“Like so much of the Recovery Act money that we passed in February,” said Sablan, “this grant has the potential not only to create jobs and help the economy in the short run, but also will be good for our environment – and economy – over the long run.”
The grant is being awarded by the Environmental Protection Agency.
EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson sounded the same note as Kilili in describing the funding. “We’re providing immediate growth opportunities for communities across the nation, as well as long-term protection from dangerous pollution in the land and water,” Jackson said.
The greatest potential hazard from a leaking underground storage tank is that the petroleum or other hazardous substances seep into the soil and contaminate the source of drinking water for most people in the Northern Mariana Islands.
The EPA plans to enter a cooperative agreement with the CNMI Division of Environmental Quality to determine exactly how the grant will be spent.
Congress enacted the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in February in order to provide stimulus to the economy and a basis for future economic growth.
So far, $52,000,000 in funding has been announced for the Northern Mariana Islands. $377,000 has been paid out. A full accounting is now available at the official Recovery.gov site: http://www.recovery.gov/?q=content/available-amount-program&state=MP.
