The “powerful” won’t take over Dominican Republic’s rivers, official warns

Santo Domingo.- Environment Minister Bautista Rojas on Wednesday warned he’ll not allow "powerful" people to take over the rivers, and cause major harm to the water used to produce food and for human consumption.

He called the depletion of aquifers by illegally extracting aggregates a historically bad practice across the country. "The environmental authority will confront the predators of the rivers, especially those considered powerful and with a license to continue with criminal actions against nature."

Accompanied by senior officials, Rojas spoke after touring a stretch of the Haina River near the sector Manoguayabo, where noted vast extractions of sand and gravel along the source which contributes water to Greater Santo Domingo’s population of over 3 million.