Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo — Environmental activists are calling on Mexico’s Federal Environmental Protection Agency (PROFEPA) to conduct a thorough investigation into the Fives Beach Hotel in Xcalacoco, alleging the luxury resort has been discharging raw sewage into coastal ecosystems without proper treatment.
According to activists, the hotel lacks wastewater treatment plants and has been using tanker trucks to extract sewage, which they say has led to spills into the environment. Videos circulating on social media appear to show hoses set up for discharging wastewater.
“The discharge of wastewater into the ecosystems was clearly planned by hotel management,” said activist Roel Salas. “They did it intentionally, without considering the environmental and public health consequences.”
Activists argue that the current suspension order placed on the hotel on April 26 by the municipal government is insufficient. “We don’t know how long this hotel has been dumping sewage into the ecosystems,” said activist Liliana González Áviles. “A simple suspension isn’t enough. Government authorities should cancel operations or ongoing construction. This isn’t just solid waste on the street — it’s wastewater causing serious environmental damage.”
In a statement, Playa del Carmen Mayor Estefanía Mercado said the city’s Directorate of Normativity and Environmental Impact Assessment visited the Xcalacoco area to verify the reports and assess potential damage to the ecosystem. “We will not allow actions that harm the ecological balance of our coastline or the neglect of regulations governing the use of our federal zone,” she said. “We proceeded with an immediate suspension of activities and have initiated administrative procedures to determine responsibility and apply legal sanctions.”
However, González insisted that PROFEPA must intervene to review the hotel’s wastewater management and final disposal. “The hotel has been contracting tanker trucks to extract sewage. Where are they dumping it? This is very serious,” she said.
