By Cristina Barros on June 24, 2019
The effects of the Mayan Train being proposed for the Yucatan Peninsula is a concern among biologists but there is an abundance of reasons why we should all be worried by what is being explained by members of the Center for Scientific Research of Yucatan and the Autonomous University of Yucatan, including Casandra Reyes Garcia, Celene Espadas Manrique, Alejandra Garcia Quintanilla, and Manuela Tamayo Chim. They are trying to recount all their arguments despite being discredited by the director of Mexico’s FONATUR (National Fund for Tourism Development) Rogelio Jimenez Pons, who has accused conservationists and all those who oppose the project that people are more important and that the country does not need famished children while jaguars are fat.
According to the scientific perspective, the so-call Mayan Train may cause an ecological collapse on the Yucatan Peninsula. Ecological collapse is defined as a situation where an ecosystem suffers a drastic, possibly permanent, reduction in carrying capacity for all organisms, often resulting in mass extinction. Such collapse would not only affect flora and fauna but directly all living organisms, including human beings since we all benefit from the what is naturally provided by the rainforest. Some of these benefits are the fact that rainforests or jungles enhance cloud formation due to the water vapor emitted from transpiration and foster rainfalls; besides, they favor the accumulation of ground water. The fauna in rainforests contribute with natural pest control, as well as it provides for pollination. Pollination leads to fruit production. Jaguars and pumas “control the proliferation of herbivores leading to plant regeneration in the forest. We also get wood, firewood, medicinal plants, food coloring, spices, animals raised for food, as well as cultural benefits. Nature is an inner part of native people’s lives holding important intangible value. These are the people and societies that have maintained hundreds of years of harmonious relationship with nature.
In this connection, scientists stressed that some train stations are expected to “go through areas of the Yucatan Peninsula which still have preserved nature vegetation areas”, including Mexico’s two most important protected natural areas: the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve—largest expanse of tropical forests in America, only surpassed by the Amazon jungle—and the Sian Ka’an Biosphere Reserve with its “Cenotes”, which are water-filled natural sinkholes hosting specialized communities of life and “Petenes”, tree islands emerging from the swamps. Both are connected by underground freshwater systems, jointly forming an invaluable and fragile treasure for future generations. The latter has been included in the list of World Heritage Sites of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
The Calakmul Reserve has an archaeological zone included in UNESCO’s list of Mixed World Heritage Site which is expected to be developed into a tourist attraction. Communication and access is limited in this area and it is visited by about 40,000 tourists per year. If it becomes connected by the train, out of 17 million tourists who visit Cancun, it is estimated three million would visit Calakmul.
The current situation of the Riviera Maya may be a reflection of what this would mean for the Reserve. Though an environmentally responsible and low impact development that would result in welfare has been announced, the truth is that the local population has been relocated and biodiversity highly impacted. Already ecocides have occurred in the sea and on land, where corals, rainforests and mangroves have died.
The U.N. warned that it is necessary to take urgent measures at an unprecedented scale to stop and reverse environmental problems so as to protect human and environmental health. However, the researchers insist that if a comprehensive analysis of the environmental, social and economic impact of the Mayan Train is not made, the poorest will surely be the first to suffer. The poor will see a decrease in the honey of their apiaries and in their crops. It is urgent to stop and carry out a real analysis on the impact of the Mayan Train and change its route to protect the rainforest they will destroy.
The voice of the Mayan people may be read in the Statement released by Mayan organizations from the Yucatan Peninsula, published on June 19. It only backs the opinions expressed by the research center.
The same way we see islands of floating rubbish thrown to the sea by ourselves, if the Maya train project goes on, one day we’ll see the rainfall cycle changing, ground water drying, temperatures rising, and a lack of pollination in crops. This is not only affecting the Yucatan Peninsula, it affects all of us.
Source: La Jornada, translation, Resumen Latinoamericano, North America bureau