NewsWhore
04-18-2006, 02:10 PM
The Ministry of Tourism has announced that the French company it is backing for the construction of eco-lodges in the Bahia de las Aguilas area will be presenting its project in Santo Domingo this week. Bahia de las Aguilas is a stretch of virgin beach in the southwest of the country that has not been developed because it is a UNESCO biosphere reserve. The presentation will be at 9am on Thursday, 20 April at Salon AO-03 of the Pontificia Universidad Catolica Madre y Maestra. The Ministry announced that the press would only be allowed in for the opening words and conclusions of the presentation. The Ministry of Tourism explained that this is due to the limited space in the chosen venue.
The company will discuss the initial presentation made by the French company, Argos to President Leonel Fernandez during his visit to Paris. The original proposal is what motivated President Fernandez to request a more detailed presentation in Santo Domingo.
The Ministry of Environment opposes the construction of hotels in the protected area, citing four studies, including one commissioned by the Ministry of Tourism for the World Tourism Organization, that stress the environmental fragility of the area. He said, nevertheless, that if his department is presented with a project, it would evaluate it. The French investors have yet to fulfill this legal requirement for construction within a National Park. Sources within the Ministry of Environment said that Environment Minister Max Puig would not be attending the presentation. The Ministry of Environment supports the construction of the hotels in Pedernales province, but in the adjacent 17 kms of beach lands outside of the reserve.
As reported in Listin Diario, Environment Minister Max Puig said that his Ministry's brief is to look after these areas. "President Fernandez is very aware of this and if Balaguer created the protected areas, they are not going to be destroyed under the mandate of Dr. Leonel Fernandez," he told the Listin reporter when interviewed at the businessman Juan Carlos Morales' residence in Puerto Plata.
The bestselling book, "Collapse" by Jared Diamond points to how the creation of protected areas and the banning of construction within these has led the Dominican Republic to be a relative environmental success story, and warns against threats for their depredation. The book focuses on how societies destroy themselves and has a chapter on the Dominican Republic, crediting former President Joaquin Balaguer with the wise decision of creating the parks.
Link To Original Article (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#6)
The company will discuss the initial presentation made by the French company, Argos to President Leonel Fernandez during his visit to Paris. The original proposal is what motivated President Fernandez to request a more detailed presentation in Santo Domingo.
The Ministry of Environment opposes the construction of hotels in the protected area, citing four studies, including one commissioned by the Ministry of Tourism for the World Tourism Organization, that stress the environmental fragility of the area. He said, nevertheless, that if his department is presented with a project, it would evaluate it. The French investors have yet to fulfill this legal requirement for construction within a National Park. Sources within the Ministry of Environment said that Environment Minister Max Puig would not be attending the presentation. The Ministry of Environment supports the construction of the hotels in Pedernales province, but in the adjacent 17 kms of beach lands outside of the reserve.
As reported in Listin Diario, Environment Minister Max Puig said that his Ministry's brief is to look after these areas. "President Fernandez is very aware of this and if Balaguer created the protected areas, they are not going to be destroyed under the mandate of Dr. Leonel Fernandez," he told the Listin reporter when interviewed at the businessman Juan Carlos Morales' residence in Puerto Plata.
The bestselling book, "Collapse" by Jared Diamond points to how the creation of protected areas and the banning of construction within these has led the Dominican Republic to be a relative environmental success story, and warns against threats for their depredation. The book focuses on how societies destroy themselves and has a chapter on the Dominican Republic, crediting former President Joaquin Balaguer with the wise decision of creating the parks.
Link To Original Article (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#6)