Singapore grew its territory by a quarter by importing sand

Since independence in 1965, Singapore has expanded its land area by roughly 25% by pumping in sand and rock to reclaim land from the sea. The demand made it one of the world's largest sand importers, straining regional supplies so much that Indonesia banned sand exports to Singapore in 2007. Entire new districts, and even Changi Airport, sit on reclaimed ground.

— Vince Beiser, The World in a Grain: The Story of Sand and How It Transformed Civilization — Riverhead Books, 2018
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