By Emmanuel T. Erediano
Variety News Staff

THE Emergency Management Office says it has a system that monitors volcanoes in the Northern Islands.
Juan T. Camacho, EMOs’ geophysical and seismic technician, was asked by this reporter to comment on the House resolution urging Gov. Benigno R. Fitial to act immediately on the memorandum of understanding between the CNMI and the U.S. Geological Survey on volcano monitoring.
Camacho said that they have seismographs on Anatahan and Sarigan .
The seismographs, he said, send signals to EMO through a radio powered by a marine battery and solar panels.
This allows them to continuously observe the volcano on Anatahan that erupted a couple of years ago, Camacho said..
EMO, he added, is also observing the volcano on Pagan after it showed signs of activity a few weeks ago.
Camacho said EMO is able to observe the volcanoes in the Northern Islands with the assistance of the National Weather Station based on Guam, and USGS observatories in Washington state and Hawaii.
He said they receive information through an Internet program called “Earthworm.”
But Camacho said EMO is also waiting for the signing of the MOU between the CNMI and USGS.
The MOU, if signed, will establish a foundation for official cooperation on the mitigation of geologic hazards and on improved understanding of the geology of the Mariana islands.
According to the author of the House resolution, Rep. Roman A. Tebuteb, R-Saipan, the administration has yet to respond to the USGS which submitted the draft MOU last year.
He said this has delayed the creation of the Mariana Islands Volcano Observatory.