Feds step in to speed up Guam water well decontamination

By Pacific Island Times News Staff

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is mobilizing federal resources to assist Guam in addressing dieldrin contamination in Yigo, the governor's office announced today.

The USEPA has confirmed that funding, technical expertise and compliance support are being made available to accelerate the cleanup and restoration of safe drinking water for affected families.

Mike Martucci, regional administrator, said Guam EPA and Guam Waterworks Authority are eligible for the purchase of point of use and/or point of entry treatment units for residences, as well as treatment units at the well head.

In a letter to Lt. Gov. Joshua Tenorio, Martucci said GWA may use EPA’s emerging contaminant grant funding, which is available now to cover

construction or installation of residential and well treatment units.

"EPA is also working with GWA to finance the permanent treatment solution for well Y-15, including exploring options to accelerate its scheduled construction," the EPA official said.

He added that the EPA team is providing technical and compliance assistance to Guam EPA on the implementation of Guam’s dieldrin Interim Action Level rule implementation, confirmatory monitoring and protocols for lifting the do-not-drink advisory.

"EPA is ready to assist Guam EPA to ensure that we do everything possible to

restore Guam’s drinking water as quickly as possible," Martucci said.

“EPA’s partnership is critical in our effort to protect public health,” Lt. Gov. Joshua Tenorio said. “With their technical guidance and access to federal funding, we can take swift and coordinated action to ensure families in Yigo and across our island have access to safe drinking water.”

Last week, GWA issued a do-not-drink notice to more than 1,100 Yigo residents living in the Santa Rosa area.

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