Federal Protected Area Declaration Halts Calica Operations in Quintana Roo

The Federal Government has begun the process of designating a Protected Natural Area (ANP) over a significant portion of Solidaridad territory. This move is designed to prevent Calica from continuing its rock extraction activities south of Playa del Carmen.

The preliminary study justifying the establishment of the Felipe Carrillo Flora and Fauna Protection Area was recently made public. The proposed area spans approximately 53,000 hectares, the majority of which are located in Solidaridad, with smaller portions in the continental region of Cozumel and Tulum.

Included within this proposed area are roughly 2,000 hectares previously exploited by Calica for rock material, which was subsequently shipped to the United States. The study also outlines the distribution of the proposed ANP, with 51,245 hectares in Solidaridad, 1,015 in Cozumel, and 965 in Tulum.

Solidaridad has a total area of 201,401 hectares according to the National Institute of Statistics Geography (Inegi). If the proposed ANP is approved, a quarter of Solidaridad's territory will be federally protected, prohibiting development projects with significant environmental impact, such as hotels or extraction works like those conducted by Calica.

The document states that the goal of the ANP is not only to protect the numerous environmental assets present but also to restore the natural heritage of the site. This includes improving landscape services, maintaining ecosystem composition and structure, ensuring ecological functionality, facilitating species flow, and restoring degraded aquifers.

The proposed ANP is located in southwestern Solidaridad and is intended to border the Jaguar National Park, the recent ANP in Tulum. A similar initiative was launched last November, focusing solely on Calica's 2,300 hectares, but the project was halted.

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has recently reiterated his opposition to Calica's operations, warning of a total shutdown of their facilities. Since May 2022, the multinational company has been grappling with a temporary closure issued by the Federal Environmental Protection Attorney's Office (Profepa). Despite their efforts, Calica has been unsuccessful in overturning these sanctions through legal means.

The announcement of the study's consultation was published in the Official Journal of the Federation (DOF), allowing interested governments and civil society to review it at the Semarnat Quintana Roo headquarters.