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Washington, D.C. – Puerto Rico’s Resident Commissioner in Washington, Hon. Luis Fortuño, announced the allocation of more than $37 million for flood control and dredging programs managed by the Army Corps of Engineers in Puerto Rico. The funds include $4 million for the dredging of the bay in San Juan, $8.9 million for the canalization of the Río Grande in Arecibo, and $25 million for the flood control programs in Río Puerto Nuevo. The funds were approved today by the U.S. House of Appropriations Committee as part of the Energy and Water Appropriations Bill for fiscal year 2007.
The allocation of these multimillion dollar funds for Puerto Rico comes at a time of great fiscal austerity in Congress. “The bill approved today by the Appropriations Committee includes a 16% cut in funds throughout the Nation,” said Fortuño, who also reiterated the importance of periodic revisions and monitoring procedures of these flood control and dredging projects which help “strengthen our infrastructure and have a positive impact on our communities.” The Resident Commissioner also stated that these three projects received more than $25 million during this fiscal year: $1.8 million for the San Juan bay, $4 million for the Río Grande in Arecibo, and $20 million for the Río Puerto Nuevo.
As part of his efforts, the Resident Commissioner will also meet with Major General Don T. Riley, Director of Civil Engineering projects at the Corps of Engineers in order to follow up on these and other vital projects for Puerto Rico.
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