Environmental group Sélvame MX denounced on April 2 the resumption of works in a previously closed zone in Tulum, Quintana Roo, located over the Sac Actun underground river system. The organization warns of risks to the Gran Acuífero Maya and regional biodiversity. The works involve a roughly 20-kilometer road trace crossing cenotes and caverns.
Sélvame MX reported that the works are taking place in an area of high environmental fragility, despite the prior closure by environmental authorities. The group stated that this situation could violate current environmental legislation.
The Sac Actun system is part of the Gran Acuífero Maya, the main freshwater source sustaining the jungle, biodiversity, and millions of people in the Yucatan Peninsula. According to the organization, construction on karst terrain poses risks of collapses, aquifer contamination, and irreversible damage.
Sélvame MX emphasized that the intervention threatens not only the jungle but the underground water system on which millions depend. The group questioned that the project, allegedly managed by the Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional (Sedena), does not address public service needs or mobility issues in Tulum, but may link to urbanization and real estate speculation.
The denunciation highlights the lack of public justification and non-compliance with environmental provisions, raising questions about the region's ecological balance.
