The Division of Environmental Quality expects the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to render assistance in the cleanup of Saipan\u2019s groundwater, according to DEQ Deputy Director Antonio I. DeLeon Guerrero.<\/p>\n
DeLeon Guerrero was attending the CNMI\u2019s 1st Environmental Symposium that kicked off yesterday morning at the Saipan Diamond Hotel, as part of the activities for Environmental Awareness Month.<\/p>\n
Also at the symposium yesterday afternoon, DEQ\u2019s Safe Drinking Water Branch manager Joe Kaipat \u2013 aided by a Saipan Tribune article on water contamination \u2013 presented the issue to local and federal delegates.<\/p>\n
DEQ public information officer Rebecca Snider said Kaipat\u2019s presentation on groundwater contamination reversed the somewhat sleepy mood at the Diamond Hall, apparently causing serious concern.<\/p>\n
The Saipan Tribune previously reported that several water wells in at least four villages on Saipan \u2013 San Antonio, As Lito, Lower Base and Puerto Rico \u2013 have been drawing water from aquifers contaminated with volatile organic compounds (VOCs) exceeding the maximum contaminant levels allowed for human consumption.<\/p>\n
Also, several wells located in Tanapag, Marpi, Lower Base and Puerto Rico contain high levels of thallium, a metal that can be fatal to humans if ingested.<\/p>\n
Kaipat disclosed the data gathered by the EPA when it conducted sampling tests on 160 wells on Saipan, which included a list of VOCs and metals less than the respective Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL).<\/p>\n
Guerrero said that, although there is no definite time frame yet as to when Saipan\u2019s groundwater cleanup would be made, he expects the EPA to come up with a plan on this.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn writing, responding to our letter, not yet \u2013 we have not yet received that. But we\u2019re optimistic,\u201d Guerrero said. \u201cThe quicker we start with it, the better for us. It\u2019s all in the talks now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Among the assistance being sought by the DEQ from its federal counterpart are technical expertise, financial aid and personnel support.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Division of Environmental Quality expects the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to render assistance in the cleanup of Saipan\u2019s groundwater, according to DEQ Deputy Director Antonio I. DeLeon Guerrero.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-63319","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-local-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63319","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63319"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63319\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63319"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63319"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63319"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}