Maya Forest Corridor Fights Narcos and Deforestation

MEXICO CITY — The creation of the Biocultural Corridor of the Great Maya Forest compels the three involved governments to expel the criminal groups that dominate large parts of these areas, as they have converted them into the preferred location for the development of clandestine airstrips used to receive drug shipments. More than five criminal organizations dominate the border zone of Mexico with Guatemala and Belize.

On the Quintana Roo side with Belize, the Caborca Cartel of the Caro Quintero family operates alongside the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG). On the Campeche border with Guatemala, the Caborca Cartel, the Sinaloa Cartel faction Los Chapitos, and the United Cartels of Juan José "El Abuelo" Farias operate.

In the border strip of Tabasco with Guatemala, "La Barredora" of the CJNG operates. The zone of Chiapas with Guatemala is the most disputed area, as scenes of clandestine airstrips installed both in Mexico and in Guatemalan territory are contested there.

Notable for their power are the Sinaloa Cartel, both the Mayo faction and Los Chapitos. Furthermore, the CJNG and Los Huistas, a Guatemalan criminal organization, have been joined by the proven participation of the Salvadoran Mara Salvatrucha and the Chiapas-Guatemala cartel.

All these groups will need to be combated by the authorities of the three countries so they can regain control of the vast majority of the lands located within the newly designated Biocultural Corridor of the Great Maya Forest.

On August 15, a historic agreement was signed between the President of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, and her counterparts from Guatemala, Bernardo Arévalo, and from Belize, John Antonio Briceño.

The historic agreement consists of preserving 5.7 million hectares of the heart of Mesoamerica through the creation of a new Biocultural Corridor of the Great Maya Forest (CBGSM).

This means protecting the jungle that extends between Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize, but it goes beyond the declaration of 5.7 million hectares as a natural reserve in the newly named Biocultural Corridor of the Great Maya Forest.

The "Biocultural Corridor of the Great Maya Forest" is formed by 11 Protected Areas of Belize, 27 of Guatemala, and 12 of Mexico, among which the following stand out: in Mexico, the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve and the Balam Kú Flora and Fauna Protection Area; in Guatemala, the Mirador-Río Azul National Park and Dos Lagunas Biotope; and in Belize, the Río Bravo Conservation and Management Area and the Aguas Turbias Protected Natural Area.

The three governments have committed to doing so, but the challenges are many, as is the distrust from some sectors given the destruction that has already occurred to a large part of this jungle—the second largest reserve on the continent after the Amazon—which holds 12% of the world's biodiversity.

Regarding this, the Guatemalan head of Environment and Natural Resources, Patricia Orantes, explained in an interview that "the first thing is for the security forces to begin having a presence in the zone." These statements are made because, according to Orantes, "the Maya Biosphere was abandoned and coopted to a large extent by international mafias."

"This is not primarily an environmental battle; we are talking about the State of Guatemala having to take control of its territory again because it was left 'free' for all types of trafficking," Orantes stated.

Jungle is Contaminated by Criminal Groups

The importance of the three nations uniting also relates to complaints from various environmental groups that point out the jungle (on both sides of the border) is riddled with clandestine landing strips for planes loaded with cocaine, smugglers transporting migrants north, illegal loggers, and also routes for moving cattle that are primarily introduced into Mexico.

Regarding this, Mexico's Secretary of the Environment, Alicia Bárcenas, stated that all levels of government from the three countries will need to be involved. "We are not going to care for the jungle alone; we must be helped in particular by the Federal Security Secretariat."

In fact, Mexico and Guatemala will have a new meeting in October to reinforce cooperation in security and intelligence.