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Monday, May 19, 2025 4:23:29 PM

Tanapag cemetery to be expanded

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Posted on May 02 2005
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Over 8,000 square meters of public land has been designated to the government for the expansion of the Tanapag graveyard to solve the overcrowding at Chalan Kanoa cemetery.

The Marianas Public Lands Authority turned over the land to the government upon the request of Gov. Juan N. Babauta and Bishop Tomas A. Camacho, who had raised concerns about the overcrowding at Chalan Kanoa.

The 8,099-sq.m. land parcel, located adjacent to the Tanapag cemetery, would expand the graveyard to accommodate burials from other villages when Chalan Kanoa cemetery reaches its maximum capacity.

The existing cemetery has a total area of 19,183 sq.m.

In a letter to MPLA chair Ana Demapan-Castro, Bishop Camacho recalled that he had been calling the government’s attention to the overcrowding at Chalan Kanoa cemetery as far back as 1991. Former governor Larry Guerrero was in office at that time.

He noted that MPLA recently designated a land parcel in Marpi for the purpose of constructing a cemetery, but the plan did not work out.

“At present, it seems that we are back to square one,” Camacho said.

He maintained that the newly designated Tanapag land was “not as big as we would like,” but it would serve the pressing need for a public cemetery.

The bishop also cited other advantages in using the Tanapag land. “Since there is an existing cemetery right next to it, it seems there is no need to get [Coastal Resources Management] approval. At the same time, the area is sandy that can easily be excavated without the use of machines,” he said.

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