Feds decline alternative site for endangered birds

CNMI officials have offered one of the Northern Islands as mitigation site for endangered bird species at risk of being displaced by the Marpi landfill in order to expedite the project, according to Lt. Gov. Jesus R. Sablan.

But he claimed the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Division had turned down the proposal and refused to grant permit to the island government — a move which has further delayed the construction of the landfill and closure of the Puerto Rico dump site.

“Maybe that’s the reason. We want to give them the other 14 islands to select but they decided not to select those islands,” he told reporters in an interview yesterday.

Sablan, who heads the Solid Waste Task Force created last year by the governor, said that wildlife found in the islands north of Saipan, such as Pagan and Anatahan, are under the protection of the federal agency, citing habitats in those areas are suitable for the bird species living near the Marpi landfill site.

He, however, expressed optimism to seek solution to the issue with the Fish and Wildlife Division as soon as possible to get the project off the ground. “I hope that roadblock will be resolved,” he added.

Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio last week said that the CNMI needs a 200-hectare mitigation site for the endangered species to satisfy the federal requirements so that the local government can close down the existing dumping ground and begin work on the new site.

He also believed that with the unresolved issues surrounding the project, the health of the people is facing greater risks without the immediate closure of the Puerto Rico site.

According to Sablan, the government will still continue to allot the lands for the wildlife protection, but “not necessarily in Marpi.” He added that the project will begin “as soon as the permit is granted to us.”

Harding Lawson Associates, the Hawaii-based consultancy firm, was hired last June to carry out the design of the Marpi landfill and develop an island-wide solid waste management plan.

Since meeting federal regulations and design process will take about six months — with the deadline next month — plus nine to 10 months of actual construction, the new landfill is anticipated to open by October 2000.

While the task force has yet to determine actual costs of the entire plan, the federal government and the Legislature have already set aside $16 million for the closure of the existing dump site and the construction of the landfill.