Environmental Group Files Injunction Against Army-Led Clearing in Tulum

Tulum, Quintana Roo — An environmental group has filed a legal injunction against new deforestation work carried out by the Mexican Army in Tulum, arguing the project lacks required environmental permits.

Sélvame MX requested the injunction after discovering through transparency requests that the Environment Ministry (Semarnat) exempted the state-owned Tren Maya company — run by the military — from obtaining an environmental impact permit for the project, known as Camino Jacinto Pat.

The road follows the same route as the previously proposed Libramiento Tulum bypass, which was denounced in early 2025 and ordered closed by the Federal Environmental Protection Agency (Profepa).

Raúl Aldama Gavilán, a lawyer for Sélvame MX, said the group noticed clearing work on March 31 near the Cobá-Tulum highway and tracked the project through public records.

“When the road was opened, we were uncertain what work it was. By tracing data, a previous project emerged that the Communications and Transportation Ministry had submitted in 2021 to modify a regional environmental impact statement, which aimed to build a bypass called Libramiento Tulum,” Aldama said.

The injunction is now before the Fifth District Court, which will decide whether to admit it and grant precautionary measures, including a work suspension.

The road is part of a project first proposed during the administration of former President Felipe Calderón, when the Riviera Maya Airport was planned near land now within the protected Jaguar National Park.