Maroc - NEWSDAY.CO.TT - A la Une - 23/Nov 04:05

Cops move to crush illegal quarries

The Multi-Agency Task Force is moving to crush the operations of all illegal quarry operators. Head of the unit, Supt Leon Haynes, said in an interview that illegal operators are being identified and targeted for prosecution. Haynes said there are only nine companies in TT which currently hold full licences to mine or process aggregate, while another 13 operate under temporary “holdover” permits granted directly by the line minister. While the full extent of illegal operations remains unknown, Haynes said many more unlicensed operators continue to extract and process material, often in remote, obscured areas across the country. He said they are at the summit of his agency’s agenda to pursue. [caption id="attachment_1191936" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Trucks waiting to be loaded were impounded by police during a raid in October at an illegal quarry at Manuel Congo, Guanapo.[/caption] Speaking with Newsday on November 22, Haynes said while he could not identify them, the agency’s working list confirms seven companies have active mining licences and two have processing licences, authorised under the Minerals Act. A further 13 operators have been allowed to function under ministerial holdover approvals, which provide interim authority while applications are processed. “Those holdover permits are limited and not many companies have them,” Haynes said. “Some of these permits cover mining, some cover processing, and some are integrated.” He said the MATF cannot yet determine how many operators are working illegally because of their covert operations. Illegal quarrying has been a national scourge for years and regained attention earlier in November after members of the TT Aggregate Producers Association (TTAPA) staged protests outside National Quarries Ltd (NQL) in Turure, accusing the state-owned company of processing sand and gravel without a valid licence and accusing the State of a double-standard. Haynes noted that enforcement depends on verifying authority from two agencies: the Commissioner of State Lands for state lands and the Director of Minerals for quarry operations. “It’s not that we can just arrest someone because they have an excavator on their land,” he said. “We must show that they are required to have a licence to do what they are doing.” Holdover licences issued TTAPA president Nigel Tenia said the association’s 24 members shut down their operations for two weeks in response to what they described as a “crippling” licensing vacuum that exposes all legitimate operators to criminal liability. Tenia claimed none of the group’s members has ever been issued a processing licence for sand and gravel, and further alleged that NQL is also operating without one. The association argued that scores of applications have remained pending for years and that the Minerals Division has failed to provide clarity on which companies have legally compliant permits. Energy Minister Dr Roodal Moonilal disputed this in a statement on November 6, saying, “The TTAPA has made allegations that no company or individual has been able to successfully secure a processing licence for minerals in Trinidad and Tobago. “The MEEI wishes to inform the public that the allegations made by the TTAPA are false. Over the past few years, the MEEI has granted numerous process mineral licences to various companies.” Based on investigations, Haynes said he was also sceptical about Tenia’s claims. Haynes found that while the regulations give applicants three months to complete their submissions, many do not satisfy the requirements. “Most of them are not producing the documents to the ministry within the prescribed time. So the application lapses,” he said. Asked whether operators were unable or unwilling to satisfy the criteria, he said, “Some companies have done it. It’s not that it can’t be done. But the incentive wasn’t always there. “They are now doing a risk-benefit analysis and the risks are outweighing the benefits.” The risk, he said, includes arrest, fines and imprisonment. He confirmed that NQL has a holdover permit granted under Section 12 of the Minerals Act, which allows the minister to authorise operations where an existing licence has expired but a new application is in progress. “Yes, I could confirm that National Quarries has a holdover licence,” Haynes said. “There are not that many companies with those holdover permits.” Silence from aggregate body Newsday contacted Tenia for his response to recent warnings by Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro but he said he did not wish to comment “at this time,” an unusual departure from his previous public statements. Guevarro, on November 21, issued a renewed warning to illegal quarry operators, saying the TTPS would not tolerate the use of unlicensed aggregate processing to support criminal networks. His warning came a day after quarry owner Danny Guerra and his son were detained under preventative detention orders signed on November 19 by Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander. According to the order, Guerra is alleged to lead an organised crime syndicate involved in money laundering, arms trafficking and large-scale illegal quarrying. He is also accused of being a threat to public safety, including being involved in an alleged plot to assassinate a government minister. Guerra was charged with unlawful processing of aggregate without a licence from the energy ministry in October. Guevarro also disclosed that 47 people were arrested between 2020 and 2025 for mining or processing minerals without licences issued by either the Director of Minerals or the State Land Commissioner. These included: 12 charged in 2020 for mining in Wallerfield and Sangre Grande; three charged in 2022 for mining in Matura; four charged in 2023 for mining in Vega de Oropouche; nine charged in 2024 for processing minerals in Wallerfield; and 19 charged so far in 2025 for processing minerals in Manuel Congo, Arima. Among the alleged offenders is Allan Warner, charged in July, 2024, for illegal aggregate processing at Wallerfield. Guevarro rejected the notion that offenders could present themselves as victims of bureaucratic obstacles. “Those involved in these acts have sought to portray themselves as victims, but the facts are clear,” he said. “They were engaged in criminal activity that robs the nation of its resources and fuels organised crime.” He added, “Don’t play victim to the media on one hand, while you’re holding the shovel that digs the country’s grave in the other.” Transparency gaps The licensing dispute has also raised scrutiny of the Ministry of Energy’s minerals oversight and public records. The ministry’s “Quarries” webpage references aggregate production for 2013 and appears outdated. The TTAPA stated that the absence of an updated public register of mining and processing licences makes it impossible to verify which companies are operating legally, fueling frustration and speculation. The TT Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (TTEITI) 2024 State of the Extractive Sectors report addressed these transparency gaps, legal issues and general volatility in the sector. The report notes that in 2022, five quarrying entities, including two state-owned companies, paid $7.65 million in reconciled revenues. But quarry operators owed the state an estimated $139 million in unpaid royalties, including $0.3 million still under verification because of uncertainty over mineral rights in at least 21 quarries. Production volumes also fluctuated significantly: 2.04 million cubic metres in 2019, falling to 1.62 million cubic metres in 2020, rising again in 2021, then dropping to 1.74 million cubic metres in 2022. The report stresses that monitoring of revenue payments “needs to be significantly improved.” Illegal quarrying is described as a major challenge, causing environmental damage and degrading land and watercourses. Under Section 22 of the Minerals Act, it is an offence to explore for, mine, process, import, or export minerals without a licence.   The post Cops move to crush illegal quarries appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.