NewsWhore
03-05-2007, 05:00 PM
AES Corporation has agreed to pay the Dominican government a settlement worth US$6 million (RD$200 million), thus ending the court case heard in a Virginia Federal District Court. The settlement covers compensation for both the Samana and Manzanillo dumps of what is really called "fly ash" in the environmental community. The substance is the deposit that builds up inside chimneys during the coal combustion process. According to industry sources, this ash is basically the impurities left after the coal has burned off, and is supposedly inert. The announcement about the settlement was reported in Saturday's Listin Diario. The original lawsuit was for US$80 million. According to Minister of the Environment and Natural Resources Max Puig, the settlement includes legal fees, and will become available within ten days. One of the incidents that allowed for such a large reduction in the settlement was that, according to Listin Diario, a federal judge refused to try the case under the "Rico" Statutes on bribery and organized crime. According to Puig, the fly ash will be burned in cement factories.
On Sunday, environmentalists delivered their verdict. Once again Listin Diario reported that many campaigners felt that RD$200 million was an insignificant sum considering the ecological damage to Samana and Manzanillo. Environmental spokesperson Luis Carvajal told reporters that the whole story of just how the agreement was reached has not been told. Amparo Chantada, another environmental activist, said that the Dominican Republic had been damaged by the settlement and that AES got away with their deal. Both Carvajal and Chantada belong to the environmental committee at the Autonomous University (UASD) in Santo Domingo.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#5)
On Sunday, environmentalists delivered their verdict. Once again Listin Diario reported that many campaigners felt that RD$200 million was an insignificant sum considering the ecological damage to Samana and Manzanillo. Environmental spokesperson Luis Carvajal told reporters that the whole story of just how the agreement was reached has not been told. Amparo Chantada, another environmental activist, said that the Dominican Republic had been damaged by the settlement and that AES got away with their deal. Both Carvajal and Chantada belong to the environmental committee at the Autonomous University (UASD) in Santo Domingo.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#5)