HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — Sen. Chris Duenas is calling on the Guam Waterworks Authority to connect 2,000 households to the sewer system, stating that there is “absolutely no room for excuses” with more than $13 million in the utility’s system development charge account. However, according to GWA General Manager Miguel Bordallo, what Duenas stated isn’t true based on their reports.
“The information Sen. Duenas has issued appears to be incorrect and does not match GWA’s reporting to the (Consolidated Commission on Utilities). I am not certain where he is getting his information, although I was told there was testimony last week at the public hearing (on Bill 175-37) from a member of the Guam Association of Realtors about $11 million in SDC funds, which is also incorrect. Our last reporting indicates expenditures/encumbrances of $12.4 million and an available SDC fund balance of $5.07 million, of which $1.1 million has been earmarked for planned (capital improvement) work,” Bordallo told the Guam Daily Post.
Those figures will change as GWA proceeds with its capital improvement program and updates it periodically, he added.
The Guam Daily Post requested comment from Duenas regarding where the $13 million figure came from, and is waiting for a response as of press time.
Duenas had published his statements on Monday, following the public hearing on Bill 175, which proposes changes to Guam’s Toilet Facilities and Sewage Disposal Act to help landowners who cannot develop their properties because of sewer unavailability.
The measure also attempts to address the threat of nitrate pollution in the Northern Guam Lens Aquifer, partly through the introduction of a fourth type of toilet facility: those connected to an advanced nitrogen-reducing residential on-site disposal system.
However, the head of the Guam Environmental Protection Agency expressed serious concerns that the bill would result in significantly greater degradation of the aquifer, even with the Type 4 facilities in place, due to proposed changes to allowable unsewered lot sizes.
John Duenas, a realtor and professional civil engineer, stated at the public hearing that there are 1,800 Type 2 disposal systems – septic tanks and leaching fields – close to sewer lines. He said those septic systems continue to discharge into the aquifer and are supposedly contributing to nitrate contamination in the water supply.
“If reducing the discharge of contaminants to our groundwater is of primary importance, would it not be paramount that our government pursue connection of these systems to the public sewer system?” John Duenas asked.
In his press release, Chris Duenas made note of Guam EPA’s comments and John Duenas’ comments, and stated that he was calling on GWA to find a balance in the system and take immediate action to connect the homes to the public sewer system.
“It is deeply unconscionable that the Guam Environmental Protection Agency delivered a presentation that highlighted the potential environmental risks posed by Bill 175-37 to our water system. At the same time, it is unacceptable that no actions have been taken to connect the nearly 2,000 households to the readily available sewer system. This disregard is not only concerning, but also raises serious questions about the commitment to safeguarding our water resources,” Chris Duenas stated in his release, before making the statement about the $13 million figure, now disputed by Bordallo.
Moreover, when it comes to connecting GWA customers who have septic systems to existing sewer lines, those costs are required to be paid for by the customer per GWA rules, according to Bordallo.
“GWA has a sewer connection loan program to assist such customers connect to the existing sewer system, and we testified at Sen. Perez’s public information/oversight hearing (on Guam’s water supply) about the status of rule changes for that loan program to make it easier for the public to participate in it,” Bordallo added.
Guam Power Authority and Guam Waterworks Authority headquarters are seen Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2023, in Mangilao.
