On Tuesday, a delegation from the Ministry of the Environment made up of Minister Abner Septembre together with its Director General, Astrel Joseph and that of the National Agency for Protected Areas (ANAP) Jeantel Joseph, went to the Côte des Arcadins, precisely in Trou Forban with the objective of inquiring about the operating conditions of sand quarries in this area, considered one of the best tourist sites in the country.

After the visit to the operating site at Trou Forban, the delegation led by Minister Septembre, accompanied by the vice-delegate of Arcahaie and the Justice of the Peace of the Commune, Me Evinc Ducasse, noting the state of degradation of the immediate environment of the site, proceeded with the temporary closure of the quarry and asked Jeantel Joseph to deploy agents of the Surveillance Brigade in order to ensure the eviction operation of operating equipment.

To explain this decision, the Minister insisted on the fact that the owners of these quarries intervene in the environment in total disrespect of the standards in force, endanger biodiversity and threaten the tourist economy of the area by disfiguring the natural landscape...

In addition to these points, the Minister recalled that the anarchic exploitation of quarries also promotes road insecurity, because the section of the RN #1 which borders these quarries is often the victim of landslides due to extractions carried out in an arbitrary manner.

Minister Septembre pleads in favor of eco-citizen behavior in the exploitation of natural resources and encourages operators to respect the standards in force, to avoid falling under the law and to contact the Ministry of the Environment and the Bureau of Mines and Energy for a good coordination and a better formula in the exploitation of the environmental resources of the country stressing "The exploitation of ecological resources should not be a threat but an opportunity for communities."

See also :https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-31201-haiti-environment-reopening-of-15-of-the-24-prohibited-sand-quarries.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-31041-haiti-notice-closings-of-the-sand-quarries-at-morne-a-cabris.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-22399-haiti-environment-89-of-quarries-are-illegal-in-the-west.html

IH/ iciHaiti