Great video Mike and thanks for clarifying things I couldn't find in my own research. I'm so relieved that our locals won this battle for now. Every morning on the way back from the gym in Montanita, I crest the hill by the orphanage and the view of the ocean to my left and our little town straight ahead reminds me why Jess and I chose this little paradise we call home. The thought of having 6 story modern-style apartment buildings in Olon would immediately destroy its charm that so many of us love. Anyway, say hi to Kris, get to feeling better, and let's have dinner soon.

The president Noboa, Who I call the "little dictator," thinks that Ecuador is his banana farm where he can do anything he wants. The Minister of the Interior said "the local people are using the foreigners to protest" It's unbelievable what the president is doing in just 6 months in power, he doesn't get out of one problem to get into the another mess and the worst is he doesn't give his face to resolve them, what he does is to go vacations to his motherland Miami and now with this problem he went to Europe for 11 days. People from Olon and to all expats please join together to protest for this great cause that is of all you living there. Thanks for your report Mike and please keep us informed about this matter.

Thank you for sharing this information. Protected land . The people of Olon and the surrounding communities . Should have a say in this development .

Thank you! You two are awesome!

Thanks for making this video, Mike. I also want to point out that some government officials are among the investors of this project. So, when the developers have obtained permission to build there from the Ministry of Environment quite recently, at least we're talking about a conflict of interests.

Thanks for keeping us up to date, Mike. I appreciate how factual and reasoned you are in your presentation of events, knowing you devote considerable time to doing the research required to put together a report like this. Feel better soon.

Thank you for bringing this to light. We are headed to Olon next week to check the Olon out

Thanks Mike, hope you are feeling better. I'm in Montanita now.

The mangroves should be mandatory. Boardwalks with mangroves are beautiful and functional - and they are great for erosion control, wave control, and providing native habitat for the animals - and this is a long boardwalk that could be a nature walk all by itself. We need our mangroves. Development is great if done responsibly.

Mike, thanks again for an informative video. Obviously the new president had to take strong measures to deal with the cartels. But it’s sad that he’s demonstrating he’s just as corrupt as any other leader when there’s an opportunity to make a buck. As a Floridian, I’m living every day with the consequences of years of bad environmental decisions. Just no reason for it. Particularly since Noboa is already wealthy. Hope you feel better soon. Thank you for your work !!!!

So sorry you've not been well. I hope you feel better soon. Wow! I have many issues with this project. For starters, neither the president nor the first lady should be involved with an endeavor of this nature. If it were a public development, i.e. a sports center with parks and whatnots, it would be different. The moment you said the first lady was involved, I thought it would be something like that. What a shock to learn it's a for-profit development. I imagine a friend of theirs may be involved, given how soon in his administration, one can see that this was in the works for some time. Talk about "nebot-ism." Then there's the matter of sea level rise. How long will that westward pool last? And that river will flood because of it, with or without intensive rain. The sea will come in and invade it, flooding the entire area. And where will their sewage go? Are they going to dump it into the ocean? And at some point (again, sea level rise) the sewage will go back into the condos. Eww. Hopefully they'll at the very lessthave well-built septic tanks that won't pollute the waters once they get to it. And lets not even talk about the environmental disaster you mentioned. I can't belive they're blaming gringos. Ugh! Thank you very much for this reporting. Very informative.

Gee, I wonder why the First Lady is involved? Is this going to be an exclusive community for her and her friends?

Thanks so much for this news Mike!! I have to say that, I stand with the Ecuadorian people on this - 100% True development is not to destroy the environment but to make everything and everyone work together in harmony. Big concrete boxes are very far from harmonious and, clearly not what the people of the country want!! I have unfortunately seen this type of "development" both within Ecuador and in other (western) countries where these horrible concrete boxes (built of 2 centimeters concrete plates and, you can hear everything going on in the building at all times 24/7) with absolutely no privacy.. hence, it's like putting humans in caves/prisons at the same time as destroying the entire environment for a animals in the entire area.. Abra-ca-dabra.. Thousands of living/loving souls destroyed.. Would you Mike, know the Ecuadorian group who fought and (with the help of good American lawyers of which there are a few left) won over the state of Ecuador in the case which became a part of the Ecuadorian constitution.. "The Rights of Nature"? These wonderful people ought to be involved in the case in Olon as well, simply to stop this type of "development" before it escalates to the entire Ecuadorian coastline.. Any idea who and where they are and, how to get in touch with them?? Thanks again for sharing and, thanks to both of you, for working for this in beautiful. Ecuador and, happy weekend 🌹🌹🌹!!

hope you are feeling well. Thanks.......Risk along rivers is water depth, flow w terential rains inland. Seems risky. Take care. Hi to Kris.

Aside from the ecological part, I am reminded of a situation I see as similar. 2000 I moved to Hatteras Island and 2003 I moved away. The typical house on the island used to be small, up to 3 bedroom and it had gone to the houses being built in the early 00s being 6 bedrooms and up, built to be weekly rentals. Most people that lived on the island worked in construction or tourist trade so they were for the building boom. There was a guy born and raised on the island that said, for every one person they get that wants to party down with their friends in a big house, they lose 2 people that were mom, dad and a couple of kids that were a pleasure to have visit. I know the apartments aren't 6+ bedrooms full of partiers but, I wonder if the apartments would change the type of people in Olon, more Montanita, less Olon.

good work , from and island in new jersy ... this is exacty how it starts people of Olon realize that this development will impact them.. what are the rules for development ...

I am worried, I live in Galapagos and the president's wife and the president have a permanent resident card in Galapagos, a week ago they arrived by private plane and I am afraid that they want to invest in Galapagos and damage the flora and fauna with their buildings.

300 "jobs" not enough. Altering this natural river to ocean access is Not echo anything! Scrap this plan and help the Ecuadorians gain real jobs with a living wage for families.

Citizens should complained about the First Lady being involved in the project…. Conflict of interest besides no good for the environment.

Hi Mike; do Canadians need a yellow fever vaccination to visit Ecuador? I read over 60, there is a high-risk to one receiving the vaccination. Thanks Roger

US presidents are not required to hold their assets in a blind trust although many do so. The decision by a certain former US president (who is running again) not to do that resulted in many potential conflicts of interest during his term. Conflict of interest issues like this are certainly not limited to developing countries.

The environment has been abused by those powerful economic groups like the Noboas . What are you talking about!!!

Dump the green screen background. Ecuador is a beautiful country!! It is only a distraction!!!!!

Ecuador is getting less and less desirable to relocate to.

Your an Ex pat from Canada. You’re used to Canadas way of permitting. It’s great you can now open your own news station. This is complete hyperbole. You’ve said the developer isn’t discussing the merits of the protesters face to face. You’ve not documented any proof. How long has this protest been going on? Reforesting is common practice in areas around rivers where commerce and progress will occur. Noboas wife being involved with the development company IS interesting. As long as the development company goes thru all legal process and permitting and it’s approved or denied using standard procedures Noboas wife means nothing. Your headline “ Noboas major missteps in Olon” asserts he’s done something wrong. I see nothing of this. Ecuador has many problems at this time. Making up news is not needed. I’ve followed you and your wife’s podcast for months. Love the information on property’s, rentals, grocery prices hospital and medical info. Your info on State of emergency beginning in January on forward been spot on. But this broadcast has disappointed me greatly. I was scheduled to relocate this past March to Ecuador on my third trip. I postponed it because of Declared State of Emergency and several podcast including yours. I’ve postponed it until 2025 at the earliest. Waiting to see how everything plays out. Your comments are influential to we who follow you. I’ve made the choice to live in Cuenca or Quito area. I live close to Gulf Coast and am not living near hot humid area anymore.

The president Noboa, Who I call the "little dictator," thinks that Ecuador is his banana farm where he can do anything he wants. The Minister of the Interior said "the local people are using the foreigners to protest" It's unbelievable what the president is doing in just 6 months in power, he doesn't get out of one problem to get into the another mess and the worst is he doesn't give his face to resolve them, what he does is to go vacations to his motherland Miami and now with this problem he went to Europe for 11 days. People from Olon and to all expats please join together to protest for this great cause that is of all you living there. Thanks for your report Mike and please keep us informed about this matter.