DEQ director Castro wins EPA Environmental Award

Division of Environmental Quality director John I. Castro will receive the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Environmental Award for 2005 and has been invited to attend the awarding ceremonies on April 21 in California.

Castro said he is honored that the CNMI is again fortunate to receive such recognition from EPA Region IX. He said he was surprised to receive a letter from EPA inviting him to the ceremony.

Gov. Juan N. Babauta announced Castro’s selection for the award to guests and DEQ employees during the proclamation signing for the 22nd Environmental Awareness Week, which will take place from April 17 to 23.

Babauta said the weeklong event would promote public awareness and encourage the community to play a vital role in the protection of the environment. He commended Castro’s leadership and his team for a job well done.

Castro, who also spoke in Chamorro yesterday, said he not only encourages people to preserve the environment but also to preserve the native language of the CNMI. He said this is part of preserving the local culture.

Lt. Gov. Diego Benavente, Saipan Mayor Juan B. Tudela, Rep. Joe Guerrero, Department of Public Safety commissioner Santiago Tudela, and officials from other environmental government agencies witnessed the proclamation signing.

The governor proclaimed April 17- to 23 as Environmental Awareness Week and April 22 as CNMI Earth Day. He encouraged everyone to take an active interest in the environment by participating in all activities promoting a healthy, clean and beautiful Commonwealth.

Committee chair Juliana Dela Rosa said that activities for the week include the Environmental Expo, which would be held at the Chamolinian Cultural Village on April 18, from 8am to 12 noon, and again at the Garapan Street Market on April 21, from 6pm to 9pm.

Clean-up Marianas Day, an islandwide cleanup drive, will be held on April 23. The cleanup will start at 7am on all nine routes around the island, said Dela Rosa.

The Saipan Lagoon Cleanup will be on April 21, while the Scuba Dive Cleanup will be on April 22. The Scuba Dive Cleanup would focus on all dive sites along the Civic Center in Susupe.

The event’s theme for this year is “Our environment, our health, our future.”

For more information on the Environmental Awareness Week, contact the DEQ office at 664-8500 or 664-8501.