Real estate projects must make an active environmental commitment
SANTO DOMINGO – In every bottle we throw away, in every bag we accept without a second thought, there is a story that doesn't end when it leaves our hands. It ends or begins in a river, in a ravine, on the shore of a beach. It is a silent journey that connects our home with the sea.
For Oscar Oviedo, president and co-founder of Fundación Vida Azul, the country is experiencing a reality that demands more than just clean-up days: it requires awareness, co-responsibility, and firm decisions.
“The Dominican Republic faces a structural challenge in solid waste management, especially in coastal urban areas and those near rivers,” explained Oviedo, who for more than 16 years has led sanitation campaigns, waste management projects, and community leadership processes focused on sustainability.
The environmentalist explained that a significant portion of poorly managed plastic—bottles, bags, food containers, and packaging—ends up in ravines and stormwater drainage systems.
He explained that with each rainfall, this waste is washed into the rivers and eventually flows into the Caribbean Sea. Given this reality, he emphasized that the problem doesn't begin in the sea, but rather starts at home.
In an interview with El Inmobiliario, Oviedo pointed out that international research agrees that much of marine pollution originates on land.
In the Dominican context, rivers like the Ozama and Isabela become conduits that carry waste to the coast, demonstrating the direct connection between consumption and pollution.
“The connection is direct. Every purchase decision generates potential waste. When a family buys products with multiple layers of plastic packaging, uses disposable bags daily, or consumes beverages in single-use bottles, they are increasing the volume of waste that will eventually need to be managed,” he said.
Drawing on his experience in solid waste governance and sustainable development, and as a collaborator in international initiatives linked to marine conservation and the circular economy, he spoke about the most frequent findings on the country's beaches and rivers.
During these clean-up days, the most common waste found includes PET beverage bottles, plastic bags, foam containers, snack packaging, lids, and disposable utensils.
“Many of these wastes do not come from large industries, but from everyday consumption. That is why we talk about shared responsibility,” he said.
Daily decisions
Beyond the diagnosis, the president of Fundación Vida Azul insisted that solutions are within reach of families. He explained that to reduce the plastic footprint, it is necessary to apply three basic principles: refuse, reduce, and reuse.
In practical terms, he added that replacing disposable bottles with reusable containers, buying in bulk, avoiding products with excessive packaging, using reusable bags, and separating recyclables at home are concrete actions that, when combined, generate a real impact on waste reduction.
“The most powerful decision is made at the moment of purchase. Every time we choose a product with less plastic, we are sending a signal to the market. Responsible consumption transforms the supply,” she emphasized.
Shared responsibility
The call also extends to the real estate sector, which, he argued, has a crucial role in building more sustainable communities.
Oviedo pointed out that condominiums and residential projects can implement systems for separating waste at the source, establish agreements with formal recyclers, enable internal clean points and develop periodic educational campaigns for residents.
Furthermore, he suggested that these communities can promote the reduction of disposable items in internal activities and events, fostering a shared environmental culture among neighbors.
“An organized condominium can significantly reduce its volume of waste sent to landfill,” he said.
Environmental value
According to the expert, integrating environmental criteria from the architectural design stage, such as spaces designated for waste sorting and community environmental education programs, not only improves internal management, but also adds reputational value and sustainability to the project.
For Oviedo, the final message is simple yet powerful. Plastic pollution is not a distant phenomenon, nor is it exclusive to coastlines. It is the cumulative result of daily decisions. And it can also become the result of conscious and sustained action.
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