Yobaín, Yucatán — Mexico’s federal environmental enforcement agency has ordered a total temporary shutdown of work that damaged 669,284 square meters of coastal dune — roughly 67 hectares — in the Chabihau district of Yobaín municipality, Yucatán.
The Federal Environmental Protection Agency, known as Profepa, said inspectors found that cutting, felling, clearing and removal of forest vegetation had been carried out at the site using heavy machinery.
During a September 9 inspection, agency personnel confirmed direct damage to the coastal dune and identified wild plant and animal species listed under Mexican environmental standard NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010, some of which had already been removed.
Among the species found were wild cotton (Gossypium hirsutum), which carries special protection status, and button mangrove (Conocarpus erectus), classified as threatened. Inspectors also recorded a sighting of a black spiny-tailed iguana (Ctenosaura similis), likewise listed as threatened.
No authorization, permit, license or exemption for environmental impact issued by the Environment and Natural Resources Department (Semarnat) was presented during the inspection. Profepa responded by imposing a total temporary closure of the works and activities on the property, placing the corresponding seal and ordering work to stop immediately.
The agency said it acted on publicly circulated information that included photographic evidence of the activities at the site. Personnel from Profepa’s Yucatán office traveled to the location to verify compliance with environmental obligations for projects requiring impact authorization in coastal ecosystems.
According to Profepa, the activities carried out in the coastal wetland ecosystem violate specifications set out in standard NOM-022-SEMARNAT-2003 and lack the required environmental permits.
Because the people responsible for the work were not present at the property during the visit, later notifications will be delivered through postings on the legal notices board at Profepa’s Yucatán office. The agency said it will continue the administrative proceeding and keep up inspection and surveillance efforts to protect coastal ecosystems and prevent harm to wildlife, particularly species under risk categories.
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