The samples were collected on Oct. 11 and Oct. 16, and the analyses were conducted by Eurofins Eaton Analytical, an EPA-certified laboratory in California.
A third sample was collected on Oct. 23 which is currently out for testing.
GWA's Y-15 water well in Yigo was outfitted with an interim water treatment system on Oct. 12. Photo by Skyler Obispo
“After two more consecutive weeks of satisfactory laboratory results, GWA will confer with [the Guam Environmental Protection Agency] to lift the ‘Do Not Drink without Treatment’ advisory issued to affected GWA customers in the Yigo/Santa Rosa area,” GWA said.
Until then, the utility will continue to operate the GAC treatment system at Y-15 and until the permanent treatment system is completed.
According to Oct. 21 dieldrin sampling results from 124 GWA wells, 83 locations showed a running annual average of 0.00 to 0.10 parts per billion (ppb), while 32 locations had no traces of dieldrin. Two locations — D-17 in Mangilao and Y-15 in Yigo — tested at 0.2 to 0.5 ppb and 0.5 ppb or higher, respectively.
D-17 according to GWA has been offline since July 31 with treatment under construction.
On Oct. 10, GWA launched its point-of-use and point-of-entry treatment system programs which supplied NSF 53 or NSF 401 certified treatment systems to affected customers or provided reimbursements to customers who had purchased their own systems.
“While the interim GAC system provides strong treatment performance at the facility level, the POE program offers an additional safeguard and peace of mind for customers until GWA’s permanent GAC treatment system is fully operational,” the utility said. mbj
With Super Typhoon Bavi now packing maximum sustained winds of 160 mph and forecast to strengthen further as it moves toward the Marianas, emergency officials are urging businesses and residents to treat this weekend as their critical window to prepare for potentially damaging winds.
Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands are now in Condition of Readiness 3 as Typhoon Bavi approaches, with both governors urging residents and businesses to use the remaining hours of fair weather to prepare.
Task Force Talon relinquished command to the 3rd Battalion, 43rd Air Defense Artillery Regiment (3-43 ADA), ushering in a new battalion to take over Guam’s air missile defense systems.
Emergency management agencies across the region are urging residents and businesses to execute disaster preparedness plans as Tropical Storm 09W is forecast to rapidly intensify and potentially strike Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands as a Category four super typhoon.
