Road cleared for solid waste transfer station

Remaining obstacles for the construction of the sanitary landfill and transfer station were finally resolved after the last of the three environmental permits was approved yesterday.

Lt. Gov. Jesus R. Sablan disclosed the Army Corps of Engineer 404 or Water Quality Permit was finally approved, which would allow the Department of Public Works to begin with the much-delayed landfill project in Marpi.

Mr. Sablan, who also heads the Solid Waste Task Force, signed the permit Monday, which now heads to Honolulu.

With the approval of the permit, DPW Solid Waste Director John Harder said the public works department can now proceed with the awarding of the Marpi sanitary landfill project and the Lower Base transfer station.

Mr. Harder said the transfer station will officially break ground early next month, while contract for the Marpi sanitary landfill project is scheduled to be awarded by late June.

“This is the final stage for the contract for the transfer project,” he said in an interview with reporters yesterday. Mr. Harder said the task force can now check the transfer station site located at the Lower Base for unexploded ordnance.

However, this is not considered as one of the major problem faced by the task force since the area is “very well used” and not much ordnance are expected to be located.

He added that the transfer station site which is 300 square feet of wet land will be backfilled to allow the immediate processing of actual construction.

Mr. Harder said the project is expected to be completed by next year.

Based on the Division of Solid Waste Management Status Report, submitted to Committee on Health and Welfare Chair Malua Peter, officials were compelled to revise original project schedule because of difficulties in obtaining the necessary resources and lack of functional budget.

“The biggest problem faced by the division is the lack of an operating budget,” the report assessed.

The report also noted that there was never a firm understanding of the fiscal and organizational requirements necessary to carry out the project within the original two-year time frame.

“CNMI will have a new solid waste facilities completed within a year without the management system in place to properly operate it,” said the report.

The task force has also recommended that the CNMI limit operations to the transfer station and the scale houses at both the transfer station and landfill, and recycling center if the facilities will be operated by private contractors.