According to a decree issued yesterday, the Ministry of Environment will charge RD$4 for every cubic meter of gravel extracted. President Mejia signed the decree after reaching an agreement with aggregate producers, as reported in El Caribe newspaper. The producers will be required to pay the fee monthly for amounts of gravel that will have been previously authorized. One-third of all money collected will be earmarked for the National Fund for Environment and Natural Resources, with the remaining two-thirds will allocated to the Ministry of Environment for financing of conservation, research, education, restoration and sustainable natural resources use projects. The decree also establishes that the fee be reevaluated on a yearly basis and that no material be transported after 10pm.
Environment Minister Frank Moya Pons and leading aggregate businessmen Miguel Nada, F?lix Antonio Carvajal, Alfredo Alba, Diego Olivares, Fernando Fern?ndez and Juan Ram?n Brea signed the agreement. President Mejia and Industry & Commerce Minister Sonia Guzman were present to witness the occasion.