A Yucatan judge orders the temporary suspension of section five of the Mayan Train The section in question crosses an area of underground rivers, caves and cenotes.
By Eduardo Scheffler Zawadzki Edited by Eduardo Scheffler Zawadzki
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This article was translated from our Spanish edition.
Since the construction of the Mayan Train began, one of the most important projects of the government of the president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador , there have been voices questioning the environmental impact it would have in the area. Last month a group of divers filed an injunction on the grounds that the project did not have an environmental impact authorization.
Today a judge from the state of Yucatan ordered the provisional suspension of the work on the section that goes from Playa del Carmen to Tulum . "Although society has an interest in building communication routes for public service, the truth is that it is also interested in doing so in accordance with the legal provisions that Mexican law foresees in environmental matters."
This section of the work has provoked a series of criticisms for the deforestation that it implies in the jungle and for being passing over an area full of underground rivers, cenotes and caves. In March, a group of artists and influencers launched a campaign against the Mayan Train called #SélvameDelTren , which presented seven different videos on social networks in which the reasons for disapproving the project were exposed. Among the celebrities who participated in the movement are Eugenio Derbez, Aislinn Derbez, Arturo Islas Allende, Regina Blandón, Marisol Rueda, Kate del Castillo, Saúl Hernández, Bárbara Mori, Rubén Albarrán and Natalia Lafourcade .
The campaign was criticized by President López Obrador, who at the time described the artists as pseudo-environmentalists, conservatives and fifis: "When these artists, environmentalists, spoke out for the destruction that was going to be carried out on Lake Texcoco ? We are talking about the lake with the most history, which is the origin of Mexico-Tenochtitlán. When did they give something? Never nothing".
The original work of the Mayan Train ran next to the highway that currently connects Playa del Carmen with Tulum, but given the difficulty of having to raise the work above the urban area of Playa del Carmen, it was decided to change the route. This is the first time that a magistrate pronounces in relation to the so-called section five of the work.
In his usual morning press conference, López Obrador commented that he had not yet been notified of the suspension of the work and insisted that the project will help "solve the problem of lack of connectivity and transport infrastructure in the southeast of the country. ".
There are so many of us concerned about the Mayan aquifer. If we want the train, but one that respects the environment, the LARGEST SYSTEM OF RIVERS AND CENOTES IN THE WORLD. #NoAlTramo5 #SelvameDelTren pic.twitter.com/LrwViviqW2
– Selvame del Tren (@selvamedeltren) April 1, 2022
What is the Mayan Train?
According to the official page of the project , the Mayan Train "is a project to improve people's quality of life, take care of the environment and trigger sustainable development. It will travel a distance of approximately 1,500 kilometers and will pass through the states of Chiapas, Tabasco, Campeche, Yucatán and Quintana Roo".
Most of the sections will use the old existing roads or highways, but in others it will be necessary to trace and build new spaces. The completion of the Mayan Train is scheduled for December 2023. One of the main objectives of the project is to detonate the economy of the Mexican southeast.
