Dominican Republic – The project operated by the Canadian mining company GoldQuest paralyzes its activities by order of the president after protests and police repression against demonstrators were reported.

First modification: 05/05/2026 - 04:30 Last modification: 05/05/2026 - 04:50

The president of the Dominican Republic, Luis Abinader, decided this Monday to paralyze "any activity" related to the Romero mining project, in the southwest of the country.

According to Abinader, "if the population massively rejects a project of that category, it is not viable to continue it." A decision that is framed in Law 64-00 on the Environment and its regulations.

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On the day before this decision, hundreds of people had demonstrated against the mining project to extract gold and other metals in the province of San Juan. The National Police launched tear gas bombs and used water cannons against the protest when they tried to advance to the town of Romero.

The first exploration permits were granted in 2005 and were reiterated in 2010. During the years 2015 and 2018 they were renewed again and technical studies were authorized to determine the scope of the project. "At the current stage, under our management, the initiative has only been in the environmental evaluation phase, without any authorization for its exploitation," stated the president.

Read also "Water yes, gold no", they protest in the Dominican Republic against a Canadian mining project

Mining defense

In its defense, GoldQuest argued that its eventual exploitation of gold, and to a lesser extent, silver and zinc, would be done using underground methods and not open pit, as occurs in another region of the country, where the also Canadian Barrick Gold operates.

For the project's detractors, the progress of the project would imply the contamination of the rivers throughout the province, an area where about 60% of the beans consumed by the country are produced, and around 15% of the rice.

With EFE and Reuters

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