Developers of the Esencia luxury enclave defended their proposed project in Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico, during a public hearing before the Senate on a Tuesday. ^[1] Cabo Rojo Mayor Jorge Morales Wiscovitch affirmed that he would not accept the waste from the Esencia megaproject in the municipal landfill. ^[2] The Esencia megaproject, proposed for the Monte Carmelo area in Cabo Rojo, failed to present a plan to handle an estimated 76,264 pounds of daily waste during a Senate hearing on 2026-06-25. ^[3] Cabo Rojo Mayor Jorge Morales Wiscovitch acknowledged concerns regarding solid waste disposal, noting the project would generate 76,000 pounds of trash daily. ^[4] The project proposes an initial water requirement of 1.253 million gallons per day (MGD) from the Betances filtration plant of the AAA. ^[5] Roberto Ruiz Vargas, representing the project proponents Esencia, stated that if the municipality cannot manage the waste, they would use private operators. ^[6] The project requires 1,253,306 gallons of water daily and 12 megawatts of energy, which local authorities warned are currently insufficient. ^[7]