Mario Perez, the president of the Sociedad Ecologica del Cibao, a leading Santiago environmental group, congratulated President Mejia for having vetoed the contentious environmental bill as passed by Congress. He said the rejection presents a fresh opportunity for legislators to carry out the necessary technical debates prior to making any changes to the status of protected areas. ?We cannot again fall prey to modifying the limits of protected areas to satisfy individuals with the false excuse of promoting tourism development, because it is well-known that what will probably occur is the contrary in this unbridled quest to mutilate them? we will all lose,? he said, as reported in Hoy newspaper.
Perez commented that in the case of the fragmentation of the Monumento Natural Diego de Ocampo, the legislators and authorities in general have been misguided. They made changes to the protected-status mountain area, alleging that 500 families would be affected by the proposal made by the Ministry of Environment. ?The reality,? said Perez, ?is that a simple glance at the maps shows that what this is all about is an attempt to exclude 3,000 tareas (1.9 million square meters) that belong to large land owners and businesspeople who have an interest in commercially exploiting them.?
?That is an example of what could be happening with other similar cases in detriment to the heritage of everyone. Legislators, the country needs your prudence,? he urged.
Yvonne Arias, speaking for the Coalition for the Defense of the Protected Areas, a group that gathers those who oppose the fragmentation of the protected areas, saluted the decision of President Mejia to veto the bill as received from Congress. But she criticized that the piece he sent back to the Senate maintains the removal of fragile ecological areas from the Parque del Este and Parque Jaragua so these can be used for tourism developments.