The real estate assault in the Santo Cerro of La Vega generates alarm due to intense tree cutting, soil removal and filling of gullies, according to the botanical biologist Ángela Guerrero. This environmental expert qualifies these actions as a systematic attack by real estate developers seeking to expand the urban frontier in a site of great historical and religious value.
Denunciations against the real estate assault in a protected area
Guerrero emphasizes that the Santo Cerro, although not part of the National System of Protected Areas, deserves to be declared a municipal protected area by the La Vega Mayor’s Office. “First they destroy and then they pay fines”, criticizes, recalling similar cases in Samaná, Monción and Mao. Environmental organizations report indiscriminate tree cutting for villas, summer houses and apartments, without mitigation measures or ecological restoration.
Political Criticism of Official Silence
The Partido de la Liberación Dominicana (PLD), through its provincial president Bolívar Marte, questions the silence of lawmakers and the Mayor’s Office in the face of the demolition. It defines it as the devastation of an ecological lung. The Fuerza del Pueblo, through its Secretary of the Environment, accuses the Ministry of the Environment of having lost authority, allowing violations of the Environmental Law 64-00 and the cadastral law.
Historical Value of the Santo Cerro at Risk due to Real Estate Assault
This emblematic place, 600 meters above sea level, offers panoramic views of the Valle del Cibao and houses the Santuario de la Virgen de las Mercedes. Every September 24, thousands pilgrimage there in the oldest popular devotion in the Dominican Republic, climbing the hill on their knees or with crosses. It includes the Santo Cerro Natural Park and the Monumento a la Luz, preserving its biodiversity and popular religiosity.
<h3 Antecedents and Calls to Action
Guerrero links this real estate assault to alleged authorities in the Green Belt of the Greater Santo Domingo. Experts urge strengthening environmental sanctions, as fines do not deter irreversible damage. The vegan community, respectful of the site, sees its natural environment threatened, key to local biodiversity. This real estate assault not only threatens ecosystems, but also Dominican cultural heritage.
- Tree cutting and filling of gullies advance without control.
- Parties demand immediate intervention from authorities.
- Site of pilgrimage faces urban pressure.
The real estate assault in the Santo Cerro of La Vega requires urgent responses to safeguard its legacy.
