Yumul: EO necessary to protect lifespan, safety of Marpi landfill

11/21/2025 - Department of Public Works Secretary Ray N. Yumul says the new executive order restricting out-of-jurisdiction waste is necessary to protect both the lifespan and safety of the Marpi landfill.

Yumul said DPW has repeatedly received requests in recent years to dispose of waste from outside the CNMI—including a recent proposal to ship large volumes of construction debris from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. That request raised concerns about possible nuclear contamination due to the atoll’s weapons-testing history.

“It's bad enough that we have a problem dealing with the waste that we generate within the Commonwealth. We don't need to exacerbate that with waste coming from other jurisdictions,” he told Marianas Press in a Nov. 19 interview.

Yumul said the request from Saipan-based HYC Corp. to dump construction and demolition debris from the U.S. Army Garrison on Kwajalein Atoll was especially worrisome.

“Kwajalein, as we all know, was a known testing facility for the United States military back in the ’60s. In the late ’50s, they were conducting nuclear exercises or explosions there. They were testing nuclear bombs. So, we don't know what the composition of the materials is, and we don't want to even know about it. We just don't want to be involved with that,” he said.

Yumul said he was also baffled by Landscape Management Systems’ request to dispose of pharmaceutical waste from U.S. Naval Hospital Guam at the Marpi landfill.

“I mean, the big glaring question is why would we receive it if even the Guam landfill won't accept it, right? So why do we want their problem if they can't even handle it themselves?” he said.

DPW—working with the Bureau of Environmental and Coastal Quality, the Division of Customs and Biosecurity, and the Department of Lands and Natural Resources—ultimately denied the requests from HYC Corp. and LMS.

Last Nov. 18, Gov. David M. Apatang put a definitive end to future requests by issuing an executive order prohibiting the disposal of out-of-jurisdiction waste in CNMI landfills.

Addressed to DPW and BECQ administrator Floyd Masga, the EO states that “effective immediately, the CNMI will not accept any wastes originating from outside the CNMI for disposal in CNMI landfills, regardless of whether such wastes are determined to be non-hazardous.”

According to the order, the policy aims to:

• Preserve the limited capacity of CNMI landfill facilities for residents and businesses;

• Avoid setting a precedent that would turn the CNMI into a regional dumping ground; and

• Minimize the risk of inadvertently accepting materials later found to be hazardous, leading to liability and cleanup obligations.

“BECQ and DPW shall communicate this policy to all relevant agencies, contractors, and potential waste originators, and shall ensure it is enforced in all permitting and approval processes,” the EO states.

Yumul emphasized that the Marpi landfill—the CNMI’s only EPA-certified landfill—remains fully compliant with federal and local regulations and continues to serve as a model site for visiting Pacific jurisdictions.

On the landfill’s remaining capacity, Yumul said Cell 1 is about 80% full, while Cell 2 is now in use. With a total of six cells planned and more than $53 million in ASADRA federal disaster-relief funds supporting expansion, he estimates the landfill will have 40 to 50 years of capacity if waste is properly segregated and compacted.

ASADRA—short for the Additional Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Relief Act of 2019—is a revolving fund program assisting states and territories impacted by 2018 natural disasters. The CNMI’s ASADRA funds are tied to Super Typhoon Yutu recovery and will also support the development of new compliant landfills on Rota and Tinian.

Ultimately, Yumul said accepting outside waste would accelerate depletion of local landfill space and undermine long-term waste-management plans centered on recycling, composting, and improved segregation.

“We're very mindful about that. And this is why, again, going back to the out-of-jurisdiction waste, we don't want it. Because it's going to help, unfortunately, speed up the lifespan and close it sooner than later,” he said.

Meanwhile, Yumul is urging the community to stop tossing used oil into public trash bins, warning that the waste ends up in the landfill where it can leak or even ignite under pressure.

“We want the community, the public at large, to know that the Department of Public Works Transfer Station in Lower Base can receive—at no charge to the community—used oil,” he said.

He stressed that at-home mechanics and boaters should pour their used motor or cooking oil into sturdy plastic containers—preferably the original oil bottles or any secure plastic container—and drop them off at the transfer station.

“Please do not throw used oil in the trash bins. Bring it to the transfer station. Any residential used oil, we will gladly accept,” Yumul said, adding that glass containers should be avoided because they can break and spill.

Report by Mark Rabago