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FEMA considers reverse osmosis project for CUC
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has proposed to the Commonwealth Utilities Corp. to consider looking into a reverse osmosis drinking water project.
CUC executive director Gary P. Camacho said this came up during a previous meeting between CUC senior managers and FEMA local and Washington, D.C. officials.
Reverse osmosis is a water purification process to produce drinking water.
The project, Camacho said in his report to the CUC board, is being looked at as a way for FEMA to move away from a required response to the CNMI’s possible loss of water supply following an environmental disaster.
Camacho said every time there is a disaster in the CNMI, FEMA flies bottled drinking water. He said CUC believes that FEMA intends to eliminate this cost in future storms.
“What we are discussing is some sort of reverse osmosis that CUC could operate for drinking water in an event of a disaster on [the] islands,” he said.
Camacho said this project will not only eliminate that expense for FEMA but also that dependence on flight to bring in essential supplies.
