He specifically warned cement company Cemex Dominicana, saying that if they did not take action they would face drastic measures.
The Ministry of the Environment has a plan requiring all of the industries that are dumping waste into the Higuamo to install water and waste treatment plants. He said that some industries (Cesar Iglesias and Brugal) have already done this but the sugar mills continue to dump their waste directly into the river. Fernandez Mirabal said that at times the water temperature has reached 40 degrees Celsius and a Ph level of 4.5. "At that temperature there is little life that can survive in the Higuamo. This is incredible", he said.
