Ratio =
Development Site Area

The GnPR standards are calibrated according to the Landscape Replacement

7
Covered urban farm area will be allowed on Temporary Permission and counted as GFA. Incidental covered spaces under solar
panels put to landscaping will not constitute GFA.
8
Please note that the new guidelines will not be applicable to conservation buildings and areas with urban design guidelines for roof
forms.

9
GnPR is used by the National Parks Board (NParks) and the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) for their respective
Landscape Excellence Assessment Framework (LEAF) and Green Mark certification schemes.
 softscape requirements. Submissions providing greenery as replacement
landscape areas need to meet the GnPR standards shown in Table 1 below.

Table 1: Landscape Replacement (softscape) and Green Plot Ratio requirements

Developments Minimum softscape Minimum GnPR

requirement requirement
(as % of site area) under LUSH 3.0

Developments in Strategic Areas 40% 4.0

Developments outside identified

Strategic Areas 40% 4.0
(GPR ≥ 2.8)

Developments outside identified

Strategic Areas 35% 3.5
(1.4 < GPR < 2.8)

Developments outside identified

Strategic Areas 30% 3.0
(GPR ≤ 1.4)

Implementation

19. The new guidelines above, together with the existing LUSH 2.0 initiatives, will form
the new LUSH 3.0 programme. Appendices 1 and 2 consolidate the updated
Landscape Replacement Area Guidelines within Strategic Areas and outside
Strategic Areas respectively.

20. We encourage designers, developers and building owners to incorporate the

landscape design upfront and to give due consideration to the structural, spatial and
functional requirements for permanent planting in the design of these spaces.

21. This circular should be read in conjunction with the earlier circulars on Landscape
Replacement Area guidelines dated 12 Jun 2014 (URA/PB/2014/12-CUDG and
URA/PB/2014/13-DCG).

22. Except for the requirements on GnPR, which will take effect from 9 Feb 2018
onwards, all the other revisions will take immediate effect.
23. The GnPR standards will apply to all new applications submitted on or after 9 Feb
201810. Only formal development applications (excluding Outline Applications)
submitted before 9 Feb 2018 which have already been granted Provisional
Permission or which will result in a Provisional Permission, will not be subject to the
GnPR standards.

24. I would appreciate it if you could convey the contents of this circular to your
members. We have updated the same in the Development Control Handbooks. You
are advised to refer to these Handbooks for the updated guidelines instead of
referring to past circulars. For other information on the master plan, urban design
guidelines, private property use and approval, car park locations and availability,
private residential property transactions, and conservation areas and buildings, use
URA SPACE (Service Portal and Community e-Services). For feedback or
enquiries, please email us.

25. We thank you for your continued support in creating a green, liveable and
sustainable Singapore.

GOH CHIN CHIN (MS)

GROUP DIRECTOR (DEVELOPMENT CONTROL)
for CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
URBAN REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY

10
Development applications submitted before the effective date 9 February 2018 resulting in an Advice or Refusal of Written
Permission (RWP) will be evaluated based on the revised guidelines upon resubmission after the Advice or RWP.
 APPENDIX 1

GUIDELINES FOR LANDSCAPE REPLACEMENT AREAS WITHIN NEW

DEVELOPMENTS AND REDEVELOPMENTS IN IDENTIFIED STRATEGIC AREAS

PARAMETER DETAILS

1 Definition Landscape Replacement Areas (LRAs) are landscaped areas

provided on the first storey or upper levels of the development. The
total size of the landscape areas must be minimally equivalent to 100
per cent of the development site area. The diagram below shows the
various types of LRAs that could be incorporated within a
development.

For developments outside of Central Area with a technical height

constraint equal to or below 80m Above Mean Sea Level (AMSL), the
required LRA is lower at 70 per cent of the development site area.
2 Computation The computation of the LRAs is determined by:
Requirements  Horizontal surface area of the softscape (i.e. permanent
planting areas, including extensive green roofs)
 Horizontal surface area of the hardscape e.g. communal
facilities, urban farm
 Vertical surface area of green walls (if any).

At least 40% of the development site area, or overall proposed LRAs,

whichever is higher, should be for permanent planting, i.e. softscape.
The softscape areas provided should also meet the GnPR standard
of 4. The remaining provision can be in the form of communal facilities
like events plazas, water features and playgrounds, i.e. hardscape.

Except for rooftop urban farms, all horizontal landscaped (both

softscape and hardscape) areas computed as part of the LRAs within
developments have to be:

a Unenclosed and exposed to the sky; or

b If covered, to be open sided, naturally ventilated and qualify for
GFA exemption under the prevailing development control
guidelines for Communal Planter Boxes, Sky Terraces and
Covered Communal Ground Gardens.

Rooftop urban farms can count towards up to 10% of the landscape

replacement requirement as hardscape areas. Coverings over the
urban farms area allowed to protect the crops. The covered urban
farm area will be allowed on Temporary Permission, counted as
Gross Floor Area and subject to Temporary Development Levy.

Vertical greenery and/or extensive green roofs can make up to 10%

of the overall Landscape Replacement requirements (as a
percentage of site area). They can be counted either as part of the
softscape or hardscape components. The 10% for vertical greenery
and extensive green roofs is allowed in addition to the 10% allowed
for rooftop urban farms.

Requests to use vertical greenery and/or extensive green roofs, or

rooftop urban farms, for more than 10% of the Landscape
Replacement requirements can be considered based on the merits of
the proposal.
3 Green Plot GnPR is computed using the following formula:
Ratio
Total leaf area of greenery counted as Landscape Replacement
GnPR = (softscape)
Total site area of development

All Leaf Area from softscape areas within the development can be
counted towards the GnPR computation.

Total Leaf Area is computed based on the Leaf Area Index (LAI) for
each species, canopy area (for trees and palms) and the quantity
planted. The plant species sub-categories and LAI values can be
obtained online from NParks’ Flora Fauna Web
(http://florafaunaweb.nparks.gov.sg) by searching the common or
scientific names of plants.

Table 1 provides a template for computing the overall development

GnPR. This table should be filled in and submitted together with the
landscape plans (see Appendix 1-1 for template).

Table 1: Green Plot Ratio computation template

4 Performance All LRAs should meet the following performance requirements:

Requirements
a) Designed with safety in mind (e.g. consider wind/structural
loading issues associated with upper storey landscape areas)
and easily maintained (e.g. with irrigation and maintenance
systems); and
 b) Well-designed, lushly-landscaped and integrated with the
overall form and architectural treatment of the building.

Vertical greenery should be publicly visible, e.g. placed at external

building facade fronting key pedestrian thoroughfares and/or main
roads, and at major public spaces, plazas and main entrance areas.
URA may impose additional urban design requirements for vertical
greenery for sites in Urban Design areas e.g. Central Area and Key
Growth areas.

Extensive green roofs should be of a substantial size and have

sufficient density of planting, to contribute to green cover and support
biodiversity. Such roofs need not be made accessible to the public
and/or building users but maintenance access is to be provided for
such roofs. Please note that horizontal trellis-based greenery will not
qualify as extensive green roofs.

Other than the extensive green roofs, the public and/or building users
should be able to access all communal landscape areas easily during
the normal opening hours of the development11.
5 Softscape Planting should be incorporated on permanent and sunken planting
Requirements beds to enhance the spatial and visual quality of the green spaces.
The sunken planting beds should have sufficient soil depth to
accommodate plants and landscaping.* Plantings should be
appropriately spaced to accommodate growth.

Requirements for the horizontal softscape areas:

a) As a guide, a minimum soil depth of 1000mm should be provided

for trees and palms, 500mm for shrubs and climbers, and 300mm
for ground covers;

b) A combination of trees, palms, shrubs, ground covers and

creepers is required; and

c) Potted plants will not be counted as part of the softscape area as

they can be easily removed.

*As an alternative to providing sunken planting beds, building owners

can provide well-landscaped, low raised planting beds at 300mm
high, planted with trees or shrubs (i.e. no turfing allowed). This
facilitates compliance with FSSD’s fire safety requirements on
habitable space.

11For example, the communal landscaped areas in a shopping mall should be open and accessible to the public during the mall’s normal
operating hours. Similarly, the communal landscaped areas in an office development should be accessible to the larger office community
and not limited to users of one specific office premises.
 A Landscape Plan (see Appendix 1-2 for example), including a
landscape proposal, relevant plans, cross sections and perspectives,
is required as part of the submission.

6 Planting To ensure appropriate plant selection and placement, designers are

References strongly encouraged to decide on planting and landscape design in
consultation with an Accredited Landscape Architect or Certified
Practising Horticulturalist.

The suitability of the vertical greenery and extensive green roof

system used (e.g. in terms of weight, growing media, availability of
light, resilience to weather elements) should also be taken into
consideration.**

Please refer to the following publications for more detailed planting

references:

a) 1001 Garden plants in Singapore (2nd edition)(2006), NParks

b) CS E09:2012 - Guidelines on planting of trees, palms and tall
shrubs on rooftop (2012), NParks
c) A Selection of Plants for Green Roofs in Singapore 2nd Edition
(2008), NParks
d) Trees of our Garden City, 2nd edition (2009), NParks
e) Concise Guides to Safe Practices on Rooftop Greenery and
Vertical greenery (2013), NParks
f) CS E12:2016 - Design Guides To Promote Biodiversity On
Roof Gardens (2017), NParks(for biodiversity-friendly
inaccessible green roofs)

**For vertical greenery support systems, planter boxes of minimum

500mm depth are encouraged to be provided at every storey for
dense plant growth.

7 Hardscape The remaining LRAs can be considered as hardscape areas provided

Areas that the surrounding areas are lushly landscaped. The following
elements may be included:

a Scenic footpaths within the garden area;

b Seating;
c BBQ pits;
d Events plazas;
e Water features;
f Playgrounds;
g Recreational facilities e.g. tennis courts and swimming pools,
etc.
h Vertical greenery and/or extensive green roofs (up to 10%*)
i Rooftop urban farming (up to 10%**)
 *Vertical greenery and/or extensive green roofs can be counted
towards up to 10% (as a percentage of site area) of the overall
landscape replacement requirements, as part of the softscape or
hardscape components.

**Prevailing height controls will continue to apply to any urban farm

structures and equipment proposed at the roofs. In addition,
proposals within Urban Design or Conservation areas will be
evaluated according to prevailing design controls.

8 Areas to be The following areas will not be considered as part of the required
excluded from LRAs:
Landscape
Replacement a All service facilities, e.g. vehicular drop-offs and drive ways,
Areas vehicular ramps, surface car parks, top of M&E or lift core, and
BMU tracks, etc;
b Vehicular driveway greenery;
c Outdoor Refreshment Areas (ORAs);
d Key circulation for the building, e.g. access stairs, ramps, and
covered walkway, etc.

9 Exemption The URA will exercise flexibility on the above requirements when
evaluating individual developments affected by specific constraints
(e.g. developments with conserved buildings, party wall
developments, developments subject to specific urban design
requirements and developments with storey height constraint of four-
storeys and below).

10 Maintenance Building owners should retain the required LRAs.

Consideration should be given to the choice of plant species, relative

to the level of sunlight and maintenance required. Irrigation and
maintenance systems should be well designed upfront to ensure the
safety of the maintenance personnel, and to allow for easy
maintenance

Please refer to the following for more information :

- Concise Guides to Safe Practices on Rooftop Greenery and
Vertical greenery (2013), NParks
- CS E11:2014 - Guidelines on Design for Safety of Skyrise
Greenery (2014), NParks
- CS E07 : 2012 - Guidelines on General Maintenance for
Rooftop Greenery (2012)

Building owners should consider adopting water efficient strategies in

their design. Please refer to PUB’s Water Efficient Building Design
Guide Book for more information.

11 Ownership The LRAs will form part of the common property for strata subdivided
developments. LRAs for hotels within mixed-use developments,
 however, may be attributed to the hotel strata should they be
contiguous to other hotel uses and be adequately segregated from
other uses.

12 Alterations to URA’s approval is required if there are changes to the softscape areas
the required (e.g. planting and structure of the planting beds) and hardscape areas
Landscape that result in an overall reduction in area for the required LRAs.
Replacement
Areas URA’s approval is not required for changes to the planting species as
long as the softscape and Green Plot Ratio requirements are
complied with.

13 Submission  Declaration of the overall Landscape Replacement Areas,

requirements softscape areas and Green Plot Ratio for the entire development
 Overall Green Plot Ratio computation (see Appendix 1-1 for
template)
 Layout of the softscape and hardscape areas, clearly indicating all
items that cannot be counted as Landscape Replacement Area,
e.g. structure, key circulation, etc.
 Landscape Plans showing the proposed schedule of plant species
and paving materials, as well as the layout of plant species at the
softscape/ green walls/ green roofs. For vertical greenery/
extensive green roofs, the plans should also show the proposed
system
 Annotations in the landscape plans to show the proposed planting
species and paving materials corresponding to the schedule, and
the proposed uses e.g. Swimming Pool, BBQ Area, etc.;
 Sections showing the depth of all the proposed planting
beds/vertical greenery for Landscape Replacement Areas
 Annotation of the 45-degree line, where relevant
 Relevant perspectives showing the proposed plant species, as-
built outcome and spatial quality
 Short statement on the proposed maintenance and irrigation
methods for the planting.

See Appendix 1-2 for example of landscape plans and information

required.

Please label and package the landscape plans and sections

separately from the rest of the plans. Please also place the softscape
and hardscape areas into separate AutoCAD layers in the landscape
plan.

14 Clearance URA’s Clearance of the completed Landscape Replacement Areas

process and provided by developments within Strategic Areas is required before
requirements the Commissioner of Building Control issues the Temporary
Occupation Permit (TOP), or Certificate of Statutory Completion
(CSC) (when TOP is not required).
In your submission, please include accurately labelled photographs
(in pdf file format) showing the completed Landscape Replacement
Areas. URA will evaluate the photographs submitted and, if
necessary, arrange for a site inspection before issuing the Clearance
for the completed works.

Applicants are also required to declare upfront to the Commissioner

of Building Control at the point of application for TOP or CSC (when
TOP is not required), that URA’s Clearance is required for Landscape
Replacement Areas before issuance of TOP, or CSC (when TOP is
not required).
 APPENDIX 1-1

TEMPLATE FOR OVERALL GREEN PLOT RATIO COMPUTATION

DECLARATION OF GREEN PLOT RATIO

Category Unit Sub-category LAI Value Canopy Qty/Planted area LEAF Area
Area/m2
(A) (B) (C) (A)x(B)x(C)
Trees no Open Canopy 2.5 60 No.
no Intermediate Canopy 3.0 60 No.
no Dense Canopy 4.0 60 No.
no Intermediate columnar 3.0 12 No.
canopy
Trees m2 Planted at ≤ 2.0m trunk (as above) NA m2
to trunk
Palms no Solitary 2.5 20 No.
no Cluster 4.0 17 No.
Palms m2 Solitary(trunk to trunk 2.5 NA m2
≤2m)
Shrubs m2 Monocot 3.5 NA m2
m2 Dicot 4.5 NA m2
Turf m2 Turf 2.0 NA m2
Vertical m2 2.0 NA m2
greenery
(X) Total Leaf Area (m2)
(Y) Site Area
(X / Y) Green Plot Ratio
 APPENDIX 1-2

EXAMPLE OF LANDSCAPE PLAN AND INFORMATION REQUIRED

(In this simulated example, the development provided Landscape Replacement Areas on the 1 st, 5th and 15th Storeys. The plans below are the sample landscape plans
for the 5th storey landscape replacement area.)
 APPENDIX 2

LANDSCAPE REPLACEMENT REQUIREMENTS FOR NON-LANDED PRIVATE

RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL/MIXED-USE/HOTEL DEVELOPMENTS
OUTSIDE STRATEGIC AREAS

No. Parameter Details

1 Definition Landscape Replacement Areas (LRAs) for developments outside

Strategic Areas comprise horizontal landscaped areas (softscape
only) provided on the first storey or upper levels of the development,
and vertical greenery.

2 Green Plot GnPR is computed using the following formula:

Ratio (GnPR)
Total leaf area of greenery counted as Landscape Replacement
GnPR = (softscape)
Total site area of development

All Leaf Area from softscape areas within the development can be
counted towards the GnPR computation.

Total Leaf Area is computed based on the Leaf Area Index for each
species, canopy area (for trees and palms) and the quantity planted.
The plant species sub-categories and LAI values can be obtained
online from NParks’ Flora Fauna Web
(http://florafaunaweb.nparks.gov.sg) by searching the common or
scientific names of plants.

Table 1 provides a template for computing the overall development

GnPR. This table should be filled in and submitted together with the
landscape plans.

Table 1: Green Plot Ratio computation template

No. Parameter Details

3 Computation Developments are required to provide LRAs in accordance to the

requirements GPR and development type. LRAs provided must also meet the
minimum Green Plot Ratio standards. Details are shown in the
tables below:

Table 2: Non-Landed Private Residential Developments

GPR ≤ 1.4 1.4 < GPR < 2.8 GPR ≥ 2.8
Minimum
overall
greenery 30 35 40
provision
(as % of site area)
Sub-control
on minimum
on-ground 20 30 35
greenery
provision
(as % of site area)
Minimum
Green Plot
Ratio 3 3.5 4
(total leaf area
divided by Site
Area)

Table 3: Commercial/Mixed-Use/Hotel Developments

GPR ≤ 1.4 1.4 < GPR < 2.8 GPR ≥ 2.8
Minimum
overall
greenery 30 35 40
provision
(as % of site
area)
Minimum
Green Plot
Ratio 3 3.5 4
(total leaf area
divided by Site
Area)

The computation of the LRAs is determined by:

 Horizontal surface area of the softscape (i.e. permanent
planting areas, including extensive green roofs)
 Vertical surface area of green walls (if any).

Horizontal landscaped areas computed as part of the LRAs within

developments should be:

a) Unenclosed and exposed to the sky; or

 No. Parameter Details

b) If covered, to be open sided, naturally ventilated and qualify for

GFA exemption under the LUSH guidelines for Communal
Planter Boxes, Sky Terraces and Covered Communal Ground
Gardens.

As a guide, vertical greenery and/or extensive green roofs can make

up to 10% of the overall Landscape Replacement requirements (as
a percentage of site area). Requests to use vertical greenery and/or
extensive green roofs for more than 10% of the Landscape
Replacement requirements can be considered based on the merits
of the proposal.

For non-landed private residential developments, developers must

meet the minimum ground greening requirement before providing
vertical greenery/extensive green roofs as landscape replacement.

4 Performance All LRAs should meet the following performance requirements:

requirements
 Designed with safety in mind (e.g. consider wind/structural
loading issues associated with upper storey landscape areas)
and easily maintained (e.g. with irrigation and maintenance
systems); and

 Well-designed, lushly-landscaped and integrated with the

overall form and architectural treatment of the building.

 Vertical greenery should be publicly visible, e.g. placed at external

building façade fronting key pedestrian thoroughfares and/or main
roads, and at major public spaces, plazas and main entrance areas.
URA may impose additional urban design requirements for vertical
greenery for sites in Urban Design areas e.g. Central Area and Key
Growth areas.

Extensive green roofs should be of a substantial size and have

sufficient density of planting, to contribute to green cover and
support biodiversity. Such roofs need not be made accessible to the
public and/or building users but maintenance access is to be
provided for such roofs. Please note that horizontal trellis-based
greenery will not qualify as green roofs.

Other than the extensive green roofs, the public and/or building
users should be able to access all communal landscape areas easily
during the normal opening hours of the development12.

12
For example, the communal landscaped areas in a shopping mall should be open and accessible to the public during the
mall’s normal operating hours. Similarly, the communal landscaped areas in an office development should be accessible to
the larger office community and not limited to users of one specific office premises.
No. Parameter Details

5 Softscape Planting should be incorporated on permanent and sunken planting

requirements beds to enhance the spatial and visual quality of the green spaces.
The sunken planting beds should have sufficient soil depth to
accommodate plants and landscaping.* Plantings should be
appropriately spaced to accommodate growth.

Requirements for the horizontal softscape areas:

 As a guide, a minimum soil depth of 1000mm should be provided

for trees and palms, 500mm for shrubs and climbers, and
300mm for ground covers;

 A combination of trees, palms, shrubs, ground covers and

creepers is required.

 Potted plants will not be counted as part of the softscape area

as they can be easily removed.

*As an alternative to providing sunken planting beds, building

owners can provide well-landscaped, lowraised planting beds at
300mm high, planted with trees or shrubs (i.e. no turfing allowed).
This facilitates compliance with FSSD’s fire safety requirements on
habitable space.

6 Areas to be The following areas will not be considered as part of the required
excluded LRAs:
from
Landscape  All service facilities, e.g. vehicular drop-offs and drive ways,
Replacement vehicular ramps, surface car parks, top of M&E or lift core, and
Areas BMU tracks, etc;
 Vehicular driveway greenery;
 Outdoor Refreshment Areas (ORAs);
 Key circulation for the building, e.g. access stairs, ramps, and
covered walkway, etc.

7 Planting To ensure appropriate plant selection and placement, designers are

references strongly encouraged to decide on planting and landscape design in
and consultation with an Accredited Landscape Architect or Certified
landscaping Practising Horticulturalist.
design
The suitability of the vertical greenery and extensive green roof
system used (e.g. in terms of weight, growing media, availability of
light, resilience to weather elements) should also be taken into
consideration.**
No. Parameter Details

Please refer to the following publications for more detailed planting

references:

a) 1001 Garden plants in Singapore (2nd edition)(2006), NParks

b) CS E09:2012 - Guidelines on planting of trees, palms and tall
shrubs on rooftop (2012), NParks
c) A Selection of Plants for Green Roofs in Singapore 2nd Edition
(2008), NParks
d) Trees of our Garden City, 2nd edition (2009), NParks
e) Concise Guides to Safe Practices on Rooftop Greenery and
Vertical greenery (2013), NParks
f) CS E12:2016 - Design Guides To Promote Biodiversity On Roof
Gardens (2017), NParks(for biodiversity-friendly inaccessible
green roofs)

**For vertical green proposing support systems, planter boxes of

minimum 500mm depth are encouraged to be provided at every
storey for dense plant growth.

8 Exemption The URA will exercise flexibility on the above requirements when
evaluating individual developments affected by specific constraints
(e.g. developments with conserved buildings, party wall
developments, developments subject to specific urban design
requirements, and developments with storey height constraint of 4-
storeys and below). In addition, conserved buildings in historic
districts will be exempted from the above requirements.

9 Maintenance Building owners should retain the required LRAs.

and safety
Consideration should be given to the choice of plant species,
relative to the level of sunlight and maintenance required. Irrigation
and maintenance systems should be well designed upfront to
ensure the safety of the maintenance personnel, and to allow for
easy maintenance.

Please refer to the following for more information :

 Concise Guides to Safe Practices on Rooftop Greenery and
Vertical greenery (2013), NParks
 CS E11:2014 - Guidelines on Design for Safety of Skyrise
Greenery (2014), NParks
 CS E07 : 2012 - Guidelines on General Maintenance for
Rooftop Greenery (2012)

Building owners should consider adopting water efficient strategies

in their design. Please refer to PUB’s Water Efficient Building Design
Guide Book for more information.
No. Parameter Details

10 Ownership The LRAs will form part of the common property for strata
subdivided developments. LRAs for hotels within mixed-use
developments, however, may be attributed to the hotel strata should
they be contiguous to other hotel uses and be adequately
segregated from other uses.

11 Alterations to URA’s approval is required if there is a reduction in the softscape

the required areas (e.g. planting and structure of the planting beds).
Landscape
Replacement URA’s approval is not required for changes to the planting species
Areas as long as the softscape area and GnPR requirements are complied
with.

12 Submission  Declaration of the overall Landscape Replacement Areas and

requirements Green Plot Ratio for the entire development
 Overall Green Plot Ratio computation
 Landscape Plans showing proposed planting palette, as well as
the layout of planting species at landscape areas, green walls
and extensive green roofs. For vertical greenery/ extensive green
roofs, the plans should show the proposed system
 Annotations in the landscape plans to show the proposed
planting species
 Sections showing the depth of all the proposed planting
beds/vertical greenery for Landscape Replacement Areas
 Annotation of the 45-degree line, where relevant
 Relevant perspectives showing the proposed plant species, as-
built outcome and spatial quality
 Short statement on the proposed maintenance and irrigation
methods for the planting.

See Appendix 2-1 for example of landscape plan and information

required.
 APPENDIX 2-1
EXAMPLE OF LANDSCAPE PLANS AND INFORMATION REQUIRED