With the federal stimulus package now a law, Dela Cruz said the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service has told the CNMI government there’s now a good chance of getting the funding needed by the Kagman watershed project.
The multi-million-dollar project involves two components — flood control which is 100 percent federally funded, and farm irrigation, of which 50 percent of the cost the CNMI has to fund.
As requested by the CNMI government, the irrigation component of the project commenced first and was already 90 percent completed when the federal government did not fund it in fiscal years 2007 and 2008.
De la Cruz said the NRCS has asked the Obama administration to fund the unfinished project this year.
Although the initial amount needed for the one of the components is $1.8 million, the entire project, which also involves the construction of a 70-million gallon water reservoir, needs an additional $7 million.
Dela Cruz said during an executive meeting last Friday, acting Gov. Timothy P. Villagomez advised the department heads to wrap up all their project proposals so that he or Gov. Benigno Fitial can choose which of them will be funded first from the stimulus package allotted by the federal government to the states and territories.
