Landscaping of SMDS administrative area

Overall view of SMDS Administrative area (foreground with green roof).  In the background at left are the storage tanks of BCOT ( Bintulu Crude Oil Terminal) and on the right of the picture at the top is partly seen the MLNG Sdn Bhd Office Complex (white buildings) and the LNG plant complex towards right of the picture.  Date taken 22 Dec'14

The Shell SMDS plant located at Bintulu is the first of its kind in the world to convert natural gas into synthetic oil products.  The products include high quality middle distillates such gasoil (diesel) and kerosene, as well as naptha, paraffins and wax.  To undertake this project in Bintulu, a joint-venture company was incorporated in 1989 with the equity structure as follow :- Shell Gas BV (60%), Mitsubishi Corporation (20%), Petronas (10%) and Sarawak State Government (10%).
In 1992 I was involved with the landscaping of the administrative area of the SMDS plant (see inset).  This job was one of the major landscaping works done by my company, Exxoplus Corporation Sdn Bhd. when it started operations in Bintulu in 1992.  I was fortunate to have met Mr. H W Van der Woerdt who was the Construction Manager for the SMDS plant in Bintulu then.  Pleased with my landscaping design proposal he later gave my company the job of actual planting the proposed design, besides just the design consultancy.  This job kept me busy for the first few months since I started the company.  Later in 1993, I did more landscaping jobs for the SMDS company especially in their housing area at Taman Matahari, Kidurong township.  Below are some views of the administrative area taken on 30th July,1992 while on a site visit to the area.

View of SMDS Administrative Area, taken on 30th July. 1992.

View of the landscaping works around the Administrative area, taken on 22nd December,2014

View of the proposed landscaping area, taken on 30.7.1992
The buildings in green roofing belongs to SMDS, while the buildings in red in the background belongs to MLNG Sdn Bhd.

View of the planting, according to design proposal.
Image taken on 22 December,2014.

View of entrance to SMDS plant and office site.  The SMDS car parking area is at right.

Photo taken on 28 July'92 while on site visit to the proposed area for landscaping.

View of entrance to SMDS office and plant site  today, 28 January,2015.

( Note: The above story is a re-posting from my blog 'Images of Bintulu Before and Now' and the link is here.)

Once there was a nursery

Planting works with materials from Green Acres nursery, for one of the many MLNG houses at Kidurong township

Green Acres Nursery logo

In 1992, I set up a nursery business as one of the many ventures upon joining the private sector.  The nursery business was run as a firm.  It was to provide all the planting materials for landscaping jobs undertaken by another company of mine.  Throughout the 1990's landscaping was a worthwhile business to go into because of the increasing number of residential houses built to meet the rising demand when more people began to work and stay in  Bintulu as a result of the first boom period (1979-1983).  Demand for landscaping jobs grew also from the corporate sectors and government organisations.   The demand increased further during the second economic boom 1998 - 2000.  To meet increased demand I decided to move the nursery from its small site in town to a new location about 22km away from town along the Bintulu-Tatau road.  The nursery was instrumental in developing an eco-farm and finally a nature park on the same site but with expanded acreage.  If not for the nursery my dream of having a nature park would not have been realised easily.  To see more happenings today at the nature park, please go here .

Happy Malaysia Day, Sarawak!!


(Note:  On the 16th of September, Sarawak will celebrate its independence being a party to the formation of Malaysia.  As part of remembering history I'll create some posts on what  it means to be a Malaysian as I have experienced it.  Check out the rest of the postings by following this link here.)

Planting project for expatriate housing at Sanctuary Villa housing, near Park City, Bintulu.

Landscape planting for Sekolah Agama Assyakiriin, Bintulu.

( Note: The story above is a re-posting from My Sarawak (2nd Ed.) and the link is here .)

Once there was a course

Combo pix showing the Bintulu Golf Course (2nd nine - Hole 10 - 18)
Picture shows the course in various stages of completion.  The 2nd nine course faces the South China Sea

BDA worker mowing the green at Hole 14 - 1988

1988 was a most trying year for me.  I was steeped into the landscaping of the greens, tee boxes, fairways, slopes, bunkers and general landscaping of the Bintulu golf course.  It was my first experience in doing the landscaping and maintenance of a golf course.  There were many visits made to Singapore and various  courses in Malaysia to understand the practical details of landscaping and maintaining  a golf course.  There were staff to be employed and specifications for procurement of  equipments and course maintenance to be written down in technical details for contractual documentation.  The course was to start with the 2nd nine or back nine, i.e. holes 10 -18 and to be opened for play in 1989.  I have shared many stories about the early beginnings of the course as in here and more here.  There were tons of pleasure and joy in doing the job even though it was most taxing in terms of new learning, time schedule and organisational capability.  On reflection I was  indeed blessed with a very supportive team of bosses and subordinates in carrying my responsibilities.  Memories are made of them.  Not many people however knew that we also built a  golf green for our  boss house in Kidurong Residential area in 1986 (see bottom picture).  It was  the only house in Bintulu to have a proper practice green.  At the end of the day I found that doing the course was one of the best adventures of my life.

Happy Malaysia Day, Sarawak!!

   (Note:  On the 16th of September, Sarawak will celebrate its independence being a party to the formation of Malaysia.  As part of remembering history I'll create some posts on what  it means to be a Malaysian as I have experienced it.  Check out the rest of the postings by following this link here.)

The picture above shows the golf club building.  In the background is Hole 10 tee box or start of play and at middle  of picture is the Hole 18 fairway and green, the last putting green for the 9-hole golf course.
Picture taken in 1989.

Hole 18 fairway - jungle clearing and burning in progress 
Date : 31 March,1986

Hole 18 fairway - turfing works completed to fairways, slopes and green 
Date : 4 February 1987.

BDA staff housing at the Kidurong Residential area showing our GM's house with the practice green (at center of picture)

( Note: The above story is a re-posting from my blog called My Sarawak (2nd Ed.) and the link is here.)

Once there was a flower

Pink Poui (Tabebuia rosea) along a major roadside in Bintulu.
Date: 13 May, 2012

Pink Poui and Olive-backed Sunbird

The Poui trees (Tabebuia rosea) are now a familiar tree in Bintulu.  Its magic is evidently seen by its crowning glory of large and bunchy pink and white flowers.  The first ever batch of these trees were planted along the Tanjong Batu scenic road.  Gradually over a period of 35 years the trees were planted on major roadsides in Bintulu.  I can write endless stories about these trees but suffice to say that it was from the Bintulu experience  that other town councils began to adopt these trees as landscape trees in their main towns and rural areas.  Not many people know that originally these trees came to Bintulu in an envelope.  The story is here. Over the years too I regularly blog about them.  The relevant blog postings can be accessed below:
1) http://myussop.blogspot.com/2009/09/september-pink-and-white-glory.html
2) http://mysarawak2.blogspot.com/2010/11/be-there-right-time-and-moment-in.html#comment-form
3) http://mybintuluclicks.blogspot.com/2014/04/flowering-pink-poui.html

It is from this tree that my association with Arthur George Alphonso was first nurtured and provided me with many learning experiences on landscaping matters based on his experiences in the greening of Singapore.  Just a couple of years ago I planted one Poui tree in my garden in Kuching.  I consider the Poui tree as an essential tree for the Kambatik garden or Malaysian garden.  Check out more of my gardening experiences on this tree in Kuching here.  

Happy Malaysia Day, Sarawak!

  (Note:  On the 16th of September, Sarawak will celebrate its independence being a party to the formation of Malaysia.  As part of remembering history I'll create some posts on what  it means to be a Malaysian as I have experienced it.  Check out the rest of the postings by following this link here.)

White Poui (Tabebuia alba)

Photo shows me (extreme left) and George Alphonso (middle in blue shirt) entertaining Japanese volunteers (JOCV) at Pantai Ria, Bintulu. Date taken : 26 October,1990.

( Note: This is a re-posting from my blog called My Sarawak (2nd. Ed) and the link is here .)

The Bintulu Golf Course - early beginnings

The view above was taken in 1988 when the course was partly open for play. In the background is seen clearing works for the first nine hole which is basically an inland route.

There is only one public golf course in Bintulu and is called the 'Bintulu Golf Course'. It exudes many scenic and attractive natural features that makes it a truly challenging and memorable course built to competition standards. It combines a links course ( back nine/second nine) and an inland course (front nine/first nine). I am in the mood to reminisce on my role in the development of the course in today's post.

I was one of those lucky guys in town to have practical experience in developing this modern and international standard course. However a caveat is in place. The course was the result of a dedicated team of officers who saw the challenge of a lifetime to build a course for a booming Bintulu township of the eighties. Financially the course was sponsored by the BDA ( Bintulu Development Authority) a local statutory agency tasked with the planning, development and maintenance of Bintulu as a new industrial city for Sarawak. When on board the team in 1986, I was responsible for the turfing of the second nine course, landscaping and daily course maintenance. As was considered feasible at that time, it was decided to construct the second nine first due to its easier working terrain and fantastic views of the South China Sea. Thus an area of about 75 acres was selectively cleared, bulldozed and reserved for fairways, tees and greens etc., to follow a detailed plan developed by one of the JOVC ( Japanese Overseas Volunteers Corporation) volunteers attached to BDA by the name of Fumiaki Izumida. I could well remember how we preserved whatever stands of the " Tongkat Ali " for posterity during the jungle clearing operations.

Before - intensive earthworks to Hole 12, with plenty of original vegetation preserved.

After - the turfing of fairways, slopes and greens done to Hole 12, with the South China Sea in the far background ( circa early 1988).

The Hole 18 green planted with Tiff Dwarf grass. Note the fairways in the far background are not yet planted .

I was totally in charge of the landscaping of the course which meant tree planting, turfing and its maintenance. For the greens I had to go to Sentosa Island Golf and Country Club in Singapore to bring in a half-kilo of Tifton Dwarf ( Tiff Dwarf) stolons ( scientific name : Cynodon dactylon and commonly known as Bermuda hybrid grass) which we propagated at our Sg. Plan Nursery and became the primal source of all the greens in the 9-hole course. For fairways and slopes the grass species used was Axonopus compressus or commonly referred to as 'Cow Grass' which was available locally in Bintulu and collected initially from Kampung Jepak village roads.

Bird's Eye View of the Clubhouse under construction with the Hole 18 Green fully turved in the background.

For a start I was responsible to develop specifications for the cutting of the turves and many other daily maintenance works ( hollow tining, fertilisation, weeds and pests control, top dressing etc.,) . However after about 6 months later, the job was contracted out and the practice of contracting out the maintenance of the course continued for many years later.

For the three full years of 1986-1988, my time was intensively engaged in one of the most memorable moments in my life as I had to learn fast on various subjects relating to golf course design and maintenance. All the tough work remains one of the adventurous chapters of my life. The course was officially opened for play in 1989 and having given some meaningful service to the Club, I was bestowed a " Life Member " of the Bintulu Golf Club. Now, 20 years later it surprises me why nobody or any other parties aren't scratching their heads to build another golf course for Bintulu.

( Note: This story is a re-posting from my blog My Sarawak (2nd Ed.) and the link is here. )

Once upon a tree

Bintulu in the late 50's -60's - with the airfield at left, town in centre and the Kemena River at right.

The historical Mango Tree, 2007

Prior to Sarawak forming the federal structure called Malaysia in 1963, Bintulu was in the backwaters of the nation's development.  Its fortunes turned better beginning late 1970's with the development of oil and gas complexes at Tanjung Kidurong, heralding the first economic boom for the sleepy town and fishing village.  I have tracked the history of a Mango tree (Magnifera indica, see inset) as part of my interest in studying the impact of urban change and planning of this historical town which was the venue of the first Council Negeri meeting during the Brooke era in 1867.  To the best of my knowledge, it was planted just prior to the independence of Sarawak within Malaysia.  The tree is of historical significance in the sense that it has survived the onslaught of urbanisation starting the first boom till now which is in the fourth boom period.

Pic taken on 8th November, 2010

Pic taken on 14 July 2012

This tree is as old as Malaysia that is 50 years on the 16th September 2013.  It is still standing today and I am anxiously counting the days when the local authority and planning body (Bintulu Development Authority) will allow some developers or contractors to cut it down.  So far, during the last 5 years since I started to blog about this tree, it has survived the blades of development.

Further browsing:
1) http://mybintuluhistory.blogspot.com/2007/07/stand-alone-mango-tree.html
2) http://mybintuluclicks.blogspot.com/2009/06/mango-tree.html

A glimpse of Bintulu public garden in 1961

( Note: The above pix is taken from the 1961 Bintulu Centenary Celebrations souvenier programme book, pg.50)

In the very early 1960's I used to frequent the only public garden in Bintulu at that time.  It was situated at Somerville Road as shown in the picture above.  As a young kid I used to pass the garden everyday on the way to school.  In the afternoon after school hours me and my friends from nearby kampungs played football at the open spaces next to the garden.  There is an interesting Singapore connection regarding the garden and how in later years I was involved in the landscaping of Bintulu with the introduction of the Tabebuia rosea trees to Bintulu using the Singapore connection.  The full story is  here.