DR1 Daily News - Dominican Republic

For years, those in the know have been warning of a disaster in the making. It is here. Now.

The Laguna de Cabral, a vital wetland in the province of Barahona, is facing rapid collapse, prompting a stark warning and an urgent plea for a state of emergency declaration from a leading environmental authority.

Luis Carvajal, coordinator of the Environmental and Natural Resources Commission at the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo (UASD), warned that the lagoon “is drying up rapidly” due to water diversion, describing the situation as an escalating environmental catastrophe.

The severity of the crisis was visually confirmed by the production team of the program Toda la Verdad, hosted by journalist Odalis Castillo, which visited the site. Their cameras captured a largely dry lagoon and the desperate testimonies of fishers and farmers demanding intervention...