DR1 Daily News - Dominican Republic

Minister of Environment Paino Henriquez says that the long-awaited closure of the Duquesa open-air landfill, considered one of the largest in Latin America and a major source of pollution in Greater Santo Domingo, is slated to begin in the first quarter of next year.

The minister confirmed that the bidding process for the first phase of the landfill’s closure has been successfully completed, marking a critical step in addressing what he described as the nation’s “worst environmental disaster.”

“I can proudly say that we are going to undertake the management that will remedy the worst environmental disaster in the Dominican Republic,” Henríquez stated during a luncheon with the Corripio Communications Group.

The closure and remediation project will proceed with support from key international partners: the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the Spanish Cooperation office, and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

Duquesa currently poses a significant...