Stop the planned Marpi homestead!

I’ve been off-island for 10 weeks. By far the most calamitous event that has taken place during that period—and indeed, as I’ve discovered on my return, is ongoing—is the total destruction of a huge hillside of what had been scenic, unspoiled, environmentally productive Marpi land near Suicide Cliff. That area has long been considered the last piece of natural rural countryside on Saipan—to be treasured and protected as haven and native habitat for local species, as well as for its tranquil beauty—offering a welcome contrast to the jumble and busyness of developed island areas.

The land is allegedly being cleared to rid it of unexploded ordinance, so the rules affecting the Environmental Protection Agency’s “Brownfield” program apply. With no cows that I know of having lost their lives due to unexploded ordinance in that area, one wonders in the first place how and why that particular piece of land was chosen for Brownfield clearing—and why now?

Under EPA rules, Brownfield-cleared areas are to be returned to their former natural state once the clearing has been done, but here, the intent appears to be that once the clearing is complete, the area will be used for homesteads. Wasn’t the homestead program supposed to be suspended until the whole idea could be re-evaluated?

One asks again, why this area, so visible to every tourist visiting Suicide Cliff? Can anyone point to a homestead area on Saipan that is not at least a partial eyesore? Why is the CNMI deliberately creating another one in so conspicuous a spot?

There is no power nearby. There is no water. There are no sewer lines. In fact, the biological assessment report for the area reveals that of the four “soil map units” identified on the project site, three indicate that “available water capacity is low,” and that the “soil unit is unsuitable,” “poorly suited” or “only moderately suited for home site development.” Moreover, in two of the four map units, the assessment reveals that “the underlying limestone does not properly filter the effluent from septic tank absorption fields.”

Particularly in light of these problems, where is the money to come from to provide the necessary homestead infrastructure? What hardships will homesteaders be subjected to, having to live at such a distance from stores, schools, government offices, all the amenities? How soon before auto repair shops, laundries, mom-and-pop stores clutter the landscape in addition to the incomplete and deserted homestead sites the homesteads breed?

And what effect will all the additional traffic from school buses, garbage pickup trucks, water delivery trucks—not to mention the commuters—have on the roads, on the ambience, on the tourists, on the many people who now use the Marpi area as it was intended: for enjoyment, for recreation, for peace and quiet?

The powers that be need to put a stop to this project at once! It is a shameful embarrassment of poor planning, poor policy, poor practice that serves no one, but rather hurts us all.