P.R. Laws tit. 28, § 207
No natural or juridical person, association or group of persons, department, agency, quasi-public corporation, municipality, or instrumentality of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or of the United States of America shall excavate, extract, remove or dredge the components of the earth’s crust in public or private land within the geographical limits of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico without having obtained a permit for such purposes from the Secretary. Neither may components of the earth’s crust that have been excavated, extracted, removed or dredged in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico be exported without the prior authorization of the Secretary.
The Secretary shall establish through regulations the standards that shall govern any excavation, extraction, removal or dredging operations incidental to or necessary for carrying out works or projects authorized pursuant to the provisions of law. The Secretary shall likewise provide for all matters related to the export of the components of the earth’s crust.
The Secretary may exempt from the permits and the payments corresponding by virtue thereof, when the amounts extracted are not significant or substantial.
The Secretary shall ensure compliance with the Environmental Public Policy Act, §§ 1121—1140a of Title 12, by requiring an Environmental Evaluation or an Environmental Impact Statement before granting any permit, except for those applicants whose request involves the coastal zone and the river beds used as sources of water supply. In those cases the Secretary shall ensure compliance with the Environmental Public Policy Act through an Environmental Impact Statement (DIA, Spanish acronym).
By means of the permit the Secretary shall regulate all requirements, limitations and restrictions related to the operational aspects of the activities for excavating, extracting, removing or dredging the components of the earth’s crust as well as the days and hours of operation and transportation. The faculty to regulate the days and hours of operation is extended to working days, holidays and weekends.
In the case of those applications for original permits certified by the Department within a term of not more than thirty (30) days that were fully and correctly submitted, the Secretary shall be responsible for granting or denying the permit within a term of not more than ninety (90) days.
History —June 25, 1968, No. 132, p. 314, § 2; June 3, 1976, No. 144, p. 423, § 2; June 27, 1987, No. 54, p. 180, § 1; Dec. 26, 1997, No. 195, § 1; Sept. 2, 2000, No. 318, § 1.