7 News Belize

Santander Gets Stop Order For Violating Environmental Compliance Plan
posted (July 14, 2016)
Santander paid one of the largest environmental fines in history in 2012 when the company coughed up one hundred thousand dollars for a massive trench they dug in the central corridor of the Belize district. Well now they've been flagged for another set of environmental violations - which includes the unauthorized damming of the whitewater lagoon - an area the company had been told specifically not to dam in its environmental compliance plan. Not only that, but the lagoon is a very unique eco-system which had been highlited in the Environmental Impact Assessment.

Today the CEO in the Ministry of Environment Colin Young told 7News that they have issued four enforcement orders against Santander. These are also known as stop orders - but he stressed that there is no stop order against the company which continues operations. The enforcement orders are for breaches of their environmental compliance plan, for which the company will be fined under the penalties set out in the Environmental Protection act.

The company built two unauthorized dams blocking water in the lagoon, and dug two unauthorized trenches. The enforcement orders issued three weeks ago states that they have to stop all actions relating to these violations - and company representatives were told this in a meeting last week Monday. The violations were brought to he attention of the ministry by conservation groups.

So what will they be fined this time? Well that is still being worked on - and the CEO said it could vary widely.

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