Rep. José Aponte Hernández
By THE STAR STAFF
The New Progressive Party minority leader in the House of Representatives, Carlos “Johnny” Méndez Nuñez, along with Reps. José Aponte Hernández, Lourdes Ramos Rivera and Ángel Peña Ramírez, highlighted the importance of the $18.5 million allocation for the construction of a new reservoir on the Valenciano River between the municipalities of Juncos and Las Piedras.
In a press release, the legislators thanked Gov. Pedro Pierluisi Urrutia and Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González Colón, for making the effort to achieve the historic budget allocation.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency announced on Sunday the approval of the aforementioned item from the Risk Mitigation Grant Program to begin the first phase of the reservoir, which will have a capacity of 12.7 million cubic meters. The total project is estimated at over $400 million.
“This is tremendous news for the residents of the municipalities of the east-central zone of the island,” Méndez Nuñez said. “For a long time, since the sixties, there had been talk of the construction of a drinking water reservoir on the Valenciano River; however, that has never materialized. With the allocation of $18.5 million the development work can begin for this reservoir, which will supply drinking water to over 120,000 residents of the region.”
“Today we see the light at the end of the tunnel,” added Peña Ramírez, who represents District 33 (Las Piedras, Juncos and San Lorenzo). “This project, which also includes the expansion of El Valenciano water station, will directly help the residents of Juncos, Las Piedras, Gurabo, Humacao, Caguas and San Lorenzo. In addition, during the first phase, the capacity of the El Valenciano water plant will be expanded, something essential for the quality of life of those who live in many of these municipalities.”