Abinader inaugurates Puerto Plata plant to end open-air landfill
President Luis Abinader led the inauguration ceremony this Friday of the Jaime Manuel Camps Power Recycling Plant and Sanitary Landfill in Puerto Plata, which aims to end the open-air solid waste disposal model that has generated pollution in the province for more than four decades.
The new infrastructure, located in the area of the former Maggiolo landfill, was developed with an estimated investment of 1.6 billion pesos.
As explained, the project combines waste valorization processes with a controlled final disposal system.
Plant characteristics
During the event, the main investor of JMC Power Recycling, José Antonio Acebal, explained that the first stage includes a 27,337-square-meter cell, with a capacity of 1.46 million cubic meters and an estimated daily reception of 600 to 800 tons of waste.
He explained that the cell has a waterproofing system with a high-density geomembrane. , drainage and leachate treatment, designed to prevent these pollutants from reaching soil and water sources.
He said it also has mechanisms for the collection and control of biogas, daily waste coverage, and environmental monitoring of groundwater, leachate, and atmospheric emissions.
- The investor indicated that the project also includes a recovery plant to recycle materials and reduce the volume of waste sent to landfills.
According to Acebal, the operation of the plant will generate more than 500 direct jobs and a similar number of indirect jobs.
Goodbye to fires and smoke
The Minister of the Presidency, José Ignacio Paliza, highlighted that the transformation of the Maggiolo landfill will allow Puerto Plata to adopt a different system for managing its solid waste, based on infrastructure and controlled final disposal processes.
Paliza recalled that for years the fires and smoke from the landfill were a concern for residents of the province and affected the area around the Amber Cove cruise terminal. One of the main entry points for tourists to Puerto Plata.
The official maintained that the space shifted from representing an environmental problem to becoming a facility intended for waste valorization, with mechanisms to reduce its environmental impact and protect the area’s economic and tourism activities.
The mayor of San Felipe de Puerto Plata, Roquelito García, stated that the commissioning of the plant marks the closing of a chapter of more than 40 years marked by the open-air landfill.
García appreciated that the new system will allow waste to be managed under more stringent criteria. Organization, efficiency and environmental protection.
He attributed its realization to the joint work between the Government, the city council and the private sector.
The event was attended by the presidents of the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies, Ricardo de los Santos and Alfredo Pacheco, respectively, as well as the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, Paíno Henríquez.
The ceremony was blessed by Monsignor Julio César Corniel Amaro, Bishop of the Diocese of Puerto Plata.
