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CUC working with FEMA on mitigation projects
Aside from restoring power on Saipan following Typhoon Soudelor, the Commonwealth Utilities Corp. is also planning on doing some mitigation projects to avoid major blows to CNMI utilities during disasters.
According to acting executive director John Riegel, they are working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency with regards to these projects.
“We’re working with FEMA on identifying several mitigation projects,” Riegel said in an interview.
One of the projects that they are looking at is utilizing the area where Power Plant 3 used to be.
“We’re not going to turn it into a power plant. What that does, it lends itself nicely to a project where we can take that site and fit it with a temporary generator,” Riegel said.
The generator will then be used as a backup for water distribution.
“In the event of another storm, we’ll be able to go to that one site, energize that generator, and that would reach all the wells down in Isley Field, which is a major producer for our water system, so that we will be able to get more water into the system quicker,” Riegel said.
After Typhoon Soudelor hit, water service was cut off for the entire island after all power service was knocked out and there were no electricity to power the pumps. FEMA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers initially placed generators in various water wells to supply water.
Another project that they are looking at, which would be huge and would require a lot of money, is burying most of the feeders.
He said the first thing that they would need to do is develop the scope of work and submit a proposal to FEMA.
“We already have some preliminary plans, not for construction but for seeking grants to get funding,” Riegel said.
He noted that the wastewater treatment plant in Sadog Tasi also needs a new generator while the building of Power Plant 1 needs to be strengthened.
“The building in Power Plant 1 sustained a lot of damage. Another project would be to harden that building, make it more typhoon resistant,” Riegel said.
