Despite its fast growing population, Kagman, which has the island’s biggest aquifer, has no sewer treatment plant.
Although all septic tanks of each house in Kagman are properly constructed as required by the Division of Environmental Quality, there are certain areas in the villages where the ground has poor percolation.
This means that waste water is not filtered well when it goes down from the surface to the water table, DEQ environmental specialist Hubert Alepuyo said.
Alepuyo, who is among those assigned to inspect septic tanks on a weekly basis, said a wastewater treatment plant should be constructed in Kagman as soon as possible.
In an interview yesterday, Alepuyo said the population of Kagman’s four villages is already close to 5,000 and it could be further increasing because more lots are being awarded now.
Due to the lack of centralized sewer, each house in Kagman is required by DEQ to have its own septic tank for wastewater.
The more residents occupy each house, the more frequently the bathroom, toilet, kitchen and laundry room are used, which results in more wastewater.
Every time wastewater overflows from the septic tank it goes underground where fresh water is located.
Alepuyo said there are many areas in Kagman where the soil has a good percolation rate.
But residents are still required to conduct a percolation test when they build a new house and they have to hire a contractor to do this.
This test will determine how fast the wastewater goes to the ground.
The federal funds for the Kagman sewer project was reprogrammed for the power plant repair, but it got new federal funding for fiscal year 2009.
But the problem, according to Precinct 5 Republican Rep. Rosemond B. Santos, is the implementation.
