Still no word from Navy on proposed water increase
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 13.8000001907349px;">It was last month the Consolidated Commission on Utilities sent a letter to Joint Region Marianas commander, Rear Admiral Bette Bolivar pleading that she revisit a proposed Navy water increase which goes into effect next year. </span>
December 18, 2014Updated: December 18, 2014
By KUAM News
By KUAM News by Jolene Toves
Guam - It was last month the Consolidated Commission on Utilities sent a letter to Joint Region Marianas commander, Rear Admiral Bette Bolivar pleading that she revisit a proposed Navy water increase which goes into effect next year. CCU chairperson Simon Sanchez says till this day there's been no response, telling KUAM News, "It has been a month since our GWA meeting where we authorized the letter we haven't heard from Admiral Bolivar or her staff."
Sanchez says he did reach out to one of her staff in September when word of the increase was first received and while he made attempts to see Rear Admiral Bolivar he was instead deferred to staff. While they were in contact via email it did not generate any physical meeting therefore prompting the official letter. "Saying your raising the rates 40% and no formal notice another huge rate increase it also began to raise the issue that it seems to be very expensive for the Navy to run a very small system and their rate that they are charging us and presumably charging themselves is higher that GWA rate," said Sanchez.
If the Navy increases its cost for water it would mean GWA rate payers would have to pay an additional 2% on top of the recent 17% rate increase just to cover the cost. To avoid this Sanchez has reached out to island leaders.
Speaker Judi Won Pat in her weekly address reiterates the CCU's concerns, "I agree let us supply the entire island with water as we have been able to do with power DOD has been a Guam Power Authority customer for 20 years and has signed up for ten more years. The people of Guam can and should manage our own resources, especially our precious water." As we reported as a result of the proposed increase Sanchez believes that this opens the doors for discussion to merge the systems, as well as cut usage of navy water even further than the 65% cut already made."
He said, "When we heard about the increase though we got even more aggressive so in October we cut our Navy usage further November we cut it even further I mean we are trying to find a way to just get off the navy water system." Sanchez says we are well on our way to not using Navy water but that does not answer the question of why the Navy water is so expensive and why they won't talk on a formal level.
Guam - It was last month the Consolidated Commission on Utilities sent a letter to Joint Region Marianas commander, Rear Admiral Bette Bolivar pleading that she revisit a proposed Navy water increase which goes into effect next year. CCU chairperson Simon Sanchez says till this day there's been no response, telling KUAM News, "It has been a month since our GWA meeting where we authorized the letter we haven't heard from Admiral Bolivar or her staff."
Sanchez says he did reach out to one of her staff in September when word of the increase was first received and while he made attempts to see Rear Admiral Bolivar he was instead deferred to staff. While they were in contact via email it did not generate any physical meeting therefore prompting the official letter. "Saying your raising the rates 40% and no formal notice another huge rate increase it also began to raise the issue that it seems to be very expensive for the Navy to run a very small system and their rate that they are charging us and presumably charging themselves is higher that GWA rate," said Sanchez.
If the Navy increases its cost for water it would mean GWA rate payers would have to pay an additional 2% on top of the recent 17% rate increase just to cover the cost. To avoid this Sanchez has reached out to island leaders.
Speaker Judi Won Pat in her weekly address reiterates the CCU's concerns, "I agree let us supply the entire island with water as we have been able to do with power DOD has been a Guam Power Authority customer for 20 years and has signed up for ten more years. The people of Guam can and should manage our own resources, especially our precious water." As we reported as a result of the proposed increase Sanchez believes that this opens the doors for discussion to merge the systems, as well as cut usage of navy water even further than the 65% cut already made."
He said, "When we heard about the increase though we got even more aggressive so in October we cut our Navy usage further November we cut it even further I mean we are trying to find a way to just get off the navy water system." Sanchez says we are well on our way to not using Navy water but that does not answer the question of why the Navy water is so expensive and why they won't talk on a formal level.