Senate President Thomas Rivera Schatz By THE STAR STAFF Senate President Thomas Rivera Schatz warned on Monday that he will not allow the supremacy clause included in the administration’s bill regarding permits, arguing that it concentrates excessive power and could nullify other laws, regulations, licenses and municipal decisions. “There is a concern raised -- isn’t there? -- and there is a doubt that troubles us; for while it speaks of delegating regulatory authority to cer

Hernaliz Vázquez Torres, director of Sierra Club Puerto Rico (Madres de la Tierra) By THE STAR STAFF Sierra Club Puerto Rico, joined by more than 50 environmental and community organizations, is calling on the public to rally at the Capitol this Wednesday at 11 a.m., ahead of a public hearing on House Bill (HB) 25, legislation that critics say would restrict public access to Puerto Rico’s beaches. “This is a call to the country to come to the Capitol and defend our beaches,”

An examination by the Office of the Inspector General revealed that access to surveillance and monitoring areas managed through an electromagnetic card system and operated by the Auxiliary Secretariat for Security Information Management and Analysis, an entity within the Department of Public Safety, lacked formal authorization procedures for creating user profiles. By THE STAR STAFF An intervention by the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) has prompted corrective actions t

Josué Colón Ortiz, the island’s energy czar, is also the executive director of the Puerto Rico Public‑Private Partnerships Authority. By THE STAR STAFF A hearing examiner overseeing a high‑profile energy rate case has rejected an 11th‑hour filing by the Puerto Rico Public‑Private Partnerships Authority and the Office of the Energy Czar, ruling that the submission was both unauthorized and untimely. In an order issued Monday regarding the April 10 filing, the examiner, Scott H

The mission involved a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter from the Army National Guard Aviation Facility, equipped with a Bambi Bucket fire suppression system to conduct water drops over the most affected areas. By THE STAR STAFF The Puerto Rico National Guard activated air support on Monday to assist the Puerto Rico Firefighters Bureau in combating wildfires in Vega Baja, following authorization from Gov. Jenniffer González Colón. “The activation of our air assets, in coordination

The lifeguard on duty at Watchtower Number 2 at La Monserrate beach in Luquillo, Joanel Figueroa, saw a swimmer struggling and launched Dolphin 3, guiding the aquatic drone to the man, who attached himself to the drone using a rope and was brought ashore without further incident. By THE STAR STAFF Natural and Environmental Resources (DNER) Secretary Waldemar Quiles Pérez announced on Monday the historic first rescue of a person in the water using exclusively a Dolphin 3 unman

Laura García Santamaría of Reforestamos México presents her talk on the efforts her country is undertaking in the development and management of urban trees. By THE STAR STAFF The exchange of technical, scientific and community experiences on urban tree management, climate resilience and environmental planning marked the theme of the Congress on Urban Tree Management held over the weekend by the Municipal Administration of Caguas with the participation of local and internation

The Puerto Rico Energy Bureau said the loss of federal EPA funding to develop a comprehensive regulatory framework for community solar projects presents an opportunity to broaden the scope of the proceeding and develop a more robust regulatory record to guide long-term community solar development in Puerto Rico. ( ieefa.org ) By THE STAR STAFF The Puerto Rico Energy Bureau (PREB) has re-initiated its regulatory proceeding to develop a comprehensive framework for community sol

Officials warned that conditions could become dangerous in a short period of time, especially in flood-prone communities. By THE STAR STAFF Government officials urged residents and visitors to exercise extreme caution Sunday as a weather system is expected to bring persistent rainfall and risk of flooding across much of Puerto Rico over the next several days. The Puerto Rico Emergency Management and Disaster Administration (NMEAD by its acronym in Spanish) and the Department

Urban planner Pedro Cardona Roig By THE STAR STAFF Legislative proposals for a new Planning and Permits Code submitted by Senate President Thomas Rivera Schatz and by Gov. Jenniffer González Colón recently are “misguided bills,” urban planner Pedro Cardona Roig said. Of the two, Cardona Roig said in a recent radio interview (Radio Isla) that Rivera Schatz’s version of a new permitting process was better than the governor’s measure, but still bad. The island Legislature is s