CUC Executive Director Abe Utu Malae said customers may apply for free connection to the sewer line.
In the past, he said, anyone living within 200 feet of a new sewer line was required by CUC regulation to connect at their own expense within three years of the completion of the new sewer line.
The sewer connection costs CUC $2,000 to $10,000, but this time customers will not be charged, Malae said.
“CUC recognizes that this cost has been a significant barrier to obtaining new customers, as well as protecting the CNMI’s water resources and public health. CUC also recognizes that times are very hard for most of its customers, who simply cannot afford to pay for such services,” he said.
Cmdr. Kenneth Esplin, U.S. public health officer water and waste water associate engineer, said CUC has already closed the bid for the project.
He said CUC was able to secure $350,000 from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to fund it.
Esplin said a customer has to submit an application to CUC to connect to the sewer line and sign an agreement allowing the contractor to perform the connection.
The program is available anywhere on island as long as the septic tank is located within the permitted range of distance from the main sewer line, he said.
“A lot of people have failed septic systems that might not be working properly and these will contaminate the groundwater table,” he added.
Not only residential houses but even commercial and business establishments can apply for the sewer connection, he said.
Malae said the recently completed W-8 Lift Station project plays a very important role in the sewer connection program.
“Overall, this first test of the program was a success, and CUC was able to connect nearly every customer along the new sewer alignment,” he added.
CUC will be commencing an island-wide version of this grant-funded customer connection program within the next few weeks, applying the experience and lessons learned during the W-8 project to ensure even further success, he said.
