Puerto Rico Man Pleads Guilty to Clean Water Act Violation in Jobos Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve

A Puerto Rico Man was charged and pleaded guilty yesterday for violating the Clean Water Act for construction and filling activities on a property in the las Mareas area of Salinas, Puerto Rico.

According to court documents, Orlando Rivera-Alejandro placed fill material in Mar Negro, within the waters of the United States, and within the Jobos Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (JBNERR), despite knowing that the area was a federally protected reserve. Between January 2020 and March 2022, Rivera-Alejandro built multiple structures on top of the filled area, including a gazebo and a concrete boat ramp. He also constructed a dock and numerous concrete-filled PVC poles within Mar Negro, discharging concrete directly into Mar Negro during the construction. Rivera-Alejandro did not seek or receive approval to fill the area or to engage in construction within Mar Negro. At no point was Rivera-Alejandro permitted to do so.

As a part of the plea agreement, Rivera-Alejandro has agreed to pay a $50,000 fine and remove all structures and alterations to the property and to engage in remediation of the environmental harm, damage, and changes that altered the property from its natural state. Rivera-Alejandro is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 1.

The photographs below depict the property in May 2019 and in March 2022, demonstrating the illegal construction.

The JBNERR was designated as a reserve in 1981 to protect the wetlands and study the biological and societal impacts of estuarine habitat, as well as provide recreation and educational opportunities to local communities. The reserve is home to the endangered brown pelican, peregrine falcon, hawksbill turtle and West Indian manatee. Congress enacted the Clean Water Act in 1972 to protect and maintain the integrity of the waters of the United States. It prohibits the discharge of any pollutant and fill material into waters of the United States except when a permit is obtained from the United States.

This case is part of an ongoing investigation into the destruction of wetlands in Puerto Rico. Rivera-Alejandro is the sixth individual convicted for illegal construction within the JBNERR in recent years. Previously convicted individuals include Luis Enrique Rodríguez-Sánchez, sentenced in June 2024; Awildo Jiménez-Mercado, Rafael Carballo-Diaz, and Nathaniel Hernandez-Claudio, sentenced in September 2024; and Pedro Luis Bones-Torres, sentenced in March 2025.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division, and U.S. Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow made the announcement.

The case was investigated by the EPA's Criminal Investigation Division and the FBI which participate in the Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands Environmental Crimes Task Force.

The case is being prosecuted by Senior Trial Attorney Patrick M. Duggan of ENRD's Environmental Crimes Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth A. Erbe for the District of Puerto Rico.