The municipality of Boca Chica, in the province of Santo Domingo, faces a critical situation for its tourism development. The sargassum seaweed that has already begun to arrive and the solid waste dumps scattered throughout the area pose a real threat to this tourist destination.
While sargassum arrives on the different beaches of this municipality, landfills appear one after another, even on the Las Américas highway, the entrance to the town, as well as on the main roads leading to tourist areas.
Dumps are forming everywhere, regardless of whether it's the entrance to the town, the beach, or in front of educational centers, such as the Vitalina Mordán School or in front of the San Rafael Catholic School, in Andrés.
On both sides of Las Américas, garbage cans welcome those leaving the Airport or Santo Domingo heading to the East of the Dominican Republic.
The same applies to those traveling from Higuey, Punta Cana, Bavaro, La Romana, Hato Mayor, El Seibo or San Pedro de Macorís to Santo Domingo.
The Mayor's Office of Boca Chica claims that it received very few garbage collectors because most of them had mechanical difficulties, so almost two months into the new administration, it has not been able to combat the waste produced in the town.
Juan Anibal Peguero, a resident of Ceiba Street, formerly A Street, explains that the city council collects the garbage, but the problem is that most of the garbage trucks are broken.
He points out that since the authorities do not have the capacity to remove solid waste from the streets of the municipality, the residents accumulate it in a specific point so that the council can remove it and transport it to the landfill.
In addition, in many places people pay cart drivers to remove their household waste, because no one can stand accumulating garbage for more than a week in their yards and alleyways.
