The Committee of the Whole, on Thursday, set the stage for a long-planned connectivity upgrade, ratifying Bill No. 36-0130 to endorse the governor’s approval of Trans America Fiber’s submarine cable permit, while also acting on a commission appointment and two zoning changes.
The Senate earlier ratified Bill No. 36-0130, endorsing the governor’s approval of a major coastal zone permit for the Trans America Fiber US LLC submarine cable project. The plan — to connect the U.S. Virgin Islands with Florida, Puerto Rico, and more than a dozen Caribbean and Latin American nations — drew close scrutiny from senators as officials outlined its technical, financial and environmental details. The project involves a 2,000-kilometer segment with a landing at Butler Bay on St. Croix.
The $8 million initiative will be carried out in two phases and is designed to modernize the territory’s digital infrastructure for decades. The government will receive an annual rental fee of $67,000 for the use of territorial waters, and the developer has pledged to provide the territory with 50 gigabits per second of free bandwidth in each direction through the Virgin Islands Next Generation Network. The total 100 Gbps capacity will bolster schools, hospitals, emergency services and public WiFi.
“This modern cable system will improve the bandwidth, reliability, and clarity needed to connect the U.S. Virgin Islands with Florida, Puerto Rico, and more than 10 other nations across the Caribbean and Latin America,” Rebecca Rubright, environmental engineer, told lawmakers.
Installation will use an existing shoreline conduit installed in 1996, eliminating the need for drilling, dredging or other major disturbance. Divers will guide the cable into place along a route chosen to avoid coral reefs, and environmental monitoring will be conducted daily. The cable itself is expected to last 20 to 30 years, while the conduit could remain in service for nearly a century.
Officials said the system will carry 18 terabits per fiber pair, with eight fiber pairs in this segment — a substantial increase over the aging infrastructure now in use. They added that the network’s redundancy will improve communications reliability during hurricanes and other disasters.
Senators pressed for assurances that past environmental mistakes would not be repeated, citing a mud spill in the same area 25 years ago. Project representatives stressed multiple layers of oversight, including permits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Division of Environmental Protection and compliance with international maritime agreements.
Sen. Hubert L. Frederick took issue with the company’s CEO failing to appear on camera during the meeting, calling it “a major undertaking” that warranted direct engagement with lawmakers. “The least you could do is show up so we could ask you questions directly,” Frederick said. “I need to know about the company — your background, how long you’ve been doing this. We need to feel comfortable about this relationship.”
Also during Thursday’s meeting, lawmakers approved the nomination of Chantelle D. Quinnis to the Historic Preservation Commission and passed two zoning bills. Lawmakers rezoned parcel 100-1C, Estate Turner Kings Quarter in St. Thomas, from R3 residential to B1 business, and plots 36 and 37, Estate Richmond on St. Croix, from commercial to B3 business.
All measures now go to the governor for further action.
