February 23, 2005
More on Mexico - Petén Road

Officials in Mexico and Guatemala are confident they will finish the gaps in the Ruta Maya, bringing more traffic, tourists and settlers into the Petén and quickening the destruction of the forest. Thanks to Chip Morris and Marco Lazcano-Barrero for the link.

PrensaLibre.com - Terminarán ruta de México a Petén

UPDATE: Here are Ron Canter's comments on the road:

Saw the item in Prensa Libre on new Ruta Maya link. The one road specifically mentioned will go along the Rio San Pedro Martir. The logical route is via the south shore from La Palma, Mexico to Yalpina, Guat. (on the road to La Florida). In the narrow gap between the river and the Sierra la Pita, the route follows the old San Diego Trail between Tenosique and Flores. Once the road is built, I'm sure the river will quickly be abandoned as a Mx-Guat. link, both legit and for smuggling. A road will impact the Sierra la Pita range, which has largely escaped deforestation so far. Even more serious would be an 80 km Calakmul-Carmelita north-south link via El Mirador.

Posted by Dave at February 23, 2005 01:14 PM