SAN CRISTOBAL — In a decisive enforcement action, the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources has intervened at the Aremax aggregate mine, which was found to be operating illegally after having been permanently shut down. This move comes in direct response to the tragic death of a worker last week during ongoing extraction activities at the prohibited site.
Official records confirm that the mining company had previously been sanctioned and definitively closed in September of last year for two major violations: exceeding its legally authorized exploitation area and breaching the technical conditions stipulated in its environmental permit. Davis Aracena, Acting Deputy Minister of Soils and Water, characterized the company as a repeat offender under the nation’s environmental statutes. The operation now faces formal legal proceedings initiated by the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office for the Protection of the Environment and Natural Resources.
Aracena emphasized that the National Environmental Protection Service (SENPA) must implement permanent surveillance mechanisms to prevent any resumption of illegal activities. Furthermore, the mine’s proprietors will be held fully accountable for comprehensive environmental remediation, including mandatory land restoration and large-scale reforestation of the damaged area, in strict compliance with existing regulations.
During the intervention operation, Prosecutor Francisco Contreras confirmed that substantial evidence was secured to pursue criminal charges against those responsible. He noted that the case’s severity is significantly heightened by the worker’s fatality occurring at a facility that was officially non-operational. The enforcement operation received high-level support from SENPA Director Brigadier General Ángel Alfredo Camacho Ubiera and prominent environmentalist Luis Carvajal, both advocating for stringent penalties against environmental crimes.
The Ministry has reiterated its unwavering commitment to safeguarding natural resources and human life, issuing a stern warning that it will continue to intensify oversight and enforcement measures against all illegal extractive ventures.