Amid escalating drought conditions that have cut water flow across key sources feeding national potable water systems, the National Observatory for Consumer Protection (Onpeco) has issued a urgent call for Dominican authorities to ramp up regulatory and infrastructure measures to secure safe, sufficient, and accessible drinking water for all residents.
Beyond framing the challenge as a simple supply shortage, the consumer protection watchdog warned that the ongoing water crisis carries cascading risks that stretch far beyond convenience, threatening public health, undermining consumer rights, and putting long-term national water security in jeopardy.
Onpeco has specifically called on national health regulators to strengthen oversight across the entire human consumption water supply chain, from production and packaging through storage, transportation, and retail sales. The organization emphasized that consumers have an inherent right to confidence that any product marketed as potable meets all established national health safety standards. To enforce this standard, Onpeco has recommended implementing routine, comprehensive inspections of water suppliers, publicly releasing all inspection outcomes, and moving quickly to penalize operators that fail to meet required guidelines.
The watchdog also directly called on major Dominican water management agencies including CAASD (the Santo Domingo Water and Sewerage Corporation) and INAPA (the National Institute of Potable Water and Sewerage), alongside other regional water service providers, to prioritize preserving access to consistent water service, with a specific focus on low-income and vulnerable communities that have been hardest hit by shrinking groundwater and surface water sources.
A core proposal put forward by Onpeco is the launch of a nationwide National Campaign for a Sustainable Water Culture, designed to reach all segments of Dominican society: households, primary and secondary schools, small and large businesses, industrial operations, and public government institutions. The campaign outlines actionable, everyday conservation steps that residents and organizations can adopt immediately: repairing leaking pipes and fixtures across properties, cutting down on shower length, turning off taps when water is not actively in use, avoiding the practice of washing streets and sidewalks with potable water, and implementing safe water reuse systems wherever feasible.
Onpeco further stressed that sustainable water access depends equally on protecting the natural ecosystems that replenish national water supplies. The organization called for stronger legal and physical protection for rivers, streams, forested areas, critical watersheds, established water sources, and groundwater recharge zones, noting that water conservation efforts cannot succeed without concurrent protection of the natural resources that generate fresh water supplies.
In a closing statement, the organization argued that the current drought should serve as a catalyst to accelerate the development and implementation of long-term, structural water security policies, rather than relying exclusively on short-term emergency interventions during periods of low rainfall. It emphasized that the Dominican state carries a core responsibility to guarantee both water quality and consistent availability for all citizens, while individual residents and private entities share a collective responsibility to use the limited resource efficiently and prevent waste and contamination.
“The water we waste today may be the water we need tomorrow,” Onpeco concluded.