He Ministry of Environment (Miambiente) ordered the immediate stoppage of a construction project in the Marbella sector, Bella Vista district, and imposed a fine of $10,000, in addition to demanding the immediate execution of the necessary adjustments to correct the environmental damageafter detecting an illegal discharge of contaminated water that directly affected the Matasnillo River.
The project, identified as Modern 360 Urban Livingin charge of the company The Panoramic Residences Corp.is located on Los Jades street, in Marbella. A video circulated on social networks in which a pipe is seen discharging a large amount of water with sediments—similar to concrete mix—directly into the river.
The developer is legally represented by Nassly Argentina de la Concepción Ruiz Sequeira, who is responsible for the environmental impact study (EIA), category I.
The measure occurred after a citizen complaint attended to by the entity’s technical team. During the inspection, the existence of a clandestine connection to the storm system that discharged sediments and solid waste into the tributary was verified.
The construction was a 23-story building, with 18 floors for apartments, as well as levels for parking, lobby and rooftop areas, in a high-density urban environment.
According to the approved study, one of the conditions was explicit: water could not be discharged into the Matasnillo River. It was also established that the activities must be carried out without affecting the flow or quality of the water, as well as avoiding the deposit of materials or waste in the channel area.
These provisions contrast with the findings of Miambiente, which identified polluting discharges into the river.
During the inspection, officials also detected poor practices in waste management and the use of inadequate containment structures, which aggravated the environmental impact in the area.
Previous questions
The project had already raised concerns among area residents. On October 31, 2025, the representative of Bella Vista, César Kiamco, sent a note to the Ministry of Environment expressing concerns from nearby neighbors, including residents of the PH Torre del Pacífico A.
The communication requested to evaluate aspects such as land use, project density, parking availability and mobility in the area, as well as the proposed mitigation measures, in an environment characterized by high urban pressure.
After becoming aware of the contamination, Kiamco reiterated the need to accurately determine the extent of the environmental impact. He indicated that, although the presence of sediments is common in construction works, they must be properly treated before being disposed of in the stormwater system.
