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New homes will be built at Rongelap this year as part of
continuing plans for a population return to this northern
atoll. Rongelap Mayor James Matayoshi indicated that about
15 houses are slated to be built on Rongelap. Another five
will be built in Majuro.
Because a Pacific International Inc. (PII) plant is
already functioning at Rongelap, PII will build the new
homes on the isolated atoll, he said.
PII officials indicated that they are in final
discussions with Rongelap officials on housing designs and,
assuming they are given the go-ahead on the designs, housing
construction could begin as early as March.
Matayoshi said that Rongelap benefits from a relationship
with the US Department of Agriculture Rural Development
program that is providing low-interest housing loans;
Rongelap resettlement money will be used to pay off the
loans.
“The program works well for Rongelap Atoll Local
Government because of the income from our trust fund,” he
said. “We can take care of the housing needs for our people
immediately (with loans from Rural Development) and pay back
the loans over time. (The program) doesn’t require us to
invade the corpus of our trust fund.”
With the exception of workers involved in construction
projects and scientists conducting research work, no one has
lived at Rongelap since 1985 when the community evacuated to
Mejatto Island in Kwajalein, fearing continued radiation
exposure from living on islands exposed to fallout from the
1954 Bravo test.
Matayoshi also noted that the local government is
anticipating funding support from the Japanese government to
establish a piggery project that, like the dive and fishing
business, will create jobs on the atoll for returning
residents. |
