Section 6 of the Mayan Train will be the most destructive and expensive

Section 6 of the Mayan Train, from Tulum to Chetumal, will be the most environmentally destructive of the entire project, and also the most expensive. The Environmental Impact Statement (MIA), of the 255-kilometer stretch, details that it will be necessary to eliminate one thousand 453 hectares of forest and the planned investment is 70 billion pesos. Section 6 will concentrate 37.5 percent of the total land with vegetation cover in the process of being eliminated to build the seven sections of the Train and that, according to the MIA of all of them, will be 3 thousand 873 hectares. For reference, the Cuauhtémoc Mayor’s Office covers 3,244 hectares. The MIA distinguish the total surfaces required by the train, counting the right of way -20 meters from each side- plus the stations, stops, wildlife and vehicular passages, workshops, garages and maintenance bases, among other constructions. The right of way of Section 6 requires dismantling one thousand 309 hectares of medium forest -vegetation with height of 15 to 30 meters-, as well as 15 hectares of tulares, aquatic plants one to three meters high. MIAs offer to implement soil restoration and reforestation programs to compensate for vegetation cover losses. We recommend: The Sedena is already in charge of sections 5 to 7, but the approval of the MIA by Semarnat is pending, except for the 5 South, which was conditionally authorized. The Environmental Monitoring Committee that oversees the drainage and drinking water system in Cancun and Playa del Carmen warned that the Mayan Train could fracture the network and cause flooding of wastewater and shortage of liquid for human consumption at both sites. Section 5 crosses the main drainage and water conduction lines which would cause, due to vibration and soil type, that the tubes fragment. Samuel García tours for Facebook in Nuevo León

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