CUC shuts down three water wells

Three more water wells have been shut down for good by the Commonwealth Utilities Corporation in the past three months due to deterioration and possible health risks to residents.

These wells are located in Koblerville, Kagman and Sadog Tasi which were decommissioned as part of the quarterly plan to close down salty groundwater source.

The World Health Organization has also warned against their failure to meet standards for conductivity and chloride levels as some Saipan wells have exceeded the allowable limit, according to utility officials.

The government-owned utility firm has blamed the problem to the drought triggered by El Nino, a worldwide weather phenomenon that brought little rain and lengthened dry season in areas across the Pacific.

CUC Executive Director Timothy P. Villagomez said in his report that some of Saipan’s water lenses have thinned and saltwater infiltrated several of the production wells.

The island’s water distribution system solely relies on water wells and catchment basins. A proposed desalination facility aimed at addressing shortages in central Saipan was scrapped last week by CUC due to funding problem.

At least 132 wells pump millions of gallons of water each day for residents across the island, but some are at risk of drawing salty water due to the absence of enough rain in the last few months.

The island experienced an average of 39.8 inches of rain for the whole of 1998, less than half the normal level, according to records of the U.S. Geological Survey which maintains at least nine monitoring stations across the Northern Marianas.

Due to the low rainfall, water sources have been drained, particularly those wells and catchment tanks that provide most of the supply to residential and commercial users.

Pamela Mathis, chief information officer of CUC, said they would step up conservation campaign in the community, including leak detection to prevent waste among its customers.

Utility officials are also trying to claim about $2 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency in grants as a result of the damage wrought by the long dry spell last year.

The federal funds are expected to finance water drilling program to find other sources of spring water in the CNMI as well as to improve the existing system.