84 + REPORT OF THE GOVERNOR OF THE VIRGIN ISLANDS

tion, potable water from the airport iiii :i l has to be pumped into
the city area. This year 103,165,140 gallons were delivered through
underground lines while the barge brought in 84,354,300 gallons on a
total of 312 trips.
 Installation of a salt water distribution plant by the Virgin
 Islands Corporation was a major contribution in the efforts of the
 Government to solve the water problem. This plant, put into opera-
tion on February 28, 1962, produced 25,671,700 gallons of water for
use principally by hotels and business places. However, even with
implementation of the water supply from the distillation plant, the
demand has increased to a point where no substantial reserve storage
can be maintained.
 A 1,000,000-gallon cistern was constructed to increase the storage of
potable water to 11,147,000 gallons. New pumps were installed to
increase the pressure in the distribution system.

Matching Funds Program
 A major activity of the department involves the p11 ini:ii,. design,
administration and construction of essential public projects author-
ized under the Internal Revenue Matching Fund. This year the prin-
cipal projects in St. Thomas included construction of roads, comple-
tion of two elementary schools, extension of the airport and remodeling
of buildings to house government agencies. On St. Croix, precedence
was given to dredging of the harbor, completion of the Frederiksted
Pier, starting of the pier and bulkhead in Christiansted Harbor, and
extension of airport runway to facilitate landing of jet aircraft. Com-
pletion of the Christiansted Pier, together with the Corps of Engineers
dredging project now in progress in the harbor, will effectively convert
Christiansted Harbor into a major port. On St. John, additions were
made to the water supply system and paving of the Centerline Road
started. Plans were finalized for the addition to the schools and
quarters for nurses.

Public Buildings
 In St. Thomas, this work covered the complete renovation of a build-
ing to provide adequate space for the Department of Finance and the
newly installed IBM data-processing equipment. In St. Croix, ex-
tensive repairs were made at the Herbert Grigg Home, Department of
Social Welfare and at the Department of Finance to install service
facilities, enlarge office space and improve the general working
environment.