Minister of Environment Bautista Rojas Gomez denies that a mining permit had been granted to Cementos Santo Domingo. He also said that Sonia Guzman, when she was minister of Industry of Commerce was not able to issue the mining permit either. He said she asked Hipolito Mejia to authorize the concession, but the permit was not issued. It was then requested during the Leonel Fernandez administration but was not granted either because the raw material is located in a protected area, according to the Rojas Gomez. Now the company has requested it again, and it has also been denied, because mining in that area is illegal.
The executives of Cementos Santo Domingo have shown a five-year permit issued by the Ministry of Environment in 2013 authorizing exploration and mining by the cement company.
The minister, however, says that all that permit shows is the application of the permit that they had that authorizes the construction of a cafeteria and some installations alongside the manufacturing plant. “That is nothing to do with the mining of limestone or anything else,” he said, as quoted in Listin Diario.
The company says that a court ruled in their favor in 2007, authorizing their acquired rights, adding that they now plan to take the case to court. Jose Rafael Abinader Corona, president of the company and brother of leading opposition party presidential candidate (PRM) Luis Abinader has described the Ministry of Energy and Mines’ decision to revoke their right to mine limestone in the property as an “abuse of power for political reasons.”
Claudio Caamano Grullon, promoter of the Parque Alberto Caamano Deno, said that they were careful to recognize the acquired rights of Cemento Santo Domingo and other companies that had been operating in the area for years before the area was declared a protected reserve. He said that Cementos Santo Domingo had been in the area since 1999 and the park was declared in 2009. He said that the park’s importance was more historical than environmental.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Energy and Mines has authorized the company to continue operating. He said they could source their raw materials from other areas in the country.
Claudio Caamaño: definición de parque respetó derechos de compañía de Abinader
http://www.listindiario.com/la-republica/2015/11/26/397904/ministro-de-medio-ambiente-niega-haya-otorgado-permiso-de-explotacion-a-cementera
Energía y Minas dice cementera familia Abinader puede seguir operando
Claudio Caamaño: definición de parque respetó derechos de compañía de Abinader