Water shortage prompts executive order

Jul 28, 2023

WATER WOES: Mangilao resident Gary Apiag fills several 55-gallon drums from a water tanker positioned at the Santa Teresita Catholic Church on Sunday, June 4, 2023, in Mangilao. The governor's Executive Order 2023-04, issued Saturday evening, declares a state of emergency due to the public water supply shortage caused by Typhoon Mawar. David Castro/The Guam Daily Post

One day, there's water and the next, none. That's the scenario playing out in some homes around the island. It all comes down to supply and demand.

"Some of the reasons that the water, you might have it, and then it goes down, is because ... they’re trying to fill up the wells. They get the wells going, and they try to fill up the reservoirs. During the day, the demand is so high that the supply can't meet up with demand," Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero said.

The governor's Executive Order 2023-04, issued Saturday evening, breaks the issue down further to support the declaration of a state of emergency due to the public water supply shortage caused by Typhoon Mawar.

According to the executive order, the island's water system relies heavily on the island's power system, but, because consistent power isn't available despite aggressive efforts, recovery of water and wastewater systems on Guam is impeded and resulted in water pump stations shutting down.

"This resulted in an islandwide loss of water service, which, as of the time of this writing, is in the process of being restored and whereas, as island power becomes available more broadly, more water pumps will come online," the governor stated in her executive order.

Both the Guam Power Authority and Guam Waterworks Authority have been working around the clock to restore services.

GPA, as of 1 p.m. Saturday, had restored 46% of customer demand, according to the order. GWA's northern water system was "operating normally" with 55% of operable wells online. However, services in the central and the south were spotty, with some villages at reduced capacity or with no water at all, the order reported.

"Inconsistent water levels in our reservoirs pose a significant impediment to broadening water supply available to our community. While there is water service is every village, it will be necessary to increase and stabilize reservoir levels in order to restore water to higher-lying areas of the island," the executive order stated.

Until reservoir water levels are restored, the governor said residents "will continue to experience intermittent disruptions.

"Again, I ask everybody to conserve. I’ve seen pictures of people washing the roof. By the way, that is against the law, and it can be fined," the governor said Saturday.

Washing cars, water-blasting or using water for "noncritical purposes" is prohibited by the executive order for 15 days.

The executive order allows for a person who doesn't comply with the water conservation order to be charged with a petty misdemeanor. In addition, according to the law invoked in the order, businesses convicted of unauthorized use of water can be fined between $1,000 and $25,000.

Until June 18, island residents should limit the use of water to cleaning, bathing and cooking, said the executive order, to allow for the "replenishment and stabilization of our reservoirs."

Poll results are published every Monday in The Guam Daily Post.

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