A new essay by Ron Canter on the Soconusco trails (water and land) between present-day Chiapas and the Guatemalan Highlands. These were major trade routes in Classic Maya times. Click below for the full essay.
Soconusco Road - The “Low Road”
The Soconusco Road is a major trade route that needs notice even
though outside the highlands themselves. It was actually two parallel
routes, one by land and one by water. The coastal plain, averaging 16 to
20 km wide, slopes gently from the foot of the Sierra Madre de Chiapas
[Siera de Soconusco] to the Pacific Ocean. A series of swamps and coastal
lagoons lie behind barrier islands.
A very ancient trail followed the littoral from the Ismuth of
Tehuantepec to the Guatemalan Highlands. In the dry season the way was
easy (Diaz, 1568). The route stayed on dry, level ground between swamp and
mountain. At large rivers the path swerved inland to cross above the
deeper channels near the coast. Smaller rivers were frequent, so travelers
could satisfy their thirst. In the wet season rivers large and small
swelled and became difficult (Navarrete, 1978). The way became a series of
soggy paths and risky fords. But there was an alternative.
Canoe travel offshore is too dangerous anywhere near the Ismuth of
Tehuantepec, where the Trade Winds funnel through a wide gap in the ranges.
The Pacific is scoured by violent offshore windstorms. Today the coastal
lagoons are not continuous, and offer no protected passage behind the
barrier islands. But it was not always so.
As late as the beginning of the 20th century, a series of canals
linked all the coastal lagoons to form a sheltered waterway running behind
the coast from Juchitan to Guatemala. “The natives of the towns
communicate with one another by means of drains and canals that they open
in the marshes to make such a network that one could get lost in it if he
should attempt to navigate them without a knowledgeable native” as Fray
Tomas Torres described them (Navarrete, 1978). Dana and Ginger Lamb
followed ingrown segments of it on their canoe trip along the Pacific Coast
(Lamb 1938). They too completely avoided the open sea, but were forced to
make several portages where canals had closed up.
In the past each town had its port on the nearest lagoon or channel.
Torres also noted that, for some products, canoe transport through
Sosonusco had a great advantage. “Another important product was Guatemalan
and Oaxacan pottery, whose transport by animals was very risky due to the
fragile nature” (Navarrete, 1978). When the canal system was completed is
not clear, but it was already well established when the Spanish arrived.
Its vestiges are still there in the swamps, waiting to be mapped.
Though longer than several routes to Guatemala via the highlands, the
Soconusco Road was fast, avoided mountain crossings, and was overall very
competitive with other routes. Once the lagoons were linked by canals, the
canoe trail became arguably the most efficient route in Mesoamerica. Not
one portage or rapid interrupted it. New ideas appear to have leapt along
it from the Olmec Gulf Coast region to Izapa, Takalik Abaj, and Kaminalyuju
in the Guatemalan highlands. In addition, the coastal plain was a major
cacao growing region. The Soconusco Road is still heavily used today by
legitimate traffic, and by transmigrantes, because it is a level route
appealing to truckers, walkers, or cyclists.
Bernal Diaz de Castillo
1568 The True History of the Conquest of Mexico, translated by Maurice
Keating, Esq., 1800 London, reprinted 1938, Robert M. McBride & Co.
Dana Lamb
1938 Enchanted Vagabonds, Harper & Brown
Carlos Navarrete
1978 Prehispanic System of Communication between Chiapas and Tabasco.
Mesoamerican Routes and Contacts, Paper #34 NWAF, Brigham Young Univ,
Provo, UT
(Latest notes from Ron Canter)
RIO TZACONEJA [Tzajalob] – approx. 24 km, in two segments, may be navigable
Though the river is all whitewater in its several canyons, two
sections of the Rio Tzaconeja may have been navigable in the past. The
headwaters were not. They funnel into fault-controlled Encajonado Huistan,
which runs straight east for 30 km to Cerro Chajlib. In the last 10 km
from Naranjal to the Altamirano bridge, Class 3 and 4 rapids are frequent,
with a couple of portages at bad spots (Mayan Whitewater, 2010).
At the bridge, the river enters a large valley, which stretches east
40 km to Bambu, near the Rio Soledad. It is the counterpart of the valley
of the Rio Jatate Superior, to the north just over the ridge of the Sierra
Corralchen. The Tzaconeja valley does not have a known site corresponding
to Tonina, the major Maya ruin in the Jatate’s valley.
For about 9 km from the Altamirano bridge to another bridge at
Pimienta, the Rio Tzaconeja is flat, a short navigable segment. There are
sandbars on bends. At Pimienta the upper valley abruptly ends. 13 km
after exiting one canyon, the river enters another of sorts, where the
elevation of the valley floor steps down 360 m in 7 km. The river is
pinched in a tight, ever-deepening gorge between two parallel ridges. The
gradient of up to 150 m/km (500 ft/mi) indicates waterfalls rather than
rapids, and that is what the river holds (Mayan Whitewater, 2010).
A step where a river crosses a resistant rock layer or a fault scarp
is not surprising, but one midway in a limestone valley is. The falls
appear to be actively receding, The obvious geological explanation would be
that the river once flowed serenely at a higher level before a tributary of
the Rio Jatate breached the eastern ridge and captured the river. The much
lower Jatate would have become the new base level for the Tzaconeja.
Erosion would then progressive lower the valley floor to the new local base
level, leaving remnants of the former valley to either side at the
1100-1200 m level. Modern roads follow these terraces rather than the
valley floor. Where a former high-level outlet might have been is not
clear. Possibly the river joined the Rio Soledad to exit through the dry
gorge at the head of the Rio Dolores. It is also not out of the question
that the water flowed northwest, and then north, to join the upper Jatate
above Tonina.
The Rio Soledad is part of the puzzle. It too has a huge descent,
Salto Grande, where it tumbles 500 meters into the Tzaconeja valley at
Bambu. If the valleys were not so remote, both canyons and falls would be
major attractions.
The Tzaconeja’s next segment is reported to be flatwater for about 24
km. On Google Earth the first 9 km appear to have occasional rapids. Only
the 15 km from Chiptic to the mouth of the Rio Soledad appear to actually
be flatwater (Mayan Whitewater). In the 4 km from the Soledad to the
hammock bridge at Bambu, the Tzaconeja is braided and choked with sediment
from its tributary.
In the lower valley is the Tzajalob site (Blom, 1953), located on the
right shore about 3 km south-southwest of Venustiano Carranza. The John
Geddings Gray Memorial Expedition investigated a cruciform tomb here in
1928 (Blom, 1954). From the description, it was most likely from the
Classic. Whether there were other ruins is unclear. The tomb is at about
the midpoint of the extended valley, and near the start of the lower
navigable section.
The easiest trail exit from the Tzaconeja valley is not at the east
end, where it funnels into a canyon, but rather 10 km earlier at El
Triunfo. A pass in the Sierra Corralchen leads into the valley of the Rio
Colorado at San Marcos, and joins the route from Tonina to the Rio Jatate
at Topiltepec.
Where the valley pinches to an end about 6 km below the Rio Soledad
junction, the Tzaconeja cuts through a mountain for 5 km. The rapids start
right at the bridge in Bambu. With a gradient of 15 m/km, the Tzaconja has
pool-and-drop Class 5 to 5+ rapids in the Lower Canyon (Mayan Whitewater,
2010).
Down the Tzaconeja only a few km more, there is another, shorter
canyon, with waterfalls four km upstream of the Rio Colorado junction (The
Colorado itself is nothing but rapids and falls for 7 km upstream). Just
below the Rio Colorado is the village of Romulo Calzada, with road access.
The last 2 km of the Tzaconeja surges through a final gorge before joining
the Rio Jatate at the Topiltepec site, near Sultana.
RIO SOLEDAD [Indepencia] – Not remotely navigable in the past
A tributary of the Rio Tzaconeja, the Rio Soledad is too small and
steep to have been navigable. It runs southeast, and then turns to the
north around the peak of Montana Chac (2050m). The Soledad begins as a
small river in a broad valley with a floor at 1200 to 1300 meters in
elevation. The little river has sandbars and mild rapids as far as
Indepencia, where it drops over two waterfalls and begins its descent.
The upper valley is a hanging valley, 500 m higher than that of the
Tzaconeja where they join. For 10 km the Soledad tumbles down the Salto
Grande through a red walled canyon (Blom, 1953). The barren canyon walls
are very actively eroding. At the exit a huge, braided outwash fan extends
for 3 km to the Rio Tzaconeja.
East of Indepencia, the wide, nearly flat valley of the upper Soledad
continues at 1200 m, only there is no river in the valley. Southeast 11 km
from Indepencia is the head of a winding gorge leading to the upper Rio
Dolores, a tributary of the Rio Santo Domingo. The 10 km long gorge is now
dry, but was obviously once a stream course. The Soledad formerly drained
south through the gorge, but its waters have been captured and diverted
north to the much lower Rio Tzaconeja.
There is a chain of Maya sites down the Soledad valley: Puerto Rico,
El Amparto, and Santa Elena Poco Uinic. Largest is the Late Classic Santa
Elena Poco Uinic site, perched on a promontory bounded by the canyon (MARI,
1940, Mathews, 2009). It has architectural ties to Chinkultic and Tenam
Puente 40 km father south. To the west of the canyon, a trail descended,
and then sidled along the much larger valley of the Tzaconeja.
The sites and passes suggest that the Soledad valley would have been
something of a crossroads in the Classic, a pathway to any of several
routes southeast to the Rio Santo Domingo. On the east side is a pass to
the upper Rio Euseba valley. At the southeast end of the Soledad valley, a
pass slides past Cerro El Calvario to the Rio Caliente’s valley.
Ron Canter 6-22-10
Bulletin 303: The Hydroelectric Megaprojects of the PPP - Dams for Chiapas! - (Second Part)
This dates back to the beginning of my involvement in the dam issue, and the beginning of this blog. But I don't think I ever posted it. Thanks to Ron Canter for bringing it to my attention.
Guatemala has requested that the U.S. lift the embargo on military aid that has been in place since the 80's. They emphasize that they are not asking for arms, but for vehicles like fast boats with which they could patrol and intercept narcotraffickers.
elPeriódico de Guatemala » País » Guatemala pide levantamiento de embargo militar a EE.UU.
Ron Canter continues his study of Maya watersheds with an important article on the Grijalva River, which begins near the Guatemala border, winds through the States of Chiapas, and Tabasco, to join with the Usumacinta and empty into the Gulf of Mexico. It has long since been exploited for hydroelectric power, drowning innumerable and now unknowable ancient settlements. It is a hint of what could happen if the Usumacinta dams are ever built.
Ron's full article can be read by clicking "More". The photo above shows the Grijalva, at the site of San Isidro, in 1981 as the river is rising due to new dams.
The Grijalva River [Mezcalapa, Kandelumihi,Tabasco, Rio Grande de Chiapas]
The head of navigation on the Rio Grande de Chiapas [Rio Grijalva]
was at the junction of the Rios San Miguel and San Gregorio (Navarrete,
1978). Before the dams, the Rio Grijalva had long navigable segments
connected by portage trails past canyon rapids. For mountain trails, the
portages were not so bad – moderate climbs and descents. The river route
from the coastal lowlands to deep within the highlands would have been a
good alternative to the High Road farther east. Of the 360 km of river and
trail from the junction to Amaciote, where the river leaves the mountains,
only about 70 km was by land. 80% was navigable river, a low-cost route
from the middle of a semi-desert to the lush coastal plains. It began as
an Olmec trade route, possibly the first to penetrate the interior of the
Highlands of Chiapas, and was later rivaled for efficiency by only the
Usumacinta.
So much of the Grijalva trade system has been lost by the damming of
the river. Of the original 290 km navigable, only 70 km remain nearly as
they were. Four dams have flooded the rest. That the major features of
this river and portage route can be sketched at all is largely due to the
efforts of Lee, Navarrete, and Lowe in the 1960s and 70s. The Grijalva is
what the Usumacinta valley would look like today, if the planned dams had
been built - ancient cities gone, details of the river route forever
unclear, but lots of hydro power.
Travelers ascending the Rio Grijalva [Mezcalapa] would have traversed
the compound delta westward through the Chontalpa for approx 240 km from
Frontera to Amaciote at the foot of the Skinalel Tolja, the ”Watery
Mountains” of the Chiapas Higlands. After ascending the river to
Amacoite, there were two ways to enter the highlands in the Colonial
period. One was to continue upriver for 80 km through the ranges, against
current and occasional rapids, to foot of the Raudales de Malpaso, which
were unrunnable (Lowe, 1981). With the flow regime completely altered and
the riverbed now invisible, the locations of runnable rapids, their
difficulty, their relation to sites, and to seasonal navigation are all
lost. The Malpaso portage trail followed a dry valley, the site of the
modern town of Raudales, on the west side of the river to flatwater in the
Mal Paso Basin [Middle Grijalva Basin] above the present-day dam. In the
wet season the portage may have been as little as 4 km. The basin is now
flooded by the Embalsa de Netzahuatlcoyotl, and the river approach drowned
under the Presa Penitas.
In the lush Mal Paso Basin, the Rio Grijalva, formerly called the
Kandelumihi, was literally lined with sites east to the foot of the
Sumidero Canyon. There were over 60 along both the Rios La Venta and the
Grijalva, all now gone.
The Rio La Venta was probably navigable to the west for some
distance, where a trail from the headwaters of the Rio Tonala could have
joined through a pass 8 km north. The Rio Playas appears to be navigable,
with no rapids - only sandbars, from the Preclassic sites of Ceiba Grande
and Pueblo Viejo, which are 30 km by trail from the Mal Paso Basin. This
would have been a direct route from La Venta, a major Olmec site in the
coastal plain, into the Mal Paso Basin via the Rios Tonala and Playas.
The Grijalva itself was navigable for at least 35 km from the Rio La
Venta upstream to Quechula [Cachula], a river port in colonial times (Lee,
1978). About 6 km downstream of Quechula was the largest site in the
region, San Isidro, dating from the Middle Preclassic to the Late Classic.
Its excavation was a hectic salvage effort, from mid-March 1966 until the
waters of the reservoir spread over it forever in June. Its flooding was a
tremendous loss. Mound 20, a circular pyramid with attached structures
oriented northwest-southeast, yielded exceptional burials and caches with
clear Olmec connections. Two parallel “I”-shaped ball courts shared the
same end zones, a unique design (Lowe, 1981).
The other trail from the Rio Grijalva to Quechula was the Tecpatan
Shortcut, which started in the lowlands at Amacoite and followed the foot
of the mountains east before climbing south over several high ridges to
Tecpatan (Lee, 1978). A descent led back to the river at Quechula [Cachula
]. The route avoided all swiftwater and rapids, but at the expense of much
up and down on mountain trails.
To bypass the Sumidero Canyon upstream, with impassable rapids, and
falls up to 17 meters high pinched between 1000 meter cliffs, colonial
trails from Quechula crossed the river to the south shore. In the Classic
and earlier, the trail would have begun at San Isidro, the ancient port
city. Trails to the southeast were easier than ones through the higher,
more extended ranges north of the river. A trail did exist north of the
river by way of Chicoasen to Chiapa de Corzo, but was not a major one in
colonial times. Only 30 km of mountains separate Quechula and San
Fernando, at the head of a flat valley, versus 75 km of precipitous trails
between Tecpatan and Chiapa de Corzo. As late as the mid-1960s, the only
approaches to Los Altos de Chiapas were still a choice of either rapid
river or muddy trail.
On the south side of the river from Quechula, the colonial trail
split. One branch went over the mountain south to Ocozocuatla, east
through Tuxtla, and then to Chiapa de Corzo. The other branch headed
southeast to cross the Rio Achilote, top the ridge just before San
Fernando, and follow the Valley of Tuxtla down to Chiapa de Corzo. The
second branch is the line of least effort, and probably the ancient
portage. From San Isidro by trail to Chiapa de Corzo via San Fernando
would have been about 65 km.
At the time of Spanish contact at end of the Late Postclassic, the
trail from Quechula to Chiapas was not used. When Captain Marin invaded
Chiapas in 1524 they first went to a town called Tezpuztlan and then
“continued our route to another town called Cachula from whence we
proceeded, there being no passage previous to our expedition, from the fear
the other natives have of those of Chiapas” (Diaz, 1568). This is one
documented instance where a past major route was bypassed in the Late
Postclassic for non-geographic reasons. Trade avoids danger.
Where the river again becomes navigable was the ancient Olmec/Zoquean
city of Chiapa de Corzo [Chiapa, Chiapa de Los Indios], founded around 1400
BC. It flourished until 900 AD, stumbled in the general collapse, but
recovered. At its zenith it was a sprawling city of talud-tablero step
pyramids on massive platforms. The Chiapan Maya wrested it from the Zoque
in 1400 AD. At the time of Spanish contact “a city it might truly be
called, from the regularity of its streets and houses. It contained not
less than 4000 families” (Diaz, 1568). At a nexus of major routes between
both coasts and highlands, the city had an enviable trade location. From
here a colonial trail went north through a gap in the wall of Los Altos and
then climbed east, 1800 m in 40 km, to San Cristobal de Las Casas [Jovel].
Another went west via Cintalapa and the exposed, windswept crest trail on
Mount Maquilapa (Gage, 1648) to Tapanatepec on the Pacific littoral [
Soconosco].
The Grijalva, here called the Rio Grande de Chiapas [Kandelumihi], is
today canoeable from Chiapa de Corzo for another 70 km upstream to the
vicinity of Belisario Dominguez. “About midnight, ten chieftains of the
neighboring districts came down the river, which is very broad and deep, in
five canoes” (Diaz, 1568). Even though the Central Depression of Chiapas
is a semi-desert, the river receives its water from the highlands to the
north and south. The gradient between Chiapa de Corzo and Belisario is a
low 0.2 m/km (1 ft/mi). The river has no rapids, though there are sandbars
in the dry season. A little over halfway up the river, on the north shore,
is the Villa de Acala (Spangaya for “Village of Canoes”), with a Classic
Period site across the river. A few km upstream is the Preclassic Santa
Cruz site.
Either the Finca Amatl, or the Angosturo site close to Belisario
Dominguez, may have been a port. A modern trail climbs northeast up the
long slope of an old lava flow past Cerro Mispia to a break in the wall of
the highlands at San Isidro Chijilte. A trail east from Belisario would
have hugged the foot of the highlands before climbing to Comitan [Balun
Canan]. At intervals, streams tumble out of the mountains and furnish
drinking water.
Above Belisario the river exits Angostura Canyon, now plugged by the
Presa La Angostura, feeding CFE hydros. The 12 km winding gorge is
shadowed by cliffs. Navarrete makes no mention of serious rapids or
portages, but his information was second-hand. It seems likely that it was
navigable. This is far from certain, and probably will remain so.
Above the canyon, the gradient was low, and there was much more
navigable river, all the way upstream 100 km to the confluence of the Rios
San Miguel and San Gregorio, where the river was 26 meters wide and 5
meters deep in the channel (Navarrete, 1978). Northeast 45 km is the Quen
Santo pilgrimage site, dating from the Preclassic, and 30 km east-southeast
are the ruins of Classic Period Lagarteros, on an island in the Lagunas de
Colon. The head of navigation lies at the foot of the Guatemalan
highlands, so the Grijalva offered a direct, easy way to tap the resources
of the Cuchumatanes.
With the whole valley flooded by the Embalsa de Belisario Dominguez
[Angostura], all details of this upper reach are beyond recovery. Over 20
sites are underwater, including Preclassic Santa Rosa and Laguna Francesca.
The Argelia and San Felipe sites were very near the head of navigation, and
one of the two was probably the port (Witschey map). A rectangular
structure is visible in the shallows just north of the confluence of the
Rios San Miguel and San Gregorio. It may be ancient San Felipe, or it may
be Spanish.
The greatest loss along the upper Grijalva was the site of the
Salinas de La Concordia [Custepeques, San Pedro de Las Salinas], centered
10 km south of the river in the Valley of Custepeques. Since the area is
semi-desert in the rain shadow of the Chiapas Highlands, solar evaporation
worked well, at least in the dry season. The 27 springs, seven salt works,
and attendant structures (Andrews, 1983) are all drowned under the
reservoir. From the Middle Preclassic to the 20th century, the salinas
sent pink salt out in several directions. Historically, some went east
across the highlands into the Usumacinta basin (Andrews, 1983) but more
traveled down the Rio Grijalva to the coast and westward. It is unlikely
that any went south to the Pacific coast, which had its own salt
operations.
Connections from the head of the Grijalva:
North-northeast to Chinkultic, then east via the Rios Santo Domingo &
Jatate into the Miramar basin.
Northeast to Quen Santo and Chacula to either the Miramar basin or into the
Cuchumatanes.
Southeast via Lagarteros into the Guatemalan highlands.
South-southwest through a pass to Escuintla and the Soconusco Road along
the Pacific littoral.
From the Cuchumatanes to La Venta:
A chain of Preclassic sites begins at the western foot of the
Cuchumatanes and extends down the Rio Grijalva into the Mal Paso Basin.
The list includes: Chacula, Quen Santo, Laguna Francesca, Santa Rosa, Santa
Cruz, Chiapa, and San Isidro. A pass to the northwest connects the Mal
Paso Basin to the headwaters of the Rio Playas. At the head of navigation
on the Playas are two Preclassic sites, Ceiba Grande and Pueblo Viejo. The
Rio Playas leads to the Rio Tancochapa, which in turn joins the Rio Tonala
less than 20 km from the Olmec city of La Venta. The overall distance from
Chacula to La Venta was roughly 540 km, of which 20% (120 km) was by land
and 80% by river (and most of that flatwater). The route from Chacula to
La Venta is as close to a straight line as a river road can get, and is
interrupted by only two portages. It was both a very ancient and very
efficient route.
Ron Canter, 1-22-10
5 million pesos does not seem like much to clean up pollution and trash in the river, but it's better than nothing. The Usumacinta drains an enormous area of Guatemala and Mexico, getting contamination from trash and agricultural chemicals along the way.
Invertirán más de 5 mdp al Cañón del Usumacinta
Friend ALonso Mendez just sent a dispatch from Lake Atitlan, Guatemala, where in the last 20 days an enormous "algae bloom" (actuallu mats of cyanobacteria) has covered much of the lake. It is a problem that has been coming for a long time, due to human sewage problems and neglect and corruption among the officials charged with improving the treatment plants.
Guatemala News | Guatemalas Lake Atitlan disaster, the explanation
They have come a long way but still need your help. Every donation will be matched by a challenge grant they have received.
Story of Alpacka packrafts, like the one I had until we were robbed on the Usumacinta. But that's a long story. I did buy a new one. Great fun.
River Lite - Floats Great, Less Filling - NYTimes.com
Interesting blog post, via Karen Bassie.
Advocacy Project Blogs - Chixoy: A Mirror for Xalalá
La Jornada: Ejidatarios de Oaxaca se alistan para luchar contra presa de CFE
It was a bad idea to start with - completing the highway between Tabasco, Mexico, and Flores, Peten, Guatemala. Supposed to generate tourism between Palenque and Tikal, it gave drug smugglers a landing strip and others easy access to settle protected areas. Now both governments have shut the El Ceibo crossing to people and vehicles.
Rumbo de México - Editorial Mac - Cierra Guatemala frontera con Tabasco, en El Ceibo
Some of the illegal settlers in the Sierra del Lacandon Park, Guatemala, have left peacefully. Few details are available so far.
Prensa Libre - Edición electrónica - Portada
Latin American Herald Tribune - Archaeologists Excavate Ancient Maya River Port in Southeast Mexico
Chris Shaw's spectacular canoe trip on the Dordogne - his story in the Times today.
In the Dordogne, Canoeing Into Prehistory - NYTimes.com
The Inspiration of Xalala - Part 1 | International Rivers
...was last Saturday, but the Lower Eastside Girls Club and Club Balam were way ahead of the pack, doing their action on the Usumacinta on February 16th. Video is on the way, here's a photo from that day, and the page at International Rivers.
2009: Mesoamerica | International Rivers
Ron Canter sent in this update on the emabattled Xalala dam on the Chixoy River in Guatemala. An excerpt:
Cancelled twice before, the proposed 82-meter-high Xalalá Dam proposed for Northern
Guatemala found no bidders on its third try in early November. A number of prominent
companies – including US firms AES International and Duke Energy, the Brazilian firm Odebrecht,
and others – purchased the project bidding rules, but none offered a proposal for the estimated $400 million project.
International Rivers - December update (pdf)
A Mexico-Guatemala conference on the border region, particularly Tabasco-Peten. They affirm that the time for words is over, now is the time for action. Followed by a lot of nice words. No mention of dam plans, a nod towards protection of the ecosystem.
...el mandatario explicó que el valor estratégico es como zona de seguridad para combatir a la delincuencia organizada, el tráfico de armas, mercancías y la trata de personas.
Asimismo es la región se considera centro logístico para la industria turística y comercio internacional además como reserva de la biodiversidad fundamental para el continente americano.
Talk of creating a business zone similar to the northern border with the U.S.
Impulsar el comercio transfronterizo; crear centros de negocios en ambos lados de las fronteras; establecer la estrategia para el control de la tuberculosis bovina; armonizar los marcos jurídicos de los estados de la región en materia de medio ambiente y de desarrollo económico, así como implementar el programa de desarrollo de la frontera sur como se hizo con la frontera norte de México.
Inaugura AGM Foro Binacional Ríos-Petén
TabascoHOY.com :: Cautiva Tenosique a Hugo Stiglitz
Y es que seguro de promover la riqueza natural del lugar, declaró haber encontrado mas de lo que esperaba al recorrer toda la zona del río San Pedro, Usumacinta, y la boca del cerro.
Mexican film star Hugo Stiglitz will visit Tabasco to scout locations for a film and work with tourism authorities to promote the southern part of the state.
'Me invitó el presidente municipal de Tenosique, para que vayamos a conocer la región, yo ya conozco desde hace muchos años, pero querían que yo fuera otra vez, para que hiciéramos un programa de Turismo y ecología para la zona de Usumacinta y toda la zona del sur del estado', indicó Stiglitz.
He's particularly interested in legends and traditions of Tenosique, including the dance of the Pochos and a tale called "El Duende de la selva", the ghost (monster, dwarf, goblin) of the jungle.
TabascoHOY.com :: Filmará Stiglitz película en Tenosique
Calderon promises to seal the border with Guatemala.
More information (with illustrations and diagrams) of the new technology which generates energy from vortex induced vibrations around tubes mounted on the river or ocean floor. Big advantages - safer for marine life, works in low speed currents.
Inhabitat » VIVACE: Vortex Hydro-Energy Mimics Schools of Fish
For over 50 years, oil companies have explored the Lacandon Forest looking for sources of oil. Franz Blom created the first modern map of the area in 1953 under contract to these companies.
From Mexico Solidarity Network:
Energy Secretary Georgina Kessel announced plans this week to begin
drilling for oil in the Lacandon rainforest. Citing a study conducted by
Pemex, Kessel estimated by 2021 Chiapas fields could be producing 500,000
barrels a day from 17,000 new wells. Kessel also announced the
construction of a bio-energy plant to produce biodiesel from the jatrofa
curcus, a hardy plant that can be grown in marginal soils. Experts
predict the facility will require at least 7,500 acres of mono-culture
production. The plant uses technology developed in Colombia and is
financed by at least US$800,000 in federal and state funds. Two
previously funded bio-energy plants in Cintalapa and Huehuetan consumed
about US$500,000 in state investment, but both plants are now abandoned,
due in part to the lack of a market for the relatively expensive
bio-diesel. Some communities participating in the federal ProArbol
(Pro-Tree) program are reportedly receiving seeds to plant jatrofa curcus
instead of trees.
Kessel’s announcement is part of an ambitious resurgence of Plan Puebla
Panama, now renamed the Mesoamerica Project, that contemplates four
regional development engines: tourism, minerals, oil and bio-energy.
Plans include construction of a controversial highway linking San
Cristobal de las Casas and Palenque. Canadian mining companies have been
particularly active in the Sierra Madre de Chiapas region. The plans are
generating substantial community-based opposition from indigenous
communities and environmentalists.
This is apparently based on reporting by Hermann Bellinghausen:
Oficial: Pemex explorará y extraerá crudo en la selva Lacandona, afirma Kessel - La Jornada
Los planes petroleros oficiales amenazan la biodiversidad de Chiapas: ecologistas - La Jornada
Secretary of Energy Kessel responded that no, they are not looking to drill in the Selva Lacandona. In her announcement she had referred to the "cuencas del sureste" not to the Lacandon specifically. The basin of the southeast.
Descarta Kessel planes de exploración en la Lacandona - El Universal - Finanzas
The promotion of the plan to expand production in Chiapas (whether in the Lacandon forest or not) may have come as a response to this:
Energy Tribune - Refinery Scheme Sunk by Falling Pemex Output
A new technique would allow highly efficient, non-damming electricity generation with lower required flow rates. (from Chris Shaw)
Ocean currents can power the world, say scientists - Telegraph
Searching for a bike powered water pump (for Manuel and Anita), I found this group in Guatemala who are using bikes for many applications.
From Ron Canter
Panoramio - Photo of Chixoy River, above La Pita access
Panoramio - Photo of lower Chixoy from air
Panoramio - Photo of Río Chixoy River below confluence Río Copón
Satellite photos of flooding from Tenosique to Villahermosa. The lower Usumacinta is always hardest hit during heavy rains.
Should have seen this coming. The meeting between Mexican and Guatemalan officials over protection of the Maya sites has revived the idea of a continuous Ruta Maya, connecting the Peten with Campeche in Mexico, opening the last barriers to development and destruction of the Maya Biosphere.
Propone gobierno de Campeche integrar regiones de Calakmul y El Petén | SDP
Protection of sites in northern Guatemala and southern Mexico. The project includes the Sierra del Lacandon Park on the Usumacinta River.
México apoyará a Guatemala en la conservación de recursos - Titulares
Another season of flooding in Tabasco, Mexico.
Mexican flood leaves 34,000 homeless | balita-dot-ph
Existe temor entre tenosiquenses
This was announced earlier, but here's a notice from Brown University with good quotes from Houston. No one has done more for the study of Maya history on the Usumacinta.
Anthropologist Stephen Houston named 2008 MacArthur Fellow | Today at Brown
Clearwaters Magazine, of the New York Water Environment Association.
Awake, obsessing about the East River Cam we want to install, I found this instead.
Prensa Libre - Edición electrónica - Nacional
En Piedras Negras, en la selva lacandona, hay seis frentes ilegales. En el denominado Macabilero los usurpadores juegan al gato y al ratón con las autoridades, ya que cuando la fuerza pública se presenta, ellos escapan, pero cuando se retira, los usurpadores regresan.
"...there are all these discussions about even hooking up Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela into a grid that of power plants and electrical lines that would go from northern South America up through Central America into Mexico.
That's way down the line, but you can't get there until you integrate Mexico and Central America. This is the first real step.
It's difficult because initially they were planning on building a huge dam in the Usumacinta river valley to generate the power that Mexico would sell to Central America. That dam got blocked because of environmental and ethnographic concerns so I'm not sure where the power that's going to come from Mexico to Guatemala will come from."
(photo courtesy of Practical Fishkeeping magazine)
The Tzendales, a tributary of the Usumacinta, has five species of cichlids that are found nowhere else but in that river.
Study shows Mexican cichlid distributions | Practical Fishkeeping magazine
Article by the Mexican researchers, including abstract and full PDF for purchase:
The 20 kilometer section of highway that will complete the route between Tenosique, Mexico, and Flores, Peten, Guatemala will be finished in October or November of this year. Presidents of both countries inaugurated the project in December 2006 but construction only started in December 2007.
This link will allow direct highway travel between the Maya sites of Palenque and Tikal, and promote more invasions and destruction of the biosphere in northern Guatemala. It may also cut traffic to Frontera Corozal and Yaxchilan, depriving Frontera of tourist dollars and drawing attention away from the Usumacinta River.
Prensa Libre - Avanzan trabajos de asfalto en tramo carretero
State of emergency in Guatemala due to the heavy rains.
:: EmisorasUnidas.com :: Decretan estado de "Calamidad Pública" en 8 departamentos
Deja tormenta tropical Dolly inundaciones en Chiapas - El Universal - Los Estados
Go south of the Lacandon forest, past the Lacantun river, past the Marques de Comillas, and cross the east-west running border into Guatemala - you arrive at Ixcan. This area is now receiving foreign investment to convert to African palm oil plantations. So the conversion of rainforest to small homesteaders' plts to cattle ranches takes the next step - to biodiesel.
elPeriódico de Guatemala » Economía » Auge de biocombustibles dispara demanda de tierras
The Inter-American Development Bank has given US$30 million to Guatemala for use in rural development projects and for the protection of archaeological sites in southern Peten.
Prensa Libre - Ambiente: US$30 millones para Petén
You'll need to interpolate the seat from the photo (good luck) and the end details are a bit tricky, but it can be done with these online instructions - an origami canoe.
Adirondack Life, Inc. - July/August 2008: Paper Work
Used to augment the police in crime fighting, to combat narcotrafficking (although there have been no arrests) and protect the national parks and archaeological sites, but little deployment on the borders and coasts, which would be closer to their mandate. Commentary from a Guatemalan military analyst.
Prensa Libre - Ejército está sin rumbo definido en tiempos de paz
Cool. Portable. Being tested in La Florida, Guatemala. via Ron Granich. Thanks Ron!
Hydroelectricity: Hydroelectric Bucket Will Gladly Help You Miss the Point of Camping
42 of them assigned to the División de Protección a la Naturaleza to help protect the forests.
15 to protect tourists, 25 to add to the force in San Benito, Flores, and Santa Elena.
Prensa Libre - Llegan 82 policías a Petén para ciudar bosques, turistas y poblados
Yaxha was the location of the most recent removals of illegal settlers in Guatemala's protected areas and archaeological sites.
Prensa Libre - Desalojan a invasores del parque natural Yaxhá
Forty other families were removed from the Sierra del Lacandon park on May 23. The largest community, Centro Campesino, is still in a legal battle. Other actions are expected.
Prensa Libre - Se han recuperado 657 hectáreas invadidas en Petén
Prensa Libre - Guatemaltecos se refugian en Tabasco
I just returned from the Porvenir station on the Usumacinta, where a contingent of 15 soldiers is in place to guard against reprisals on park guards and archaeologists.
391 dams in China were damaged in the recent quakes and pose a hazard to populations nearby.
China says troops rush to plug dangerous cracks in dam - Yahoo! News
An editorial in the NY Times opposing dams in Patagonia and supporting the protesters. (via Chris Shaw)
Patagonia Without Dams - New York Times
It's been five years since my first real trip down the Usumacinta River. The photo above is from an impromptu demonstration which our group in 2003 staged in defense of the river.
Tomorrow, March 14 is the 2008 International Day of Action for Rivers.
Mesoamerica | International Rivers
The fight to prevent dams on Southeast Asia’s last longest remaining free flowing river. Other news on threatened rivers linked from this site as well.
From Dan Phiffer via Boing Boing.
Left: All the water in the world (1.4087 billion cubic kilometres of it) including sea water, ice, lakes, rivers, ground water, clouds, etc. Right: All the air in the atmosphere (5140 trillion tonnes of it) gathered into a ball at sea-level density. Shown on the same scale as the Earth.
Champion of India's lepers and outcastes. The Indian government liked that. But they didn't like his activism in preserving rivers and opposing dams. He died in February at age 93.
Baba Amte - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Guess I should know this song, by a group called La Barranca. Here are the lyrics.
Amazon.com: El Fluir: La Barranca: Music
In the Sierra del Lacandon Park, in an area where illegal settlers were evicted in 2006 - eight leaders of new invasions are being sought by authorities.
Accompanying Guatemalan news video shows the settlements and the families who were removed. In a country still recovering from a civil war, seeing soldiers evicting peasants is painful and inflammatory. But the Sierra del Lacandon is the last large remnant of the tropical forest in the Maya region, and is protected by legislation. This is the point of conflict between conservation and social justice.
For my own 2006 video on the region (it will take a while to download):
Maya Frontier (iPod m4v video, 217 mb, 18:30)
AlterNet: Water: The Corporate Threat to Water and the Water Justice Movement's Fight to Protect it
The Last Flight of the Scarlet Macaw - Bruce Barcott - Book Review - New York Times
Researchers have discovered a new catfish species in the Usumacinta watershed. The fish has been named Potamarius usumachinctae.
Readers of the Daily Glyph may remember Lacantunia enigmatica, the other new fish that was found in the Usu drainage.
New freshwater ariid catfish described | Practical Fishkeeping magazine
Looking at this I realized why our planetarium needs to be a tilted dome. We want to model the earth, fly-overs, and fly-throughs, not just the sky. We'll deal with normal flat projection another way.
Google Earth Blog: Animation Roundup: Rising Sea Levels, Filling Grand Canyon, Global Clouds
Chris Shaw's book on the Usumacinta discussed by fellow Adirondacks folks.
Starts around 1:30 into the discussion, goes for about 5 minutes.
NCPR News Archive - Readers & Writers: Winter Reading Call-in
More on the organizations proposing submerged microhydro generation on the Usumacinta.
A proposal for four submerged generators on the Usumacinta has been announced. They would be built at La Linea, El Porvenir, Isla El Cayo, and Yaxchilan.
The proposal has been submitted by La Asociación de Generadores con Energía Renovable (Ager) to the Ministry of Energy and Mines of Guatemala. According to the proposal, the generators would produce 300 megawatts without disrupting the flow of the river. But the access roads and power lines that would be built would promote forest invasion and destruction. Claims of no environmental impact are not telling the whole story.
More information when I get it.
PrensaLibre.com - Proponen generador submarino
I met some of the authors of this report in 2006, and I was concerned that they were too narrowly focussed on energy benefits while minimizing the environmental and cultural impacts. The final report shows that they considered all issues, and concluded that by almost any measure it was not feasible.
The report analyzed the project with four criteria in mind: financial feasibility; economic efficiency; the distribution of costs and benefits; and environmental sustainability.
Usumacinta Dam | Conservation Strategy Fund
His question on small turbines in the first paragraph caught my eye.
Al Gore joins Kleiner Perkins to save the planet - Nov. 12, 2007
I am a little late posting more good news from Guatemala, that Elaine Schele sent a couple of weeks ago. The Hospitalito in Santiago Atitlan has broken ground on the new hospital, after a recovery and reconstruction effort following a mudslide that wiped out the old Hospital. Here's a great photo set of the new bodega on site.
Hospitalito Groundbreaking on Flickr
You can be part of this great project:
The results of the Guatemalan elections are in, and it's a victory for the center-left candidate over the ex-military leader. Thanks to Lyn Dickey for the news, and highest hopes for all our friends in Guatemala.
Colom is apparent winner in Guatemala | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | World
I'm next door in Chiapas, in the mountains, wet but not flooded. Anything like this turns the homes of our friends in Palenque into a swirling river with trees. No news yet.
BBC NEWS | Americas | Floodwaters swamp Mexican state
First photo I've seen of the new genus and species found in the Usumacinta.
Stranger Fruit: A new family, genus & species of catfish
At the excellent Google Earth Design blog, I found this link to the KML editing page at Google Earth.
I've posted about this before - Ron Canter's article in Mesoweb and the fantastic map that Ron and Joel Skidmore put together.
PARI Online Publications - Rivers Among the Ruins: The Usumacinta
But I am posting a new version of some Google Earth overlays I did a few years back, with Ron's new map on it. Please excuse some of my errors in placing it - anywhere that it does not fit would be my fault, not Ron's.
Download Usumacinta_2008.kmz (5mb)
With a new highway between Tabasco and Tikal started, and more planned, the Peten forest in northern Guatemala faces new destruction, and an influx of new settlers.
PrensaLibre.com - Impacto negativo en selva petenera, por carreteras
A victory for opponents of the dam in Guerrero state, Mexico. Thanks to Manuel and Anni for the news.
Judge Halts Construction of Mexico's La Parota Dam
WNYC - The Leonard Lopate Show: Protecting Maya Ruins
Excellent evocation of place and spirit, by pal Chris Shaw of course.
The Geography of Religious Experience - New York Times
And a PDF. One for the archives and the best of Adirondack writing.
Google is offering Pro grants ($400 value Google Earth Pro) to non-profits, to create layers in KML that instruct and advance the organizations' missions.
The deadly 21-year fight over the La Parota dam on the Papagayo River in Mexico. Thanks to Chris Shaw for the link.
Death Over Dams | Orion magazine
Adital - Guatemala - Peligrosa política de desalojo de tierras
An essay on the failure to realize the promises of the peace agreements, the resulting occupations of private and public lands, and the current policies of evictions from those lands.
La ausencia de políticas claras de acceso a la tierra hacia los campesinos, ha provocado el surgimiento de un proceso de ocupaciones de tierras, tanto privadas como nacionales, con el propósito de contar un pedazo de tierra que les permita su subsistencia y el de su familia.
La actual política de desalojos del gobierno, solo busca garantizar la propiedad privada, especialmente de algunas personas que se dicen amigas del señor presidente.
Thanks to Elaine Schele and Chris Shaw for the information. The Ixcan area is south of the Lacantun River, and part of the Usumacinta watershed. Full story if you click MORE.
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Ixcan Indigenous Referendum to Reject Oil Drilling and Hydroelectric Projects
Communities snub oil companies
Noticias Aliadas, CERIGUA. May 2, 2007
Residents choose the defense of their environment in referendum. Community members in the Guatemalan town of Ixcan, in the El Quiche department, overwhelmingly rejected a series of oil drilling and hydroelectric projects on their lands in a referendum April 20. A total of 19,911 residents participated in the vote, and nearly 94 percent voted against the activities, funded by private capital
The Q'eqchí' Environmental Roundtable, known by the Spanish acronym MAQ, which promoted the event that local authorities administered, demanded that the country's Constitutional Court respect and guarantee the vote, adhering to the International Labor Organization's Convention 169 on indigenous rights, the Constitution and the municipal code.
Several organizations such as the Ixcan's Social Pastoral, the Front against Dams, the Public Health Workers Union, the Academy of Mayan Languages of Alta Verapaz, ecological groups OilWatch and MadreSelva and the National Indigenous Campesina Coordinator are part the MAQ.
"The MAQ was created as a space [organization?] for opposition to the globalization policies that threaten the rights of the indigenous peoples, to provide information in Mayan languages to the population about the negative effects of those projects" such as oil drilling and exploration, hydroelectric projects and mining, and the Franja Transversal del Norte, or FTN highway project, said Herbert Caal of the Maya Ecological Roundtable organization. The region known as FTN cuts the country from west to east through the departments of Huehuetenango, El Quiche, Alta Verapaz, southern Peten and Izabal.
Decision making power for small community
If the Ixcan residents' decision is respected, the plans of the oil company Petrolina Corporation, a subsidiary of the English company Taghmen Energy, to continue operating the area will be halted, just as the company was considering expanding those plans. The MAQ is now urging other towns in the region to "hold this kind of vote, with the objective of making the law count."
Their calls are directed to one town in particular: Coban in Alta Verapaz. In November, representatives from the Ministry of Energy and Mines and the Petrolina Corporation solicited permission to drill for oil on Coban's Municipal Farm Salinas de los Nueve Cerros. The company refused to back down from its plans, even though Coban authorities denied them permission.
Employees of the transnational company were constantly organizing sporting events between area schools and communities and cultural shows that promoted the supposed benefits the company's presence would bring to the community, says Arturo Chen, a MAQ member.
Petrolina identified the communities' social leaders and offered them well-paid positions, causing them to stop their activities against the drilling since they feared for their families' security or for losing the only source of income they had, says Leopoldo Marz, of the Maya Mestiza Association.
Salinas de los Nueve Cerros, whose area of 1,170 hectares (2,890 acres) ishome to the communities' important sources of economic, social and cultural development, such as the Chixoy River, five lagoons, 314 hectares (775 acres) of virgin forest and 360 hectares (890 acres) of sustainable use forest, Marz says. Officials at the Forensic Anthropological Foundation of Guatemala have registered 120 Mayan tombs at the site.
Shades of the Usumacinta. Thanks to Chris Shaw fro the link.
Buddhist Channel | Archaeology | Dam Threatens Ancient Buddhist Stone Carvings
Ron Canter's latest, a review of disastrous dam projects around the world, and examples of rivers, such as the Usumacinta, that are still free-flowing. I'll publish it in its entirety here (click More to see the whole essay) and the document can be downloaded here.
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BIG RIVERS, BAD DAMS Ron Canter, 3-26-07
Some of the most disastrous big dams around the world have been built in the tropics. The combination of high temperatures, impoverished populations, and water-borne parasites has been lethal. In North America Hetch-Hetchy and Glen Canyon Dams, while terrible in their own way, aren’t even in the same league with these.
Kariba Dam, Zambezi River
“The name Kariba [Kariva - “trap”] referred to a rock which thrust out of the swirling water at the entrance to the gorge close to the dam wall site, now buried more than a hundred feet below the water surface. In many legends, this rock was regarded as the home of the great river god Nyaminyami, who caused anyone who ventured near to be sucked down forever into the depths of the river.
When the valley people heard they were to be moved from their tribal lands and the great Zambezi River blocked, they believed it would anger the river god so much that he would cause the water to boil and destroy the white man’s bridge with floods.
In 1957, a year into the building of the dam, the river rose to flood level, pumping through the gorge with immense power, destroying some equipment and the access roads.
The odds against another flood occurring the following year were about a thousand to one - but flood it did - three metres higher than the previous year. This time destroying the access bridge, the cofferdam and parts of the main wall. Nyaminyami had made good his threat. He had recaptured the gorge. His waters passed over the wreckage of his enemies at more than sixteen million litres a second, a flood which, it had been calculated, would only happen once in ten thousand years.”– http://www.zambiatourism.com/travel/places/kariba.htm
Kariba Lake – length 280 km at max pool
In 1960 the gates closed on Kariba Dam at Chirundu and 280 km of the Zambesi slowly became a stillwater lake, the largest artificial lake in the world at the time. “Kariba” means “trap”, which it was for wildlife that crowded onto shrinking islands and then drowned as the lake overtopped them. Operation Noah, an international rescue effort, saved over 7000 animals from drowning, but was overall not very successful. Many more drowned, the cost was great, and the survivors’ habitat was gone anyway. Needless to say, the cost of the wildlife rescue had not been factored into the planned cost of the dam.
At Zambezi Deka, where a road reaches the river, the Zambezi has become a long thin lake set deep in the Batoka Highlands. Soon the gorge begins to widen into a narrow valley. Eutrophication has favored masses of aquatic vegetation in the stillwater. Visible in satellite images are bright green floating mats of vegetation caught in coves and between islands – they even block the main channel in one place. Below the road from Msuna, the stilled river enters another gorge, which it threads quietly for 19 km.
The river widens and runs northeast for the next 20 km. The river/lake turns left through a rock gate and expands in Gwembe Valley, once home to thousands of farmers and hordes of wildlife. For 150 km the lake is a man-made inland sea 25 to 30 km wide - about half as wide as Lake Erie. At Upper Kariba, 96 km before the dam, there were once heavy rapids in a short canyon. Now the lake just narrows briefly to 5 km wide.
Manantali Dam, Bafing River, one of the Senegal River’s two main sources
The Bafing River in Mali is one of the two main sources of the Senegal River. Completed in 1987, Manantali Dam – a “poster child for bad dams” – plugs the river about 800 km above its junction with the Senegal. In 2001, 14 years after it was built, Manantali Dam finally began producing electricity. 55% of the power generated goes to Mali, 45% to Senegal. Water-borne diseases (malaria, urinary diarrhoea, intestinal parasitic diseases, schistosomiasis, and intestinal schistosomiasis, a much more dangerous form of the disease) have spread rapidly via still water and irrigation canals. There has been a massive disruption of ecosystems downstream in Senegal and Mauritania. Manantali was so clearly a boondoggle that the World Bank took a pass on this one and would not fund it.
Irrigation agriculture has actually turned out to be less productive than the flood-recession farming it displaced all along the Senegal River for 800-900 km downstream. The high cost of building a system of irrigation canals has resulted in only a fraction of those planned actually being completed. In every irrigation plan, the government has favored large farms, and small farms have been shut out. Worse, poor farmers no longer able to plant flood-recession farms have had their lands appropriated. In addition, the river is becoming undrinkable due to the return flow being polluted by chemicals used on irrigated fields.
One intention was to make the Senegal River navigable year-round but that has not worked well so far. The dam does not normally impound enough water to meet all its touted goals: irrigation, hydropower, and navigation. The dam may actually be contributing to desertification in Mauritania, along the north shore of the Senegal River by changing annual evaporation patterns.
Diama Dam, Senegal River
From Bakel to St. Louis the Senegal River winds across a broad flood plain, the ‘delta’ of the Senegal River. It is flat and easy traveling, when there is water enough. The first half is seasonal; the second was tidal before the Diama Dam was built.
Before damming, tides reportedly affected the river as far as 400 km from the ocean. In 1986 the Diama Dam was built 27 km upstream from St. Louis in an attempt to stop the intrusion of saltwater, which in turn was being aggravated by the disruption of normal freshwater flow by the nearly complete Manantali Dam over 900 km upstream. The Diama Dam also diverts water south into the bed of the Ferlo River to store for the dry season.
The dam has caused eutrophication and disease in the delta by encouraging a dense growth of aquatic nuisance plants (mainly Typha australis), which clog the waterways and harbor vectors of water-borne diseases. An explosion of mosquito and snail populations has brought malaria and both urinary and intestinal bilharzia to epidemic proportions.
Kanji [Kainji] Dam, Niger River
Started in 1964 and completed in 1968, Nigeria is still paying off the debt on it (as of 2006). Instead of plugging a narrow gap like most dams, it snakes across a broad valley. At 9 km, it is one of the longest big dams in the world. It backs up a lake about 160 km long. The widest part is not behind the dam but halfway up, where the lake opens into a huge oval bay 48 km long and 24 km across.
Cahora Bassa Dam, Zambezi River
Quebrabassa Gorge, the final canyon on the Zambezi, begins below Zumbo, where the river slides into Mozambique, considered the poorest country in the world. The 1911 Encyclopedia gave the length from the first to the last of the rapids as 70 km, and indicated that the portage road was longer, “taking a detour of 70 miles (112 km)”.
The river is dammed halfway down the canyon to form 250 km long and 26 m deep Cahora Bassa Lake. The 170 m high dam was completed in 1974. The lake pinches through three narrows, vestiges of major cataracts at hard rock layers. The lake is very windy. Built for contradictory functions: flood control and power generation, the dam’s resulting flow regime has been very erratic. Since there is little demand for electricity in Mozambique, electricity is sold at cut-rate prices to South Africa. Even villages near the dam remain without power because the cost of building the grid is beyond Mozambique’s limited resources.
In common with the Kariba project, Cahora Bassa displaced tens of thousands of people, hordes of wildlife, and permanently flooded productive farmland. In addition, it has had a huge impact for 500 km downstream in the floodplain and coastal delta. Without annual overflow to floodplain pools, the fish have not been able to spawn in the huge numbers that once supported villages. Flood-recession farms along riverbanks are periodically washed away by unexpected dry season releases. Big game hunting, a significant source of regional income, has withered as the game animals have suffered from reduced wetland productivity. Nearing the coast, the mangroves are dying back without the silt renewed at their roots. Mangroves both protect the coast and are a habitat for prawns. In addition, the river channel is now often too shallow for navigation in the dry season above Tete. The net result has been to deepen the poverty of the average person living along the river.
Proposed Mphanda Nkuwa Dam, Zambezi River
The unflooded portion of Quebrabassa Gorge appears to have six major rapids, at least for now. Pictures of the gorge show high volume rapids in a spectacular canyon. Forested walls curve upward to cliffs topped by bare rock knobs.
“The Mozambican government is proposing to build the Mphanda Nkuwa Dam [Mepanda Uncua] 60km downstream from the Cahora Bassa Dam. It is estimated that the dam would produce as much as 1,300MW of electricity that the government anticipates using to attract energy intensive industries to Mozambique, including expansion of the Mozal Aluminum Smelter, but this power would come at a high price. The proposed dam is already a priority infrastructure project under the New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD), which is promoting Mphanda Nkuwa for increased supply of the regional electricity grid, primarily for industrial supply.
In addition to displacing 1,400 rural farmers, the Mphanda Nkuwa Dam would require the Cahora Bassa Dam to operate according to its current destructive release patterns, and make downstream restoration very difficult to achieve. Mphanda Nkuwa could also exacerbate downstream social and environmental damage by causing daily fluctuations in river level. These mini–floods are predicted to flood ecologically important sandbars and riverbank food gardens which provide the only vegetable resource for many local farmers and are essential for ensuring food security during the dry season. The water fluctuations will also impair fishing and navigation by canoe, especially in the stretch bewteen Mphanda Nkuwa and the city of Tete. The $2 billion project also poses significant economic risk to Mozambique, one of the world’s poorest nations.” - http://www.irn.org/programs/mphanda/
Volta [Akosombo] Dam, Volta River
The stillwater lake has caused the spread of tripanosomiasis, “river blindness” like wildfire. Between 1960 and 1964 the rate in children rose from only 5% to 90%. It now afflicts virtually everyone living near the river, and half of those over 40 have gone blind.
Aswan High Dam, Nile River
The 110 m high dam supplies much of Egypt’s power, greatly increased the area of farmland, ended the annual floods, and allows two to three crops annually, but is not without long-term trade-offs.
Starting in 1967, Lake Nasser began to fill. By 1971 it had drowned 1000 known archaeological sites, the majority of which were never even surface surveyed due to lack of time and resources. Nearly 50,000 people were displaced. Effects included ending the flow of nutrients to riverside fields downriver and the intrusion of saltwater up delta distributaries now too feeble to resist.
The breadbasket of the Mediterranean, Egypt sustained intensive agriculture for a staggering 5000 years. Throughout its history, the nation practiced “flood recession farming” on a grand scale. Every year (with unpleasant exceptions) the Blue Nile rose on schedule and flushed rich Ethiopian silt from the highlands into the Nile itself. As is well known, the rise of the river spread the muck over fields in Nubia and Egypt all the way to the Mediterranean, watering them and endlessly renewing their fertility with “the magic mud that can raise cities from the desert sand” (Churchill, 1902). To quote an unnamed ancient poet, “The fields laugh and the river-banks are overflowed. The visage of men is bright, and the heart of the gods rejoiceth”.
All that has ended with the construction of the Aswan High Dam and two others in Nubia on the Blue Nile. No one needs to leave the bottomland to escape flooding but Egyptian farming methods have completely changed. Now Egyptian farmers need to buy water to irrigate their fields and fertilizer to maintain fertility. Whether they will be more prosperous in the long run remains to be seen. Hopes for the dam to be a “wall against hunger” have not been realized. The birth rate has simply kept pace with the increased harvest. Given the population crowded along the shores now, it would be impossible to revert to the ancient high and low Nile cycle.
Archaeologically the Aswan High Dam was the single worst thing to happen to Egyptian and Meroean antiquities ever. A few high profile sites were dismantled and rebuilt on higher ground, or protected by dikes at great expense. The 1,000 other sites identified in the salvage survey all went under - 4000 years of history gone (Keating, 1975). Most sobering was that, when the archaeological surveys began, less than 100 sites were known. In spite of the massive UNESCO salvage effort, only a fraction of the sites discovered could be systematically excavated.
Huge forts of mud-brick guarding the portages, their landings, a ship portage road, and a system of wing dams making the river navigable were all discovered, minimally excavated, and then lost forever. Buhen, the greatest of all the forts, was preserved for 4000 years by the desert and neglect. With its multiple dry moats, flaking fields of fire, drawbridges, archer slits, etc, it was the most sophisticated defensive structure in the world until the Venetians finally surpassed it. Now it can only be toured virtually- the original has dissolved into a pile of mud.
Merowe Dam, Nile River
In Sudan, construction began in 2006 on the Merowe [Hamdab] Dam at Hamdab 31 km above Marawi [New Merowe]. It will flood the Fourth Cataract of the Nile and more – 160 km upriver in all. It is officially multipurpose but hydropower is the main goal. Planned to be 67 m high and 9 km long, it is the largest hydro project in Africa currently under construction (Cost: 1200 million EURs, or 1.5 billion dollars). The dam is 9 km long because the river is not in any sort of gorge here, just a broad valley with isolated hills, two of which are being dismantled for fill. The 10 hydro generators, ranked across the right-hand channel around an island at Hamdab, are nearly complete. The principal contractor is the China International Water & Electric Corp. “The creation of the reservoir lake will increase the surface area of the Nile by about 700 km_. Under the climatic conditions at the site, additional evaporation losses of up to 1,500,000,000 m_ per year can be expected. This corresponds to about 8% of the total amount of water allocated to Sudan in the Nile Waters Treaty” (Wikipedia, 2006). There have been no environmental assessments – not one.
Since the only arable land is in narrow strips fronting the river and in patches on islands within the cataract, the 50,000 people who will be displaced have nowhere to go. Beyond the narrow river bottom all is desert. The plan is to relocate them to dry farms, where they will have two years of irrigation free, and then have to buy water. The desert soil is poor and may take 40 years of nurturing to bring it up to the level of the farms lost. Basically, the displaced Manoosir farmers are being shoved into the desert to wither and die – and they know it. The Sudanese displaced by the Aswan Dam were relocated along a miserable stretch of the Atabara River, and languish there still. Several Manoosir protesters were killed by Sudanese police in April 2006. The plight of 50,000 Manoosir is lost in the larger tragedies of modern Sudan - like the hundreds of thousands killed in Darfur.
Flooding starts in Aug 2007 and may take two years to reach max pool. There are half a dozen salvage archaeology expeditions underway (Archaeology, Nov-Dec 2006, Andrew Lawler, on the Humboldt Univ. Nubian Expedition), but all are small and often met with hostility. The Manoosir don’t want any outsiders - archaeologists included -in their territory along the Fourth Cataract. In spite of this, hundreds of sites have been located, but there is no time or resources to do much with them. “The Fourth Cataract--after a brief emergence into the archaeological limelight--seems destined to slip back into obscurity, this time for eternity” (Lawler, 2006).
Rusayris Dam and Senna Dam, Blue Nile
Within Sudan, the Blue Nile is dammed in two places: Rusayris [Roseires] Dam at Damazine (1950s), and Senna Dam (1925). The river’s huge silt load has already filled both reservoirs and converted them into black, oozing mudflats. In the past that muck would have ended up on Sudanese and Egyptian fields, restoring their fertility. Now it just bakes in the sun.
The Great Gezira Plan to grow cotton with irrigation from Senna Dam long ago evaporated, but twin irrigation canals run north from the left side of the Senna Dam (3 km long, about 20 m high). They water small farms in a region stretching 200 km from the dam north to Khartoum. Along the river itself are the prodigious ruins of British pumping stations, “a museum of broken schemes” (Bangs 2005).
The interconnectedness of all things has nowhere been more glaringly obvious than along the Nile from source to sea. The broad outline of it has been known from ancient times, yet the nations along it - Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia – all dam and divert it without careful thought to consequences.
Diamer-Bhasha Dam, Indus [Sindhu] River
Located where the Hindu Kush and Himalaya Ranges come together, the Diamer-Bhasha Dam will destroy one of the world’s largest collections of rock art, carved on boulders along the upper Indus and ranging in age from Neolithic to 16th cen. Approx 50,000 carvings and 5,000 inscriptions are being documented by a German team, but the boulders are too big to be moved. They will either be inundated by Bhasha Lake or destroyed in reconstruction of 100 km of the Karakoram Highway. http://www.dawn.com/2006/12/05/nat11.htm
A groundbreaking ceremony was held in May of 2006, work on the infrastructure has begun, and construction of the dam itself is slated to begin in 2008. 30,000 people from 32 villages (including ancient Chilas) will be displaced. The dam will be about 165 km downstream of Gilgit and produce 3.36 megawatts. Water storage in perennially dry Pakistan is another major purpose, but hydro-power and water storage are not mutually supportive uses. At a cost of $6.5 billion US, the dam is intended to be the flagship of efforts to develop Pakistan’s Northern Areas. A concern of opponents is that the dam will increase local humidity, leading to more rapid melting of glaciers in the mountains nearby.
and of course, the biggest dam boondoggle of all, flooding entire canyons to their brim:
Three Gorges Dam, Ch’ang Chian (Yangtze) River
All the problems of big dams, but writ even larger, afflict the Three Gorges Dam in China, for it is the mother of all dams – the world’s largest hydro and flood control project. The stats are mind-boggling. The dam wall will be 185 meters high; the normal pool 174 meters deep. Xiling Gorge, the last of the historic and scenic Three Gorges, will be flooded nearly to its brim. One could drop the Great Pyramid into the pool behind the dam – and it would sink out of sight. 1,250,000 people, 13 cities, 140 towns, and 1352 villages are being removed to make way for the lake. By the time it is done in 2012, it will be the most expensive construction project in history. The hydros will generate 17 to 18 gigawatts (at $2000 per kilowatt). The lake will stretch upstream for 600 km, past the city of Chongqin, which will become a port for ocean-going ships. The Aswan High Dam flooded 1000 archaeological sites. The Three Gorges Dam will swallow 8000, some 10,000 years old (Winchester, 1996).
The dam will accomplish its four main goals: flood control, power generation, improved navigation, and reduction of sulphur and CO2 emissions by reducing need for coal-fired plants. The key question though is “For how long?” The Achilles heel of the Three Gorges Dam is the smallest of things – silt. The river carries an enormous silt load, 530 million tons annually, which the lake will intercept. Chongqin may become a port of ocean-going ships for a time, but there is little doubt that the silt deposited in the upper end of the reservoir will quickly fill the channel. Bed load ranging from silt to boulders will also accumulate behind the dam, and constantly threaten to clog the turbine intakes.
More serious is the effect of relieving the lower river of its silt. With a dramatically reduced sediment load, the swift Ch’ang Chian will actively erode its banks and levees downstream of the dam. Since Shanghai, China’s largest city, is built on river mud, erosion may threaten the long-term stability of its foundations. The river delta will stop growing seaward, and probably retreat. Salt water and tides will certainly move farther upriver. Shanghai (which means “Above the Sea”) is over1600 km downstream of the dam, yet the dam will affect it.
Other negative consequences include massive environmental damage, enormous relocation problems, possibly creating an underclass of “dam refugees”, increased risk of landslides, and the destruction of some of China’s finest and most iconic scenery - the Sanxia: Qutang, Wu, and Xiling Gorges.
Finally, there is the question of the long-term safety of the dam itself. It would be a prime site for terrorist attack. The site finally chosen at Sandouping has serious shortcomings for air defense (Winchester, 1996). A major landslip (such as the collapse of the Huangla Stone, an overhanging cliff 40 km upstream) into the lake could send a wave surging over the dam. In August 1975 a typhoon overwhelmed the much smaller Banqiao Dam on a tributary. “The vast structure promptly burst: the resulting lake stretched for thirty miles downstream, and whole villages were inundated in seconds. Almost a quarter of a million people died. News seeped out only in 1994, nearly twenty years after the event” (Winchester, 1996). If the Three Gorges Dam burst, millions would die.
Dai Qing, a Beijing journalist, gathered up all the papers of respected engineers and hydrologists and published them in 1989 in a book. Within two months she was in prison, but the information sparked an unprecedented vote by the National People’s Congress in 1992. They were to rubber-stamp the Three Gorges project, but, when debate was forbidden, one third voted against or abstained anyway. After the vote, all international support was withdrawn, particularly funding from the banking community. China was left to go it alone.
“A general feeling had arisen that large dams were ill-conceived projects, that few of them had realized the expectations offered for them, that all were too costly, most had caused grave environmental impacts on their surroundings, and that each was little more than pomposity writ in concrete, with totalitarian regimes favoring them most notably as a way of impressing the peasantry with the ruler’s acumen, energy, and skill.” (Winchester, 1996, pgs 227-28)
In General:
In most cases the effects of flooding the land upstream of the dam were recognized during planning. They were sometimes understated - often intentionally - but the loss of farmland and the displacement of thousands of people never came as a total surprise.
What is disturbing is how often the effects downstream of the dam were not anticipated at all. The only result usually touted is that annual flooding would now be controlled. This is seen as a good thing, until the full effects are realized. Profoundly altering a river’s annual cycle affects every living thing downstream - from man to bug - that has adapted over time to live within that cycle.
In every case, changing the annual flow regime on a big river has had a tremendous negative impact on floodplain farms, disease vectors, wildlife habitats, and offshore fisheries for hundreds, even thousands, of kilometers below the dam. Even when the likely results are pointed out, the tendency of planners has been to minimize or ignore downstream impact, possibly because it is not so easy to quantify as acreage flooded or people relocated. In addition, there is a clear pattern: the bigger the river, the worse the downstream consequences.
The loss of archaeological sites is a given. Past people chose to live by the river for good reasons: drinking water, fertile farmland, and a natural road. A rule of thumb from past salvage projects seems to be that, whatever the number of known sites at the start, the number found by the end will be at least ten times larger.
Once a dam is built, the people are stuck with the results, like it or not. The dam will never be dismantled. It would be too costly, and an admission of failure. In spite of the catastrophic results from those already in place, more are even now being built.
BIG RIVERS, NO DAMS
There are several world-class rivers that have not got their big dam yet, thankfully for very practical reasons. Instead, they have run-of-the-river hydros, which have little impact on the basin above or below.
Mekong River
Presently the Mekong River in Southeast Asia follows its annual rhythm of dry and monsoon levels as it always has. Where the ragged crest of Phu Khan He Mountain rises above the right shore, a band of resistant rock crosses the river. Starting at an elevation of 74 m, the Mekong drops 21 m in only a few km just before crossing from Laos into Cambodia. The length of the falls is usually given as between 10 and 12 km, but this is actually their width – they span 11 km.
Khone Falls is one of the widest waterfalls on any river in the world. Since the river is not confined in a gorge, the falls spread wide among parallel channels, five or six in the dry season and a dozen in the monsoon. Wherever joints have created a weak zone, there the river has etched a channel. Each channel has its own set of falls, and none are navigable. For whitewater paddlers, it is the classic “carry up and run another chute” scenario – on steroids. Endangered Irrawaddy dolphins hang out below the falls and are a local tourist attraction.
Khon Pha Pheng Falls, in the easternmost channel below Thakho, is the largest of the falls because it is the most abrupt drop, taking most of the 21 meters at once. Somphamit Falls, in a channel along the south side of Don Det (“don” means island), are somewhat smaller, since they are preceded by rapids. Other rapids and falls are in narrow channels between Don Phapheng, Don Sadam, and Don Sahong. West of Somphamit in a seasonal channel are the falls of Nam Keng, though at the height of the monsoon most of the low islands west of Don Det and Don Saniat are underwater.
The remains of a French railway, built to ease a portage past the falls, are still traceable. Built on Don Khone, a large midriver island, it ran only 5 km from the head of rapids above Nam Somphamit to Hangkhon village, at the foot of a hill where most of the channels rejoin. It probably just improved an existing portage trail.
There is no narrow mountain gap to plug. A dam would have to be over 12 km long to block all the channels and that is almost too much for even the most ardent dam builder to suggest with a straight face.
The Tad Somphamit Hydro produces power by diverting a small part of the average river flow (10,663 m3/s) for 2 km through a tunnel. It dewaters a short stretch of one channel at the height of the dry season but does nothing more. Though the river volume is less, the hydro’s output is highest in the dry season. In the monsoon, the tailwater level rises, reducing the drop. In the planning stages, Thakho Hydro would tap Khon Pha Pheng Falls with a one km tunnel to its own run-of-the-river plant.
Run-of-the-river plants may have local effects but they have no impact on the annual wet-dry cycles of a river basin. But this could change for the Mekong. A high dam in a Laotian mountain gap 24 km above Vianchang (and 2000 km from the sea) has been proposed. By ending the Monsoon high water, it would prevent floods in Laos. It would also compromise the renewal of the fertility of Lake Tonle Sap and of the Mekong Delta, breadbaskets of Cambodia and southern Vietnam. this would incidentally disrupt the fisheries of all of Southeast Asia, since Lake Tonle Sap’s annual backfilling in the monsoon is essential for the spawning cycle of all commercial species. It sounds like a cliché, but the whole Mekong watershed really is one huge interlocking ecosystem.
Congo River
In the second set of rapids forming Livingstone Falls on the Congo a short swift stretch leads into a particularly long series of continuous rapids, the Inga Rapids. The river falls 96 m in 14 km for an overall gradient of 6.9 m/km (35 ft/mi) – an incredible descent for the second largest river on earth. In the world list of waterfalls by volume Inga is number one.
Inga Rapids tumble southeast in a wide channel to Sikila Island, only to suddenly double back to the southwest and squeeze into a narrow gorge. There are no pools or breaks, but there are five major drops within the Inga Rapids: two above the corner, a wide one right on it, and two below. The last drop is particularly huge, possibly the largest rapid on earth. The Congo’s flow at Inga is 43,000 cubic m per sec (1.5 mil cfs) and it has not escaped the attention of hydro planners.
In the late 1970-early 1980s, the Inga Power Project built a diversion canal above the left shore, with one power plant [Inga Power 1] part way down, and a second [Inga Power 2] where the river doubles back. Since the Congo’s flow is fairly constant, there is no need for a dam. Rather, they are run-of-the-river hydros. Both are running at only half capacity due to poor maintenance, which was in turn due to the Congo civil war. At full capacity their output is greater than all of Italy’s power plants combined – all this with no dam. There are plans to upgrade them and add a third plant, if money can be found. All are in the Nkololo Valley.
The Grand Inga scheme goes far beyond merely adding to existing hydros. The paln is to dam the Congo and divert the entire river through the Bundi Valley. The cost of actually plugging the second largest river in the world by volume would be astronomical. In fact, it would cost a minimum of $50 billion. Planned to generate 39,000 MW, it could fill the current power demands of most of the African continent by itself, but only select regions would be tied in to the projected Pan-African grid. It is not clear where the money would come from.
Unlike the current run-of-the-river hydros, Grand Inga would disrupt the Congo’s flow and massively impact the regional ecosystems. It would also be a prime target for saboteurs. Given the enormous price tag and the poverty of the Congo, it would seem unlikely that it could ever funded, but stranger schemes have been pushed through to completion – with terrible consequences for the poor countries so favored.
and the Usumacinta River is undammed - so far.
Citations:
Bangs, Richard & Pasquale Scaturro
2005 Mystery of the Nile. New American Library, Penguin Books, London, UK
Churchill, Winston
1902 The River War, in Gutenberg E-text
1903
Forbath, Peter
1977 The Congo. Harper & Rowe
Keating, Rex
1975 Nubian Rescue. Hawthorn Books, Inc. New York, NY.
Lawler, Andrew
2006 “Damming Sudan”, Archaeology, Nov-Dec 2006. On the Merowe Dam and Humboldt Univ. Nubian Expedition
Alan Moorehead
1960 The White Nile
1962 The Blue Nile. Hamish Hamilton, London
Winchester, Simon
1996 The River at the Center of the World. Henry Holt, NY
http://www.nadir.org/nadir/initiativ/agp/free/dams/index.htm
Problematic big dam projects worldwide
http://www.learningsites.com/EarlyWork/buhen-2.htm
Buhen Fortress
http://www.utdallas.edu/geosciences/remsens/Nile/Cataract-Semna.html
Semna site on Nile in Sudan, now drowned
http://www.zambiatourism.com/travel/places/kariba.htm
Kariba Dam
http://www.irn.org/programs/mphanda/
Mphanda Nkuwa Dam
http://www.dawn.com/2006/12/05/nat11.htm
Diamer-Bhasha Dam
http://american.edu/ted/threedam.htm
TED case study, 3 Gorges Dam
http://www.visit-laos.com/where/champassak/outandabout.htm
Sii Pan Don and Khone Falls
http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/b/burton/richard/b97g/chapter26.html
Two Trips to Gorilla Land and the Cataracts of the Congo, Richard Burton, with map of lower Congo
http://www.irn.org/programs/congo/index.php?id=050907illusions_eng.html
Grand Inga Power Project
The past and future of the Usumacinta River watershed was the theme of the Maya Meetings, held last week in Austin Texas. For three members of the Rios Mayas organization (Ron Canter, Chris Shaw, and Dave Pentecost), it was a privilege to come and present what we have learned over the last few years, and to find new support for the campaign to protect the river from a hydroelectric dam and other threats.
I will post a selection of information, reports, maps, and video here for quick reference. Welcome to all Maya Meeting folks, and people coming here by way of the FAMSI website, which has offered its support to the work.
The Daily Glyph - Chris Shaw's Open Letter on the Usumacinta
RECENT REPORTS
PARI Online Publications - Rivers Among the Ruins: The Usumacinta, by Ron Canter
The Daily Glyph - Big Rivers, Bad Dams - by Ron Canter
VIDEO:
Maya Frontier (iPod m4v video, 217 mb, 18:30)
Defensores (iPod m4v video, 40 mb, 3:25)
River Kingdoms (iPod m4v video, 34 mb, 2:54)
You can play these in iTunes, or Quicktime player for Mac or Windows.
For best results: Download completely and then play.
Guatemalans are still well organized and vocal against the construction of dams on the Usumacinta.
Comunidades guatemaltecas protestan contra Plan Puebla Panamá - Prensa Latina
Agustín Tebalán Hernández, coordinador del Frente Petenero contra las Represas, dijo a prensa Latina que las hidroeléctricas sólo beneficiarán a las grandes empresas de México y Centroamérica.
Las instalaciones se harían una en territorio de México y tres sobre la corriente binacional del Usumacinta, cuyo cauce resultaría alterado, con graves perjuicios para la flora y la fauna circundantes.
"Cientos de kilómetros cuadrados de la principal reserva natural de Guatemala, con extensos bosques y una enorme riqueza ecológica, desaparecerían", dijo Tebalán Hernández.
Longest underground river found | Tech&Sci | Science | Reuters.com
Charles Golden and Andrew Scherer update their work from 2006. The border between Yaxchilan and Piedras Negras, as well as the modern border between Mexico and Guatemala.
An excellent profile of the people who live just across the Usumacinta from Frontera Corozal, who have survived war and dislocation and now are well organized against a dam on the river.
elPeriódico de Guatemala » Actualidad » La vida en la rivera del Usumacinta
La Técnica
In real life, in Richmond.
Powhatan Indian Style.
Thanks to Ron Canter for the link.
Thanks to Chris, a pointer to a good book on dams and the environment.
Chris Shaw is co-directing a new environmental journalism fellowship program at Middlebury College. Here's the press release.
Middlebury College announces establishment of fellowship program in environmental journalism
Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), Trópico Verde and Conservation Strategy Fund have begun a study of the impacts of the proposed road through the Peten. They have concluded so far that it will result in the destruction of 60% of the forest cover in the Rio Azul National Park within 15 years.
PrensaLibre.com - Temen desastre por carretera
A bitter victory for the Sierra del Lacandon biosphere reserve. Can Guatemala find a way to protect its people and its resources, from poverty and narcotrafficking?
PrensaLibre.com - Desalojan a invasores de Sierra del Lacandón
This is the most complete newspaper report yet on the problems of narcotrafficking and large illegal settlements in the Sierra del Lacandon Park, on the banks of the Usumacinta River in Guatemala.
NPR : Guatemala's Parks Lie in Path of Drug Traffickers
GUATEMALA: Following the Latest Route of the Central American Migrants
Congratulations to Ron Canter for the attention that his work with Native Trails is finally getting. The travel section of the NY Times today has a beautiful article on the Northern Forest Canoe Trail, from northern Maine to southern Adirondacks in New York State. It shows that three people with an obsession can make a difference.
The Magnificent Obsession of the Northern Forest Canoe Trail - New York Times
La construcción de presas unifica las protestas y resistencia de los afectados
Thanks to Alfonso for pointing this out. A good summary of the problems with dams, in Mexico and the world, and the continued plans for large dam construction in Mexico.
México insiste en construir más presas, pese a sus comprobados inconvenientes
The Mexican ministry in charge of the environment and natural resources has given the go ahead for the 210 meter tall La Yesca dam. It will be built on the Santiago River in the states of Jalisco and Nayarit. Other Mexican development and environmental groups continue to oppose it.
Minimiza Semarnat los daños ecológicos que ocasionará la presa La Yesca
I've just completed a 3 minute introduction to the story I shot this spring in Mexico and Guatemala. The music is "Perfidia", a 1940 hit by Chiapas composer Alberto Dominguez, performed as a moody guitar instrumental by Café Tacuba.
On the Maya Frontier - preview (iPod m4v video, 21 mb, 3:33)
You can play this in iTunes, or Quicktime player for Mac or Windows.
For best results: Download completely and then play.
Thanks to everyone who has helped me, this year and in the past.
Previous videos from the Maya region:
elPeriódico de Guatemala - El potencial de generación eléctrica en Guatemala
Los ríos de Guatemala poseen un potencial para la generación de energía de 10 mil 900 megavatios y la capacidad técnicamente aprovechable es de unos 5 mil megavatios. El Instituto Nacional de Electrificación (INDE) posee un mapa con 240 sitios en los cuales es factible construir una central hidroeléctrica, de los cuales cuenta con perfiles y estudios de prefactibilidad y factibilidad de 104 proyectos. Las inversiones potenciales en los proyectos hidroeléctricos alcanzan la cifra de US$5 mil 773 millones. Los proyectos más grandes son Xalalá (que saldrá a licitación dentro de un par de meses) y Serchil, ambos ubicados sobre el Río Chixoy, con 495 y 202 megavatios respectivamente. Chulac, sobre el río Cahabón, con una capacidad de generación de 440 y 340 megavatios, según la opción. Los sitios Piedras Negras y Salvamento, sobre el Río Usumacinta, con un potencial de 413 y 437 megavatios.
Not only in Latin America are dams controversial. Even dams that affect few people are subject to debate.
A Massive Dam, Under Way in Laos, Generates Worries - New York Times
El Heraldo de Chiapas - Peligran hidroelectricas por deforestacion y azolvamiento
This is several weeks old, but it is the clearest signal yet that CFE is considering a renewed effort to build a dam on the Usumacinta.
México, D.F. - Concretó Fox un solo megaproyecto: El Cajón
“México no tiene tanta agua como otros países, pero tiene montañas que le sirven bien para desarrollar proyectos hidroeléctricos”, dice Humberto Marengo, director de proyectos hidroeléctricos de la CFE.
Marengo explicó que hay proyectos sobre el Río Usumacinta que podrían generar el doble de energía de la presa El Cajón con apenas la mitad de la inversión.
Es el caso del proyecto Tenosique, en Tabasco, en donde con una cortina de apenas 22 metros de altura se podría tener una planta de 450 megawatts de capacidad y que podría funcionar unas 18 horas diarias, por el caudal del Usumacinta; sin embargo, El Cajón sólo funciona para los picos de demanda, explicó el funcionario.
En energía hidráulica, la actual administración tiene su mayor apuesta con el proyecto El Cajón, que no es sino parte de un sistema de presas que incluye la de Aguamilpa y que se concluirá con La Yesca, sobre el mismo río Santiago.
Para el director de Proyectos Hidroeléctricos de la CFE, el problema es la subutilización de los ríos, por ejemplo, en Europa el Danubio tiene más de 20 mil megawatts de capacidad de generación instalados y es apenas 75% del caudal del Usumacinta en el sureste del país.
I just ran across this 2 year old document from the Mexican Senate, considering the importance of the Pantanos de Centla and mentioning the longterm danger of desertification if the Boca del Cerro dam project moves forward.
Referring to a study by CONAE, the national energy conservation commission, on minihydraulic energy, this report brings up recent rumors of renewed dam plans. Good news though that someone in Mexico is thinking of alternatives to dams and flooding.
Diario Presente - Tabasco, potencia para generar luz
What should be a cautionary tale, for Mexican leaders considering Boca del Cerro.
International Rivers Network: South Africa
One-third of Chiapas deforested or degraded. A call for the next governor of Chiapas to address reforestation. Among the presidential candidates, Lopez Obrador and Calderon have both backed reforestation as a key part of development in their campaign speeches.
El Heraldo de Chiapas - Asunto de seguridad nacional, recuperar bosques de Chiapas
Two good stories in the Chiapas paper: on silting of Chiapas rivers shortening the life of hydroelectric plants as the land loses all topsoil; and the politics of the environment in Mexico.
El Heraldo de Chiapas - Peligran presas hidroeléctricas por deforestación
El Heraldo de Chiapas - Medio Ambiente; una Bandera Electoral
I've heard that the Mexican electrical commission, the CFE, has hired a northern Mexico university to create a new study on a 30 to 40 meter dam at Boca del Cerro, on the Usumacinta River. It seems that this time around, the emphasis will be on the national needs for power, not the creation of a regional grid under Plan Puebla Panama. The need for water in the Yucatan, to supply the growing tourist trade, will also be used as a justification.
Other than those new principles, the campaign will likely be similar to the one in 2002-2003, when the tactic was to restrict any public information about the dam. Here's a translation of an editorial from that period that I missed at the time, but which is newly relevant.
Dick Russell - Editorials by Homero Aridjis
An inspiration in our small resistance against the Usumacinta dam.
AlterNet: Arundhati Roy: Back In the U.S.A.
Trying to get ready for a trip to Merida and a meeting on the Maya Forest, I came across this inspiring online tool created by The Nature Conservancy. Document library, collaboration/workspaces, other resources.
Welcome to the new ConserveOnline
Thanks to Alfonso for these links. First, regarding problems at the nearly completed El Cajon dam.
Pendiente, la remediación de daños ambientales causados por El Cajón
And the UN's requests to the government regarding La Parota and the local communities:
Gmail - La Jornada: Pide la ONU consulta sobre La Parota
El Financiero en linea - Promete Calderón plan de reordenamiento de frontera sur de México
RiosMayas partner, chief cartographer, and maniac paddler Ron Canter sent this story, about the 740 mile canoe trail that he's helped establish in the northeast United States. Another link in the Maya/Adirondack connection. Float on!
The Adirondack Daily Enterprise - Saranac Lake to host grand opening of canoe trail
Good sketch of biological research in Lacantun Biosphere Reserve.
Lacantun Biosphere Reserve - Park Profile - Conservation and research
For the first time, Guatemala is participating in this cultural festival, celebrating all of the area touched by the Usumacinta River. Begins May 5. And I won't be there. Too bad.
Tabasco, Chiapas, Campeche y Guatemala, unidos en festejo cultural | 2006-04-28 | La Crónica de Hoy
Subcomandante Marcos, now calling himself Subdelegado Zero, warned the Mexican government that building the La Parota dam in the state of Guerrero would set off a new war in the southeast, that is, Chiapas. He made the statement while on the national tour known as "La otra campaña", the other campaign, in this presidential election year.
Desencadenaría conflicto armado proyecto impulsado por Fox: EZLN - Prensa Latina
In response, the leader of the PAN party in Guerrero called him a terrorist.
Líder del PAN tacha de "terroristas" a Marcos y opositores a La Parota
The recovery from hurricanes and mudslides in the region is ongoing. I've just received an update from Kenneth Wood in Santiago Atitlan on plans to rebuild the hospital there. Click MORE for the update. And please donate.
Dear Friends of Santiago Atitlan,
Happy Semana Santa!
Pueblo a Pueblo is pleased to inform you that after many weeks of generous
volunteer labor on the part of our webmaster, Marc Quimbey at Westwind
Studios in Arkansas; our new website is up and running. It reflects many of
the new initiatives that we have begun, as the people of Santiago Atitlan
recover from the disaster. These include:
Hospitalito Atitlan: The decision has been made that the Hospitalito cannot
return to its original site in Panabaj. Together, Fundacion K'aslimaal (the
Hospitalito governing board) and Pueblo a Pueblo have begun a Capital
Campaign to purchase land and build a new, permanent Hospitalito for the
community. The interim Hospitalito continues to provide medical services as
we develop these plans.
Mother/Child Program: With the new website, Pueblo a Pueblo and the
Hospitalito have launched this individual sponsorship program to ensure the
health of pregnant T'zutujil women and their infants. U.S. sponsors will be
able to develop an Email relationship with their "adopted" mother and infant
and the $25/mo. sponsorship will fund prenatal, delivery, post-natal and
well-baby care to the neediest, at-risk mothers and their infants.
Child Education and Health Program: The children of Panabaj who survived
the mudslides, have endured the loss of their family members, friends and
homes. Most are now living in temporary shelters. This sponsorship program
is designed to support a local Panabaj, T'zutujil school and ensure that
these 500 children can continue their education, receive a daily healthy
meal and health care services. Each sponsor can communicate via email with
their child, sharing words of encouragement, pictures and support. Besides
individual sponsors, Pueblo a Pueblo is particularly interested in
developing sponsorship by groups of U.S. students (classrooms, Spanish
clubs, etc.) - providing educational and service learning opportunities for
U.S. students.
Other improvements you will note on the website:
Volunteer information - both medical and non-medical.
Santiago Atitlan Update page that feature new events every two
weeks.
Medical and non-Medical Wish Lists.
Other Disaster Relief initiatives.
Secure on-line donation capacity that will reduce our overhead
expenses.
On behalf of our Board of Directors, let me take this opportunity to again
thank you for your support of the T'zutujil people. It is an honor for us
to assist them to realize their dreams and to work with the many dedicated,
thoughtful and caring volunteers and donors. We encourage you to visit our
new website and appreciate any assistance you can give in promoting this
cause to your family and friends.
Kenneth Wood
President
Pueblo a Pueblo Inc.
P.O. Box 11486
Washington, DC 20008
tel: (202) 302-0622
www.puebloapueblo.org
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change
the world. Indeed it's the only thing that ever has." Margaret Mead
The Frente Petenero contra las Represas is active again. On this year's day of celebration of rivers they demonstrated again against dams on the Usumacinta. At the same time, I was floating down the Usu in a one-man raft, to the far side of Yaxchilan, and exploring the neck of the meander with guide Juan Mayo, from Frontera Corozal.
PrensaLibre.com - Rechazan edificación de represas
Here's an overlay of a Piedras Negras map, from Stephen Houston's team at PN, that Ron Canter and I placed on Google Earth over the weekend.
In 2004 Sheri Tingey lent me an Alpacka raft that I enjoyed for 3 days on the Usumacinta before it was, let's say, lost. The 2006 version that I just bought seems even better, tougher, and has more tie-down loops standard.
I just found this BusinessWeek interview with Sheri.
2005 was a good year for Sheri and Alpacka:
Backpacker.com - Editors' Choice 2005
Humedales corren grave riesgo en Guatemala - Prensa Latina
El río Usumacinta, el más extenso y caudaloso del país y que marca buena parte de la frontera con México, se ha preservado bastante bien, pero el gobierno realiza estudios para construir allí varias hidroeléctricas que le causarían un daño permanente.
This is a couple of years old, but it is an unusually detailed report, in English, on Plan Puebla Panama and the resistance to it. I'll look for an update.
Americas Program | Citizen Action Series: Resisting the Plan Puebla-Panama
Arte contemporáneo, irrumpe en la frontera sur - El Universal Online - Cultura
Emergency Position Indicating Radiobeacon (EPIRB) - USCG Navigation Center
I've posted an annotated Usumacinta tour, minus the Canter maps (too big a file for the system) on the Google Earth Community forum.
Google Earth Community: Maya Usumacinta Tour
Here again is my latest version that includes Ron Canter's overlay maps, and starts and finishes in my NYC neighborhood:
The Daily Glyph - Improved Google Earth Usu Map
And other recent posts on GE and OS X:
The Daily Glyph - Google Earth, OS X and offline
The Daily Glyph - Garmin GPS Mac OS X compatible
The statement on the Mexican web page does not mention hydroelectric power or the Usumacinta. But the recently signed pact is a new declaration of the old Plan Puebla Panama and bears watching.
México - Presidencia de la República | Actividades
Iniciativa Energética Mesoamericana.
I've tinkered with the Usumacinta River tour for Google Earth that I posted a few weeks back. I fit Ron Canter's hand-drawn maps to the terrain a little better and changed the views on a few spots. Here's the revised version.
New York to the Usumacinta and Back (Revised 1/3/2006)
UPDATE:
See this post for links to many more Usumacinta River maps, overlays, and tours:
The Daily Glyph - FAMSI Report - SCHERER: Tixan, SDL
If you need one, buy before Jan. 15 to avoid a price rise. Great packboat!
At the close of a report (from Dec. 12) on plans for a Central American oil refinery and a gas pipeline from Mexico to Panama, the Guatemalan minister of Foreign Relations, Jorge Briz, is quoted as saying there are no plans for a dam on the Usumacinta.
PrensaLibre.com - Instalación de refinería se decidirá hasta 2006
Aseguró que ni México ni Guatemala consideran construir la megahidroeléctrica en el río Usumacinta.
The Google Earth application for Mac OS X has just been leaked in a beta version, and of course I had to play with it. I've done a first stab at a tour of the Usumacinta River, starting and ending in New York City. I've also done an overlay of Ron Canter's hand drawn maps, based on his study and travel on the river. Ron has a wealth of information on Maya sites and trails that adds a lot to the already spectacular 3D display that Google has provided.
The file below is large (8.4mb) but it can be opened in the Google Earth application. Depending on your choices for other overlays, it runs pretty smoothly.
New York to the Usumacinta and Back (updated and improved 2:45am)
Threats and bribes make no difference to the leader of one community that is affected by the dam construction in Nayarit.
La lucha contra la presa El Cajón, aun "a costa de mi vida", advierte ejidatario
Philadelphia's Academy of Natural Sciences faces financial troubles and understaffing.
Philadelphia Inquirer | 12/04/2005 | Dinosaur museum is itself threatened
The academy raised money to establish the DNA lab and equip it with an automated sequencer that reads DNA extracted from tissue samples. It has raised $1.3 million of $5 million needed to fund staff and other equipment and endow it.
The academy used the DNA lab to help determine that a catfish found in a river in Chiapas, Mexico, was a previously undocumented species.
Here are my previous posts on that catfish, Lacantunia Enigmatica.
There is an urgent letter to biologists that is making the rounds, concerning threats to river life presented by dam plans in Mesoamerican rivers. I'll post it, in English and Spanish, on the jump to this page (click MORE).
Dear friends of MesoAmerican rivers:
This letter is going out to a sampling of ichthyologists and others concerned with Mesoamerican rivers. If it resonates with you, please share it widely. We should all be deeply concerned about the potential catastophic changes which could affect Mesoamerican rivers from Chiapas to the Choco as a by product of infrastructure projects related to PPP, CAFTA, SIEPAC and other manifestations of the Free Trade movement. According to a study by the Conservation Strategy Fund, no less than 381 hydroelectric dams are currently proposed for the region, with further proposals possible.
Given the high proportion of diadromous fishes and shrimps in these rivers, the potential is for numerous extirpations, leading to catastrophic ecosystem alterations, some of them in high profile protected areas created specifically to preserve biodiversity. The precedent exists in the larger West Indian islands, where the native fresh water fauna is similar, and where drastic alterations have been documented by Pringle, et al. in Puerto Rico and Fievet, et al. in Guadeloupe. In our own work in Costa Rica and Panama, the Talamanca Stream Biomonitoring Program of Asociacion ANAI has shown that 71 – 100% of the individual fish (and virtually all of the shrimp) in high gradient streams within and downstream of the La Amistad International Park are of diadromous forms. In terms of biomass, the diadromous proportion must be even higher.
This matter came to our attention as a result of concerns by indigenous communities who would be directly affected by dams proposed for the Changuinola/Teribe watershed in Panama. However, this is just one manifestation of a much larger concern. There is discussion, and in some cases (Rio Pacuare in Costa Rica, Rio Usumacinta in Guatemala/Mexico) effective opposition to hydro projects. However, in no other case of which we are aware has the phenomenon of diadromy and consequent potential ecosystem effects been brought to bear – even though it would appear to be the chief common concern in all the watersheds of the Mesoamerican isthmus.
We are doing what we can within our work area in Panama and Costa Rica, and are working on publication of several papers and opinion pieces. However, it strikes us as curious that none of the biologists of greater accomplishment and renown in the 9 country region have spoken out. We invite you to do so, or to share concerns with us. If a high percentage of existing infrastructure plans are realized, we shall all be left with a great deal less to study. Please share this information widely.
We hope (pending funding) to be able to attend the Ecological Society of America’s conference “Ecology in an Era of Globalization: Challenges and Opportunities”, in Merida, Mexico, January 8-12, 2006, and for Maribel Mafla of our group to present a student paper on this theme. We were invited to host a workshop on the issue, but simply did not have time to devote to an organizing task of this magnitude. However, Ms. Mafla’s presentation might provide an excellent opportunity to accomplish the same ends less formally by convening a discussion group with a wider regional reach than we can bring to bear.
Thank you for your attention and please spread the word. Feel free to contact me at this address or Ms. Mafla at mmafla@anaicr.org with questions or comments.
Sincerely,
William O. McLarney, Ph.D.
Director, Talamanca Stream Biomonitoring Project
Estimados amigos de los rios Mesoamericanos:
Esta carta va dirigida a diversos ictiologos y otros preocupados por los rios Mesoamericanos. Si resuena con usted, favor de compartirlo por todas partes. Todos debemos de preocuparnos profundamente con los cambios catastroficos que podrian ocurrir en los rios Mesoamericans, desde Chiapas hasta el Choco, como productos derivados de proyectos de infraestructura relacionados con PPP, CAFTA, SIEPAC y demas manifestaciones del movimiento del Libre Comercio. Segun un estudio por el Conservation Strategy Fund, no menos de 381 represas hidroelectricas son actualmente propuestas por la region, con la posibilidad de aun mas propuestas.
Dado la alta proporcion de peces y camarones diadromos en estos rios, la potencial es de extirpaciones numerosos llevando a alteraciones ecologicas catastroficas, algunos de ellas en areas protegidas de alto perfil, creadas especificamente para preservar la biodiversidad. Existe precedente en las islas mas grandes de las Antillas, donde la fauna acuatica nativa es parecida, donde casi todos los rios son represados, y donde alteraciones drasticas han sido documentados por Pringle, et al. en Puerto Rico y Fievet, et al. en Guadeloupe. En nuestro propio trabajo en Costa Rica y Panama, el Programa de Biomonitoreo de Rios y Quebradas de la Asociacion ANAI ha mostrado que 71 – 100% de los individuos de peces (y casi la totalidad de los camarones) en rios y quebradas de alta gradiente dentro y aguas abajo del Parque Internacional La Amistad pertenecen a especies diadromas. En terminos de biomasa, la proporcion de animales diadromos tiene que ser aun mas alta.
Este asunto llego a nuestra atencion a consecuencia de inquietudes expresados por comunidades indigenas quienes serian directamente afectadas por las represas propuestas en la cuenca Changuinola/Teribe en Panama. Sin embargo, esta es una sola manifestacion de un problema mucho mas grande. Hay discusion, y en algunos casos (Rio Pacuare en Costa Rica, Rio Usumacinta en Guatemala/Mexico) oposicion efectiva a proyectos hidroelectricos. Sin embargo, no no estamos enterados de ningun otro caso en que se han aplicado el argumento basado en el fenomeno de diadromia y los efectos consecuentes en ecosistemas – aunque parece ser la amenaza principal que comparten todas las cuencas del istmo Mesoamericano.
Estamos haciendo lo que podemos dentro de nuestra area de trabajo en Panama y Costa Rica, y estamos trabajando en varios articulos y obras de opinion. Sin embargo, nos sorprende que ninguno de los biologos de mayor capacidad y renombre en una region de 9 paises han denunciado el problema. Los invitamos a ustedes a hablar claramente, y a compartir sus preocupaciones con nosotros. Si logran realizar una alta porcentaje de los planes de infraestructura existentes, todos quedaremos con mucho menos para estudiar. Favor de compartir esta informacion extensivamente.
Esperamos (pendiente financiamiento) poder asistir en la conferencia del Ecological Society of America “Ecologia en una Epoca de Globalizacion: Desafios y Oportunidades” en Merida, Mexico, 8-12 de enero, 2006, y que Maribel Mafla de nuestro grupo presente un papel estudiantil sobre este tema. Fuimos invitados a presentar un taller sobre la cuestion, pero sencillamente no tuvimos tiempo para dedicar a una tarea organizativa de esta magnitud. Sin embargo la presentacion de la Sta. Mafla podria proveer una oportunidad excelente para lograr las mismas finalidades de una manera menos formal, por medio de convenir un grupo de discusion con un alcance geografico mucho mas amplio que lo de nosotros como una organizacion local.
Gracias por su atencion y por favor de difundir esta informacion. No tengan duda en contactarme en este direccion o a Sta. Mafla en mmafla@anaicr.org con preguntas o comentarios.
Atentamente,
William O. McLarney, Ph.D.
Director, Programa de Biomonitoreo de Rios deTalamanca
Well, they took our name, but if they want to be known as an international destination for their rivers, they may work to protect them.
caribepreferente.com - Tabasco busca convertirse en destino internacional con "Ríos Mayas"
A report on last week's meeting of Mexican and Guatemalan opponents of the revived plan for hydroelectric dams on the Usumacinta.
PrensaLibre.com - Rechazan megahidroeléctricas
Nature Conservancy News Room - Nature Conservancy Statement on the Impact of Hurricane Stan
After huricane Stan.
Reuters AlertNet - Mexican villagers homeless, scared after hurricane
It used to take 10 years for failed Usumacinta hydroelectric plans to come back around. This time it was only a year and a half. The local people, particularly in Guatemala, are much better organized to resist. And we will join them. Thanks to Charles Golden for the heads up on this.
PrensaLibre.com - EDITORIAL Renace fantasma del Usumacinta
And three more links from Alfonso Morales:
Propone Fox impulsar plan Puebla-Panamá con proyectos energéticos | 2005-11-02 | La Crónica de Hoy
El Economista -- Fox llama a la integración hemisférica en Cumbre
Terra - AMLO critica a Fox por plan energTerra - AMLO critica a Fox por plan energetico
From Charles Golden, a link to this report on new problems faced by the villagers around the Chixoy Dam in Guatemala.
Mother Jones - On the Banks of the Chixoy
A note from Ron Canter:
FAMSI recently added the entire report from Satterthwaite's groundbreaking Piedras Negras expeditions in the 1930s. It is a gold mine. Satterthwaite summarized the Usu's navigability with 'It is apparently never practicable from a point a little below Porvenir ... to an impassable rapid just above a point called San Jose'. This is exaclty what we found by going down the river and mapping the rapids and determining their difficulty. It is later sources that have gotten fuzzy, probably because they didn't have to move big stela offsite by the easiest route. One of the editors of the PN reports is some fellow named Charles.
That would be one of our other pals, Charles Golden.
FAMSI - Research Department - Piedras Negras Archaeology, 1931-1939
This short report links deforestation, excessive grazing lands, flooding from Hurricane Stan, and silting of hydroelectric plants.
El Universal Online - Miami Herald - NGO: Deforestation exacerbates flooding
Usumacinta River - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
With new efforts underway to create a binational forum (Mexico - Guatemala) to protect the Usumacinta watershed, Christopher Shaw has written an open letter to those currently in discussions. It also provides an introduction to the history and the issues, as well as our efforts over the last 10 years to study and document the river.
Please contact me for more information. dave.pentecost [at] gmail.com
Click MORE below to see the complete letter.
AN OPEN LETTER ON THE USUMACINTA RIVER WATERSHED
Frans and Trudi Blom first brought the idea of conservation to the watershed
in the 1950s by proposing a section of the Selva Lacandona be reserved for
the Lacandon Maya. Their idea was as much the preservation of culture as of
habitat, and this principle- that indigenous integrity and habitat are
inextricably linked in the watershed- should help guide any future
conservation planning. Conservationists working in the region like Nacho
March, Ron Nigh, Fernando Ochoa, Roan Balas McNab and others have all
acknowledged and upheld the principle in their work.
The first large hydro project on the Usumacinta was proposed in the 1980s,
and would have stretched all the way up the Pasion and Lacantun tributaries,
flooding Piedras Negras and Yaxchilan, among other known and unknown Maya
sites. At that time, the Guatemalan shore was held by rebels, whose presence
discouraged illegal logging, poaching, and looting. It also discouraged dam
engineers. In 1985 Jefferey Wilkerson's groundbreaking article in National
Geographic brought the river and its glories to widespread public
consciousness for the first time. Additionally the Guatemalan journalist
Victor Perera wrote about the river in The Nation and in his books The Last
Lords of Palenque and Unfinished Conquest, and Jan de Vos chronicled the
region in his magisterial series of histories. Ultimately the hydro project
failed under the weight of its own disincentives: siltation, geology,
seismic activity, distance from markets, politics, etc., but the outcry from
conservationists, archeologists, writers, and the public helped. It also
established a pattern.
A thriving seasonal business in wilderness tourism began after the Wilkerson
article. The river and its environs became a favorite destination of river
travelers, amateur Mayanists and archaeologists, birders and wildlife
tourists.
Carlos Salinas proposed a smaller but still monumental hydro project in
1990, and completed the periferico surrounding the Montes Azules reserve.
Articles in the New York Times, and op-ed pieces by Homero Aridjis
suggesting a binational reserve for the area, helped defeat this incarnation
of the idea.
In the late nineties a consortium of scientists, and government and
non-governmental organizations met in San Cristobal de las Casas, under the
auspices of the Wildlife Conservation Society and the University of Florida,
to identify the extent and types of habitat remaining the region, and to
draw maps of the watershed. The conference addressed many of the
jurisdictional and administrative questions that still bedevil the idea. A
link to the conference report:
http://www.law.ufl.edu/cgr/publications/usumacinta_river.pdf
The Zapatista Rebellion in 1994 and '95, and the Guatemalan peace accords in
1996, reshaped the political lines in the watershed. As a direct
consequence, and with the dramatic fall of the peso, bandits began robbing
raft trips, ending wilderness travel in the corridor. One of the most
promising tourist activities, with the least potential impact and the most
possibility for helping conservation, archaeology, and cultural
preservation, ended. Illegal activity of all types took over the corridor.
The Mexican army, which pervaded the Zapatista region, had little effect on
river crime, may have abetted it. In Guatemala, the absence of the expelled
CPR communities, which had helped keep the selva safe and secure, now left
it open to invasion, illegal logging, smuggling of immigrants, arms,
artifacts, and drugs. (Many members of those communities now work as
Defensores, but their numbers are few, and they are poorly paid.) The region
continued in a state of low-grade terror and occupation for ten years.
In 2001, a consortium of NGOs and regional environmental groups (many of
whom had participated in the 1990 conference) met in Belize to discuss the
future of the Maya Forest, and to turn over the planning and implementation
of programs from Washington-based organizations to regionally-based ones. I
was present at that meeting and read from my book Sacred Monkey River. Among
the conference's recommendations was a system of wilderness trails, rustic
back-country posadas, an emphasis on non-motorized travel in back-country
areas; residencies and scholarships for artists, scientists, and scholars;
and principles of sustainable forest use for new communities in the
multiple-use zones.
In 2002, When the Mexican government under Fox proposed, under its Plan
Pueblo Panama, the latest mega-dam at Boca Del Cerro, (and its subsequent
smaller incarnations) Dave Pentecost and I started Rios Mayas. We circulated
a letter to President Fox explaining why previous dams had been abandoned,
why it remained impossible to build them without destroying an unknown
wealth of knowledge, habitat, and living culture. The letter demanded the
conduct of environmental impact studies, the development of alternate energy
sources for the watershed, and permanent binational protections for the
river. Our letter attracted the assistance of Homero Aridjis, and the
signatures of more than 200 scientists, artists, writers, and citizens from
Guatemala, Mexico, the United States, Europe and Canada. In November of 2002
Pentecost and I met at Montes Azules with reporters from the New York Times
and National Public Radio, and conducted a press conference at Mexico City.
Our effort was covered in numerous papers in Mexico, Guatemala, and the
U.S., and the text of the letter appeared in its entirety in Progreso. We
make no claims to our effectiveness, but soon after our letter appeared,
reports of reduced dam heights and alternate designs began filtering out of
the CFE, and within a year we learned that the project had been shelved.
None of our demands have been addressed at this time, however, and as long
as the river is unprotected it remains vulnerable. The corridor itself is
unstable and crime ridden. Despite a few safe descents in recent years, no
secure wilderness recreation can be conducted, nor can many kinds of
scientific research. In 2004 narco-traffickers at Piedras Negras blocked a
WCS jaguar study in the PNSL, and in 2003 a Rios Mayas mapping expedition
was robbed, even though members of the expedition, including Rios Mayas
co-founder Dave Pentecost, Ron Canter, and Tammy Ridenour, of Guatemala
City, managed to complete the trip and make new discoveries.
And, in fact, numerous discoveries have been made in the years since the
Boca del Cerro threat. Stephen Houston and Hector Escobedo's important dig at Piedras Negras was completed. Charles Golden's mapping and exploration of newly discovered and overlooked Maya sites in the Sierra del Lacandon continues to break new ground. Ron Canter's discovery and paper on navigational bollards on the river has been completed. A new catfish species, Lacantunia enigmatica, has been described. What these discoveries and ongoing research-carried out with
little financial support and under restricted conditions-- demonstrate is that the corridor itself and adjacent remote areas of the watershed remain incompletely explored and almost completely unknown.
I don't need to underscore to you the irreplaceable magnitude of knowledge,
life, and indigenous wisdom that would be lost if such a treasure were to be
flooded or developed in a thoughtless and destructive manner. Pressures for
energy, agriculture, and development will only increase. That is why your
work is so important and why the Usumacinta must be protected-in some
achievable and practical fashion-in perpetuity. The time to do it is now.
The knowledge exists. The groundwork has been laid. All that's required is
the political will, the money, and an encompassing vision and philosophy to
carry it out.
The watershed now has a twenty year history of thought and planning. I have
prepared a list of basic principles, based on our Fox letter, the
discussions at previous conferences, and the model of protected areas in
other parts of the world, that we hope will help guide any long term
programs. We hope they would be considered non-technocratically, and based
on common sense principles and compassion:
-No new roads in the corridor or contiguous protected areas. Sections of
some existing roads may be closed.
-No new cross-current structures: bridges, dams, power lines, etc.
-The cooperation of local indigenous officials in the planning, design, and
implementation of a corridor plan. Models exist at Uaxactun, Peten, and
Emiliano Zapata, Chiapas, among other places in both nations. Both are
imperfect, as any model must be in such a volatile area. But both have been
in existence for long enough that the record of their failures as well as
their successes would be instructive.
-The 2001 Belize meeting found broad support for a system of scholarships,
residencies, and fellowships for scholars, artists, and scientists visiting
the area. Such a system would, for little cost, produce a steady stream of
scholarly and popular articles, art, films, journalism, and new discoveries.
Residents would come from the Maya area itself, and from other parts of the
world.
-Within the corridor a loose but binding system of protocols for land-use
would regulate agriculture in favor of organic and intensive techniques,
forestry for sustainable yields, the harvest of wild plant and animal
species for sustainability, and construction for minimum short and long-term
impacts.
-The establishment of a cadre of guards, maintenance workers, rangers, and
guides, all drawn from local populations that would be trained and paid a
reasonable middle-class wage, with regular hikes and benefits, sufficient to
discourage corruption. Rangers and guards would receive extensive education
and training in languages, education, ecology, etc
-A system of fees for day, week and longer uses, with requirements for
equipment, visas, and camping standards that would be imposed collectively
and shared equally among the incorporated communities within the corridor.
These would be paid by users at official entry points like Bethel, Corozal,
Tenosique, etc.. It would be affordable, but enough to substantially
enhance-and in fact support-local communities. Local populations would come
and go without interference.
-Local business grants for legal river transport, rustic posadas etc. (under
the canopy), and other commercial concessions.
-Ongoing studies in water quality, aquatic and wildlife biology, and other
disciplines. While we applaud the WMF concept of preserving the "cultural
landscape," we missed any mention in your email of the river itself, which
is the richest resource of all Chiapas and Guatemala. Our firm and
non-negotiable position is that whatever can be done to maintain and improve
water quality must be done. This includes habitat protection at higher
altitudes, sewage treatment or abatement, standards for logging and grazing
etc.
-A system of back-country posadas, campgrounds, and designated camping areas
served by the river, maintained and patrolled foot and mule trails, and a
minimum number of existing airstrips.
-A system of zones designated residential, agricultural, archaeological,
multiple use, and core habitat. Core areas would include the current Parque
National Sierra del Lacandon, Sierra Cojolite, the San Jose Canyon, and
existing biological corridors, etc.
-Considerations for other value-added economic activity.
-A binational commission to oversee proposed development, businesses, and
wilderness use in the corridor.
All these principles have been tested and implemented in similar areas
around the world where humans and nature coexist in harmony, such as the
Adirondack Park of northern New York State, Lake Baikal, in Siberia, and
smaller and more compact protected areas. The Usumacinta, because of its
history, the importance of its singular archeological, cultural and
ecological heritage and resources-and especially the distinct self-contained
geography that sets it apart-make it a natural for such planning. Let me
emphasize again that examples exist with long-term records of success. Their
experience is that such programs enhance broad-based economic activity.
Undoubtedly other NGOs and government agencies will object to these points
on various grounds, many of them legitimate, driven by their specialized
interests. We offer general principles only, but stand ready to make more
specific suggestions at the appropriate time. However, as generalists with
deep and wide experience in the region and elsewhere, we do hope you will
see the wisdom of this approach to beginning the process.
We also hope you may resist the inevitable appeals to abandon ambition in
favor of the "possible." To make something that will work, that will last,
that will matter, will require not only stable economies, peaceful
democratic succession, and cooperation among existing and often mutually
hostile agencies and NGOs, it will require faith, courage, and an
overarching vision not driven by parochial concerns. Fortunately for such a
goal, many pieces of the larger system are in place already, at least
nominally, and many local communities have already begun to think in terms
of the long run.
Christopher Shaw
October 10, 2005
Newsday.com: Flooding in Mexico, C. America Kills Three
With the latest season of Survivor taking place in the Peten in Guatemala (in Yaxha, hence the tribe name) my fellow Usu tribe members have suggested we post some notes on the real Yaxha. We'll gather some information and some links for the curious. Ron Canter has photos and notes from his studies of the area. Chris Shaw has written about Yaxha in his book, "Sacred Monkey River: A Canoe Trip with the Gods" (see the cover and link on the left of this site's main page).
For now, know that Yaxha was an important link in a broad system of Maya river navigation that spanned present day Guatemala and used the rivers from the Usumacinta watershed, on the border with Mexico.
As they say, watch this space for more information. Once we post on Yaxha, I'll come back and update this post with a link to the new one.
UPDATE: Here is Ron's finished report:
The Daily Glyph: Yaxha - The Backstory of the 'Survivor Guatemala' Locale, by Ron Canter
Don't miss it!
Alfonso Morales wrote with what he called old news - a scan of a page from Tabasco Hoy from June 10, about the establishment of a protected area around the canyons of the Usumacinta, in Tabasco. (Click on the image for a large version)
If true, this would prevent the building of a dam at Boca del Cerro, near Tenosique. Alfonso is looking for more information, and I was unable to find a direct link to the report. But the full text of an earlier report by the same local reporter can be found in this entry in a weblog called "My Beloved Tenosique".
Mi querido Tenosique » declaran area natural protegida al cañon del usumacinta
This is just to make sure that the links from this site to the USUMACINTA site are working now that our server move is done.
After notably failing to take a stand against the proposed, now shelved, Usumacinta dam plan, the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH) of Mexico has added the watershed to a list that joins UNESCO's World Heritage sites.
Diario.com.mx - Se incorporan 16 nuevos sitios a la Lista de Patrimonio Mundial
No it's not in the Usumacinta, but it may be the largest freshwater fish ever caught, found in the Mekong River.
Science Blog -- Grizzly-sized catfish caught in Thailand -- (Slashdot Effect Version)
For better or worse, Google rules.
Google Print Search: Usumacinta
Here's the first photo of the newly discovered Usumacinta watershed catfish that I've seen. We ate catfish right out of the river 2 years ago. Were they Lacantunia?
New Catfish Species Discovered
If you have a fast connection, this site offers 3D rotations of the skull of the Usumacinta catfish.
Digimorph - Chiapas catfish, Lacantunia enigmatica
From Tabasco Hoy to CNN, Lacatunia Enigmatica is finally hitting the news after millions of years in the Usumacinta watershed.
CNN.com - Researchers identify new species - Jun 15, 2005
Tabasco Hoy || Descubren especie de peces en el Usumacinta
More on the unusual catfish recently found in the Usumacinta River watershed.
Researchers find new family of catfish | Science Blog
From the report:
Discovery of new families of living vertebrates is rare; in ichthyology there have been just two new families discovered in the past 60 years: the coelacanth in 1938 and the megamouth shark in 1983.
Summary of successes and challenges, from Chihuahua to Chiapas.
Mexico environmentalists see bright spots in a tough struggle
A new catfish, Lacantunia enigmatica, is puzzling icthyologists. It's been placed in a new genus and family all its own.
PFK Fish News | Lacantunia catfish placed in new family
I got my annual shot of inspiration yesterday at the American Visionary Art Museum when we took two big vans full of Girls Club folks down to Baltimore. Too quick, but a brilliant blast of light and hope from Rebecca Hoffberger, the director and visionary.
Why is this post in the "Watery Way" category? Here's a page on their current show:
American Visionary Art Museum - Holy H2O: Fluid Universe
Good review of the arguments over the Montes Azules Reserve and the charges that there is bioprospecting by transnationals going on there. (click More to see the whole article)
ENVIRONMENT-MEXICO:
Montes Azules Reserve at the Eye of the Storm
ENVIRONMENT-MEXICO:
Montes Azules Reserve at the Eye of the Storm
Diego Cevallos
MEXICO CITY, May 18 (IPS) - Located in the southeastern Mexican state of Chiapas, the Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve brings together an explosive mix of irregular human settlements, guerrilla groups, the logging and burning of forests, plundering of species, and opposing visions of how to manage this natural wealth.
The 331,200-hectare Montes Azules Reserve is at the centre of Mexico's greatest environmental conflict, and in its management the present and future challenges of other reserves around the world come into play, Julia Carabias, former Mexican environment secretary, told Tierramérica.
Carabias is one of this year's recipients of the United Nations Environment Programme's Champions of the Earth award.
The reserve and the surrounding Lacandona jungle constitute the most important humid tropical reserve in North America and contain the biggest supplies of freshwater in Mexico. They hold most of the country's tropical trees, as well as 33 percent of its reptiles, 80 percent of butterfly species and 32 percent of birds.
''The region is plundered by foreign companies and interests linked to bioprospecting, who say the indigenous people living there are a bother, and so they force them out,'' said Miguel Angel García, coordinator of Maderas del Pueblo del Sureste, a grassroots association working in the area.
But Carabias says those arguments are ''fallacious''.
They are accusations that ''use terms like biopiracy and bioprospecting, which cause a reaction, but they don't know what they're talking about,'' said the former environment secretary, now member of a non-governmental organisation that runs a research station in Montes Azules, where nature reserve managers are trained.
Reserve director José Zúñiga agrees: ''There is a great deal of (false or exaggerated information) about Montes Azules, while the results of the programmes under way and the crude and evident realities garner little interest.''
The official told Tierramérica that in the reserve 85 percent of the tree cover remains intact and that the process of relocation -- not displacement -- of the indigenous populations, who he says moved to the reserve without authorisation in the first place, is running smoothly, while the research programmes are regulated and conducted in a professional manner.
''There is no bioprospecting going on,'' he maintained.
Working in Montes Azules, declared a reserve in 1978 by the Mexican government, are various governmental agencies, along with a dozen NGOs, and there are research projects involving funding from the United Nations, European Union and foreign universities.
''There are very strong and unyielding viewpoints, and it is all a product of political posturing and diverse interests,'' a foreign researcher who works in the area told Tierramérica, requesting anonymity ''to avoid being attacked.''
Since the 1970s Montes Azules has withstood heavy pressures resulting from social, political and even religious problems, which are manifest in new human settlements, expanding unsustainable agriculture, and environmental destruction from fire and logging.
This year around 300 hectares of the reserve were burned when local peasant farmers lit fires to clear their plots of land.
Conflict in the area intensified in 1994 with the appearance in Chiapas of the leftist Zapatista National Liberation Army (EZLN), led by the now famous ''Subcomandante Marcos''.
Some of the EZLN's social bases are in the Lacandona jungle, including Montes Azules, where they arrived after fleeing violence or were ordered there by EZLN leaders. But there are also indigenous peoples who oppose the Zapatistas and many have moved to the area simply looking for a plot of land to grow food for survival.
Environmentalists maintain that the pressures on the reserve and the Lacandona jungle, which together cover 500,000 hectares, are immense.
A century ago the jungle encompassed nearly two million hectares, and in that time the human population has grown from fewer than 20,000 to more than 600,000.
The reserve and the jungle area ''are losing their viability little by little,'' warned then-minister of environment Víctor Lichtinger in 2002.
Surrounded today by several military barracks that were set up following the emergence of the EZLN, the reserve also attracts interest from transnational pharmaceutical and seed producing companies.
''It also brings with it a serious and complex agrarian problem dating to the 1970s, when the government at the time handed over farmland to indigenous groups, with the only aim to plunder the timber in the forest'' they left behind, said Maderas del Pueblo's García.
According to Zúñiga, director of the reserve that until 2000 did not have an integrated management plan, there are 15,000 Chole, Lacandon, Tzeltzal, Tzotzil and Tojolabal indigenous peoples living in the area with legally recognised rights. There are also 500 people living there who are considered invaders.
He noted that thanks to negotiations with the invading indigenous groups over the past five years, half of them had left the reserve. Carabias attributed that achievement to the current environment secretary, Alberto Cárdenas.
The talks will continue in order to remove the more recent arrivals from the reserve, said Zúñiga.
As in most matters related to Montes Azules, there is no agreement on the numbers. García says that the people with recognised rights in the reserve number no more than 5,600, and that the other ''invaders'' total almost 2,000.
In his opinion, the so-called relocations of the indigenous peoples are in fact expulsions.
''There could be a reserve with people, and it could be left in their (the indigenous groups') hands,'' said the activist. But such a model contradicts the ''concept of biosphere reserves without people and against people, which is the approach of Montes Azules and was imposed by the developed countries,'' he added.
''Now biodiversity is converted into genetic banks, of great interest to the biotechnology, agro-food, and pharmaceutical industries, and for water bottling companies,'' said García.
When asked to name who he believes to be working for those interests and conducting the bioprospecting he denounces, García responded that it is difficult to do so, ''because the transnational firms hide behind local institutions and universities.''
On the official list of the reserve's director of the work and research being carried out in Montes Azules, there are no transnationals.
Ten projects are in motion, including flower species inventories, the habitat situation in cavern areas, the impacts of ''anthropological disturbance'' on mammals, a study of the diversity of vanilla plants, and others focused on birds and hunting in the area.
The institutions conducting this work are largely Mexican, although one of the registered groups is a university from the U.S. state of California.
(*Originally published May 14 by Latin American newspapers that are part of the Tierramérica network. Tierramérica is a specialised news service produced by IPS with the backing of the United Nations Development Programme and the United Nations Environment Programme.)
New Scientist Where have all the wild rivers gone? - News
A short edited Quicktime video.
Two young Lacandones bringing a cayuco, or dugout canoe, into shore at Lake Naha, Chiapas, Mexico.
4/4/2005
Cayucos, Naha QT, 2:30, 50MB.
UPDATE: Smaller file, iPod format
Cayucos, Naha m4v, 2:30, 18MB.
Via Chris Shaw, I just received a letter from Bill McLarney, Proyecto de Biomonitoreo de Rios, Associacion ANAI. He is trying to raise awareness of the threat of dams in Bocas del Toro, Panama. Click More to see his full letter.
I'll do some more hunting. Here are some links on this situation:
Parks in Peril | Costa Rica | La Amistad/Bocas del Toro | Protected Area
I just want to contribute a note of personal support for all involved in trying to openly and intelligently discuss the issue of dams in Bocas del Toro. And to urge all involved to do what they can. The role of ANAI will continue to be as a disinterested provider of biological information, to which all concerned are welcome. What is most frustrating is being blocked in our attempts to gather this information, apparently by the same Panamanian government agency which should be asking for information. (And which, at the level of ANAM-Changuinola, in the person of Valentin Pineda, they are asking for.)
Of course you, the Naso and the Ngobe tend to see this as a local issue. (Although the threat of species extirpations in a World Heritage Site can scarcely be considered exclusively "local.") From this side of the border, I recall the hydro plans which were floated 10 years ago for Talamanca, and think "we're next." But the big issue is the possibility of total alteration of the fluvial ecosystems of the entire isthmus, from Chiapas to Darien. (And this comes wrapped in the even larger issue of PPP/TLC - "free trade.") Whether to approach each dam, river or country separately seems to me to be a tactical issue. The fact that partial victories have been achieved on the Pacuare (Costa Rica) and the Usumacinta (Guatemala/Mexico) is encouraging, but it also increases the pressure on sites like Bonyic. At some point, the big issue is going to have to be engaged.
Scaling back to the local (Bonyic, now plus the 3 dams proposed on the Changuinola), it seems to me that above all else what is needed right now is a big stone in the road. This probably implies some sort of legal action, perhaps one with small chance of victory but potential to tie things up for some time. For this reason alone (and there are others) legal assistance is urgently needed.
The second burning need is for publicity. I have made attempts to interest journalists, largely without success. It seems to me that a pristine tropical white water river, a nation of 4,000 people with their own language and culture, the threat of species extirpations in a world heritage site, a revolution in the only monarchy in the hemisphere, and the smell of corruption comprise a muckraking journalist's dream. Why have we collectively failed to interest either the international or Panamanian press? The bigger issue of PPP is also potentially hot. Right now, it strikes me that we need publicity in the Panamanian media and something quick and dirty in some US publication - not a glossy like Audubon, but something like Earth Island Journal used to be. I could do a better job on this part if I were in the
States; will somebody there please help?
I also wonder why there is not much communication/collaboration with other groups facing pieces of the same issue. For instance, before leaving the States I wrote one of the groups involved in the Pacuare struggle, and received no reply.
For our part, ANAI wants very badly to live up to our promises re fish and shrimp surveys. Data generated in similar situations in the islands of the Caribbean (same species, extirpation and total ecosystem alteration following dam construction, and data from Costa Rica showing the presence of "marine" species in headwater rivers) seems very convincing to me, and will be presented. But we really want to do fish surveys in the Changuinola/Teribe and other watersheds of Bocas del Toro - and are in fact contracted to do so by PRODOMA (USAID) as part of a larger biomonitoring capacitation project. But we are blocked by our inability to obtain permits from ANAM.
The alternative is already in motion. On Monday we will receive a visit here in Hone Creek from Felix Sanchez, to work out the details of a plan to train and equip members of the Naso to do presence/absence surveys for diadromous fish and shrimps in Naso territory and upstream, in the La Amistad Biosphere Reserve. This training will be carried out in Costa Rica during the 3 weeks I have left in my current stay. (With recent developments, it appears we will also need to train Ngobe representatives to do the same work in the Changuinola watershed.) While these trainees will not be able to use electrofishing techniques in order to obtain quantitative results, and their work will lack the imprimatur of a Ph.D. biologist, I am confident it will provide the basic information we need to open an informed dialogue about an issue which, to my knowledge, has not even been mentioned in the environmental impact studies carried out so far.
Even though I am confident that we can move efficiently and swiftly to do these studies, we will need to buy time in order for this information to be useful.
Osvaldo, I am writing you and copying a few friends in the US in the hope that we can all spread the word. Please, everybody, think about how you could help. My personal opinion, subject to survey results, is that we are on the brink of a major ecological disaster, and one which is preventable. And it comes wrapped up in a series of economic, social and legal issues which have not been adequately exposed. The one certain thing is that the debate to date has been conducted with an inadequate information base, a fact which negatively affects all concerned.
Thanks to all for your consideration.
Saludes,
Bill McLarney
Proyecto de Biomonitoreo de Rios
Asociacion ANAI
Charles Golden brought this to my attention - it may make his work this spring more difficult.
Last spring we hiked through the Sierra del Lacandon to Piedras Negras and spent the night with Stephen Houston's team there. Now it may be too dangerous to visit.
Guess Nicco and I won't be going there this month.
Reuters AlertNet - Drug traffickers invade Mayan city in Guatemala
Ron Canter found these Maya navigation related reports on the FAMSI website.
The latest from Hermann Bellinghausen on the bridge being constructed in the Montes Azules Bisosphere Reserve. The road will reach all the way to the San Quintin military base and Lake Miramar.
Devastación y despojo, signos del puente sobre el río Azul, en Montes Azules
Ron Canter has released a draft of his Usumacinta River study. This is a project that he has been working on for years, updated with observations he made on our raft trip in the spring of 2004. Another of Ron's studies, and detailed maps, are also on the way.
Download USU Writeup 1-13-05 (Word document)
I ran across this term today (also written as two words, trim tab) and didn't know what it meant. Here's what I found...
An image first used by Buckminster Fuller (and explored in Harold Willen’s 1984 book The Trimtab Factor) is the trim tab on a rudder. To change the direction of a really large ship or airplane, we need a really large rudder, too large a rudder, in fact. The power of the currents of air or water, combined with the size of the rudder, make it almost impossible to move the rudder without breaking it. The solution is to put a tiny rudder, called a trim tab, on the larger rudder. The trim tab moves easily because it’s small. But as it moves, it causes the currents to shift, which makes it easier for the large rudder to move, which in turn makes the even larger ship (or plane) change course. The physical mass of the trim tab is a tiny fraction of the weight of the ship or plane, yet the trim tab determines the vehicle’s course.
The American Revolution illustrates the trim tab effect. The revolution didn’t happen because the majority wanted it. In the early 1770s, only a handful of radical intellectual were thinking the unthinkable of breaking with the biggest naval power on the planet. Even by 1776, support for independence was by no means unanimous or even the majority. Strong elements within the middle and southern colonies wanted to keep the economic and military protection of Britain. Loyalists to the Crown were everywhere. It’s estimated that only 11 percent of the population were actively involved in making the American Revolution happen.
In La Jornada, a report on the wide open illegal traffic in goods and people on the Suchiate and Usumacinta rivers.
Los ríos Suchiate y Usumacinta, "ventana abierta a la libertad" para centroamericanos
I overlooked posting this. Alex Steffen provides the link to a free PDF guide to doing good in the world.
WorldChanging: Another World Is Here: The Rough Guide to a Better World
A harrowing tale of immigration from El Salvador to the U.S. by way of the Usumacinta River.
La ciudad de Palenque en México fue la última en ser testigo de su paso callado y silencioso, tras cuatro horas en lancha que lo acercaron desde Bethel. Lo que parecía más difícil se convirtió en lo más fácil. "Los coyotes fueron comprando a la policía de todos sitios cada vez que nos paraban para que pudiéramos continuar. En México nos llegaron a parar hasta ocho veces", confirmó la temblorosa voz de "Marito", no por miedo, sino por frío.
The Defensores de la Naturaleza, who administer the Sierra del Lacandon Park in Guatemala, are in charge of a large, USAID funded project to protect the Usumacinta watershed.
PrensaLibre.com - Protegerán cuenca del Usumacinta
A broad coalition continues to build in opposition to the Plan Puebla Panama and the Central American Free Trade Agreement, in the Petén of northern Guatemala. This news report refers to both the Usumacinta dams (for now apparently on hold) and the new roads in the Montes Azules Reserve.
Sectores populares de Guatemala sellan compromiso antineoliberal - Prensa Latina
A bridge is under construction to span the Lacantun River in the Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve, Chiapas, Mexico. It will allow heavy trucks to travel over a new highway through the reserve.
La Jornada - El gobierno dice proteger la selva, pero la agrede construyendo puentes: zapatistas
Local communities are opposing a plan that would dump sewage near the source of the Lacanja River, in the Montes Azules Reserve, Chiapas, Mexico.
Tabasco Hoy || Amenaza obra Montes Azules
The Guatemalan minister of energy and mines has supported Mexican president Vicente Fox's declaration that there are no plans for dams on the Usumacinta.
Tabasco Hoy || Descartan presas en río Usumacinta
A report on the ecological threats posed by the oil industry in the delta of the Usumacinta and Grijalva Rivers.
Diario Olmeca - Atentado: 55 pozos en Pantanos
The Usumacinta River is approaching its peak levels, and some communities may have to be evacuated. This report is the first time in a news story that I've seen the river referred to as the Mono Sagrado, the Sacred Monkey.
Tabasco Hoy || Amenaza a comunidades desbordamiento de río
En alerta máxima se encuentran las autoridades de Protección Civil, luego de que en estos dos últimos días, el caudaloso río Usumacinta subiera en su nivel, faltando poco para que cause filtraciones en las comunidades asentadas sobre la margen del Mono Sagrado.
UPDATE: A search of Spanish Google finds 56 mentions of the phrase "mono sagrado." This entry appears as number 3 on the list. In Google U.S., the same number of entries. This entry appears as number one. Go figure.
In today's Prensa Libre, a report on preservation work in progress at Yaxhá, a Maya site on a series of linked lakes. Chris Shaw and Ron Canter have shown that it was an important point on Maya trade routes, with water access to the entire region.
PrensaLibre.com - La tímida Yaxhá
Thanks to Alfonso for this link to a report on a conference yesterday.
Representatives from Chiapas, Oaxaca, Veracruz, Nayarit, Jalisco, Tabasco, Puebla and Mexico City met to organize against proposed hydroelectric dams that would displace people and flood their lands. In Chiapas, three dams - Huixtán 1, Huixtán 2 and Quetzalí - would flood 70,000 hectares, including parts of the Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve.
UPDATE: The link I originally put here has expired. Now the link is to the Google cache. If it does not work, I am putting the entire text on this site. Click "More" below to see it.
La Jornada - Damnificados integran frente contra las presas
Comuneros denuncian incumplimientos del gobierno
Damnificados integran frente contra las presas
ROSA ROJAS ENVIADA
Aguas Calientes, Municipio de Acapulco, Gro., 1º de octubre. Un movimiento nacional de afectados por la construcción de presas empezó a conformarse hoy aquí cuando los testimonios de quienes han visto sus pueblos desaparecer bajo las aguas y de otros que se oponen a que a les suceda lo mismo, fueron embonando como un rompecabezas para llegar a una conclusión: esas grandes presas que los gobiernos dicen que reclama el desarrollo "no van a beneficiar a los pueblos".
"Esos proyectos están en el contexto del Plan Puebla-Panamá (PPP) y son para privatizar y exportar energía eléctrica y permitir que las compañías estadunidenses controlen el agua. Si ya nos están vendiendo el garrafón a 18 y 20 pesos, vamos a acabar pagándoselos a 100 pesos", señalaron múltiples voces surgidas de entre unos 500 delegados de ocho estados del país, más observadores de Guatemala, Francia, Italia y España, que asisten al primer Encuentro Nacional de Afectados por las Presas, convocado por los comuneros opositores a la construcción de la hidroeléctrica La Parota, sobre el río Papagayo.
Una buena parte de los comuneros de Cacahuatepec, comunidad ubicada a unos 50 kilómetros de Acapulco, y de la cual es anexo Aguas Calientes, ha mantenido un movimiento -que ya cumplió 14 meses- de resistencia contra dicho proyecto de la Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE) que inundará 17 mil 500 hectáreas afectando, según la paraestatal, a unos 3 mil campesinos, pero según éstos a unos 25 mil, residentes de 24 poblados. La diferencia en las cifras se debe a que "la CFE toma en cuenta sólo el padrón de comuneros y no a sus familias y los avecindados que también van a ser desplazados si se construye la presa, ¿qué, somos animales?" cuestionaron.
Con un pésimo sentido de la oportunidad, dicha paraestatal coadyuvó a caldear aún más los ánimos de los campesinos en su contra, cuando el jueves por la noche, minutos después de que se inauguraran los trabajos del encuentro, intentó introducir maquinaria en la zona con el argumento de "construir obra social".
Esa maniobra se consideró como "una provocación" por parte de los comuneros, dado que llevan más de nueve meses sosteniendo tres plantones frente a otros tantos anexos de la comunidad para evitar el ingreso de maquinaria para la construcción de la presa. Esto ha costado que dos comuneros, Marco Antonio Suástegui y Francisco Hernández, fueran detenidos "sin orden de aprehensión", golpeados por policías estatales, acusados del secuestro de un ingeniero de la CFE y del robo de dos camionetas. Además, se pasaron 10 días en la cárcel, ahora están libres bajo fianza y sujetos a proceso, asimismo, otras seis órdenes de aprehensión contra integrantes del movimiento.
Durante la mañana de hoy, delegados y delegadas de Chiapas, Oaxaca, Veracruz, Nayarit, Jalisco, Tabasco, Puebla y el Distrito Federal, integrantes de un centenar de colectivos sociales, escucharon a quienes ya han vivido la experiencia de ser desplazados de sus tierras por la construcción de grandes presas y de haber recibido a cambio promesas incumplidas o, en el mejor de los casos, el pago de indemnizaciones con retrasos de hasta 50 años, como en el caso de los afectados por la presa de La Venta, muy cerca de aquí, también sobre el río Papagayo.
Victoria Ramos Galán, indígena chinanteca oaxaqueña, relató cómo en 1957 vivió el desalojo de su familia y otros cientos más de 12 comunidades chinantecas y mazatecas por la construcción de la presa Miguel Alemán que afectó 52 mil hectáreas de tierras agrícolas y ganaderas; cómo las autoridades los fueron a arrojar a unos galerones en el municipio de San Felipe Cihualtepec, en la zona mixe; cómo les prometieron empleos, luz eléctrica gratis, casa propia de material, tierras, agua potable, calles pavimentadas, créditos, escuelas con infraestructura moderna; cómo nada de eso ha llegado aún. Y ellos perdieron su identidad, y en lugar de las 80 hectáreas que tenía su padre, sólo les repusieron 10.
Habitantes de Jalapa del Marqués, Oaxaca, dieron testimonio a su vez de su oposición a la construcción de una nueva presa en su región. Ellos ya antes fueron desalojados del poblado donde vivían cuando se construyó la presa Benito Juárez, que afectó 7 mil 500 hectáreas, lo que tuvo como consecuencia la pérdida de su cultura, su lengua y la migración de la gente.
Miembros de la organización Cupuri hablaron de las afectaciones sufridas por habitantes de Nayarit, donde se está construyendo la presa de El Cajón, y les han prometido la creación de empleos, "pero 70 por ciento de los trabajadores contratados por la constructora son chiapanecos que han seguido el proceso de construcción de las presas, en Nayarit no hay mano de obra calificada para eso", comentaron.
Integrantes del Frente Chiapaneco contra las Represas informaron por su parte de la resistencia que realizan en aquella entidad fronteriza para evitar la construcción de las presas Huixtán 1, Huixtán 2 y Quetzalí. Las dos primeras sobre el río Santo Domingo; Huixtán 1 afectaría 9 mil hectáreas; la segunda, 4 mil, de las cuales 3 mil son de Guatemala. En la parte mexicana se afectaría casi todo el municipio autónomo de Tierra y Libertad. La Quetzalí, sobre el río Lacantún, inundaría 57 mil hectáreas de selva, incluso en la Reserva de la Biosfera de Montes Azules.
"El gobierno ha metido sus militares para que la gente tenga miedo y no se organice... si nos unimos agarramos experiencias de otros rumbos, y no nos van a sorprender dormidos... éstos son proyectos de los malos gobiernos que nos quieren despojar de la riqueza, de nuestras tierras y de nuestros ríos, este es un cambio de muerte, no un cambio de vida, la tierra es para que viva la gente, para que coma, no para inundarla. Nos llegan a amenazar con los ejércitos, pero nosotros no tenemos miedo, estamos luchando y buscando más compañeros para tener más fuerzas", afirmaron.
Indicaron que en ese afán han ido a Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua y Tailandia para frenar esos proyectos y denunciar que las fumigaciones que realiza el gobierno, "dizque para combatir las plagas", no han tenido ningún beneficio y sí en cambio ha secado sus cafetales y pastos y se han plagado sus huertas de guayaba, limón, naranja, lima, que están llenas de gusanos.
A media mañana la asamblea se galvanizó con el arribo de un contingente de campesinos de Atenco que, machete en mano, entraron gritando: "Fox entiende, la patria no se vende", "La Parota no está sola"... Posteriormente, los comuneros de Cacahuatepec dieron su testimonio de la lucha que han venido dando para evitar la construcción de la presa La Parota. Y ahí quedó esta afirmación: "Estamos plantados, ni un metro de tierra le cederemos a la CFE, cueste lo que cueste".
Other news from Guatemala, regarding the Chixoy dam occupation: the country could maintain its power without it (then why did they go so deeply in debt to build it?), the occupiers have left, the government will investigate the foreigners who they say led the occupation.
PrensaLibre.com - Mercado puede sustituir a Chixoy
AP Spanish | 09/09/2004 | Campesinos abandonan hidroeléctrica tomada en Guatemala
PrensaLibre.com - Oscar Berger: Extranjeros serán investigados
Villagers from the area of the Chixoy dam, largest in Guatemala, have occupied it and demanded reparations for the massacre that occurred when it was constructed.
This appeared in one paragraph in the New York Times, but CNN online is carrying a longer story, from Reuters.
CNN - Mayan Indians seize disputed Guatemalan dam
The governor of Tabasco has announced that he will move to create an Usumacinta Canyon Reserve. This is incredible news for all of us who have been opposing the CFE's proposed dams on the Usumacinta river. Let's see what comes of it.
Tabasco Hoy || MAD, hasta el 2006
El que mayormente me llama la atención para comentarlo con usted, es la decisión, ya tomada por Andrade, de crear la Reserva Ecológica del Cañón del Usumacinta. Esta es una noticia de enorme trascendencia. Quizá esté usted enterado que el Plan Puebla Panamá (PPP) que en los casi cuatro años de gobierno de Fox no ha pasado de ser un proyecto deshilvanado, balbuciente y cuasi quimérico, contempla la construcción de tres grandes hidroeléctricas en la cuenca del alto Usumacinta, que empieza en Tenosique. Y ahí está esa amenaza latente para cuando menos la mitad del territorio tabasqueño.
Y es que de construirse esas tres presas hidroeléctricas en el alto Usumacinta, ello significaría una sentencia de muerte ecológica no sólo para los pantanos de Centla, sino para una porción mayor del territorio tabasqueño.
En previsión de tal calamidad, el gobernador Andrade anuncia la creación de la Reserva del Cañón del Usumacinta, una decisión que le agradecerán los tabasqueños de hoy y de mañana.
Chris Shaw sent this article to me, covering NASA's work in the Peten, Guatemala. Using satellite imaging and on-the-ground studies, they are gaining a better understanding of agriculture and deforestation in the Classic Maya period.
Thanks to Alfonso for this link to a report on problems at La Parota dam in Mexico - intimidation of local people by the authorities, known damage to the ecosystem.
Today, Mexican President Vicente Fox will tour communities near Benemerito de las Americas, upriver from Frontera Corozal, which have been electrified since June of 2000. These are presumably the result of the power lines visible as you approach Frontera, crossing the ridge at the area known as La Cojolita.
El Economista - Fox inaugurará obras eléctricas en Chiapas
There's some controversy over a 10 peso fee that will be charged all visitors to the waterfront at Frontera Corozal. This is the main point of embarcation to Yaxchilan and other Usumacinta sites, as well as the land and water route to Flores and Tikal. Proceeds will help maintain the small museum in Frontera, but tour operators say it will hold up traffic and will send the wrong message to tourists.
Tabasco Hoy || Cobran entrada a Corozal
Chris Shaw pointed this out to me. One of the many dangers of large dams - vulnerability to earthquakes.
International News Article | Reuters.com
In Mural, a report on a plan to relocate 3,000 residents of "irregular settlements" in the Lacandon forest and the Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve. On the same page are links to past stories and to an animated graphic, showing the communities in question and outlining the biodiversity and importance of the region.
mural.com --- Prevén 'sacar' a 3 mil de Montes Azules
In Proceso, Ignacio March is quoted urging the completion of the first relocations of "irregular" communities in the Montes Azules Biosphere reserve. The success of this program is essential, he says, to the preservation of one of the "lungs" of the planet.
Demandan ambientalistas se cumpla la promesa a reubicados
This recent report puts people first in the debate over resources in the Usumacinta watershed.
Agua y biodiversidad en Montes Azules
Chris Shaw will be speaking this week at Old Forge Library in the Adirondacks. He is 90% of the reason that I am working to protect the Usumacinta right now. I've just re-read his book "Sacred Monkey River" and I'm finally beginning to understand what he accomplished by writing it.
Here's a press release (click MORE) about his appearance on July 6 at 7:30 at the library. It includes an interview in which Chris discusses the creation of the book, growing out of an encounter with Victor Perera, who died last year.
Thanks Chris, for all the inspiration.
PRESS INFORMATION JUNE 18, 2004
Contact: Isabella Worthen, Old Forge Library, Old Forge, NY
315-369-6008,
IWorthen@midyork.org
[HEAD] Writer's Book on Mesoamerican River Reflects His Years In
Adirondacks
[SUBHEAD] Christopher Shaw, who wrote Sacred Monkey River in 2000 about extreme canoe trip, will read At Old Forge Library.
June 18, 2004, Saranac Lake, New York: In fall of 1988, the Guatemalan writer Victor Perera picked up a copy of Adirondack Life magazine for the first time. After reading it Perera, who was staying in Blue Mountain Lake, thought he and the editor had interests in common. So he called then-editor Christopher Shaw at the magazine, in Jay, New York, and suggested they meet.
Over dinner a week later Shaw described to Perera a novel he had been writing that took place on a river called the Usumacinta, that drains the rain forest dividing Mexico and Guatemala. At that point Perera was fighting a dam threat on the same river and invited Shaw to join him on a hundred mile raft descent that January. "It was pure coincidence," said Shaw.
The Usumacinta River runs through threatened rain forest past some of the most important and spectacular ruins of Classical Maya. The habitat sustains shrinking populations of monkeys, jaguars, crocodiles, and macaws, and a riparian ecosystem like none other.
The journey changed Shaw's life. On the river they met Guatemalan rebels living in jungle shrouded ruins, and visited the traditional Lacandon Maya at Naha.
"Frankly, it overwhelmed me" Shaw said. "I couldn't get a handle on it." But he continued writing about it.
"I had originally wanted to start a rafting outfit down there," said the former raft guide for Adirondack River Outfitters, in Old Forge. "Then I wound up working at the magazine. I decided to write a novel about the river instead, about some raft guides who get in a jam.
"I went back a number of times, and started working exclusively on the novel. Then I was invited to write a piece for an anthology of nature writing." That piece was his essay, "Empty at the Heart of the World," about the remote region south of Cranberry Lake. The piece won Shaw a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship, and brought him to the attention of an editor at W.W. Norton. He showed her the half finished novel.
"She liked the novel but was more interested in publishing non-fiction," he said. Unwilling to abandon his research of ten years, Shaw proposed a book that paralleled the novel: "I would run the river myself, all the way, and write about the region's natural and political history, making connections between the canoe and the peoples' world view."
Shaw, who had spend twenty years in the Adirondacks working as a guide, a caretaker and a ski lift operator before joining the magazine, had what it took.
"I had looked around the Usumacinta basin and realized that in an odd way I recognized the territory. It reminded me of the Adirondacks: forested mountains laced with lakes and rivers. The best way to penetrate it, in fact, was by water, as the Maya had, and from my years as a guide I had the necessary skills."
"The river had already withstood two previous dam threats," Shaw went on. "The forest was disappearing fast. It was like the Adirondacks in the 1870s. I knew another dam proposal would come along, and that someone had to tell the story of the river as clearly as possible before it was too late." That way a record would always exist that wove together fragmented strands of archaeology, anthropology, and conservation.
On his 1997 descent Shaw made it two thirds of the way before political instability and bandit activity forced him to quit.
"It was very disappointing, but reflected the reality of the place at the time. And I was writing about the place, not the adventure." The book is an adventure, nevertheless.
When it came out the Washington Post called it "brainy and brawny," and "a huge accomplishment." Bill McKibben said of the book, "You will be reminded of Jon Krakauer and Jonathan Raban, but Chris Shaw is a true original."
But he could never see the place without reference to his experience in the Adirondacks. "It formed all my perceptions of the Usumacinta basin. And the Adirondacks could serve as the best model to preserve it, as well." Last year Shaw co-founded, with videographer Dave Pentecost, the organization Rios Mayas to fight a new dam threat on the Usumacinta. In 2003 he returned to Chiapas and Mexico City to draw press attention to the problem, and to propose the Adirondacks as a model for a watershed protection plan spanning the Mexican-Guatemalan border. "You'd have to do it right, using both the positive and negative examples of the Adirondack experiment. It's a long-term project.
"The dam won't go away until the river is protected forever," he added. "I wish Victor could be here to see it happen." Perera died in 2003.
Today Shaw lives with his wife Sue Kavanagh in Middlebury, Vermont, where he teaches writing at Middlebury College. He still spends much of the year in his cabin near Saranac Lake, where he is currently writing a novel and editing manuscripts left behind at the death in 2000 of his friend, the guide and regional historian, Abel St. Martin.
Shaw will read from Sacred Money River at the Old Forge Library, on July 6, at 7:30.
Tabasco Hoy || Realizarán Segundo Festival Cultural del Usumacinta
Things are heating up in the delta of the Usumacinta - the Pantanos de Centla - as campesinos and fishermen block a road to prevent drilling by Pemex that may contaminate aquifers and ruin their livelihood.
PRD bloquea apertura de 100 pozos de Pemex | 2004-06-30 | La Crónica de Hoy
Proceso - Bloquean acceso a instalaciones de Pemex en Tabasco
The Institute of the Americas has made available all the presentations from the first annual Latin American Sustainable Development Conference that I attended 2 weeks ago.
Index of ftp://132.239.192.94/SusDev/2004 Conference/presentations
My presentation can be found here:
The Usumacinta Project (pdf)
A long overdue thanks to Tammy Ridenour, who outfitted our raft trip on the Usumacinta and cheerfully guided us through rapids, eddies, ruins, and waterfalls. She and her crew - Fred, Beto, Sidney - were great company and tireless in every situation.
Thanks to Craig Johnson for these links. The first, a report from the WWF on the top 21 endangered rivers, all with more than 5 dams planned for them. The Usumacinta is not on the list, but the case is made again against dams.
Rivers at Risk - Dams and the future of freshwater ecosystems (pdf)
The second report is very timely, as we turn our focus on the economics and financing of dams.
DamRight! An Investor's guide to Dams (pdf)
(This report draws heavily from the World Commission on Dams Report of 2000, which I posted here.)
And here's the main page for WWF's dams initiative. Great information.
Dam Right! WWF's 2003-2004 Dams Initiative
Thanks to Alfonso Morales for this article. The failure of reforestation projects in Chiapas has led to the loss of topsoil and the silting up of hydroelectric dams. A similar fate awaits any dam built on the Usumacinta.
(this is a direct link, at least for now: Cuarto Poder )
CHIAPAS Reforestación, un tema olvidado.
Se azolva presa de paraestatal
Marco González CP. Ante el azolve de las
hidroeléctricas en Chiapas se reduce su vida útil. La
erosión provocada por las lluvias, arrastra hasta 90
toneladas de tierra por hectárea. Éste, es uno de los
daños de la deforestación. Aun así quienes utilizan
estos embalses, poco o nada hacen para evitar el daño.
A fin de mantener la utilidad de algunas de estas
presas, se ha incrementado el alto de sus cortinas,
señalan técnicos extranjeros consultados y que
solicitaron el anonimato. Sin embargo, para gente como
el doctor Vicente Martínez Vázquez, cuando mucho le
quedan 30 años de vida a algunas hidroeléctricas, por
la acelerada deforestación y el proceso de
desertización en la zona Frailesca de Chiapas.
Durante la Primer Conferencia Regional de Geografía de
Chiapas, en mayo de 1972, Conrado Zárate, auxiliar de
la Oficina Coordinadora de Obras y Proyectos
Hidroeléctricos de La Angostura de Comisión Federal de
Electricidad (CFE), se comprometió – a nombre de la
paraestatal - a reforestar las áreas circundantes al
embalse con programas frutícolas y silvícolas. Hasta
la fecha, todo quedó en promesa.
El programa frutícola que presentó el funcionario de
la CFE, era el siguiente: se sembrarían árboles de
tamarindo, guanábana, mango, aguacate, coso, tanto en
las parcelas de los ejidatarios como en las zonas
estratégicas a fin de combatir la erosión hídrica.
En cuanto al programa de reforestación, se dijo – en
aquel entonces – que se están utilizando cedros y
caobas. De haberse cumplido, ahora, serían enormes
plantaciones que generarían miles de millones de pesos
y empleos para la gente de la depresión central. Todo
quedó en el papel.
Dentro de algunos años, cuando quede azolvada
completamente la presa de La Angostura, esas 60 mil
hectáreas, se convertirá en el paraíso para los
cultivos de temporal, porque tendrá una capa de más de
150 metros de profundidad de un excelente humus y
humedad, ha señalado en diversos foros el doctor
Martínez Vázquez.
Nadie ha detenido la deforestación ni tampoco se han
hecho buenos esfuerzos para fomentar la reforestación
en la zona aledaña al embalse o en las partes altas de
la Sierra Madre de Chiapas, añade, el también premio
Chiapas.
En las últimas décadas se ha invertido más en papel de
los discursos para justificar los programas de
reforestación de la zona aledaña a la cuenca del Río
Grijalva, que en los árboles que se debieron de haber
sembrado, y que hoy estarían haciendo un valioso
aporte ecológico y económico para la gente de la
región, dijo.
Si bien los hubiera no existen, decía Martínez
Vázquez, la gente debe exigir que se cumplan los
compromisos.
Por falta de una adecuada política de reforestación,
las mejores tierras de Chiapas se encuentran en
Tabasco, señalaba el extinto doctor Miguel Álvarez del
Toro, premio Paul Gety (símil del Nobel en Ecología).
Cuando se azolve por completo el embalse de La
Angostura, la tierra de cultivo tendrá una profundidad
de más de 150 metros y no tarda, apunta el doctor
Martínez Vázquez.
An excellent and disturbing article in Progreso on the continued push for the Plan Puebla Panama. It highlights efforts to minimize opposition to the plan by civil society, using 3% of the budget to fund sustainable development initiatives.
Proceso.com.mx - Exclusiva:Plan Puebla Panamá: nuevos coqueteos
Y frente a las insistentes versiones de que hay proyectos ocultos en el PPP, como algunas hidroeléctricas en el área del Río Usumacinta, Rodas asegura que esos proyectos están desechados desde hace 20 años por sus costos ecológicos, su inviabilidad financiera y porque de realizarse inundarían grandes cantidades de terrenos, entre ellos, una proporción importante de Petén “Ese proyecto al que hacen referencia los ambientalistas está técnica y políticamente descartado. Los habitantes del Peten pueden estar tranquilos”, asegura Taylor.
Pero el debate de las hidroélectricas sigue ahí. Trópico Verde sostiene que desde que salieron a la luz las primeras voces críticas, han desaparecido gradualmente los proyectos más conflictivos, incluidos los de las presas hidroeléctricas en el Río Usumacinta, uno de los pilares del PPP, según documentos del gobierno mexicano.
“Es absurdo negar que el proyecto de una hidroeléctrica en Petén existe. Un frente de oposición formado por comunitarios que viven en las riveras del Usumacinta, con organizaciones locales, nacionales e internacionales ha ido ganando apoyo”, dice Carlos Albacete, quien llama a estas represas “los hijos no reconocidos del Plan Puebla Panamá”.
Here's a news story about efforts to protect the mouth of the Grijalva-Usumacinta river delta.
Proceso.com.mx - Exclusiva:Pemex, la depredación en Laguna de Términos
An archived version of the Tim Weiner New York Times article on the Baca del Cerro dam plan, September 22, 2002.
En;NYT.com,Mexico weighs electricity against history,Sep 23
Reports on trade, PPP, environment issues
Americas Program | Index | Issue: Trade, Environment, Integration & Development
Below Boca del Cerro, where the Usumacinta widens and meanders to the Gulf, there's a growing pollution problem. If a dam were to be built, and the natural flood pulse stopped, would the pollution buildup be even worse?
Ron Canter has provided a preliminary report on the Usumacinta study we did at the end of March of this year. It is in Microsoft Word format.
Usumacinta Canyons and Rapids
Download file
This website, Sponsored by NASA, USAID, World Bank, and CCAD in El Salvador, will provide a variety of satellite images of the region. It already has some impressive views and fly-throughs.
SIAM-SERVIR The Central American Monitoring and Visualization System
I've just found an excellent collection of maps, online at the CIEPAC site.
CIEPAC, A.C. : Indice de Mapas de Chiapas
Chris Shaw sent this press release he had received. It's far from the Usu, but it's another sign that hydroelectric power is not without drawbacks as a "clean" energy source.
Bad news for Hydro-Quebec
New York no longer considers large hydropower a clean energy
The State of New York no longer considers large-scale hydroelectricity as a green and renewable energy and excludes it from its list of main tier eligible generation sources. This official recommendation was made public today by Administrative Law Judge Eleanor Stein, President of the Commission regarding a Retail Renewable Portfolio Standard of the New York State Public Service Commission. The consultation process spanned over 16 months and mobilized more than 150 private, public and individual organisations.
The State legislation requires that 17% of the public supply of energy come from
clean and renewable sources. Judge Stein's decision renders unacceptable new
hydropower plants with reservoirs and those producing more that 30 MW. Only
hydropower from small run-of-river power plants will be eligible. Fourteen American
States have adopted a similar legislation and their number is growing every year.
The State of New York wants to raise from 17 to 25% over ten years the proportion of
renewable energy bought from its suppliers. It also incites consumers to choose
green energies in order to fulfill their energy needs. On-going media campaigns
explain the advantages of consuming energy in an environment-friendly way. Quebec's
hydroelectricity no longer meets these standards.
Thus, as hydropower is phasing out on American markets, Hydro-Quebec gets a new and
strong incentive to end its devastating hydroelectric development in James Bay /
Northern Quebec and to turn towards acceptable energy sources, such as wind power.
Rupert Reverence, a group of Cree and Quebec citizens dedicated to the protection of
Northern Quebec rivers, took part in this commission by tabling, on September 26,
2004, a statement regarding the environmental, social and ethical impacts of large
hydroelectric projects in James Bay. Co-President Jacqueline Leroux is highly
pleased with Judge Stein's recommendation. "With this decision, New Yorkers show
their support for the protection of Northern Quebec rivers. Their environmental
conscience will help Quebec attain its Kyoto commitments through the abandonment of
polluting industries such as hydroelectricity and fossil fuel. Now that important
clients are in turn asking for it, maybe Hydro-Quebec will listen."
Rupert Reverence is a non-profit organization founded in October 2001 by Crees and
Quebecers involved in their environment and deeply convinced that there is much more
to lose than to gain by new hydroelectric development in the Eeyou Istchee / James
Bay / Nunavik territory. Well established in its information role, Rupert Reverence
supports the protection of virgin rivers of Northern Quebec, in the name of the
Nations present on the territory, in order to preserve wildlife habitats, ecosystems
balance, ancestral sites and ethnotouristic potential harboured by the great rivers
of Northern Quebec.
For information:
Jacqueline Leroux, Co-President (418) 748-7317 or Eric Gagnon (514) 708-5899
http://www.dps.state.ny.us/03e0188.htm et
www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/renewable_energy
http://www.dps.state.ny.us/rps/03e0188_030926_comments/Rupert_comments.pdf and
Google search: rps state
Eric Gagnon
Rupert Reverence
Southern Quebec
(514) 708-5899
Northern-Quebec (Head office)
(418) 748-7317
199 Laframboise
Chibougamau G8P 2S3
One Mexican energy secretary out, a new one in. No new push for private investment, in an Usumacinta dam and elsewhere?
Forbes.com: Mexico energy reform in limbo after resignation
HoustonChronicle.com - Fox's choice for energy post may lack clout for reforms
Manejo y conservacion de la Cuenca del rio Usumacinta
Back in civilization for a moment, after a week with archaeologist Charles Golden and his team in the Sierra del Lacandon, along the Usumacinta River. They are surveying new Maya sites along the frontier between the ancient cities of Yaxchilan and Piedras Negras.
Highlight of the week was a trek from the small site of Esmeralda to PN, 18 kilometers through a jaguar habitat (we saw tracks), led by guides who are ex-guerillas, now employed by Guatemala´s Sierra del Lacandon Park. At Piedras Negras we were welcomed by Stephen Houston and his crew, who have returned to the site after a couple of years´absence, to continue excavations. We spent the night at the El Porvenir guards´camp, which was a safe haven for our group of rafters last month, then hiked back the next day. Charles and his folks were to start a 3-day trek to the site of Tecolote, but I caught a boat upriver (not as young as those guys) and decide to continue back to Flores to rest and do some communications. I also caught a preview screening for Guatemalan folks of this week´s National Geographic Special on the Maya, which will air on PBS on the 12th.
I´m heading back in with the next group of park guards tomorrow, to see Tecolote and continue shooting a documentary on the river. Then I am on a homeward trajectory after a strenuous and satisfying journey.
Doctora Ileana Valenzuela, of ECAO in Flores, has been very helpful to me in the last few days. I received from her a very powerful and clear statement of the situation that Peteneros now face, in their efforts to protect the largest rainforest north of Brazil, and to improve the lives of all its inhabitants. The statement begins here and continues in its entirety. (Click MORE)
GRUPO SOLIDARIO DE ACCION Y PROPUESTA DE PETEN (GSAPP)
27 de marzo del año 2004
La situación se agrava en todas las regiones del departamento de Petén, Guatemala, por medio de la violencia, el ofrecimiento de empleos y dinero se
trata de dividir y confundir a la población ofreciéndole un tipo de "desarrollo" basado en la destrucción de los ecosistemas y en la degradación de las condiciones de existencia de la población.
Por lo que, en tanto que ONG, asociaciones de base y personas
preocupadas por la situación que está viviendo Petén,
situación que de una manera u otra están viviendo
todos los pueblos del mundo, hacemos conocer a la
opinión local, nacional e internacional lo que está
pasando en algunas regiones del departamento:
Ríos Usumacinta, Pasión y Salinas
Los planes de construcción de varias represas
hidroeléctricas en los Ríos Usumacinta, Pasión y
Salinas continúan amenazando a las comunidades
guatemaltecas y mexicanas que se encuentran en sus
orillas, sus tierras y sitios arqueológicos de gran
valor como Piedras Negras y Yaxchilán. Se quieren
construir las infraestructuras necesarias para que se
instalen en la región mesoamericana compañías
principalmente extranjeras. Expandir el comercio,
construir carreteras, vías férreas y aeropuertos que
conviertan a toda la región mesoamericana en un puente
de transporte de mercancías, fuente mano de obra y
recursos naturales baratos, en detrimento de la
población que verá sus aldeas inundadas, será
expulsada de sus tierras y verá sus condiciones de
vida fuertemente deterioradas. Todo esto es negado
por las autoridades gubernamentales quienes efectúan
sus planes a espaldas de la población a la que no
informan convenientemente ni consultan. Es por ello
que las comunidades amenazadas, organizadas en el
Frente Petenero contra las Represas, manifestaron el
día 15 de marzo de este año e hicieron paros en las
carreteras para expresar su descontento y oposición,
ejerciendo el derecho de todo ciudadano a decir ¡NO!
Durante esta manifestación pacifica los manifestantes
fueron atacados por gente en un pick up que paso
disparando e hiriendo a varias personas. Esto es
sumamente grave pues muestra que hay fuertes
intereses, tras la construcción de las represas (y
otra de serie de negocios e infraestructuras), que
están determinados a matar para alcanzar sus fines.
Así como el gran peligro de que en Guatemala se vean
reproducidas la represión y la militarización. Esto
muestra también que las recientes declaraciones de los
presidentes Fox y Berger, negando que las represas
vayan a ser construidas en el Usumacinta, son falsas
¿Por qué disparar sobre gente indefensa que está
protestando contra las represas si no hay intención de
construirlas?
Parque Nacional Laguna del Tigre (PNLT)
El PNLT fue creado el 30 de enero 1990, mediante el
Decreto No. 5-90 del Congreso de la República, que a
su vez creo la RBM y comprende el Biotopo Protegido
Laguna del Tigre bajo administración del Centro
Conservacionista de la Universidad de San Carlos
CECON. Tiene en total una extensión de 338,566.2 Ha.,
está bajo la administración del Consejo de Áreas
protegidas CONAP y aunque se ha ensayado alguna figura
de co-manejo esta no ha dado resultado. Es el humedal
más grande de Centro América, reconocido por Ramsar
debido a su rica biodiversidad y a su importancia en
el equilibrio del ciclo del agua en toda Guatemala. A
pesar de su importancia en tanto que área protegida
los diferentes gobiernos han autorizado en el parque
la explotación de petróleo y la red de carreteras
necesarias para su funcionamiento, lo que ha permitido
que miles de personas se introdujeran en el parque en
búsqueda de tierra. De manera que a inicios de 1998
se reportaban en el parque 13 comunidades con 3,250
habitantes y para el año 2001 ya se contaban 24
comunidades con aproximadamente 6,138 habitantes.
Desde hace algunos años la situación se ha agravado
enormemente pues los invasores que están llegando no
son más pequeños campesinos aislados, sino grandes y
ricos ganaderos quienes se apropian de un golpe entre
50 y 100 caballerías cada uno. Utilizan a miles de
campesinos para descombrar parcelas en la selva a
quienes se les autoriza sembrar durante un año, con
la condición de que después metan pastos y continúen
descombrando hasta dejarles toda la finca convertida
en potreros. Están entrando camionadas enteras de
gente que llegan a convertir en pastos y fincas
ganaderas lo poco de bosque que queda, terminando con
múltiples especies de fauna y la flora, muchas de las
cuales son endémicas, e incrementando el tráfico
ilegal. Los hombres llegan fuertemente armados a
invadir el PNLT, amenazando a todos los que se les
opongan. El año pasado provocaron innumerables
incendios con el fin de convertir el bosque en pastos
y se ha verificado muy recientemente la existencia de
avionetas abandonadas en la selva, e incluso hundidas
en los ríos, que evidentemente han servido a los
narcotraficantes. La explotación petrolera se está
expandiendo a nuevas áreas y un mínimo de 10 carros
diarios pasan transportando ilegales y todo tipo de
riqueza de la selva, mientras que salen de la reserva
camiones cargados de madera cortada en forma ilegal.
Los cambios políticos en el gobierno han favorecido
esta situación pues las nuevas autoridades continúan a
ignorar completamente lo que está pasando en toda
impunidad y completamente en contra a todo lo
establecido en la ley de Áreas Protegidas del país.
Esto deja pensar que dichas autoridades pudieran tener
un interés particular en que la reserva desaparezca y
se privatice para convertirla en plantaciones,
empresas ganaderas, agroindustriales, etc. Los grandes
invasores son personas con gran poder político y
militar (se habla de personas que han ayudado a
financiar la campaña electoral). Esto es inadmisible
pues, es el poco patrimonio natural que nos queda a
los guatemaltecos el que se está sacrificando en pro
de intereses monetarios y políticos por lo que es
necesario que se ejerza todo el peso de la ley contra
estos grandes infractores, se rezonifique el parque
(determinando áreas para los campesinos que no tienen
más de una hectárea y la cultivan ellos mismos),
estableciendo un plan de regeneración y conservación
del parque y redefiniendo un plan de manejo basado en
el desarrollo sostenible integral. Esto tiene que
complementarse con una reforma agraria y una
estrategia de seguridad alimentaría, creación de
empleos y regeneración ambiental a nivel de toda
Guatemala. Es necesario que el Estado priorice la
agenda ambiental y asegure el cumplimiento de la ley,
comenzando por sacar a esos grandes ganaderos que de
forma completamente abusiva están apropiándose del
patrimonio nacional.
Reserva de la Biosfera Maya y ampliación del parque
Mirador
La parte sur de la Cuenca Mirador se encuentra dentro
de la Zona de Usos Múltiples de la RBM. Las
comunidades que rodean el área, entre ellas la
Cooperativa de Carmelita, han adquirido los derechos
para aprovechar los recursos maderables y no
maderables a través de concesiones forestales
otorgadas por el Consejo Nacional de Áreas protegidas
(CONAP). Estas unidades de manejo fueron creadas para
impulsar el aprovechamiento sostenible de los
recursos, bajo condiciones y lineamientos del CONAP.
Los productos que se aprovechan son: madera, xate y
chicle y en los contratos se encuentra especificada la
promoción del ecoturismo como una alternativa
económica sostenible. Los contratos suscritos entre
los concesionarios y el CONAP amparan los sitios
arqueológicos según la ley, los concesionarios deben
presentar un plan de manejo que debe reportar los
sitios arqueológicos que se localicen en el área a
aprovechar y es prohibido llevar a cabo cualquier
actividad que pueda dañar los montículos. Desde 1988
hasta la fecha el Proyecto PRIANPEG dirigido por el
Dr. Richard Hansen han llevado a cabo investigaciones
arqueológicas dentro de la Cuenca Mirador. Se ha
descubierto que la antigüedad de estos sitios mayas es
excepcional pues datan de 1000 años antes de Cristo.
Las pirámides que se encuentran en el área están entre
los edificios más grandes y antiguos construidos en
Mesoamerica y se piensa que el Mirador pudo haber sido
la cuna de los antiguos mayas. El manejo de la
actividad turística del área está a cargo de el Comité
de Turismo de la Cooperativa de Carmelita que desde
hace varios años coordina los viajes a pie y a caballo
hasta el Mirador, lo que implica un ingreso importante
para la comunidad y una fuente de empleo para varios
comunitarios (alquiler de mulas y caballos, guias,
cocineras, etc.). Es un turismo incipiente que debería
contar con un fuerte apoyo de las autoridades de la
cooperativa para llegar a constituir una alternativa
económica importante, pero por el momento no está
recibiendo el apoyo necesario. Por otra parte, el
proyecto de ampliación de la Cuenca del Mirador
propuesto por el Dr. Richard Hansen, por el contrario,
se propone vender el Mirador como un gran producto
turístico y construir las infraestructuras par acoger
adecuadamente a un turismo masivo que llegue por
avión o helicóptero de Cancún, pase una noche en el
hotel, visite el sitio y se regrese, aumentando el
flujo de visitantes hasta llegar a más de 100,000 por
año, reproduciendo el mismo tipo de turismo elitista y
destructor que existe actualmente en Petén y beneficia
principalmente a algunas compañías extranjeras y
nacionales, sin dejar gran cosa a las comunidades
locales. El presidente Berger ha llegado a visitar el
sitio y parece que está muy de acuerdo con la
construcción de un aeropuerto y la puesta en marcha
del proyecto. A esto se opone parte de la población de
Carmelita que se da cuenta de las graves implicaciones
ecológicas y sociales que tendría este proyecto pero,
a parte de ofrecer dinero a algunos comunitarios para
que lo apoyen (Q10,000.00), Richard Hansen está
promoviendo un nuevo comité de turismo entre los
comunitarios con el fin de causar división y poder
continuar con su proyecto.
Uaxactún
Durante casi 100 años, la comunidad de Uaxactún ha
vivido conservando y manejando los recursos forestales
no maderables. A partir de 1999, el gobierno les
otorgo una concesión forestal por 25 años para el
manejo integrado y sostenido de los recursos
forestales, tanto maderables como no maderables, lo
que la comunidad ha tratado de hacer sin olvidar su
espíritu conservacionista y desarrollando una pequeña
actividad de ecoturismo. A partir de diciembre del
2000 en adelante, la comunidad se ha visto amenazada
por las pretensiones del Proyecto turístico Mundo Maya
que pretende desarrollar un turismo de elite, para
turistas con dinero, en el cual los beneficios
económicos sería monopolizados por grandes empresarios
turísticos, dejando de lado los intereses de la
comunidad. Esto implicaría desposeer de sus derechos
legales a los comunitarios otorgando a los empresarios
los sitios arqueológicos mas relevantes, que
actualmente son utilizados por la comunidad, pues
pertenecen a la concesión forestal de Uaxactún.
Implicaría también la apertura de carreteras al
interior de las áreas protegidas, la invasión de la
selva y su conversión en pastos, como ha pasado en
otras partes del departamento. Los comunitarios han
trabajado para informar y hacer conciencia a la
población de la gran amenaza que esto significa pero
hay intereses lesivos de otras organizaciones que
pretenden dividir a la comunidad en vez de
fortalecerla, mientras que representantes del Mundo
Maya han llegado a introducir falsas expectativas con
respecto al proyecto turístico, lo que está dañando al
proceso organizativo y dividiendo a los comunitarios
de Uaxactún.
La Libertad
Se ha hablado de que ha aparecido en el departamento y
particularmente en la Libertad, la venta y utilización
de semillas transgenicas, lo que hará que la
producción agrícola y la alimentación queden en manos
de las transnacionales que las monopolizan,
desapareciendo paulatinamente la Soberanía Alimentaría
tanto del departamento de Petén
como de Guatemala y de cada país que las utiliza.
Además del daño a la salud humana y a los ecosistemas
que tales semillas son susceptibles de causar, esto va
acorde con el modelo socio-económico que quiere
imponer el Plan Puebla Panamá, según el cual los
pequeños campesinos ineficientes, sin dinero ni
tecnología y poco rentables son substituidos por
grandes empresarios agrícolas eficaces, con dinero y
tecnología moderna, competitivos y rentables.
Por todo lo cual declaramos:
1.- Ante esta situación escandalosa, el nuevo gobierno
no está haciendo aparentemente nada, su función no es
la de atacarse a los problemas más profundos del país
y de la población sino promover como fines esenciales
la expansión del comercio, la inversión extranjera, la
construcción de megaproyectos y la acumulación de
capitales, en el marco del PPP y del TLC. La
reconversión de Petén es un gran negocio al que
evidentemente no puede dejar de participar, ya que,
esto implica la implantación de proyectos millonarios
sumamente atractivos para las transnacionales, los
grandes empresarios y las autoridades que se van a
beneficiar.
2.- Dicha reconversión constituye una nueva
colonización y un robo más intensivo de nuestros
recursos e implica la desaparición de Petén en tanto
que territorio cubierto por bosques y su conversión en
un desierto. Además, no solamente amenaza con acabar
con la Reserva de Biosfera Maya (RBM) y con los
recursos naturales necesarios a nuestra sobre vivencia
sino que amenaza con desposeer a los actuales
habitantes del Petén de sus tierras y reducirlos en el
mejor de los casos a vivir en hacinamientos urbanos
insalubres y a trabajar en las condiciones
inadmisibles en la que se encuentran los obreros de
las fabricas maquiladoras, agravando la explotación de
la mano de obra barata en el departamento, así como
las condiciones de pobreza, marginación y dependencia
en las que se encuentra la población.
3.- Es por ello que es necesario que la población
guatemalteca, con el apoyo de los amigos de todos los
países del mundo, se informe, se una y se organice
para tomar espacios de poder cada vez más grandes y
ejerza una presión cada vez mayor sobre la toma de
decisiones de las diferentes autoridades, para
defender su patrimonio tanto natural como cultural, su
dignidad y su identidad de seres humanos
multidimensionales. Se trata de una relación de
fuerzas, las autoridades no tomarán en cuenta las
reivindicaciones de la población que en la medida en
la que está constituya un poder (o múltiples poderes)
conciente de sus objetivos y de la sociedad en la que
quiere vivir.
4.- Nos oponemos y decimos no al Plan Puebla Panamá,
No al Tratado de Libre Comercio de Centro América con
los Estados Unidos, No al ALCA, No a los proyectos del
BID y del BM, que no corresponden a los intereses ni a
las expectativas de la mayoría de la población. No a
la construcción de represas, carreteras e
infraestructuras que destruyan y degraden nuestros
bosques y ecosistemas. No a las invasiones en Áreas
Protegidas. No a proyectos turísticos en los que las
comunidades no tengan el control. No a entregar
nuestros recursos naturales a unas cuantas compañías,
convirtiendo a Petén en un desierto. No a la
impunidad. No ha seguir consumiendo en función de los
intereses de las trasnacionales productos chatarra y
transgenicos que son lesivos a nuestra salud y
degradan el ambiente. No a la desaparición de los
campesinos y del maíz guatemaltecos. Decimos, No a la
guerra y a la violencia con las que se trata de
mantener el poder de los más fuertes aquí y en todas
partes del mundo y condenamos enérgicamente el ataque
armado contra los comunitarios que manifestaban
pacíficamente su oposición a la construcción de
represas en el Usumacinta el 15 de marzo de este año.
Así como condenamos todo tipo de violencia dirigido
contra los niños, las mujeres y los más débiles. No al
desposeimiento de los pueblos de sus tierras, de sus
aguas y de sus bosques. No a la monopolización del
poder, de los recursos y de la tecnología. No al
hambre y a la miseria.
5.- Nos solidarizamos con todos los pueblos que están
luchando por sus derechos legítimos, contra la
ofensiva del neoliberalismo, por el acceso y control
de sus recursos y por la construcción de una nueva
sociedad, justa, equitativa y solidaria en la que
exista una verdadera participación de las poblaciones
a la toma de decisiones y a la construcción de su
propio futuro. Llamamos a un fuerte paciente y
dedicado esfuerzo por informar y hacer conciencia a la
gran parte de la población que en Petén, Guatemala y
el Mundo vive ignorante e indiferente de los peligros
que la amenazan, con el fin de que se constituyan en
sujetos políticos activos capaces de hacer valer sus
derechos. Llamamos a seguir trabajando por articular
un amplio conjunto de fuerzas que conforme un
movimiento universal para impedir planes como el PPP,
los tratados de libre comercio, la militarización, la
guerra y la violencia. Llamamos a todas las personas
concientes a informarse, unirse y organizarse en
organizaciones, como la Alianza por la Vida y la Paz,
el Frente Petenero contra las represas y el Grupo
Solidario de Acción y Propuesta de Petén, que se
oponen en todo el mundo a la ofensiva del capitalismo
y trabajan en la identificación y definición de nuevas
alternativas. Necesitamos el apoyo de todos y cada uno
de ustedes para poner en marcha múltiples e
innumerables formas creativas de oposición,
resistencia y propuesta de alternativas.
6.- Es necesario apoyar las alternativas y los
movimientos alternativos que surgen por todas partes
en el mundo y comenzar a consolidar, en forma
imaginativa estrategias integrales de construcción del
futuro, basadas en el acceso de la población local a
sus tierras, aguas y bosques, en formas de producción
y consumo sostenibles, en el respeto a la diversidad
de culturas y en la reasignación de las personas, de
los recursos y de la tecnología, que actualmente se
dedican a la guerra, a megaproyectos destructivos y a
proyectos nocivos para dedicarlos a proyectos
definidos e implementados por la población ella misma
y dirigidos hacia la solución de los graves problemas
de hambre, desempleo y pobreza que existen en el
mundo.
7.- Llamamos a apoyar todo tipo de acciones de
resistencia conjunta, a la construcción de nuevas
actitudes y comportamientos solidarios, a la conquista
de espacios de poder, respeto, dignidad y democracia
cada vez mayores.
Informémonos, Unámonos, Organicémonos,
Dejemos de lado al divisionismo y la ignorancia
Acabemos con la destrucción y la violencia.
Otro mundo es posible pero, nosotros tenemos que
construirlo.
Roan McNab, in Flores, Guatemala, has been trying to get government attention turned towards the continued destruction of the Laguna del Tigre Park. He seems to be succeeding. In last Sunday´s Prensa Libre, the story made the front page. It includes an aerial photo from one of Roan's flyovers.
Prensa Libre - Destrucción en Laguna del Tigre - Impunidad: Parque Nacional, sin control en Petén
Ten great days on the Usumacinta, studying the ancient mooring stones of the Maya. Wonderful, in spite of getting robbed in the middle of the night by gun and machete toting bandits. We camped on a beach that was fine last year, not this year. There is apparently an organized group that preys on the illegal immigrants passing through, fires shots at passing authorities and is now targeting tourists.
Note to future rafters and travelers - stay off of the beach on the Mexican side at a spot known as Anaite, just below the "Tower" guard post on the Guatemalan shore, a few hours below Yaxchilan. The beach is on a sharp right turn in the river, above Chicozapote rapids.
Beyond that we had no problems, no one was hurt, and we counted our blessings. We also got to know the Sierra del Lacandon guards and staff (the Defensores) and have nothing but praise for them and gratitude for their help. Many thanks to Rudi Del Cid, who supervises the Porvenir station below Piedras Negras, and to Javier Marquez, director of the park.
Best and safest current Usu trip - ask Willy Fonseca, at km 61 on the highway to Frontera Corozal, to take you to Piedras Negras and Busilha Falls by lancha. He puts in far below our trouble spot, and both sites are spectacular.
The Usu lives - still a frontier, still a cultural and natural treasure, still wild on many fronts. We will continue to work to preserve it.
From the recent meeting between Mexican President Fox and Guatemalan President Berger, a denial that there are any plans (at the moment) to build hydroelectric generating plants on the Usumacinta:
“No hay tal proyecto configurado dentro de los planes de mi gobierno. No hay ninguna acción que se esté tomando ahorita en este momento, y el día que fuera a existir algún proyecto de ese tipo, lo primero que haríamos es comentarlo con las comunidades, con los ecologistas y con todas las personas interesadas, pero por el momento, no hay ningún proyecto abarque esta generación de energía eléctrica en el Río Usumacinta, así que, para nosotros esta visita es fundamental, es muy importante”.
In Prensa Libre (Guatemala), an editorial on three themes that Mexican President Fox and Guatemalan President Berger will consider in their upcoming meeting. The third is the hydroelectric plan for the Usumacinta. The writer finds it unjustifiable and calls for the leaders to clarify their intentions.
Prensa Libre - EDITORIAL Los tres temas entre México y Guatemala
Eugenio Laris Alanis of the CFE presented this description of the future growth of the Mexican electrical system at the IDB in February. No mention of Boca del Cerro construction or bidding.
Recent Developments and Business Opportunities - Mexican Electrical Sector
From Prensa Libre. A number of Guatemalan environmentalists are quoted.
Noticias - Represas en la mira de ambientalistas
Hate to post this, but it's news. It happened at a town demonstration, in a driveby shooting, not on the river. No one killed.
Prensa Libre - Disparan a dos manifestantes - Ambientalistas celebraban Día contra las represas
IndyMedia has more details:
Sixty people opposed to the dams met on March 14, International Day for Rivers and against Dams, in Libertad de los Flores, Petén, Guatemala.
They discussed the creation of community media centers to oppose the Plan Puebla Panama, and issued this statement:
As I look forward to my river trip with Ron Canter in 2 weeks, I realize that I've never posted a link to other work he has done in the Maya region. He's too modest to suggest it, so I've only now stumbled across this page on his previous studies of Maya navigation.
Canoeing Maya Waterways with Native Trails
From La Prensa, Panama:
Actualícese con La Prensa Web - México no construirá más presas en Chiapas
SAN CRISTOBAL DE LAS CASAS, México (EFE). —El Gobierno mexicano informó de que no hay planes para construir ninguna presa hidroeléctrica en el estado de Chiapas, sureste del país, en ocho años, informó el obispo de San Cristóbal, Felipe Arizmendi.
El religioso indicó que recibió una carta del director de la empresa estatal Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE), Alfredo Elías Ayub, en la que le asegura que "no se va a construir ninguna presa en el estado de Chiapas" entre el 2003 y 2012.
"Después de revisar nuestros programas, hemos constatado que ni el proyecto de almacenamiento del río Usumacinta ni el de Itsantún están incluidos en el Programa de Obras e Inversiones del Sector Eléctrico", responde al obispo el director de la CFE en un oficio.
El prelado dijo que es muy importante que el pueblo chiapaneco sepa que hay una declaración oficial de la CFE respecto a las inquietudes de posibles construcciones de nuevas presas hidroeléctricas en el estado, como se había denunciado.
BUT we have recently heard a different account of CFE's plans. We are awaiting a confirmation.
I missed this, getting ready to leave. From the New York Times:
Are All These Dams Really Necessary?
Next post from Guatemala. Nos Vemos!
Mexico and Honduras have signed a pact to exchange technical information, as a step toward the goals of Plan Puebla Panama - a unified electrical grid between Mexico and Central America.
OEM en Línea - CFE y Honduras firman convenio
A note for Ron Canter - we need this for the Usumacinta. Topography, cultural info, hydrology. 3 layers on one map.
Some background on what we are up against, and who our allies might be. Fox's environmental reorganization in September 2003.
Politicos Replace Technocrats in Mexico Shakeup
I don't think I'm really in the market anymore (though I'd love to have something you could put through as baggage), but this is a good survey of what's out there for river trips. I'm not as brave or skilled as Ron with his folding canoe.
Paddler Magazine Online : Pushing Rubber on the Green
The heroic work of Marie-Claire Paiz has resulted in an agreement by USAID to directly support the protection of the Sierra del Lacandon, in partnership with the Defensores. Javier Marquez has recently become director, and Marie-Claire has taken on new responsibilities with the Nature Conservancy in Mexico.
For those unfamiliar with the struggle to protect the Maya Biosphere, here's a good overview:
Prized Maya Biosphere is Under Attack
Conference at the Interamerican Development Bank, Washington, D.C.
Free. Register before Feb. 6.
PDF Documents in support of the conference:
According to this report, the leaders of Mexico and Guatemala will meet on March 23. They will discuss, among other things, immigration along their border, and the development of hydroelectric plants on the Usumacinta.
El Economista - Fox y Berger analizarán migración ilegal
UPDATE: This story has disappeared from the Mural website. It can be found for now in the Google cache:
mural.com --- Pacta Fox visita oficial a Guatemala
The text is also posted below (click MORE)
Pacta Fox visita oficial a Guatemala
El trasiego de ilegales, la inseguridad fronteriza y el desarrollo de empresas hidroeléctricas
Grupo Reforma/AFP
Guatemala, Guatemala (28 enero 2004).- El Presidente de México, Vicente Fox, realizará una visita oficial a Guatemala el próximo 23 de marzo para tratar temas bilaterales, entre estos el tema de la migración ilegal, informó este miércoles una fuente oficial.
El canciller guatemalteco, Jorge Briz, dijo que durante la visita a Guatemala, Fox y Berger también analizarán el desarrollo de proyecto conjuntos en materia de generación de energía.
De acuerdo con Briz, los mandatarios analizarán el trasiego de ilegales, la inseguridad fronteriza y el desarrollo de empresas hidroeléctricas sobre el río Usumacinta, que sirve de límite a una parte de los 967 kilómetros de frontera que comparten ambos países.
De acuerdo con datos oficiales, a lo largo de la zona fronteriza conviven más de un millón de mexicanos y medio millón de guatemaltecos, quienes tejen a diario lazos de comercio, cultura y amistad.
Pese a los intercambios sociales cotidianos, la línea divisoria enfrenta desafíos y riesgos como el crimen transnacional organizado que aprovecha la alta porosidad en esa zona para el tráfico de drogas, el contrabando, el tráfico ilegal de personas, la depredación arqueológica y ambiental.
The most recent public statements by the CFE about plans for Boca del Cerro dam emphasize that the water levels will never rise above the normal high water mark. That is supposed to calm fears of widespread flooding and loss of land. But this unnatural constant high level has its own consequences.
The following article mentions the work of Peter Bayley, who is just finishing a term as visiting Fulbright Scholar in Villahermosa, Mexico. I am looking forward to his findings regarding the centlas of the Usumacinta.
World Conservation 2/99 - Barriers to Diversity (pdf)
Nothing alters a river as much as a dam, and nothing is more destructive of riverine and riparian species.
...What ecologist Peter Bayley terms the "flood pulse advantage" is the main reason for the astonishing diversity and productivity of rivers and floodplains...Annual floods on tropical rivers are estimated to produce fish yields a hundred times that of rivers without floodplains.
...Dams are therefore the main reason why fully one-fifth of the world's 9000 recognized freshwater fish species have become extinct, threatened or endangered in recent years. The percentage rises in countries which have been most heavily dammed.
More on the "flood pulse" can be found in these studies:
Sustaining Freshwater Ecosystems
The Flood Pulse Concept in Wetland Restoration (pdf)
Mekong River Commission - Floods are vital for fisheries - Catch and Culture
The flood pulse also affects plant and tree growth:
International Conference "Tree Rings and People"
And here is an abstract of the paper in which Peter Bailey and others first defined the flood pulse concept:
The flood pulse concept in river-floodplain systems - Abstract (pdf)"
There's a concern that believing the current CFE statements (that they only plan low structures that won't change the river) will allow them time to regroup and begin building large dams instead. Even if they build only low structures, there may be unintended damage to habitat and archaeological evidence.
Chris Shaw presents these concerns in terms that are very similar to those on the TropicoVerde website, quoted below.
Chis Shaw:
CFE's current claims that no large storage dam is planned, ... would eliminate, at least in their minds, the archaeology and terrestrial flooding arguments, as well as some of the hurricane and earthquake concerns. They can also say they have kept their promise to increase energy generation.
Four or five low-heads, however, would destroy a one-of-a-kind aquatic ecosystem about whch almost nothing is known, and probably wipe out other undescribed aquatic species (to say nothing of affecting the centlas). They would probably also destroy a certain number of river's edge archaeological structures, as well as navigation for local travel and toursism. And in any case, where are the environmental impact reports? What about the impact of new roads, for instance?
We need to make a statement that low-heads in the main corridor don't get them off the hook, and that last year we rejected any bank-to bank structures. We need to assert that archaeology and patrimony are about more than "treasure," i.e, tombs etc, and as much involved with preserving the ancient landscape, which records the old culture in its whole cloth.
TropicoVerde:
Tropicoverde pagina 4 del boletin
El gobierno de México ha cambiado en repetidas ocasiones la altura de la represa de Boca del Cerro. Documentos recientes de la CFE afirma que “cambió la concepción de los esquemas de sus proyectos hidroeléctricos a presas de baja altura, procurando así proyectos ambientalmente sustentables, que no afecten el patrimonio cultural del país, ni inunden grandes extensiones de terreno” (CFE,2003a).
Además plantea que el proyecto Boca del Cerro tendrá una altura de 48.5 m (originalmente era 135 m) y con este cambio afirman que: “no involucra territorio de la Republica de Guatemala, no inunda la Selva Lacandona, no impide el paso de nutrientes y organismos acuáticos hacia los pantanos de Centla, debido a que al operar al “hilo de corriente” se garantiza el escurrimiento natural del río, tal y como se ha presentado históricamente”(CFE,2003b).
Sin embargo, la realidad de otros proyectos de represas demuestra que siempre hay grandes impactos ambientales, como el impedimento de la migración de las especies que viven en el río y la alteración de las condiciones físicas, químicas y biológicas de las cuencas. Entre los impactos sociales cabe mencionar daños a sitios arqueológicos, desplazamiento de la población e impedimento a la libre navegación del río. Es importante resaltar que aún cuando se cambie la altura de Boca del Cerro el proyecto global es muy cuestionable.
Here is the website for International Shared Aquifer Resource Management (ISARM), and initiative of UNESCO and the International Association of Hydrogeologists. At the bottom of the page is a link to a pdf, a report on ISARM Americas, that mentions the Usumacinta.
Managing International Aquifers
I don't get many comments in this weblog, but some recent ones have started an interesting debate over the effect of a dam at Boca del Cerro on communities nearby. A town leader at Chinikiha (which is now called Reforma Agraria) has written in twice, once in response to a comment defending the dam, to outline the danger of such a dam to his community.
Here are the original posts with the news articles that prompted the debate:
The Daily Glyph: Proceso reports letter, Chinikiha
The Daily Glyph: News on Boca del Cerro Dam
And the three comments:
Me interesa el documental que tienen redactado, y el gran interes que se le ha dado a esta zona , pese a que ya desde hace muchos años la dependencia de INAH jamas se ha preocupado por restaurar ni mucho menos.
Mi nombre es Guiilermo Castañeda ...y soy el actual COMISAIADO EJIDAL de este ejido que actualmente se le conoce como REFORMA AGRARIA, un saludo y si en algo nos pudieran ayudar para sobresalir en este potencial turistico que tenemos apagado en nuestra zona desde hace muchos años......se los agradeceremos
sinceramente.....guillermo
Lei el articulo y la verdad no entiendo su punto de discusion, Primero :dicen que los proyectos hidrologicos sobre el Usumacinta inundaran gran cantidad de terrenos y sitios aequeologicos ,sin embargo ese problema se soluciona bajando la altura de la presa,, y cambiando el tipo de turbinas( con lo que se aseguraria que el lago artificial de las presas no sobrepasara el nivel inundado naturalmente por el usumacinta en epoca de lluvias),,,Segundo: en esa zona los pueblos malviven de la agricultura (el maiz cuesta 500 la tonelada, cuesta producirlo 3000) y con la implementacion de los embalses como zona piscicola sin duda mejorarian su nivel de vida,,,
tercero: el proyecto boca del cerro no es nuevo ni exclusivo del PPP,,,es un proyecto que data de los años 70´s y esta contemplado en el original Plan nacional de desarrollo...
cuarto: les doy la razon en el sentido de que los pobladores deben de ser consultados pues son sus tierras en donde viven, pero las presas son vitales precisamente para evitar que mediante plantas termoelectricas (queman combustible fosil(chapopote o carbon mineral y/o vegetal))el medio ambiente se siga contaminando,,,si se ponen a pensar un poco o se molestan en profundizar en lo que es un proyecto hidraulico, se darian cuenta que es la unica manera ademas de los campos de generacion eolica y por mareas de no contaminar ni destruir nuestras reservas petroleras que tan necesarias son para el desarrollo de mexico....
atte
Ing. Juan francisco de León Ibarra; UNAM(CU )
Si los comentarios que menciona el ing. de la unam tuviesen gran impacto dentro de mis paisanos les aseguro que dijeran que esta loco con respecto a su mencionado proyecto de crianza de peces ( piscicultura ) ....ya que no tiene ni idea de lo que representa el romper una cultura como la nuestra ...si cosechar 1000 kg. de maiz nos representa mas de lo que vale en el mercado...eso para nosotros nos tiene sin cuidado ya que comer lo que nosotros mismos producimos es una tradicion y es un honor para nuestro pueblo
impidan por favor esas construcciones hidrologicas ya que por otra parte enterrarian bajo no se cuantos metros del agua, a nuestros ancestros....los mayas.....
mi pueblo y yo defenderemos nuestra zona arqueologica a capa y espada
guillermo castañeda
comisariado ejidal
CHINIKIHA....CHIAPAS saludos...
Links to projects inviting outside investment, location of plants, successful bidders.
A search on the site for "Boca del Cerro" brings this up:
Search results under: Boca del Cerro string
1 articles were found
Press room
1.- January 28, 2003
NO PROJECT IS UNDER WAY TO BUILD A MAJOR STORAGE DAM AT USUMACINTA RIVER
And the January 28 date links to a story from Feb. 6 about Nicaragua, no mention of Boca del Cerro.
But a little digging finds something that's not news, but the official line we've heard before, in as few words as possible:
Mexico City, Federal District, January 28, 2003
PRESS RELEASE
NO PROJECT IS UNDER WAY TO BUILD A MAJOR STORAGE DAM AT USUMACINTA RIVER
* CFE cancelled a project with those characteristics several years ago
The Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE) does not have plans for any project to build a major storage dam at the Usumacinta river, in the region known as Boca del Cerro, and it has been several years since a project with those characteristics was cancelled.
The company’s technical staff is studying in this region the probable usage of the river’s flow to generate hydropower, having as a restriction the utilization of the river in its natural flow.
The progress of the studies will be discussed at all times with the relevant authorities.
Not Boca del Cerro, but La Parota and El Cajon.
Business News Americas - CFE could invite bids on US$1.7bn hydro projects in 2004 - Mexico
How do we make the case to CFE that it is in their interest to preserve the Usumacinta?
Earthwatch has a number of publications on business and biodiversity:
Publications of Earthwatch Europe
CFE is proud that many of their plants conform to an international standard - ISO 14001 - of environmental responsibility:
El Universal Online 1-5-2004 Cumple CFE con normas ambientales
But what is ISO-14001?
EPA - Environmental Management Systems/ISO 14001 - Frequently Asked Questions
Wiley - Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management
What is greener management, environmental management? Does this guy know?
RGU: Staff: Business Management - Peter Strachan
How about the World Commission on Dams?
WCD and ISO - Ripple Effects: WCD & ISO
Common Ground for Dams? DAMS Newsletter 7, August 2000
WCD - Dams and Development: An Overview
1. Dams have made an important and significant contribution to human development, and the benefits derived from them have been considerable
2. In too many cases an unacceptable and often unnecessary price has been paid to secure those benefits, especially in social and environmental terms, by people displaced, by communities downstream, by taxpayers and by the natural environment.
3. Lack of equity in the distribution of benefits has called into question the value of many dams in meeting water and energy development needs when compared with the alternatives
4. By bringing to the table all those whose rights are involved and who bear the risks associated with different options for water and energy resources development, the conditions for a positive resolution of competing interests and conflicts are created
5. Negotiating outcomes will greatly improve the development effectiveness of water and energy projects by eliminating unfavourable projects at an early stage, and by offering as a choice only those options that key stakeholders agree represent the best ones to meet the needs in question
Navigation Surveys, Salvage Archaeology, and the Nile
While in Florida, I read Rex Keating's "Nubian Rescue", which is not an episode from the Arabian Nights. It summarized the Nubian Campaign, a portion of UNESCO's massive salvage operation racing against the filling of Lake Nasser behind Aswan High Dam on the Nile. Though it was an enormous, well-funded international effort that relocated Abu Simel and put ancient Meroe on the map, it could not save some great sites.
For me, it was a really sobering look at what could be in store for the Usumacinta and what might have to be done. Chris [Shaw's] reports from Rosa Bacelis about goings on at Boca' sound ominous. I'm going to just crib from the book, with an occasional aside. The quotes speak for themselves.
(Text continues)
UNESCO drew up a list of the principal threats to world cultural property. "First among them, and the most spectacular, is dam construction. In America, the Missouri River drainage plan has submerged all the known sites of five major prehistoric cultures." Subsidiary works, such as access roads, worker camps, and quarries for rock fill can be equally destructive [paraphrased].
From Dr. Vittorino Veronese's UNESCO appeal on 3-8-1960: "It is not easy to choose between temples and crops. I would be sorry for any man called on to make that choice who could not do so without a feeling of despair. These monuments do not belong solely to the countries who hold them in trust. Treasures of universal value are entitled to universal protection."
The Nubian campaign focused on a 100 mile stretch between Faras and the Dal Cataract. They fielded thirty expeditions from 24 countries from 1663 to 1971. "The Second Cataract, of all the many reaches of the Nile in its four thousand mile journey from source to sea, was by far the most beautiful. Rapids and islands followed in bewildering variety until at Semna, forty miles upstream from the Rock of Abusir, the granite closes in on the river, driving it into a channel less than fifty yards wide. From then on the landscape was convulsed into a series of ridges known in Arabic as Batn el Hagar the Belly of Stone and never was anything more aptly named. From Semna to the Dal Cataract, a distance of 55 miles, the Nile ran swiftly between steep walls of rock."
Though one is in the desert and the other in selva, the Nile struck me as remarkably like the Usumacinta. Both were swift, challenging, and well-used river routes. The Belly of Stone corresponds to the gorge-bound Usu' from Yaxchilan to La Linea. The lengths are even the same. The Usu' canyons follow downstream just as the rapids of the Second Cataract do on the Nile. Each had a parallel overland route: the Usu's was through Piedras Negras and La Pasadita, and the Nile's was the Nubian Road.
"Wherever there was a perilous stretch of water there one would find a(n Egyptian) fortress. They represented military engineering on a scale never before attempted in the ancient world and never to be equaled." The Nile had twelve forts ranged along the Second Cataract. The Usu' valley also has its fortresses: Panhale, La Pasadita, probably Yaxchilan, and maybe others.
Buhen - "The main defensive wall with rectangular towers projecting from it at regular intervals was 5 metres thick and 11 metres high. The number of bricks that went into its construction reached the staggering figure of ten millions. Piercing the bastions were double rows of loopholes, one set for standing and the other for kneeling archers. Buhen was virtually impregnable and nothing short of artillery could have breached its defenses. The architects of 1900 BC were every bit as imaginative and in some ways more advanced than the designers of the fortresses of our Middle Ages."
Mirgissa - "Whenever I think of Nubia, it is Mirgissa Fortress that comes to mind. That improbable mass of brickwork perched above the wildest and most dangerous stretch of the Second Cataract fires the imagination." Not only was it the largest of the Egyptian forts, its outer works sprawled for miles enclosing a river town. "The sandy plain south of the fort was never examined. Had the docks and warehouses been found they could have yielded invaluable information on the maritime and commercial activities of ancient Egypt."
"It is a great misfortune that not one of the forts has been preserved. For close to four thousand years they resisted the abrasive winds of Nubia and it is hard to credit that now in the year of 1974 not one of these absolutely unique structures survives." Being of mud brick, they could not be moved to higher ground. In the rising lake waters, the mud bricks dissolved into just mud.
As the surveys progressed, data accumulated on the river itself. At Mirgissa "the French Mission actually found a slipway which had been used for dragging ships. It took the form of a roadway laid with wooden poles rather like the sleepers of a railroad, each pole being slightly curved. The poles had long been eaten by termites but the dry mud had faithfully retained their imprints just as it had retained the impressions of grooves made by the keels of the ships and the actual footprints of sailors who had pulled the vessels along the slippery surface some forty centuries ago. When I saw the slipway the sand was already drifting over it but still I was able to follow its course due north for three kilometers. The dangerous rapids nearby can be navigated in reasonable safety only during the period of high water between the end of July and November, and the slipway had been constructed to outflank them and make navigation possible throughout the year."
"There can be little doubt that similar slipways would have been found in other dangerous reaches of the Cataract had the archaeologists conducting the Survey known what to look for. All the fortresses must have had quays or even harbors. At Buhen and Serra forts the quays were in situ."
"A careful study of aerial photographs of the Second Cartaract had revealed artificial spurs (wing dams) among several rapids and it is entirely conceivable that had Mills and his colleagues known of the existence of such spurs, which are difficult to spot on the ground, they could well have located and mapped others during their survey of the river and its islands. It is an opportunity lost which can never recur since the whole region is now submerged."
"To sum up then: Professor Vercoutter believes that in the reign of Amenemhet III two massive spur walls were built over the natural barrier at Semna and a high level of water was maintained by other spur walls at Uronarti and Askut, and so on down the length of the Cataract. We are drawn to the remarkable conclusion that one of the great rivers of the world was effectively brought under control nearly forty centuries ago."
The bottom line is that a navigation survey of the entire section of the Nile was badly needed but never done. Only bits and pieces were recorded. Hopefully we'll do better on the Usu'.
Other lessons that I got from UNESCO's Nubian Campaign were:
- An archaeological salvage effort is a huge job, requiring financial help from many nations, multiple teams on the ground, and a long term commitment. Any one project, like a navigation survey or dig, is only a small part.
- A lot more sites turn up than are known at the start. In one part of Nubia they started with a dozen and ended up with 1000, and that was in a desert where you can see things. Think how many may be along the Usumacinta hidden in the selva.
- No matter how good the resources, things are left undone, some for lack of resources, but many because a need was recognized too late.
- Last, and most heartbreaking, the biggest and best are going to be destroyed. All that will survive are documents from the surveys.
1-22-04, Ron Canter, with many quotes from Rex Keating
A search for " Mexico hidroelectrico" on Spanish Google turned up this, from Jan. 6 of this year.
Las dimensiones energética y ambiental en las negociaciones del ALCA
For the first time, the government has given the green light to privately owned hydroelectric plants in Mexico.
EL INFORMADOR - Hidroeléctricas privadas van a operar en México
CIUDAD DE MEXICO.- Por primera vez operarán en México plantas hidroeléctricas privadas, que venderán la energía que produzcan a la industria y a municipios, bajo la figura de autoabastecedores o exportadores.
El Gobierno federal dio luz verde a la construcción de este tipo de plantas de mediana escala, y ofreció concesionar los cauces y presas para que el sector privado pueda operar.
La estrategia fue adoptada a finales del año pasado, luego de la parálisis del proyecto de Reforma del Sector Eléctrico, que obligó al Gobierno federal a ofrecer otras alternativas, dentro del marco legal, al empresariado nacional y extranjero, como la construcción y operación de hidroeléctricas.
I've posted some of these links before, but now I'm collecting them for my own benefit. I hope to be in Piedras Negras, on the Guatemalan shore of the Usumacinta River, in a month or so.
Click MORE for a list of reports on Piedras Negras and the area close by.
And click the photo above for a larger image.
UPDATE 1/19: I missed a link to the FAMSI Piedras Negras photographic archives. You'll find it with the rest of the links.
All of these are reports submitted to FAMSI, which awarded the authors research grants.
Stephen Houston and Hector Escobedo - The Piedras Negras Project, 1997 Season
Zachary Nelson - The Growth of Piedras Negras, Guatemala
Charles Golden - Sierra del Lacandón Regional Archaeology Project
First Field Season 2003
Arturo Rene Munoz - Ceramics at Piedras Negras, Guatemala
FAMSI - Research Facility - Photographic Archive of the Piedras Negras Project, 1997-2000
Comments resulting from an Institute of the Americas conference on Mexican energy needs.
EnergyPulse - Mexico's Energy Sector: Optimizing Energy for Global Competition
It's the most famous Maya representation of a canoe. This is Linda Schele's drawing of the incised bone design, showing a number of gods paddling a dugout. (Click drawing for a larger image)
Just a little inspiration for the spring Usumacinta trips.
Here's a link to the full-size drawing on the FAMSI website:
FAMSI - Schele Archives - Tikal canoe(JPEG Image, 3090x2075 pixels)
And for Constantine, the link to all the Schele archives. Make sure also to check out Justin Kerr's Mayavase Database - there's a link on the same page.
President Bush and Mexican President Fox may begin patching up their differences tomorrow. Recent government statements out of Chiapas seem to be aimed at minimizing the perceived threat of the rebels, with an eye toward increasing foreign investment. The impact on the Usumacinta River, both in immigration and investment terms, bears watching. (This Times article requires free registration)
New York Times - A New Order: Imagining Life Without Illegal Immigrants
The race for the resources in the Usumacinta watershed:
ADITAL :: Grupos empresariales disputan recursos de la selva Lacandona
Tallahassee Democrat | 01/05/2004 | Migrant Mayans largely unnoticed in U.S.
This is far from the Usumacinta, but an opponent of dams died this week. He was George Fisher, a political cartoonist in Arkansas who frequently lampooned the Army Corps of Engineers and other builders of dams.
First, two appreciations of the man:
The Cartoonist Who Fought Dams Hard (washingtonpost.com)
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette :: Opinion
And a gallery of his work:
News & Politics | Remembering George Fisher | December 19, 2003
A summary of the importance of the Usumacinta, and the history of plans for dams on the river through the end of 2002, on the website of the Unión de Grupos Ambientalistas.
UGAM - Usumacinta Realidad Amenazada
So far we have concentrated on the Usumacinta upstream from Boca del Cerro. Below the proposed dam site is one of the most important wetlands in the region.
Terrestrial Ecoregions -- Usumacinta mangroves (NT1437)
Long-term threats to the region include overexploitation of resources, continuous industrial pollution of the waters due to human overpopulation, oil extraction, and the possible construction of building a hydroelectric plant that would impact a large part of the aquatic habitat. According to IUCN (Scott & Carbonell 1986), the Gulf Coast contains the largest area of wetlands in North America.
I looked at this several years ago but now have a little more experience on the river to bring to it. Teobert Maler was one of the giants of Maya exploration and photography. Joel Skidmore, creator of Mesoweb, has given us the best introduction to Maler's work and travels.
Here is the 5-year plan to protect the Usumacinta watershed, released December 18 by Conservation International and Pronatura, Chiapas. It is funded by USAID-Mexico.
No mention of dams anywhere.
Programa para el Manejo de la Cuenca del Río Usumacinta para un Desarrollo Económico con una Sustentabilidad Ambiental (Word document)
Thanks to Jose Yunis at NRDC who brought this document to my attention. On this page is a link to a pdf entitled "Programa de obras e inversiones del sector eléctrico 2002-2011". Note: it is over 100 pages long and may take some time to download on a slow connection. The Boca del Cerro dam is referred to in several places, confirming that it is still being studied.
Cambio de Michoacán - Polémica por tema de la reforma energética
Project Concept Document: Mesoamerican Biological Corridor (Word doc)
ENEL LAUNCHES A NEW HYDROELECTRIC PLANT IN GUATEMALA (Enel) - Pressi.com
IRN just issued a report on large hydroelectric dams, arguing that they have too many negative impacts to be considered viable renewable energy systems.
A link to the pdf of the report can be found at the bottom of this page:
International Rivers Network Report - 12 Reasons to Exclude Large Hydro from Renewables Initiatives
A year ago, Chris Shaw, Alonso Mendez, Moises Morales and I joined Homero and Betty Aridjis in Mexico City. At a press conference, we announced a letter opposing dams on the Usumacinta River, which we then delivered to President Vicente Fox. Well, we dropped it off at Los Pinos, the Mexican White House. Got a signed receipt. Had lunch.
The letter was published in full the next day in Reforma. I believe it played a small part in the shelving of the dam plan, although feasibility studies, and our opposition, continue.
Here's a short note in German, from der Standard, a year ago. Missed it then. Glad the word got around.
derStandard.at - Protest gegen Stausee-Bau in Mexikos Urwald
Yahoo! News - Belize PM Stands by Controversial Dam Project
CBC News - Canadian-backed dam in Belize has support but could be delayed by Britain
Another company making "low impact kinetic turbines."
FREE FLOW TURBINES - RENEWABLE ENERGY
Here's an underwater turbine field that is being deployed in New York City, in the East River off of Roosevelt Island. It uses both ebb and flow tides, at a speed much lower than the flow of the Usumacinta.
TURBINE SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT, EAST RIVER, NEW YORK CITY :: VerdantPower.com
Last week, at an energy conference in Mexico City, a friend of Rios Mayas met Sr. Eugenio Laris of CFE under whose supervision the planning for the Rio Usumacinta is progressing. A note from this friend reads as follows:
"He told me that CFE is not planning any construction of dams or other structures that would be intrusive.They are looking for ways to have the natural flow of the river provide some energy...I told him that CFE should get ahead of the curve and meet with the people who are concerned about what they may be up to on the river. He agreed that that would be a good idea."
We've heard something of this before, but it is good to hear it in a fairly direct fashion. With this in mind, we begin collecting information on submersible hydroelectric turbines and other non-intrusive technologies in preparation for a meeting with Sr. Eugenio Laris.
Here's a note on a prticularly efficient turbine design:
New Turbine Can Extract Energy from Flowing Water
This page - Tidepool | Tapping Gravity - has this summary of Gorlov's work:
...Gorlov says a collection of his turbines could be assembled in a grid to create a "power farm" for larger scale generation. He recently designed a system for the South Korean government that could generate 80 megawatts - enough to power 80,000 houses without the need for a dam. Silent and with little disruption to the estuary or river, Gorlov's turbines could be constructed at a cost of just $400 to $600 per kilowatt when put into full production.
Here's another prototype that was tested on the St. Lawrence Seaway for two years:
Davis Hydro Turbine Prototypes
One issue with conventional dams is the free passage of fish. Approaches to insure this (in this case, for salmon) are described here:
Concepts to Allow Salmonid Downstream Passage Through Hydropower Facilities
This overview from the Union of Concerned Scientists points out the problems of large hydroelectric dams and the case for improving run-of-the-river turbine technology.
How Hydroelectric Energy Works
And this PDF has another good overview of microhydro systems:
Some background on two of the members of Rios Mayas - a note by Chris Shaw in Outside magazine online from July 2000. It describes the opening of the 700 mile Northern Forest Canoe Trail, which Ron Canter helped establish.
Outside Online: Exploring - or Through Paddling - the Riverine AT
This November 2000 report highlights the arguments against large dams.
Dams & Development - A new framework for decision-making
Follow-up activities to the WCD Report
A huge dam project, expected to sell electricity "as far away as Mexico".
< *The Boruca Hydro-electric Project* >
From the Interamerican Development Bank website.
Sustainable Development Department
And a 1999 pdf on dams in Central America:
The Future Of Large Dams In Latin America and the Caribbean: IDB's Energy Strategy for the Region
Under the direction of Marie-Claire Paiz, this organization is doing heroic work to protect a large part of the Guatemalan shores of the Usumacinta. Here is their page on the Sierra del Lacandon Park.
Parque Nacional Sierra del Lacandón
From Fred Scatena at University of Pennsylvania.
Sierra del Lacandon - project overview - hydrology
Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar.
From JPL and NASA. Charles Golden is in talks to use it to get a detailed scan of the Usumacinta, looking for archaeological sites. One part of building the case for protection of the watershed.
A profile of NRDC's Geographic Information Systems (GIS) manager, Joep Luijten, whose maps of the Usumacinta with possible flooding are helping make the case against the dams. But where are the maps?
NRDC: OnEarth Magazine, Summer 2003 - Fieldwork
Excellent maps can be found here:
Sierra del Lacandon - resources - maps
Red Cross response to recent flooding, in Chiapas and several other states.
Red Cross Assists in Mexico Flood Relief Operations (text only)
Protests against the Boca del Cerro plan continue. Here, the Peteneros against the dams.
Prensa Libre - OBJETAN HIDROELÉCTRICAS - Comunidades rurales peteneras temen inundaciones
Based at the University of Florida law school, this is home base for Tom Ankersen, who has worked on legal frameworks for the protection of biosphere reserves in Central America. I think I posted the link to his paper on binational cooperation before, but it's still useful.
Center for Governmental Responsibility - Publications
The Usumacinta River: Building a Framework for Cooperation between Mexico and Guatemala.
Overview of immigrant smuggling on Mexico's southern border, and recent attempts at reform.
An entire CD of information on 154 watersheds of the world, online.
Water Resources eAtlas - Watersheds of the World - NA15 San Pedro & Usumacinta
And the pdf download version (somewhat better detail):
IUCN: Sustainable Use - Sustainable Use throughout IUCN: Mesoamerica
IUCN SSC SUSG - Programme Framework 2002 - 2004
Here's a photomontage by Trópico Verde showing one conception of what the Usumacinta at Boca del Cerro could look like once a dam is constructed. (click for larger version)
I found it on this site:
Parks Watch - Strengthening Parks To Safeguard Biodiversity
Parks Watch is a project of the Center for Tropical Conservation at Duke University. Also from their site, this map of fires in the region in April, 2003:
Links to a number of pdf documents, from a conference in July of this year. On the website of the North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation.
On the site, a study from Veracruz:
Small Hydro Opportunities in Mexico
In Mexico City, Nov 10-11 2003. Sponsored by the Institute of the Americas.
Mexico Energy Roundtable: Optimizing Energy for Global Competition
From the Organization of American States:
Unit for Sustainable Development and Environment
Transboundary Water Management Projects
Integrated Water Resources Management in Mesoamerica (1998) pdf
And a 313 page pdf that looks like required reading if we intend to take on the Usumacinta binational effort:
Integrated Regional Development Planning: Guidelines and Case Studies from OAS Experience (1984) pdf
"Reviewing 20 years of experience with integrated regional development planning is a humbling exercise. Mistakes and failed plans stand out clearly with the perspective of time, but so do the occasional successfully implemented projects that flowed from the plans...In these accounts, we believe, are information and ideas of use to developing-country governments from the local to the national levels, sectoral agencies, river basin authorities, regional development corporations, other technical assistance groups, and - most of all - field study managers. "
This group seems to be inactive since 2002, but there are resources on their website and information on conferences that were held.
Inter-American Water Resources Network
From York University, a history of the return of Guatemalan refugees to their communities. It includes good background on some of the cooperatives on the east bank of the Usumacinta.
“SOMOS DE LA TIERRA” LAND AND THE GUATEMALA REFUGEE RETURN (pdf)
NOTE: The original source of this paper no longer has it online. I have archived it on this site.
Forbes.com: Mexico utility to issue $533 million in peso debt
CFE said the offering has generated "an enormous interest from investors" and that proceeds will finance various power- generation projects.
Here's a photo, from Trópico Verde, of the power lines being cut through La Cojolita, the latest fragmenting of the Lacandon/Peten forest. This is in Tabasco, Mexico, near the Guatemalan border.
Inter-American Development Bank Loan proposal as of May 2003
IADB Guatemala - Plan Puebla Panama Guatemala-Mexico Electricity Interconnection Project (pdf)
I just received more disheartening news from Roan McNab on the situation in the Peten. His full letter can be found by clicking MORE below.
And based on a comment in his letter I am looking into the PROARCA program of USAID which is putting money into preserving the Usumacinta watershed. I'll put links I find below:
USAID: Central America Regional Program
...work will support Central American countries' efforts to monitor and protect key watersheds, among these the Usumacinta border area watershed between Guatemala and Mexico
Principal Contractors, Grantees, or Agencies: Key partners include: a consortium formed by The Nature Conservancy (prime), the World Wildlife Foundation (sub), and Rainforest Alliance (sub), for activities to improve management of protected areas and to promote market access for environmentally sound products and services; Associates in Rural Development, Inc., for promotion of less polluting technologies to municipalities and private sector industries; and a grant to SICA and the Central American Council for Environmental Development (CCAD) to strengthen environmental management in the region. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is a collaborating agency that supports work on the legal and regulatory frameworks. A planned cooperative agreement will provide subgrants to Central American organizations collaborating under PROARCA.
IADB Executive Profile for Regional Dialog on the Environment - Meso-American Sub-Region
Amigos,
I regret to inform you that it appears the situation in and around
Macabilero is hot again. In Sept armed Mexican loggers entered into a
shootout with SEPRONA and Army personnel sent to patrol the park. Young
man Joe Soto, the student developing the Jag survey, had found the area
full of xateros from Mex and Gua, and rumors of well armed dudes.
Apparently the Defensores (FDN) were not aware (?), as they had not
mentioned any of these problems when we proposed staking out $10K of
cameras on trees in the area. Now, a shootout and confrontations later,
we are left in the position where FDN proposed Soto keep working there,
getting rides into the area with the army on the FDN boat, and that he then stay there alone. We know only temporary accompanyment by law enforcement people will leave our guys very exposed, and more, what would illegal dudes think of the cameras. I am frankly a wee bit molesto that FDN has not heeded Soto's wishes, they are investing very little in the study, and certainly not their life, as Soto would be. He is the only one of them all who has been spending much time there in the field. He feels unsafe, so I respect that. So, unfortunately WCS will not be sending cameras there unless something changes fast.
I want to keep on with a study in the Macabilero area. But it needs to
be controlled first, and indeed because as Laguna del Tigre, the heart
of Lacandon is now becoming ingovernable, my hope is that the
cancellation of this investigation in the area will serve as a wake up
call. I for one am ready to pressure for more investment in protection,
but these monies were only for studying Jaguars. WCS can not play the
role of patroller in Lacandon, that is the place of FDN. In most places,
the current level of "protection" in "Protected Areas" is rediculous. No
wonder they fare poorly. How could they be expected to perform well? Six
guards for all of the forest of Calakmul, for example. Not even in the
US, where the standard of living is "high" do Nat Res officers go unarmed, and without the resources to reach the remote parts of their site. Lacandon, and the FDN then, need support to attain the number of guards, and the additional resources that make the protection of the park viable. A model exists in terms of guards and investment per
hectare....Tikal. And since the income for Lacandon and the saveable
part of Laguna del Tigre will not come from tourism as in Tikal, the
answer that seems most viable, and the only "permanent solution" lurking
anywhere within grasp is Trust Funds. Endowments for the parks.
My take on the Maya Forest is that unless something happens soon it will
continue to shrink and the world will awake too late after much has been
lost. To save it from the Guatemalan side, we need to hold the fort in
Lacandon, save the east of Laguna del Tigre, ensure the forest
concessions are well managed, and protect the north eastern part of the
Biosphere, Rio Azul, from an international road. The IDB seems to be
quite discombobulated in their planning for the Mundo Maya roads, and
other things. Many mistakes, and tremendous amounts of money spent
already. This is documentary material, bad planning, bad loans,
deception, ineptitude, and the vicious cycle of debt.... I have IDB docs
recently released which claim that they have consulted the communty of Uaxactun about the plans...I showed these docs to people, leaders, in Uaxactun and watched their faces melt first, then swell with anger as they read the name "Uaxactun" on a list of "Communities Consulted", and later in the doc, when they saw plans for Q44 million invested as a loan to the Guatemalan people to pave the 23 KM from Tikal to Uaxactun...and then the Q.5,500,000 for a "visitor's center" in the heart of the
village...concrete bastardass fake maya temples of the most gut-emptying
design...I have photos too.
Add to that all of the IDBs support now thrown behind the Hansen
proposal in Mirador ($450K first installment), and one has to wonder
what the big IDB plan is.
Word is that Proarca- the regional AID project, or perhaps a trilateral
US Gua Mex project of AID will soon be preparing plans to invest some $1
million in the Usumacinta cuenca. I asked why. No real response. By the
way, have you seen the fotos from Tropicoverde of the powerlines being
put in through La Cojolita on the Mex side of Lacandon?
It seems like more people willing to be proactive on behalf of the Maya
Forest in the US could help. Perhaps of all the Maya Forest, Guatemala
is the weakest link (outside of Mexican Chiapas which seems like a even
more complex situation). In Guatemala, groups are forming and people
joining hands. These exists a group of institutions and people currently
fighting to save the macaw nesting areas in Laguna del Tigre, perhaps
the last good section of that park that can be saved. This is being done under the threat of PNLdT being delisted from RAMSAR. I personally find such a threat from RAMSAR a good thing. RAMSAR is pissed that Guatemala has not lived up to its word after signing the convention, and applying
for/receiving Ramsar designation for LdT, the largest freshwater wetland
in Mesoamerica. In the Central Maya Biosphere area there is a group
forming to monitor the moves of the IDB, and inform all in the area of
the information, and misinformation, that exists. Then there is ACOFOP,
dogging Dr. Hansen through every step of realizing his dream of Mirador
Basin National Monument - that he has almost rammed down the throats of
the forest concessions advocates (ACOFOP). ACOFOP is supported by CALAS.
Then there is your group and all the riverheads. All interesting efforts.
How can all this ever get to critical mass?
We've made some small advances.
But much has been lost, and the outlook is not good frankly.
Any notions on how we can arrive at a "permanent solution" would be greatly appreciated...
Best Wishes,
RBM
Vicente Fox's government is negotiating with the PRI opposition for a constitutional amendment to allow more private investment, particularly in electrical generation.
Mexican government seeks political support for electricity sector reform
Elias Ayub, head of the Federal Electricity Commission, or CFE, reiterated that the sector requires investment of more than US$50 billion in the next decade to meet demand growth. The CFE is estimating demand will grow 5.4 percent annually in the next 10 years.
In its 2002-2011 investment outlook, the CFE estimates it will require around US$50 billion in investment by 2011, including more than US$20 billion for generation.
Charles Golden passed along a note he had gotten, about a break or brecha, cut by the Mexican electrical commission through an area known as La Cojolita. His correspondent commented on the danger of cutting through this critical connection between the Selva Lacandon in Mexico, and the Peten in Guatemala.
The continued fragmentation of the remaining forest in the region has been a growing crisis for the last 30 years. In a search for "La Cojolita" I ran across several interesting documents.
First, two descriptions of the situation and the efforts to protect the selva. They are a couple of years old but the destruction continues.
At the Crossroads of Conservation and Development - The Challenge of the Maya Forest (pdf)
Taller sobre Biodiversidad, Areas Naturales Protegidas y Corredores Biológicos (pdf)
Then, a feature on Mesoweb written by three top researchers in the Palenque area - Karen Bassie-Sweet, Julia Miller, and Alfonso Morales.
Mesoweb Features: Don Juan Mountain and the Road to Palenque (pdf)
The Sierra del Lacandon site, by Charles Golden and Fred Scatena of the University of Pennsylvania, has new maps and resources on the effect of dams of various heights on the Usumacinta watershed.
Sierra del Lacandon - resources - maps
Looking into GIS software for use on the river in the next year, I find ESRI dominant in the field but with little Macintosh support. Rivix is selling a specialized river package called RiverTools that looks promising.
The Usumacinta River is on the 2004 list of 100 most endangered sites, according to this note in Archaeology Magazine online
The links on this page to highlights of the list don't appear to be working. I'll look for the right link.
2004 List of 100 Most Endangered Sites Announced
UPDATE:
Here's the page at World Monuments Fund:
and the list itself:
World Monuments Watch list of 100 Most Endangered Sites (pdf)
A summary of Mexico's energy situation, from The Arizona Republic, in June of this year.
Mexico confronts energy dilemmas
I get fairly few comments on this weblog, but I have just gotten one from Ing. Ricardo Catalán, who delineates the potential damage to Guatemala from the proposed Boca del Cerro dam, and argues eloquently against it. (click More to read his comment)
Los gobiernos de Guatemala y México realizan acuerdos entre los presidentes como un procedimiento político, protocolario y sobre todo publicitario. Desafortunadamente tambien realizan acuerdos como el ppp u otros tratados internacionales mediante los cuales los países más grandes y más poderosos tratan de obtener más ventajas en todo sentido sobre los países pequeños y por consiguiente más débiles. Lo mencionado anteriormente se aplica exactamente al caso del aprovechamiento hidroeléctrico del río Usumacinta. Es conveniente hacer ver a las personas que ignoran algunos aspectos que no son equitativos y que pueden causar más daño a uno de los dos países, en este caso Guatemala.
1.- La naturaleza topográfica debido a la conformación geológica en territorio de Guatemala, en donde se presentan terrazas aluviales y en donde hace millones de años existía mar ya que se han encontrado fósiles marinos, por esta razón la topografía es bastante plana y extensa. Es tan plana que el caudal del río La Pasión que desemboca en el río Usumacinta, en época de invierno cuando se presentan crecidas, el cadual forma un remanso que no permite accesar libremente al río. Sin embargo, del lado oeste del río Usumacinta, en territorio mexicano, existen montañas más altas que la altura de las presas proyectadas.
2.- Lo mencionado anteriormente equivale a decir que la inundación que producirían los embalses, sería mínima del lado mexicano mientras que sería muy extensa del lado guatemalteco. Por lo que se considera justo que México compense a Guatemala con territorio mexicano para que ambos países se vean afectados y compensados territorialmente en la misma proporción.
3.- Por la misma razón mencionada los daños y perjuicios que se ocasionaría al territorio guatemalteco sería mucho mayor, ya que quedarían inundados sitios arqueológicos muy importantes para la historia de la humanidad, los cuales son tan extensos y misteriosos que no se ha logrado investigar cada uno de ellos muchos de los cuales aún permanecen dentro de la selva vírgen.
4.- Existen formaciones calizas que originan el karst y dolinas (ziguanes)que hacen flucuar las aguas del lago de Petén Itzá en donde se encuentra la ciudad de Flores. Si estas fluctuaciones se manifiestan actualmente, es de suponer que las mismas se incrementarían con el peso del volúmen del agua de los embalses, en perjuicio de miles de guatemaltecos.
5.- Guatemala posee más de 10,000 Mw. de reserva de energía hidroeléctrica distribuidos en más de 240 proyectos hidroeléctricos que fueron identificados y estudiados preliminarmente por la GTZ y el consorcio LAMI-LSF, en el inventario realizado por el Plan Maestro de Electrificación Nacional del Instituto Nacional de Electrificación. Por consiguiente Guatemala tiene suficientes fuentes de energía de donde podría recurrir cuando la necesaite.
6.- México es el más interesado en desarrollar el proyecto Usumacinta, por motivo que ya ha agotado casi todos sus recursos hidroeléctricos y ha tenido que importar energía electrica proveniente de los estados Unidos de Norteamérica y de Canadá.
7.- Nuestros pequeños países debemos de protegernos de no aceptar convenios que dañan su soberanía, su historia y su ecología.
From now through February 2004, entries are being accepted for a contest of photography of the Usumacinta River and its surroundings. Sponsored by the Consejo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes, el Consejo Estatal para la Cultura y las Artes de Chiapas, el Instituto de Cultura de Campeche y la Secretaría de Cultura, Recreación y Deporte de Tabasco a través del Programa de Desarrollo Cultural del Usumacinta
Ron Canter sent his comments on Fahsen's Dos Pilas report, published in June on the FAMSI site. (Click MORE for the rest of his letter)
Dave,
After reading through Federico Fahsen's summary of the history of the Pasion/Usu' river system, I just had to make a few more comments. I was thrilled to see the case for the importance of the river trade routes laid out well. Their key role in long distance trade, and the vicious warring over the wealth flowing along them, seems fully understood. He also articulated a key observation, that "Each major center is located at critical portages, junctures of tributaries, or other loci". So, quibbling over some details should not be meant to take away from that. Rather, I think Dr. Fahsen has done very well while having some rather incomplete info on the rivers.
"The river route begins in Cancuen to the south, where it becomes navigable, and connects the the highlands of Guatemala to the great capitals." True and not true. I think this reflects Demarest's fixed idea that Cancuen is the head of navigation for the Pasion. Cancuen probably was head of navigation for the big boys, pitpans over 8 meters long. Smaller canoes could keep going south up the Rio Sebol for another 68 km. Steve Radzi and John Montgomery have both traveled the Sebol, so it is navigable. Dr. Fahsen is right about the link to the highlands. Obsidian, which is just a load of heavy rocks until worked, would have flowed from El Chayal down the rivers, the easy way to go.
"This route ... served to connect with central Peten by trails, and to the Caribbean through the San Juan-Salsipuedes-Mopan river systems or through the Machaquila-Mopan rivers (Laporte and Mejian 2002)". Actually, the first route is almost right, but the second impossible by canoe. From Cancuen to Ceibal, the eastern tributaries of the Pasion are brawling whitewater rivers tumbling through the karstlands between the the Maya Mtns and the Pasion. The San Juan is navigable for only the last 9 km and the Machaquila even less. A canoe route using the Machaquila is out of the question. Tammy Ridenour runs whitewater raft trips down it.
If one started at Ceibal, and went up the San Martin for about 12 km, they could then go overland to the Mopan (or the Salsipuedes in the wet season) and run down that until rapids started. A carry from Tziquin Tzacan to Xunantunich, across a long loop of the river, would reach the next navigable water- for medium sized canoes. The big boats could get up the Belize River only to Cahal Pech, modern Cayo San Ignacio.
My last observation is that two elements are left out of the picture: salt and Altar de Sacrificios. In the entire upper Usu'/Pasion basin there is only one salt source, at Nueve Cerros, and Altar' controlled it. A natural fortress on a neck of land, Altar' was also postioned to control ALL river trade between the Pasion and Salinas rivers, and the Usumacinta downstream too. Dos Pilas is near the midpoint of a practical carry across the neck of the broad peninsula between the Salinas and Petexbatun rivers. Such a carry would have diverted Salinas-Pasion trade around Altar' and cut it off at the knees. I don't know all the ins and outs, but I'd be surprised if Altar de Sacrificios wasn't in the thick of it.
Ron
I traveled to Mexico last winter on the Yucatan Express, Tampa to Progreso. Loved it. Took my van. Drove on the ship, had a vehicle, drove back on and went home.
I've gotten a number of comments, questions about this service and when it would begin again.
I intended to do it again this year, but the company is apparently unwilling to lose money again - they tried and failed last year to open up a second port. Here's their explanation:
"Due to the lack of a second port in the Yucatan Peninsula, we need to delay the resumption of the Yucatan Express. This has been a hard decision for us - we have been working very hard to find a solution to the inaccessibility of Puerto Morelos - but we have run out of time for this season and it is clear that the route cannot work with just one port. We did have great loads through the end of last season but it is just not cost effective to have our ship sitting idle half the week.
The GOOD NEWS is that we do believe in the Florida-Mexico market and will continue working hard to resolve the issues which have necessitated this interim delay in service. We continue to work on channel dredging for Morelos and hope to begin accepting vacation reservations early next year for recommencement of Yucatan Express service in Nov '04."
Not good enough news. Damn.
Hispanic Business - 7th Annual Mexican Energy conference, October 27-28, 2003 in Houston
In our efforts to protect the Usumacinta, we will need to address the real energy needs of Mexico, offering some alternative to the hydroelectric dam at Boca del Cerro.
From the Arizona Republic online:
Mexico confronts energy dilemmas
The PRI and PRD both gained seats in Mexico's lower house during midterm elections July 6. The PAN lost almost one-fourth of its seats, and its bid to open up Mexico's energy sector seem in more danger than ever. But even without privatization, the two other parties have to act to modernize the industry so it can meet the country's energy needs, growing at 4 to 8 percent each year.
Charles Golden of U. Penn has filed a report on his first season survey of the area between Yaxchilan and Piedras Negras, on the Guatemalan shore of the Usumacinta River. (Click on map to see larger image)
"...the SLRAP was charged by park authorities with creating a cultural inventory of the park in low-lying areas adjacent to the Usumacinta River that are threatened by inundation resulting from the construction of hydroelectric dams at the Boca del Cerro in Tabasco, México. The SLRAP achieved great success in its first field season, and established the basis for future research in the park. Members of the project identified two previously unknown sites and investigated two sites that had been informally reported, but not adequately documented."
"This wide trade and transport route begins as a navigable waterway at Cancuén and flows northward, then west, then northwest to connect most of the greatest kingdoms of the west. Each major center is located at critical portages, junctures of tributaries, or other loci whose importance can be explained in terms of the river system. Tres Islas, Altar de Sacrificios, and Yaxchilán are placed at junctures with other river systems or land routes. Ceibal is located where the Pasión turns west and the trade route divides, going westward to Altar de Sacrificios, Yaxchilán, Piedras Negras, and past Palenque to the Gulf of México, or going eastward by land to the great centers of the Central Petén. From the Late Preclassic, if not earlier, this great system of river and land routes functioned as the true Maya highway of the western and central Petén."
For those who believe the CFE's announcements that the Boca del Cerro dam plan has been shelved, here is a presentation from June of this year. It has a good overview of the Mexican electrical power system and future expansion. At the end is a note concerning projects open to outside investors, including Boca del Cerro.
June 2003 CFE Presentation (PDF)
This web page gives a broad overview of the Plan Puebla Panama and the opposition to it. It includes a description of the planned unification of the Central American electrical grid and plans for new hydroelectric dams to feed it.
7/9/02 PPP Coalition Educational Booklet Draft
Years after Stephen Houston finished work in Piedras Negras, National Geographic gives us a "Field Dispatch" with a brief summary of the site, comments by Houston, and some good links to other info.
August Resources @ National Geographic Magazine
Ari Hershowitz at NRDC has been busy on this. Also check out his letter on the case.
Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Dam appeal for privy council
"The privy council, the final court of appeal for Commonwealth countries, will be asked today for an injunction to stop a dam being built in Belize, the first time an environmental case has reached this level.
Detractors say the dam will provide only a small part of the electricity the country needs but destroy the best habitat for such endangered species as jaguars and tapirs, and nesting trees for the last 200 scarlet macaws in the country."
From Alfonso, an article in Reforma on thermoelectric plans in Mexico. Towards an energy assessment of Boca del Cerro dam plans.
reforma.com --- Amagan parar termoeléctrica
From Ari at NRDC:
> Dear Friends of the Macal River Valley,
>
> Get your tickets for London: the Chalillo dam will be on trial before
> the highest court in the Commonwealth this month, the Privy Council of
> London, which has its hearings in a small hall near 10 Downing Street.
> The court date is tentatively set for July 30 and BACONGO has a truly
> stellar team of attorneys to argue the case. (continues below)
> The case against the dam has gotten stronger, and now has become a fight
> over the most basic of human rights: the right to a fair public hearing,
> and the right to equal protection of the law--i.e. a foreign billion
> dollar corporation should not have more rights than a citizen of
> Belize. Belize's government, in a move decried by local media as the
> policy of Fortis' Banana Republic, bulldozed a new Act through
> parliament that purports to make the dam legal, no matter what any court
> says. The law is unconstitutional, and may provoke a constitutional
> crisis, if Fortis acts upon it. The questions about individual
> enrichment in this scheme loom greater, and the international community
> will be investigating this dam not only as an attack on the environment,
> but on the rule of law, and on good governance.
>
> Below is an update, written in haste. For more information, contact me
> at ahershowitz@nrdc.org, though I will be in and out of touch this
> coming week. We hope to be updating the www.stopfortis.org site as
> well.
>
> We plan to have a gathering and strategy session for the continuing
> campaign with supporters in London in the days before the
> hearing--please let me know if you are interested in attending, or know
> someone who is.
>
> All the best,
> Ari
>
>
>
>
> Chalillo dam update, Belize
> July 14, 2003
>
> Highest Court to Judge Belize Dam this month: Unconstitutional law
> attempts to support dam construction
>
> Human rights in Belize are on the line, as the case against the
> Canadian-backed Chalillo dam will be heard by the highest court in the
> British commonwealth, the Privy Council in London, at the end of July.
>
> Belizean groups are asking for an injunction to stop dam construction.
> BACONGO, a coalition of Belizean environmental groups, will make its
> case that dam approval was rammed through the environmental approval
> process without a legally required public hearing, and without the basic
> studies of dam geology and archaeology that are required to know if the
> dam design is safe and to know the extent of ancient Maya sites that
> would be destroyed by the project.
>
> In an act of desperation, at the beginning of June, Fortis and the
> government of Belize, rushed through the "Macal River Hydro Development
> Act", also known as the "Fortis-is-above-the-law Act". The Act attempts
> to legalize the dam *despite the ruling of any court*, and "commands"
> BECOL, Fortis' local subsidiary, to build the dam. Experts in England,
> Canada and Belize say the Act is in direct violation of Belize's
> constitution and is likely to be overturned.
>
> Rushing ahead of the court ruling, Fortis has begun construction on the
> dam, even though the rainy season has started, making it a race against
> time, the weather and justice-any tropical storm could wash away
> Fortis/BECOL's structures, posing a safety risk to workers and
> downstream communities, and the court ruling may stop the dam
> construction in its tracks-that is if Fortis obeys the court order.
>
> BACONGO has lined up its legal team in England, including of some of the
> top environmental and constitutional experts. BACONGO and its
> international partners also plan to challenge the new
> Fortis-is-above-the-law Act in international human rights courts.
>
> BACONGO will also attack the economics of the dam-at $30 million US for
> a 2.9 Megawatt capacity project, it is one of lowest value
> hydro-electric dams in the world. Belizeans, who now pay the highest
> rates of electricity in Central America-nearly three times the price
> that their neighbors pay in Guatemala and Mexico-are demanding fair
> electricity rates. The international community is also beginning to
> scrutinize the financial deals behind the project, and follow the money
> trail to the individuals who stand to benefit.
>
Charles Golden has recently returned after his first season doing a survey of Maya sites between Yaxchilan and Piedras Negras, on the Guatemalan side of the Usumacinta River.
Charles will be completing a report on the survey sometime this summer.
Time to post again this link to the Homepage of the Sierra del Lacandon Regional Archaeology Project.
The map above (click for a larger image) should help orient folks who are new to this weblog and to the campaign to prevent the construction of dams on the river.
Thanks to Analia Gonzalez for sending me this letter from the InterAmerican Development Bank, dated March 19, stating that they are not providing funds for the Boca del Cerro dam, nor have they received such a request. They are funding power transmission and rural electrification projects only, they say, not power generation.
However the $240 million that the IDB agreed in 2001 to loan to the System of Electrical Interconnection for the Countries of Central America (SIEPAC) does make building the dam, and selling the electricity, more attractive.
This report, THE BARRIERS TO BOCA DEL CERRO, confirms that not only is the Bocal del Cerro dam still underway, but 4 other "small" dams are still being studied.
This is a summary of opposition to the Boca del Cerro dam. It appeared in a publication called "Water Power and Dam Construction" on March 31, 2003, three days after the governor of Tabasco said there would be no dams. He had CFE's word on it.
From the article:
"CFE, however, remains poker-faced about its plans. The closest it has come to an explanation is a news statement that: 'No project exists to build a high dam curtain on the Usumacinta River. Many years ago the CFE cancelled a project with those characteristics.'
But an internal CFE report obtained by the author suggests the electricity commission may have found sites for the 'five little dams' agreed last summer. According to a reliable source, this internal report appeared in late October and is the CFE's latest plan for the Usumacinta river."
"...The report does not indicate Boca del Cerro has been cancelled. It appears on the project map alongside the four new dams, although it is not mentioned in the report.
CFE spokesman Ignacio Cabrera confirmed that feasibility studies were being carried out with regard to the four dams. These studies, according to the report, must be done in Guatemala as well as Mexico."
Here's the link, to a site of Plan Puebla Panama information that printed it in its entirety. I am going to do the same. You'll find it below.
INFORMACION PPP 2003 - THE BARRIERS TO BOCA DEL CERRO
INSIGHT MEXICO; THE BARRIERS TO BOCA DEL CERRO
Mexico's plans to tap the energy of the Usumacinta are highly controversial, as Jason McGahan explains
It has been at least 30 years since engineers from Mexico's Federal Commission of Electricity (CFE) first surveyed southeastern Mexico and learned just how much electricity can be generated at Boca del Cerro.
The site lies at the point where the most torrential river in Mesoamerica, the Usumacinta, rushes at its greatest velocity out of the rugged Chiapan Highlands into a narrow canyon before being released onto the broad plains of Tabasco. A dam at this spot could potentially generate 4200MW.
The locals call it Boca del Cerro, or mouth of the hill. But for the engineers at CFE, it is the punishment of Tantalus. Twice already they have announced plans for the dam that have not been realised. The third attempt is currently under intense scrutiny.
The previous attempts to realise the potential of the site were during the administrations of Miguel de la Madrid in 1988 and Carlos Salinas in 1992. But they failed because although the site's potential is unmatched in Mexico, a dam at Boca del Cerro would flood a large expanse of jungle known as the Lacandon that is famed for its biological diversity, archeological ruins and insurgent indigenous population.
The question of who would finance the project is also unanswered. Mexico's constitution explicitly forbids foreign investment in its energy sector.
President Vicente Fox can circumvent this protectionist measure through the CFE's 'external producer programme', in which foreign investors must sell nearly all the electricity they produce back to the CFE. But the more lucrative independent producer programmes have been stalled since a Supreme Court ruling last spring found them unconstitutional. Fox's subsequent attempt at a constitutional amendment has been met with bitter opposition. Electricity reform in Mexico has no timetable.
An additional complication is the site's location near Mexico's border with Guatemala and the near-certainty that floodwaters would inundate part of the Peten jungle in northwestern Guatemala. The political problem of the effect on Guatemala are more difficult to solve, as opposition in that country has proven itself uninterested in the electricity it would receive from the project.
Binational progress
Despite the barriers, a binational dam agreement has been announced between Mexico and Guatemala, following a 28 June summit meeting of Central American leaders in Merida, Yucatan. Fox and Guatemalan president Alfonso Portillo announced they would co-operate on 'five small dams' along the Usumacinta where it constitutes the Mexican-Guatemalan border.
The agreement also marked Mexico's late entrance into an project already begun between the governments of Central America to create a regional power grid connecting six other countries: Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica and Panama. Granted a US$240M loan by the Inter-American Development Bank in December 2001, the System of Electrical Interconnection for the Countries of Central America (SIEPAC) is moving forward with a price tag of US$320M.
Working within the framework already formed by SIEPAC in Central America, Fox agreed to share with Guatemala the hydroelectricity to be generated by the dams in southern Mexico. For his part, Portillo must prepare northwestern Guatermala to accept part of the inundation.
For Fox, the dam construction and interconnected energy grids are key steps in his regional development plan, the Plan Puebla Panama. Once these developments are in place, Fox wants to see inland ports, irrigation projects, hotels and foreign-owned factories in Mexico's tropical southeast. He also foresees Mexico taking part in plans to industrialise the length of the Central American isthmus from Guatemala to Panama.
However, the Boca del Cerro project, considered by many to potentially be the most productive in the region, has been beset by bad publicity since it was announced.
An article in the New York Times on 12 October 2002 warned that the ruins of two ancient Mayan civilisations would be inundated by a dam at Boca del Cerro. CFE moved quickly to announce it had scaled back the size of the dam from 130m to 25m, and that the fears of the archeologists were unfounded. But complaints from archeologists continued. In November, a set of well-preserved Mayan cave paintings was discovered just a few kilometers from the dam site.
Archeologists from Mexico's National Institute of Archaeology and History (INAH) who were performing feasibility studies for the CFE estimated that as many as 220 Mayan sites would be flooded. The INH also claimed it was alienated by a lack of information from CFE, eventually publishing an open letter in the daily newspaper Reforma on 22 December, saying that its archeologists had not received any definitive technical plans from the CFE regarding Boca del Cerro.
Environmentalists have begun to publish their opinions in the Mexico City dailies and the project remains in the spotlight. CFE, however, remains poker-faced about its plans. The closest it has come to an explanation is a news statement that: 'No project exists to build a high dam curtain on the Usumacinta River. Many years ago the CFE cancelled a project with those characteristics.'
But an internal CFE report obtained by the author suggests the electricity commission may have found sites for the 'five little dams' agreed last summer. According to a reliable source, this internal report appeared in late October and is the CFE's latest plan for the Usumacinta river.
New dams
Four new dams are being considered to the south of Boca del Cerro along an 89km stretch of the Usumacinta where it forms Mexico's border with Guatemala. None of the four dams is to exceed 19m in height, and each would take advantage of the Usumacinta's northward descent through the Chiapas highlands. The four dams, as they appear on the project map from north to south are: La Linea, 13m; El Provenir, 17m; Isla el Cayo, 17m; and Yaxchilan, 19m. Since the river flows from south to north, all four dams would precede Boca del Cerro, and thus reduce its potential generating capacity. CFE calculates the four dams would have a total installed potential of 2100MW.
The report does not indicate Boca del Cerro has been cancelled. It appears on the project map alongside the four new dams, although it is not mentioned in the report.
CFE spokesman Ignacio Cabrera confirmed that feasibility studies were being carried out with regard to the four dams. These studies, according to the report, must be done in Guatemala as well as Mexico.
'A great limiting factor is to make good use of the river without altering its course,' said Cabrera. 'Dams that alter the course of the river must not be built. We want to avoid inundations.' To this end, the CFE would build these dams so they would be barely visible above the surface of the river.
Generating capacity
One critic of the plan says it would reduce generating capacity and thus rob Mexico of a powerful energy resource. Manuel Frias Alcaraz is an ex-CFE engineer and he said: 'Boca del Cerro is Mexico's most important project, and it's most productive. The Usumacinta is a virgin river. It is the axis of all the other rivers in the region.'
Frias said 25m is too short for a dam on the Usumacinta. He said erosion will clog the dam with mud and offer a smaller return on investment.
He is perhaps the most vocal supporter of the original 130m dam. 'We have to make use of our natural resources,' he said, adding that a dam of this size would accelerate a number of other plans for the region.
For example, it could provide water for the irrigation projects being planned for the Yucatan Peninsula and energy for the inland port being planned for Villahermosa, Tabasco.
'The government says this project would generate a lot of social conflict,' said Frias. 'On the contrary, it will resolve problems of social character through the creation of jobs. It will make social spending unnecessary.'
The Mexican government is taking a more cautious approach with regard to the people of Chiapas, as shown by the frequent references to 'political viability' in the CFE report.
This is not surprising. In addition to outraged environmentalists and archeologists in the region, the insurgent Zapatista Army of National Liberation remains an important factor.
Although voluntarily disarmed for several years, the Zapatistas made front-page news for their New Year's Eve descent into the tourist-heavy city of San Cristobal de Las Casas. Twenty-five thousand indigenous from the region marched into the central plaza wearing ski masks and brandishing machetes and torches. After a series of fiery speeches from the principal command, the rank and file fanned out into the plaza, breaking windows and lighting a bonfire in the central plaza. The stretch of river reserved for the four dams plus Boca del Cerro is known to be inhabited by Zapatista rebels.
'The reality is that the project must be socially viable,' said CFE director of project investments Eugenio Laris Alanis. '(It must be) as socially viable for the investors as it is for the people.
'As of now, we have no investors, because we have no project. We are only doing site studies.' And he pointed out that 'These are projects that, when their moment comes, must pass through the Guatemalan government'.
Dam studies
Studies have been completed for dozens of dams in southeastern Mexico, particularly in the tropical state of Chiapas. And binational dam sites are not restricted to the Usumacinta river. The rivers that form the Usumacinta watershed have been studied by CFE. Two dams known as Huixtan I and Huixtan II along the Santo Domingo river, an important tributary to the Usumacinta, are under consideration. Three other dam sites have also been studied for the same watershed, on the rivers Jatate, Tzaconeja, and Lacantun.
'The directors of the CFE tell me there are many groups on the Guatemalan side that don't want this project because it will destroy their land,' said Frias Alcaraz. 'But the Guatemalan government wants the project because the country lacks electricity.'
He adds 'It has reached a level of international politics where everyone asks himself, 'which is the most palatable scenario?'
Copyright 2003 Wilmington Publishing Limited , Water Power & Dam Construction, March 31, 2003
Here's a recent report, in Spanish, from Guatemalans who took a trip in June from Bethel to Boca del Cerro and saw signs that the dam construction is moving ahead.
In a section of background information, it mentions our letter to Mexican president Vicente Fox.
Noticias - Sigue temor en Petén
I've finally uploaded Kirk French's thesis on Maya waterworks at Palenque. The link is in place on the Barnhart/French post where I originally wrote about it. But here's another chance to read Kirk's work and look at the maps that came out of the Palenque Mapping Project.
(Note: This file is over 6 mB, so be advised it could take a while to download)
Creating Space Through Water Management at the Classic Maya Site of Palenque, Chiapas, Mexico (PDF)
Dominga Sic Ruiz lost her father, along with 70 other men in her village, to the conflict over the building of the Chixoy Dam in Guatemala.
Guatemala native shares story of her quest for justice
She was adopted by an couple in Iowa, and grew up as Denese Becker. Her discovery of the truth of her childhood will be broadcast on PBS, July 8th.
P.O.V. - 2003 Preview . Discovering Dominga | PBS
One of the pleasures of my last trip to Palenque was spending time with Dr. Ed Barnhart, who is responsible for the Palenque Mapping Project, and by extension, the careers of several upcoming archaeologists. The photo above shows Ed in front of one of the most impressive aqueducts at Palenque, built by the Maya over 1300 years ago (sorry, Ed, that's just my guess).
One of the members of the mapping team, Kirk French, has completed a thesis on the subject of Palenque's waterworks. It includes a number of the maps that came out of Ed's project.
(Note: This file is over 6 mB, so be advised it could take a while to download)
Creating Space Through Water Management at the Classic Maya Site of Palenque, Chiapas, Mexico (PDF)
When we began work to prevent the Boca del Cerro dam on the Usumacinta River, Natural Resources Defense Council was busy with the Chixoy Dam. But Ari Hershowitz at NRDC quickly realized the importance of the Usumacinta and pushed to have it declared one of their BioGems, spotlighting the danger to the river. Here's the page on the NRDC site. Thanks again, Ari!
The German engineering firm in charge of the Chixoy Dam in Guatemala (Ari Hershowitz of NRDC has been active in opposing it) was convicted of bribery charges in Lesotho, Africa.
International Rivers Network: Lesotho
"Lahmeyer International has worked on several controversial World Bank-funded dam projects. They were responsible for engineering and construction supervision on the Yacyreta Dam on the Argentina-Paraguay border (also marred by massive corruption) and the Chixoy Dam in Guatemala (best known for the massacre of Mayan Indians who refused to be moved for the dam). They are currently involved in the Nam Theun 2 Dam in Laos, which is set to receive World Bank funding."
Chiapas and the Adirondacks in the same project. Other folks besides Chris, Ron, and myself making that connection.
Democrat & Chronicle: Kodak gives $500,000 to preserve land
I've posted very little on the damage that a dam at Boca del Cerro would do to the Usumacinta delta area, downstream from the dam. It's one of the largest wetlands in the hemisphere. Here's a description of that region that I've just found. (Photo by Fulvio Eccardi)
Reserva de la Biósfera Pantanos de Centla
Janet Schwartz has been working with Susana Hayward of Knight-Ridder on news stories in Mexico. Here's one they collaborated on.
KR Washington Bureau | 05/30/2003 | Mexico's Fox initiates human smuggling arrests
BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | Waters rise behind massive dam
We finally have in hand a CFE (federal electrical commission) report on the Boca del Cerro dam project on the Usumacinta River in Mexico. It includes drawings of the dam and spillways, a timeline for construction, and the customary assurances that everything environmental and archaeological will be studied and dealt with.
It will take some time to evaluate this report and other documents that Homero and Betty Aridjis have passed along to us, but here are two of the drawings. (Click for larger versions)
The quality is rescanned photocopies, so my apologies. But it is the most detailed information we have received so far.
From the "Arizona Republic" newspaper.
This story covers the border with Guatemala at the Suchiate River, but the Usumacinta also had boatfuls of immigrants, mojados as they call them, when we traveled on it in March. On one beach we picked up hundreds of identical styrofoam "clamshells", takeout lunch trash that the coyotes gave their customers for the trip across and downriver. Someone told us that 300 people a week made the trip on that stretch of the Usumacinta.
Southern Mexico's trail of tears
Here, with formatting that I will have to work on (apologies to Ron and Chris) is Ron Canter's study of possible Maya portage routes on the Usumacinta River. We will create a PDF version with maps at some point, but the report is important enough to our current efforts that making it available now seems to me to be a priority. (Full text with footnotes below - click MORE)
The Usumacinta River Portages from the Maya Classical Period to the Present
By Ronald L. Canter, cartographer, Federal Aviation Administration
Introduction
Ronald Canter and the Geography of Mesoamerican Canoe Culture
By Christopher Shaw
Ronald L. Canter, a cartographer for the Federal Aviation Administration, in
Washington DC, belongs to the tradition of so-called amateurs who have made
significant contributions to Maya studies, through their immersion in the
latest advances and the rich lore of the field, as well as their knowledge
of the geography and personal experience of the living Maya. Canter,
self-effacing, judicious, and cautious in the extreme (though hardly timid),
is the model of a serious, self-taught scholar from an earlier time. Indeed,
some of the most celebrated Mayanists began as "amateurs."
In the U.S. Canter's twenty-year, in-depth study of the ancient and colonial
canoe geography of
the northeastern United States has already culminated in the reopening of
750-miles of traditional canoe routes through northern New York and New
England, part of a once even more extensive system of inland waterways. Now
called the Northern Forest Canoe Trail, the route runs from Old Forge, New
York, in the Adirondack Mountains, to northern Maine, all of it legally and
continuously navigable for the first time in more than a century. Canter is
also an expert and intrepid canoe voyager himself.
Canter has likewise absorbed himself in contemporary Maya studies and the
geography of ancient and modern Mesoamerica, where the canoe--the dugout,
cayuco, or chem--served as the essential and daily means of trade,
transport, travel, war, diplomacy, and cultural dispersion over the entire
region.
This paper, best read along with the paper on Panhale by Armando Anaya
(FAMSI paper on Pomona and its Hinterland, referenced below) culminates
years of documentary research, experience, map and geological study. The
portages it describes bypassed the Usumacinta River's central, difficult,
and strategically significant canyons, just downstream from the last major
city of the uplands, Piedras Negras, and just upstream from Pomona, with its
satellites of Chinikiha--itself controlling portages between the Usumacinta
and the Rio Chacamax--and its defensive fortress, Panhale, located precisely
at the mouth of the canyon, Boca del Cerro. Here two major polities of the
Classical period, one controlling the rich upper delta and water access
inland, the other upstream access to the cities of upper drainage and the
rich resources of the distant Cuchumatan mountains, fought over one of the
most strategic junctures in the extensive network of rivers, lakes, and
bajos traversing the Maya region. When the two cities engaged in their
so-called "star wars" in the 8th century, the canyons and portages must have
been as heavily disputed as those separating lakes George and Champlain from
the upper Hudson River in North America's French and Indian War.
Until recently, however, river navigation, the properties of ancient
cayucos, and the practice of portaging, have remained obscure to many
archaeologists, obscuring in turn the geography of the Usumacinta and the
importance of the canoe. (Thompson, Schele, Freidel, Hopkins, Houston,
Aliphat, and Hammond are among those who have seen its importance.) The
portage itself, for instance, a poorly understood phenomenon to
non-canoeists, is a mere nuisance rather than the blockage to navigation it
is often assumed to be, especially in terms of long-distance travel and
trade.
In the time frame of voyages such as those undertaken by coastal and inland
traders from the Olmec to the post-Classic, portaging or even constructing
new boats amounted to no great loss of time. Those navigators surely
encountered dangers and uncertainties that held them up much longer. Like
whalers, however, they were unconstrained by the time-limits of a vacation
or a sabbatical. Gone for months at a time, or with no homes at all, they
had the time wait out sudden floods from unseasonable rains, to use any
number of strategies to get around difficult passages. They could portage
their cayucos over short distances using logs for rollers, for instance, as
cayuco builders still do. Over longer distances, they could carry their
goods and equipment in stages from one set of boats to another.
In Classical times, they would have portaged when possible, purchased or
hired new boats on the opposite side, or even built new ones. They might
carry only their cargo and run the boats down navigable rapids, or, in a
pinch, launch their empty boats down a rapid and pick them up on the
downstream side, a technique used by Wolfgang Cordan's vogas on the Jatate
in the 1960s, and a probable technique on the Usumacinta canyons. They might
"line" their craft from shore, using ropes, construct canals between low
lying waterways, or build dams with runnable sluiceways, such as Alfred
Siemens has described on the Rio Candelaria. All these methods are in the
documentary or archaeological record. When viewed this way marginal
landscapes and waters that once appeared land-bound now appear within the
navigation capabilities of canoe people The landings at the ends of portages
naturally became, as they did all over North America, places where travelers
congregated, where trade and cultural exchange happened, where cities grew.
Inevitably they also became points of
strategic control.
San Jose Canyon is the only extended stretch of questionable navigability on
the Usumacinta corridor, especially at certain water levels. For craft of
sufficient volume, with experienced crews, it is also navigable much of the
year. In sporting terms, it rates a Class III at average winter levels,
advanced-intermediate difficulty for canoes by the International Standard of
Whitewater Difficulty. It seems certain therefore that local and far-flung
teams of Maya in large canoes, such as those depicted in the art record,
sometimes ran it. (We also know monteros ran the canyons, often illegally,
in the nineteenth century.) But the Usumacinta is subject to enormous volume
differentials, and for long periods of the year the canyons are unnavigable.
At such times the only recourse, even for the most intrepid river runners,
is to portage.
Canter's research and experience uses colonial records and those of more
recent travelers, such as Maler and Morley, contemporary reports (including
this writer's), current scholarship, and his professional expertise with GIS
technology, to paint a detailed picture of the canyon geography from a canoe
navigator's point of view. It also uses one of the intangibles unavailable
to the desk-bound professional, a deep knowledge of "canoe behavior" as it
has been practiced all over the western hemisphere for a hundred centuries.
We know from expedition reports, ethnography, art, and our own experience,
how canoe people meet the challenges of specific geographies. It is a
remarkably consistent record over time and distance, and there is no reason
to suspect it was any different for the ancient canoe travelers of the
Usumacinta.
It is also essential to understanding the meaning of the Maya region's "deep
landscape," the subtle and not immediately visible interplay of its shapes,
features, idiosyncrasies. To ancient minds, at least those who lived near
water, the geography would have been a seamless continuity, as the Aegean
was to the children of Piraeus, or coastal New England to the wives of New
Bedford. To Classical travelers and citizens along the rivers, the region
would have been imprinted on mental maps by story and anecdote from Pomona
to Rio Azul, and from Cancuen and Tonina to Yaxchilan: place names,
"portals," battles, stories, hazards, available women, mythic overtones. A
young canoe trader from the delta may already have known to hug the left
shore when running San Jose Canyon before he even laid eyes on it.
Within this essential understanding lies the meaning of the relationships
connecting Pomona, Panhale, Piedras Negras and all the upstream cities;
ultimately of the entire Classical era. It is also this understanding, this
irreplaceable piece of the Maya puzzle, that would be obliterated forever by
an unnecessary and useless dam at Boca del Cerro.
Canter is currently preparing a detailed map of the portage routes. And
while the Usumacinta portages are only one small fragment of the region's
ancient and modern water routes, this description, likewise, is only the
first installment of a life-work that will describe the navigable waters of
the entire Maya region. It is already the only such guide in existence. When
complete it will be an invaluable multipurpose resource.
Christopher Shaw is author of Sacred Monkey River (Norton, 2000), and
co-founder of Rios Mayas.
***************************************************
The Usumacinta River Portages in the Maya Classical Period
By Ronald L. Canter
Distance: 47 km from El Porvenir to Boca del Cerro, with options ranging
from 26 to 65 km.
Portage Option #1: El Porvenir to Tenosique or Boca del Cerro, 46 or 47 km.
Many ancient portage routes in Mesoamerica can be tentatively reconstructed
by extrapolating from the ends of navigation upstream and down, examining
and understanding the controlling terrain features, and considering the
distribution of known Maya sites. [fn1] When this approach is applied to
finding the most likely carry past the Usumacinta canyons, between Piedras
Negras (Y'okib) and Boca Del Cerro, at the head of upstream navigation, the
logical route follows a linear karst valley in Guatemala and Mexico running
from El Porvenir, just downstream from Piedras Negras, to Corrigedora Ortiz
(Tres Champas), then over a low divide to Francisco Madero. The second half
of the route would work north through the limestone hills to reach the
lowlands, where the river emerges from the canyons into the broad estuary of
the delta.
Not only is this route the obvious choice topographically, it is indeed the
well-documented 19th-century portage trail. From Desempeño, the historical
trail at first worked through karst ridges (the expression of a transverse
arch crossing the La Linea Syncline), on which sit Piedras Negras and El
Porvenir. It then followed a karst valley the rest of the way. The valley,
which parallels the La Linea Syncline, is the only route that avoids high,
dry, and rugged karst ridges. It would have been the best route in any
period, from Preclassic to Postclassic. In the Classic, however, downstream
through-paddlers probably shortened it by starting from El Porvenir.
The ejido Francisco Madero lies on a calm pool 20 km downstream from El
Porvenir (33 km from Desempeño), one of the few places in the canyons where
a ferry crossing by canoe is practical. But it is not the end of the
portage. [fn2] The 19th-century trail continued north from there for 26 km,
first following the river, then winding between knobs and over ridges a few
kilometers east of San Jose Canyon. From Los Rieles the trail used the
valley of Arroyo Tepesquintla to drop down to the coastal plain, passing
Adolfo Lopez Mateos on the way. From the edge of the hills, the old trail
bee-lined through Rancho Grande, to Tenosique (Tanoche), 46 km from El
Porvenir and 59 km from Desempeño. It represented a good compromise between
a reasonable grade and directness, and probably reproduces a Postclassic
trail.
Using a digital terrain model, however, Armando Anaya calculated the line of
least effort between Piedras Negras and Pomona. The resulting trace closely
follows the known19th-century portage as far as Adolfo Lopez Mateos, in the
foothills. It then veers west-northwest along the front of the mountain,
past the Rojo Gomez site, to the Usumacinta near Panhale, 47 km downstream
from El Porvenir. Dr. Anaya's computer-generated trace is a very logical
compromise between effort and directness, and a very good candidate for a
well-used Classic Period portage trail.
Anaya refers to unconfirmed reports of a gravel causeway heading west from
Rancho de Herradura, 7 km downriver from Panhale, on the west shore of the
river at Arroyo Tacalate a mere 6 km east of Pomona [Pia], which may have
been Pomona's port on the Usumacinta. It would be interesting to see if a
corresponding port exists somewhere on the Rio Chacamax, north of Arroyo
Negro and 8 km west of Pomona. If so, then Pomona would have occupied the
height of land near the midpoint of a 14 km portage between the two rivers,
and controlled a port on a river approach to Palenque.
Option #2, El Porvenir to Chuncheje or Lindavista, 34 to 40 km.
The shortest valley route between definitely navigable sections of the
Usumacinta required ferrying across the river between canyons. By ferrying
the river at either Francisco Madero or San Jose Usumacinta, porters could
then follow a broad valley (the northern extension of the "Intermontane
Valley" along the La Linea Syncline) west to the Santa Margarita site, and
then northwest through Victorico Grajales. From the Las Delicias Maya site
and village, old trails once ran north between broken hills to the river
opposite Chuncheje, then northwest to Lindavista, 3.5 km upstream from the
Boca bridge. A portage from El Porvenir to the river between Chuncheje and
Lindavista would have passed directly to the head of navigation below San
Jose Canyon. This portage option would have cut 7 to 13 km from the 47-km
trail carry from El Porvenir to Panhale. (Chuncheje is 34 km from El
Porvenir and Lindavista is 40 km from El Porvenir.)
On his 1953 "La Selva Lacandona" map, Frans Blom marked the river as again
becoming navigable, at a point labeled Chuncheje, about 10 km upstream of
Boca del Cerro. In low water, Chuncheje appears to have been the head of
navigation. Lindavista may have been as high up as dugouts could reach in
high water. The rapids of Iguanas (Boca Del Cerro) Canyon are minor. Neither
variation was used in the 19th century because vogas and boatmen for the
monterias were simply forbidden to run any part of the canyons. (They
sometimes did anyway.) A chain of Maya sites marked on Blom's map between
Santo Tomas and Lindavista fits the most likely route nicely, and supports
the probability of an actual Classic period portage from El Porvenir to
Chuncheje and/or Lindavista. Between Las Delicias and Lindavista three Maya
sites are strung along a terrace 30 meters above the river: Ojo de Agua,
Camino a Las Delicias, and Chinikiha, where a bat mural, fine sculpture
[fn3], unusual Preclassic ceramics, and a ball court have been unearthed,
suggesting it was a site of some importance. The Lindavista (Boca de
Chiniquija) site sits beside the river and seems a likely port site. All
four would be inundated by a 40 meter dam at Boca del Cerro.
During the Classic Period, Pomona established a fortress at Panhale,
directly in the Boca Del Cerro gap, where the Usumacinta breaks out of the
mountains south of Tenosique. The site controlled river traffic through Boca
del Cerro and the most likely portage around all the canyons. According to
Anaya, steep slopes and "massive platforms and observation points" protect
its hilltop ruins. Panhale Acropolis 2, an eyrie perched 320 meters above
the coastal plain, caps the highest peak overlooking the north shore of the
Usu', making the site the Maya equivalent of a Rhine castle. [fn4]
Panhale was in the thick of the moves and countermoves of two great Maya
cities throughout the Classic. It may be a key to understanding the regional
conflicts and trade routes of the Classic period. Pomona and its outliers
were well sited to dominate the best land and water routes between the
lowlands and the upper Usumacinta basin. Most of Panhale would be torn apart
by construction of any dam placed in the mountain gap. Its destruction would
be an irreplaceable loss. In fact, the site's Group B has already been badly
damaged by quarrying and CFE exploratory work.
A broad pass at La Estrella, just 7 km south of Pomona, separates the
lowlands and the valley of the Rio Chiniquija (See discussion of Portage
Option #4), controlling traffic on and between the rios Usumacinta and
Chacamax. The valley of the Chacamax also provides a natural approach to
Palenque from the east. Therefore, Pomona and Panhale would have controlled
every reasonable route from Piedras Negras to the coastal plain. According
to Stephen Houston, "Pomona was the natural enemy of Piedras Negras: it
controlled a different ecological zone to the north and formed a bottleneck
through which Piedras Negras would naturally choke." Pomona's one weakness
was a lack of natural defenses, which Panhale may have partly alleviated.
Piedras Negras launched two "star wars" against Pomona, first in 792 and
then in 794 CE. The wars ended in a crushing defeat for Pomona. There are
three possible scenarios for Panhale's involvement. It may have turned a
blind eye to the second attack, i.e. double-crossed Pomona, since no army
could pass without notice. It may have been thinly garrisoned and overrun
before Pomona could send reinforcements. Or, the nobility and forces of
Pomona may have taken refuge in Panhale and eventually fallen to a
determined siege, Tolkein's "Helms Deep" scenario played out in real life to
a grimmer end. Dr. Anaya's continued research could solve the riddle, but
dam construction on the site would forever close the book.
Option #3: El Porvenir to Chuncheje via San Jose los Rieles ? 36 km.
Another short route from El Porvenir to navigable water at Chuncheje may
have followed the 19th century portage almost to San Marcos, then swung left
through the San Jose Los Rieles site, ferried across the river, and followed
a narrow linear valley west 4.5 km to the pool at Chuncheje. Such a route is
only 36 km long, vs 47 km from El Porvenir to Panhale. Only one small site
lies along it, so this route remains hypothetical.
Option #4: La Linea to Lindavista ? 26 km.
A theoretical portage, that may have passed from Rapidos La Linea west
through Morelos [Jose Maria Morelos y Pavo], then north through Vista
Hermosa to Lindavista, would have avoided all the canyon's rapids. At 26 km,
it would have been short. However, to get out of the canyon porters would
have had a steep climb of more than 200 meters in two km from La Linea to
Netzahualcoyotl. From there, a rough modern road through Nuevo Retiro and
Morelos crosses a high, rugged karst plateau. Between Morelos and Vista
Hermosa the road drops into the valley, descending 300 meters in five km.
The last leg to Lindavista would have been flat and easy. There are no sites
reported along most of the projected route. The climb and descent are both
greater and steeper than on any other possible portage, offsetting the
advantage of shorter distance. It is the only projected route that climbs up
and over the highest range of mountains. Overall, this portage option seems
unlikely to have been used much, if at all.
Option #5: El Porvenir to Rio Chacamax ? 65 km.
A last possible route could have made an end run around the Boca del Cerro
Ridge. By continuing west 11 km from Chinikiha 5 up the valley of Rio
Chiniquija to the Old Tenosique Road at La Estrella, travelers could reach
the lowlands at Coronel Gregorio Mendez Magana. [fn5] (Penjamo, the old
name, was more compact.) From the wide, low pass at La Estrella, Pomona is
only 7 km north, and the rios Usumacinta and Chacamax are both equally
accessible. In fact, travelers headed upstream from the coast in the wet
season would have found a route up the Chacamax, then overland for 65 km via
Chinikiha and Santa Margarita to El Porvenir, faster and less work than
other routes. The Rio Chacamax has less current and is 140 km shorter than
the comparable section of the Usumacinta. The Tierra Blanca site, on the
Usu' at the mouth of the Chacamax, shares an unusual daubed volcanic-glass
beaded Preclassic ceramic type with Chinikiha, suggesting long and direct
contact between the two via the Rio Chacamax. There are also suggestions of
Olmec-Chinikiha contacts, per Dr. Rands The directness and ease of upriver
travel on the Chacamax would more than offset a longer portage to El
Porvenir. The Rio Chacamax may have been a key part of long distance trade
networks in the region, and its shores merit more attention.
To summarize:
In the 19th Century the Usumacinta Portage ran north from Desempeño for 59
km to Tenosique on the Usumacinta below the canyons. A Classic Period
portage would have been constrained by topography to follow much the same
route, but probably started at El Porvenir and ran to Panhale, as Armando
Anaya has demonstrated. This probable Classic Period portage would have been
47 km long, 12 km shorter than the 19th century trail. A number of other
options were possible. Most involved ferrying across the Usumacinta and then
following the south shore, either to continue downriver by boat, or to
travel west through the valley of the Rio Chinikija to Pomona and the Rio
Chacamax. Coming up the Rio Chacamax, and then carrying 65 km south to El
Porvenir, would have avoided 140 km of current and meanders on the
Usumacinta. Since the region was not at all wild in the Classic, it is
possible that all portage options were used, as occasion demanded. A
proposed 40-meter dam at Boca del Cerro threatens to destroy at least five
known Maya sites, and possibly others not yet located. Of those, Panhale
and Chinikiha may hold keys to the puzzle of past trade and conquest routes.
Chinikiha is at the juncture of several portage options. The destruction of
Panhale, a Maya mountain fortress in the Boca del Cerro gap, could retard
understanding of the long running feud between the major cities of Piedras
Negras and Pomona.
Footnotes
1. Every portage discussed here would have been far too long to haul dugouts
across. The cargo would have been carried from one set of canoes to another.
2. Christopher Shaw, on his 1989 descent, saw a Chol cayuco workshop in
operation there.
3. Per rubbings done by Merle Greene Robertson of pieces looted from
Chinikiha.
4. A major function of castles along the Rhine River in Germany was to
"control" traffic, ie. extort tolls to enrich local barons. Tolls were
cumulatively so high that some overland routes, though arduous, were
competitive with upriver Rhine traffic, and not radically more expensive
than downriver. Today, regulated tolls levied by the communities along the
Usumacinta might be a reasonable alternative to violent and
counterproductive banditry.
5. Chiniquija means "Mouth of the Disappearing Water". The river sinks east
of Reforma Agraria, flows under a karst ridge, and reappears 2.5 km north.
The Old Tenosique Road connects Reforma Agraria to the lowlands, first
through a narrow pass in a karst ridge separating the upper and lower
valleys of Rio Chiniquija, and then via the pass at La Estrella.
Bibloigraphy
"Research takes you places you absolutely don't want to go, and rattles all
your preconceptions." Nicholas Clooney, 2002.
Books and Articles:
1. Routes of Communication in Mesoamerica: the Northern Guatemala Highlands
and the Peten, Richard E. W. Adams, 1978. In "Mesoamerican Communication
Routes and Cultural Contacts", New World Archaeological Foundation
2.Classic Maya Landscape in the Upper Usumacinta River Valley, Mario M.
Aliphat, 1994. University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
3. Site Interaction and Political Geography in the Upper Usumacinta Region
During the Late Classic: A GIS Approach, Ph.d. Dissertation by Armando Anaya
Hernandez, 1999
4. The Pomona Kingdom and its Hinterland, Armando Anaya Hernandez, 2002.
FAMSI Report
5. Letters from Mexico, The Fifth Letter, Hernan Cortez, 1525.
6. Long Distance Transport Costs in Pre-Hispanic Mesoamerica, Robert D
.Drennan, American Anthropologist Research Reports, 1984
7. River of Ruins, Louis Halle, 1941. Henry Holt & Co., New York, NY.
8. Classic Maya Canoes, Norman Hammond, 1981. International Journal of
Nautical Archaeology and Underwater Exploration, (10-3): 173-185
9. In the Land of the Turtle Lords, Stephen Houston, 2000. FAMSI Report
10 Among the River Kings, Stephen Houston, 1999. FAMSI Report
11. Between the Mountains and the Sea, Stephen Houston, 1998. FAMSI Report
12. The Piedras Negras Project, Stephen Houston and Hector Escobedo, 1997.
FAMSI Report
13. Commerce and Trade Routes of the Maya, Christopher Jones, 1990,
University Museum, UPA.
14. River of the Sacred Monkey, Dimitar Krustev, 1970.
15. Chronicle of the Maya Kings and Queens, Simon Martin & Nikolai Grube,
2000. Thames & Hudson, Ltd. London, UK.
16. Palenque and Selected Survey Sites in Chiapas and Tabasco, Robert L.
Rands, 2002. FAMSI Report
17. The Maya Chontal Indians of Acalan-Tixchel, France V. Scholes & Ralph L.
Roys, 1948.
18. Sacred Monkey River, Christopher Shaw, 2000. W.W Norton & Co.
19. Incidents in the Life of a Maya Archaeologist, Edwin M. Shook & Winifred
Veronda, 1998. Southwestern Academy Press, San Marino, CA
20. Incidents of Travel in Yucatan, John Lloyd Stephens, 1843. Republished
1963, Dover Publications, New York, NY.
21. Incidents of Travel in Central America, Chiapas, and Yucatan, John Lloyd
Stephens, 1841. Harper & Bros, New York, NY. Republished 1969, Dover
Publications, New York, NY.
22. Classic Maya Place Names, David Stuart & Stephen Houston, 1994. Studies
in Pre-Columbian Art & Archaeology, Dumbarton Oaks Research Library, Wash,
DC.
23. Canoes and Navigation of the Maya and their Neighbors, J. Eric S.
Thompson, 1951, Journal of the Royal Anthropological Society
24. Voices from the Rapids, Wheeler, Kenyon, Woolworth, & Birk, 1975.
Minnesota Historical Society
25. The Flowing Road, Caspar Whitney, 1912. J. B. Lippincott & Co,
Philadelphia, PA.>
Maps
1. The Ancient Maya World, Cartographic Division, NGS, 1989
2.Carta Fotogeologica Del Peten, series of reconnaissance geological maps at
1:100,000
3. La Selva Lacandona, y Tierras Colindantes, Frans Blom, 1953. Superb map.
4. Map of El Peten, Guatemala, and Bounding Regions of British Honduras and
Mexico, Carl Hubbs & Henry van der Schalie, 1937
5. Map of Tabasco, 1579, circle map attributed to Melchior de Alfaro Santa
Cruz.
6. Mapa Base de las Cuencas de los Rios, Mexico y Guatemala, 1:500,000,
1980.
7. Mapa de la Republica de Guatemala, Escala 1:1,000,000, Teodoro Paschke,
1889. Shows colonial trails, Peten, Escala 1:800,000, 1900. Rough schematic
of trails.
8. Sistema Fluvial Tabasqueno, 1946, map showing limits of navigability for
rivers of Tabasco, and over a dozen ruins.
9. Topographic Maps of Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize, 1:250,000 series and
partial coverage 1:50,000 series
Web Sites
http://www.famsi.org/reports/00082/index.html The Pomona Kingdom and its
Hinterland, Armando Anaya Hernandez, FAMSI Report, Dec 2002
http://www.archaeology.org/magazine.php?page=online/news/usumacinta
"Maya Sites Face Flooding", Jason McGahan, Archaeology Magazine, Feb 19,
2003
From the University of Virginia School of Law (via Chris Shaw's lawyer son, Noah):
A report on a symposium that addressed some of the issues we will deal with, in creating a binational reserve around the Usumacinta River.
Symposium on International Watershed Management Reveals Need for Public Participation
I was happy just to be the driver on the expeditions to Chinikiha in November and February. The photo above shows our group on the later trip (click on image for larger photo).
David Stuart and Alfonso Morales wrote a summary of the site and the dangers from the proposed dam. Joel Skidmore posted the story on Mesoweb:
Mesoweb Reports - Chinikiha: The Modern Threat to an Ancient Kingdom
Here's a good overview of plans for dams and opposition to them in a number of Latin American countries.
Latinamerica Press: Rivers threatened by development
Our recent trip on the Usumacinta River, a "microflotilla" in preparation for next year's larger event, was part of an International Day of Action coordinated by the International Rivers Network.
IRN:International Day of Action Against Dams & for River, Water & Lffe
The Natural Resources Defense Council has named the Usumacinta River one of its "Biogems," and has made protecting it a high priority. Thanks to Ari Hershowitz for his help in this effort.
Tabasco Governor Manuel Andrade Díaz said yesterday that there exists no project to build dams on the Usumacinta, and that studies aimed at such a project have been cancelled.
Last fall, Governor Pablo Salazar of Chiapas declared that there would be no more dams built in his state. The Boca del Cerro dam would be located in Tabasco.
Tabasco Hoy || Descartan construcción de hidroeléctrica en el Usumacinta
(Thanks to Alfonso for the link)
Another Tabasco Hoy article from Alfonso. Click MORE to see full text.
Rechazan hidroeléctricas
* Organizaciones no gubernamentales se oponen al
proyecto de presas
Pedro Sala García
Tabasco HOY/Corresponsal
Emiliano Zapata.- Integrantes de Organizaciones No
Gubernamentales (ONG's) encabezadas por la Asociación
Ecológica Santo Tomás, se pronunciaron aquí en contra
de la construcción de presas en el cauce del Río
Usumacinta.
"Enfatizar nuestro rechazo a la construcción de
cualquier represa sobre el Río Usumacinta porque
dañaría seriamente las comunidades de su área de
influencia y los ecosistemas. Del mismo modo
rechazamos cualquier proyecto con generación eléctrica
dentro del Plan Puebla-Panamá", refiere un documento
que dieron a conocer.
Asimismo, manifiesta que "el oponerse a la
construcción de presas en los ríos en nuestros países
forma parte de la declaración del Foro Mesoamericano
por la Vida, Agua, Luz y Tierra para los pueblos,
hecha en Guatemala en marzo del año pasado".
Al participar en un foro organizado en esta localidad
por el Centro de Estudios para la Democracia de
Tabasco (Cedestab) que encabeza el diputado federal
Humberto Mayans Canabal, Elías Sánchez Pérez a nombre
de Santo Tomás argumentó que "la construcción de
presas en los ríos, altera el cauce natural de los
mismos, inundan, afectan y desplazan a las personas de
sus comunidades en su área de influencia, destruyen
lugares sagrados e históricos y causan la muerte de
los ecosistemas y su gran biodiversidad".
Explica además que su oposición a la construcción de
ese tipo de instalaciones se debe además a que "con
estos efectos se viola flagrantemente la
autodeterminación de nuestros pueblos, afectando
además el patrimonio y la cosmovisión de los pueblos
indígenas de la región".
Asimismo reiteran su llamado a los pueblos de los
alrededores, para continuar su resistencia popular en
contra de la edificación de las represas y de las
políticas neoliberales complementarias.
En su documento abundan al destacar que "hemos
constatado datos alarmantes en los que se menciona que
entre 40 y 80 millones de personas en el mundo, han
sido desplazadas por la construcción de este tipo de
proyectos; que han sido en su totalidad para
beneficiar a grupos de poder económicos con el apoyo
de las instituciones financieras internacionales y
mutilaterales y que se vinculan altamente con las
nefastas acciones preparadas por los diversos tratados
comerciales.
"La construcción de presas en ríos, altera su cauce
natural, inundan, afectan y desplazan a las personas
de sus comunidades...y causan la muerte de los
ecosistemas".
Elías Sánchez Pérez
Miembro del grupo Ecológico Santo Tomás
Alfonso just sent me an article from Tabasco Hoy on the ecological disaster that a dam on the Usumacinta could bring. The full text is below (CLICK MORE) and I will try to find the link.
MUNICIPIOS
El proyecto de presas,
ecocidio en Usumacinta
* Prevén desastre ecológico por la construcción de
plantas hidroeléctricas
* Presenta Cedestab Declaración del Usumacinta para
proteger el río
Pedro Sala
Tabasco HOY/Corresponsal
Emiliano Zapata.- estro entorno de la región
Usumacinta, nuestro medio ambiente, nuestro único
medio de vida, está en peligro, todavía mucha gente no
cree que la problemática ambiental puede ser fatal,
por lo que no debemos de permitir que se sigan
agotando nuestros recursos naturales", afirmó el
presidente de Cedestab.
El titular del Centro de Estudios del Desarrollo
Democrático, Económico y Social de Tabasco (Cedestab)
Ventura Bernat Bolivar en este municipio dio lectura a
lo que fue denominada La declaración del río
Usumacinta: flora, fauna y hombre pueden perdurar.
Ante la presencia del diputado Humberto Mayans
Canabal; de Gabriela Gutiérrez de Lomasto, cronista de
la ciudad de Villahermosa; de Elías Sánchez Pérez, de
la Agrupación Ecológica Santo Tomás, y de integrantes
del Cedestab, Bernat Bolivar manifestó que "no podemos
permitir que se sigan agotando nuestros recursos
naturales".
"Debemos de vivir en un medio ambiente cada vez mejor.
Tenemos que darnos cuenta de que todos somos
responsables de lo que le está pasando al Río
Usumacinta y a su región", destacó.
Y abundó: "los tres niveles de gobierno no pueden
actuar solos. Cada uno de nosotros puede hacer mucho
con su participación, con difundir la conciencia y el
ejemplo".
"Es importante darnos cuenta -agregó- de que la tala
inmoderada contribuye enormemente a la generación de
problemas de deslave de cerros y reducción de la
cantidad de agua que corre por los ríos que
posteriormente abastecen a nuestra cuenca hidraúlica,
cada día más afectada por la contaminación".
"Es inaplazable la acción de reforestación de toda la
región del Usumacinta, los árboles permiten que el
agua no se pierda y que recargue los mantos acuíferos
subterráneos. La falta de árboles en la zona hoy,
significará mañana, la grave escases del agua que
todos necesitamos".
Manifestó que las descargas de aguas residuales de
cuatro municipios -Tenosique, Balancán, Jonuta y
Emiliano Zapata- contribuyen de forma alarmante a
contaminar la corriente del Usumacinta, alterando los
ecosistemas de los sistemas lagunares de los Pantanos
de Centla y los existentes en la zona protegida de la
Laguna de Términos, Campeche.
De nada sirve decir "área protegida" mientras que no
se tomen acciones importantes para el tratamiento de
aguas residuales de los cuatro municipios aquí
señalados, criticó.
"Mi mayor deseo es que la esperanza que venció al
miedo de la ciudadanía, también contribuya para que lo
venzan los funcionarios públicos que carecen de ética
y compromiso moral para cumplir con los compromisos
del cargo para el que fueron designados, tal es el
caso del delegado federal de la CNA Adán Palavicini
Evia, que no entiende que las sociedades modernas como
la nuestra están para ser escuchadas, construir el
diálogo, y no para esconderse tras la excusa, medrosa
y miope, al no asistir a este evento al que ya había
confirmado su asistencia, y ahora queda como el gran
ausente", señaló.
Rescate y protección
* Objetivos de la Declaración del Usumacinta que busca
proteger el Río Usumacinta ante el atentado del que
podría ser objeto con la construcción de las presas.
1.- Identificar y evaluar los principales problemas
ambientales, sociales, económicos, normativos e
institucionales que enfrenta la región Usumacinta para
la zona costera del Golfo-Caribe y que dificultan o
favorecen el proceso de su desarrollo sustentable.
2.- Establecer los objetivos y metas sobre los cuales
se enfocarán los esfuerzos de gestión e iniciativa del
manejo para la región del Usumacinta y para la zona
costera Golfo-Caribe.
3.- Definir y proponer los términos de referencia para
la elaboración del programa del manejo integral de la
región del Usumacinta integrada a la zona costera del
Golfo-Caribe.
4.- Establecer un grupo de tareas transdisciplinarias
e interseccionales para orientar agendas de la
Declaración del Usumacinta y el Manejo Integrado de la
Zona Costera del Golfo de México y Mar Caribe.
Ed Barnhart and I plan to take a drive from here (Palenque) to the site of Pomoná near Tenosique. Seems a good time to re-post this link to the Armando Anaya report on the site.
FAMSI - The Pomoná Kingdom and its Hinterland, by Armando Anaya Hernandez
And here's a link to Joel Skidmore's Mesoweb page of Usumacinta dam updates, including an excellent summary of threats to Panhale and Pomoná:
Scientific American: Drought May Have Brought on Demise of the Maya
I returned last Thursday from a nine-day trip on the Usumacinta, from Frontera Corozal to Boca del Cerro. This is the stretch that is most threatened by any dam plans. And it is a trip that many have considered dangerous. Several river tour operators have stopped taking clients on this part of the river, although it has been over 6 years since the last incidents there.
I joined a group of experienced whitewater enthusiasts who had been considering this trip for many years. Several of them were doctors and nurses, some with jungle experience. Our guides had not been on the river in 12 years, but had taken a group on a scouting trip the week before our expedition.
The trip was spectacular, with perfect weather and a nearly full moon on most nights. No problems, no incidents, everyone we met was friendly and curious. We bought food and supplies from folks along the river, camped on sandy beaches and explored Yaxchilan and Piedras Negras.
My thanks to all on the trip who took the opportunity (and the risk, as many folks were happy to tell us) in order to witness and celebrate the Usumacinta.
(click thumbnails for larger images)
Ron Canter has sent in an update to an earlier note on portages in the Usumacinta watershed. The full text is below. (Click MORE)
In looking at other rivers around the world, three stand out as good
analogs to the Usumacinta: the Nile, the Ch'ang Chiang, and the Rhine. All
are ancient highways, all are replete with ancient cities and forts, and
all have a gorge section between an easy upper basin and a flat lowland
section. Aswan Dam has been a disaster for Egyptian antiquities, and the
Three Gorges Dam promises to be even worse for China in a lot of ways.
Germany doesn't dare dam the Rhine because of all the castles and towns
that would be lost. Nuff said.
Ron
Jason McGahan has a good summary of the current state of the dam controversy. Its focus is the threat to archaeological sites near Boca del Cerro.
Homero Aridjis has a new editorial in Reforma on the Usumacinta and the CFE.
Also from Tabasco Hoy. (Click MORE)
MUNICIPIOS
Desconoce Raymundo
proyecto Usumacinta
* Si la hidroeléctrica afecta el entorno ecológico,
evitaremos que se construya, expresa.
Pedro Sala García
Tabasco HOY/Corresponsal
Tenosique.- En un amplio desconocimiento hacia el
proyecto que la Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE)
tiene contemplado realizar en el alto Usumacinta y que
fuera anunciado por el presidente de la República,
Vicente Fox Quesada, el Presidente Municipal, Raymundo
Rosado Mendoza, reconoció que aunque este proyecto
tiene muchos años de haber sido planeado, el
Ayuntamiento que preside no está enterado
correctamente bien de lo que pueda suceder con la
construcción de las 5 hidroeléctricas que se han dado
a conocer a través de diversos medios de comunicación.
Añadió que si el proyecto que la CFE tiene contemplado
para esta zona del sureste mexicano no atenta en
contra del entorno ecológico y el municipio tiene la
garantía de contar con la tarifa preferencial,
estaríamos en la mejor disposición de apoyar el
proyecto, pero si está de por medio el costo de las
afectaciones ecológicas, es ahí en donde no valdría la
pena ni tampoco lo permitiríamos las autoridades que
esto pudiera realizarse, ya que primero está nuestro
entorno ecológico y después los proyectos que pudieran
ser ejecutados en esta zona.
Creo -dijo- que aquí hay que consultar a los
habitantes de las zonas aledañas y acudir a nuestra
Constitución Política de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos
para que por medio de nuestra carta podamos defender
los derechos de los municipios libres que consagra el
artículo 115 constitucional y que da autonomía a los
municipios para decidir que se hace y que no se puede
permitir por resultar nocivo para sus habitantes y
además de ello habría que realizar estudios adecuados
para saber si el proyecto en realidad va a ser
beneficioso para la región, esto sería mas
conveniente, pero necesitamos que la Federación y el
Estado informen al municipio en tiempo y forma acerca
de estos proyectos a fin de que estemos enterados
oportunamente de que es lo que se pretende hacer con
nuestro río y nuestras reservas ecológicas.
Rosado Mendoza, subrayó: está en nuestras manos que
esto se haga realidad o se quede solamente en
proyectos como ha venido sucediendo desde hace muchos
años, esto ha sido un sueño que se ha tenido, siendo
hasta ahora que por comentarios y notas periodísticas
que se han acentuado mas, pero en realidad como
municipio, desconocemos que exista tal proyecto, para
nosotros eso es desconocido e ignoro si el Estado
tiene conocimiento de este proyecto Foxista que
pretende hacerse en contra de nuestras reservas
ecológicas y nuestro río que es el mas caudaloso e
importante de la Republica Mexicana.
Insistió en que el cañón de Boca del Cerro, desde hace
muchos años ha sido una zona de reserva ecológica,
según ha leído y escuchado comentarios periodísticos
de gentes que tienen conocimiento de este proyecto que
a nosotros no nos afectaría nuestras reservas
naturales, aunque en cierta forma
no se sabe que tipo de modalidades se va a utilizar
porque por ejemplo con especies como la pigua y el
robalo, estos suben a desovar río arriba y de suceder
eso no sabemos como van a poder hacerlo, además de que
se tiene conocimiento de que se van a inundar muchas
zonas de Guatemala y esto afectaría algunas reservas
arqueológicas y esta es la preocupación de mucha gente
que se opone a la realización de este proyecto y
nosotros apoyamos la determinación que el pueblo tome,
acotó.
Tabasco HOY Derechos Reservados 2003
From Tabasco Hoy. Secretary of Gobernacion Creel Miranda will visit the region to evaluate the impact of hydroelectric projects. (Click MORE)
TABASCO
Vendrá Creel a evaluar
impacto de hidroeléctricas
* Mañana el secretario de Gobernación recorrerá
la zona fronteriza de Tabasco, Chiapas y Guatemala.
* Recibirá también un reporte del alto paso de
ilegales rumbo a la frontera norte.
Miguel Avendaño-Murillo
Tabasco HOY
Este viernes Santiago Creel Miranda, Secretario de
Gobernación realizará una gira de trabajo por la zona
fronteriza de Tabasco, Chiapas y Guatemala para
evaluar los trabajos contemplados dentro del Plan
Puebla Panamá (PPP), así como el análisis sobre los
trabajos que la Comisión Federal de Electricidad
(CFE), realiza en el Alto Usumacinta.
Dentro de la agenda está contemplada una reunión con
autoridades guatemaltecas para evaluar los posibles
daños ecológicos y arqueológicos que la construcción
de cinco represas sobre el Usumacinta ocasionarán en
territorio guatemalteco, chiapaneco y tabasqueño.
Creel Miranda también recibirá un reporte detallado
del alto paso de ilegales hacia la frontera norte que,
según estadísticas del INM en el 2002 fueron
repatriados a sus país de origen 79 mil 79 personas
que de manera ilegal se internaron en territorio
mexicano con la intención de llegar a los Estados
Unidos, de los cuales se sabe, 40 mil 72 eran de
Guatemala, 24 mil 738 de Honduras, 12 mil 325 de El
Salvador, 745 de Nicaragua, y 973 de Ecuador, entre
otros de los que Guatemala encabeza la lista de
indocumentados aprehendidos en territorio mexicano.
Manejada como secreto de estado, esta sería la segunda
ocasión después del pasado 12 de diciembre que Creel
Miranda visita específicamente a la ciudad de
Tenosique, donde nuevamente sería recepcionado por el
alcalde priista Raymundo Rosado Mendoza, pues se prevé
que desde el aeródromo de esta ciudad inicie un sobre-
vuelo con autoridades chapinas, tabasqueñas y
chiapanecas sobre el Alto Usumacinta, específicamente
entre Piedras Negras y Boca del Cerro.
Como se recordará con fecha 28 de enero la CFE emitió
el boletín BP-08/03 que a la letra dice: "Los técnicos
de la empresa están estudiando en esa zona la posible
utilización del caudal del río para la generación de
hidroelectricidad, teniendo como limitante la
utilización del río en su cauce natural".
Todo ello, consecuencia de los reportajes de Tabasco
HOY, dando pormenores del caso lo que ocasionó una
serie de protestas internacionales ya que según
ecologistas de Chiapas y Guatemala aseguran que en
cinco años habrá un millón de desplazados, 300 sitios
arqueológicos vírgenes inundados, un entorno ecológico
afectado incluyendo parte de la reserva de la Biosfera
Maya y Los Pantanos de Centla que en menos de 10 años
habrán perdido el 70 por cientos de su extensión a
consecuencia de la construcción de cinco represas en
el Alto Usumacinta englobadas en siete acciones
similares sobre afluentes situados en los Altos de
Chiapas.
También hay que recordar que Vicente Fox Quesada en su
gira de trabajo del pasado 16 de diciembre, aseveró
que: "existe con CFE esa posible inversión en una
presa de generación de electricidad por la vía
hidráulica..." cuando Manuel Andrade Díaz le solicitó
dos mil millones para el plan que evitará inundaciones
en la entidad.
Con la visita de Creel Miranda a Tenosique se confirma
lo que Alfredo Elías Ayub, director general CFE en su
comparecencia ante el pleno de la Cámara de Diputados
el pasado 7 de octubre del 2002 cuando aseguró: "...ha
quedado descartada la presa de Cortina Alta, siendo
una presa que hubiera sido muy benéfica para evitar
las inundaciones de Villahermosa y altamente
generadora de electricidad..."
Y donde afirmó: "actualmente es una cortinita -la
presa- que significa hincar las turbinas en el cauce
del río para que haya una generación permanente de
electricidad... se ha sustituido el proyecto, por lo
que se llama la presa de Cortina Baja, en donde
solamente sufrirán inundaciones las mismas partes de
la Cuenca del Usumacinta que se inundan de cualquier
manera, en la época alta de lluvias actualmente... la
presa de Cortina Baja, realmente es la instalación en
el cauce del río de turbinas hundidas en una parte del
lecho donde se les permita pasar el agua, de tal
manera que, siendo una presa mucho más chica, pero con
el cauce que tiene el Usumacinta, que es muy rico
pudieran generar electricidad todo el año, sin
necesidad de incrementar las zonas que naturalmente
inunda el río actualmente..."
También aclaró: "...Queda descartada la presa de
Cortina Alta, por las razones y los problemas que se
han planteado, por ello se están estudiando el
proyecto en donde prácticamente no hay cortina, es una
cortinita muy pequeña, que significa hincar las
turbinas en el cauce del río para que haya una
generación permanente de electricidad...".
Otro de los temas a tratar es la inseguridad, ya que
esta zona es conocida como la "Frontera de la
Anarquía" por la ausencia de una aduana donde termina
la carretera Tenosique-El Ceibo y la nula vigilancia
por los caminos vecinales de Tenosique y Balancán en
sus límites con Guatemala, así como la constante
incursión de ex guerrilleros para asesinar
guatemaltecos y migrantes en zonas limítrofes de ambos
países.
Otro de los temas importantes será la inseguridad en
la zona que ha provocado que a esta zona se le
denomine la "Frontera de la Anarquía" que hace 15 días
cobró tres víctimas de origen guatemalteco
ajusticiadas por ex guerrilleros de aquel país
iniciándose un éxodo masivo de chapines a territorio
mexicano pidiendo auxilio y asilo político.
Lo ocurrido en la comunidad de Nuevo Paraíso fue la
gota que derramó el vaso y alertó a las autoridades de
los tres niveles a mirar nuevamente a la zona que es
un punto estratégico del PPP, ya que Tenosique será
nombraba ciudad "Nafta" (ciudad fronteriza de libre
comercio para enero del próximo año).
La zona que este viernes visita Creel Miranda también
es conociida y por el tianguis con fayuca de tercera
proveniente de países asiáticos, el paso de droga y
venta de armas que según el Departamento de
Operaciones Antinarcóticas de Guatemala (DOAN),
mexicanos y guatemaltecos se dedican al tráfico de la
droga controlado desde la comunidad de Sayaxché,
nombre por el cual se conoce a esta organización
criminal.
Hay que recordar que el DOAN denunció en octubre del
año pasado la conexión entre los cárteles de Colombia,
Guatemala y México donde se creó una estructura sólida
y eficiente para el traslado terrestre, aéreo y
marítimo, además del almacenamiento de alrededor de
tres a cuatro toneladas de cocaína en esa región.
Los informes indican que DOAN elaboró una lista de 50
mexicanos y otra similar de guatemaltecos que manejan
cantidades que oscilan entre 3.5 a 30 millones de
dólares en operaciones de compra-venta de droga que
circula a través de la ruta Guatemala-Chiapas-Oaxaca
-Distrito Federal-Cuernavaca -Guerrero y Tamaulipas,
pero que Tenosique es el punto de operaciones de esta
organización criminal.
El organismo policiaco guatemalteco asegura el dinero
proviene de México y movilizan el alcaloide por tierra
en vehículos pequeños en compartimientos especiales
con capacidad para 25 kilos de cocaína, movilizando
alrededor de 3.5 millones de dólares, por viaje.
Según el Departamento Antinarcóticos de Guatemala, la
narcoactividad registró un crecimiento en la economía
informal y formal de Centroamérica, producto del
fuerte flujo de dólares procedente de México.
Agrega que la narcoactividad transformó a la frontera
de México con Centroamérica en un lugar donde la
muerte es el castigo a la deslealtad y la medida para
delimitar las circunscripciones territoriales entre
los capos, por ello las múltiples ejecuciones en los
límites con México, según este informe, el DOAN ubicó
a los municipios de Tecún Umán, Malacatán y Sayaxché,
fronterizos con México como las áreas de mayor
movimiento de los cárteles de ambos países.
Dentro de la agenda aún no se define la reunión
Andrade-Creel, misma que se afinará este jueves por la
tarde.
Segunda visita
¿Por qué visita Creel Miranda Tenosique?
En marzo inician los trabajos de las 5 represas de
generación eléctrica en el alto Usumacinta.
Por la zona han pasado de 40 mil ilegales el año
pasado.
Es el centro de operaciones de los cárteles asentados
en Tecún Umán, Malacatán y Sayaxché.
Tenosique será nombra ciudad "Nafta".
Revisión de convenios de colaboración con autoridades
chapinas
In today's Tabasco Hoy, a report an environmental concerns surrounding both hydroelectric and thermoelectric (the Chable plant) generation systems in the region. Text below (MORE).
TABASCO
Indagarán diputados la
hidroeléctrica del Usumacinta
* Temor entre la población por contaminación del río y
la atmósfera.
Héctor Pérez Ruiz
Tabasco HOY
Ante el temor de contaminación del Usumacinta y la
atmósfera que ha despertado en los habitantes de la
zona de los ríos las pruebas que empezó a hacer la
hidroeléctrica que entrará en funciones en marzo entre
los límites de Campeche y Tabasco, diputados de la
Comisión de Ecología acudirán la próxima semana a una
inspección para impedir daños ecológicos.
El secretario de la Comisión de Ecología del Congreso
del Estado, Joaquín Cabrera Pujol, dijo que los
habitantes de ese municipio ya advirtieron que no
permitirán la contaminación con desechos de esa planta
que construye la empresa canadiense Transalta Energy
Corporation S. A de C.V, por lo que él acudirá a
inspeccionar con el presidente del grupo legislativo
el diputado Carlos Francisco Lastra González y los
vocales Emilio Contreras Martínez de Escobar, Aquiles
Magaña García, Felix Jorge David González y Juan
Molina Becerra.
El legislador por Emiliano Zapata expresó "tenemos
conocimiento que ya están haciendo algunas pruebas en
la hidroeléctrica, nosotros hicimos un compromiso en
la comisión y efectivamente hemos tenido contacto con
la gente de la Comisión Federal y de la compañía, pues
tiene el compromiso con los habitantes de ese
municipio.
"Tenemos dos compromisos fundamentales, uno de estar
haciendo análisis permanentemente del agua para que no
se nos vaya a contaminar el río Usumacinta y por otro
estar monitoreando el aire para ver si no hay
contaminación en la atmósfera, ese compromiso lo
cumpliremos en la medida en que tengamos la
información de la planta en el recorrido que hagamos".
"No vamos a permitir de ninguna manera de que vayan a
contaminar el río Usumacinta o la atmósfera".
Cabrera Pujol expuso que la empresa Transalta Energy
Corporation S. A de C.V., que construye una
termoeléctrica en Campeche a un kilómetros de los
límites Tabasco sólo ha informado que existe un
estudio de impacto ambiental pero no lo ha presentado
a detalle, tampoco han informado que composición
química tendrán los líquidos a desalojar en el río
Usumacinta mediante un ducto de 12 kilómetro que
saldrá a la altura del poblado Chablé en Emiliano
Zapata.
Cabe hacer mención que esta obra del lado de Campeche
inició desde octubre del año 2000, como parte de un
proyecto que incluía las plantas "Altamira II", en
Tamulipas y "Campeche" en la entidad del mismo nombre;
ambas centrales tendrán una capacidad de 747.4
megawatts.
La primera de estas construcciones entraría en
operación el 1 de mayo del 2002, en tanto que la
"Campeche" lo hará el 11 de marzo del 2003, mientras
tanto la edificación de las dos termoeléctricas se
hará de conformidad con los contratos establecidos con
los consorcios Mitsubishi Corporation y Mitsubishi
México S. A de C.V, de Japón y Transalta Ebergy
Corporation, de Canadá, respectivamente.
Para la central "Campeche" instalada en el estado del
mismo nombre, Transalta Energy Corporation constituyó
la empresa Transalta Campeche S. A de C.V., sociedad
de propósito específico.
La hidroeléctrica denominada "Santa Lucía" es
construida directamente por la empresa nacional
"Ingenieros Civiles Asociados" ICA, mediante la
división "Fluor Daniel" y venderá energía eléctrica a
la Comisión Federal de Electricidad.
Revisión
Comisión de Ecología del Congreso que medirá el
impacto ecológico de la termoeléctrica.
Carlos Francisco Lastra González
Presidente
Joaquín Cabrera Pujol
Secretario
Emilio Contreras Martínez de Escobar
Aquiles Magaña García
Felix Jorge David González
Juan Molina Becerra
Vocales
The text of another article in Tabasco Hoy regarding the dam proposals can be found below. (Click MORE)
VILLAHERMOSA
Crece polémica por el
proyecto "Alto Usumacinta"
* Acepta CFE que realiza estudios en
la zona para generar hidroelectricidad.
* Dice la paraestatal que se tendrá como
limitante la utilización del río en su cauce natural.
Miguel Avendaño-Murillo
Tabasco HOY
Ante la polémica internacional creada por lo publicado
en Tabasco HOY sobre el "Proyecto Binacional de
Generación Eléctrica Boca del Cerro" que la Comisión
Federal de Electricidad (CFE), realiza en la zona del
Alto Usumacinta, este organismo gubernamental salió al
paso para señalar que sí trabajan en el último río
caudaloso del país con la finalidad de generar
electricidad.
Con fecha 28 de enero la CFE emitió el boletín
BP-08/03 que a la letra dice "...la CFE no tiene
programado construir ninguna presa de cortina alta en
la región conocida como Boca del Cerro, ya que desde
hace varios años quedó cancelado el proyecto con esas
características".
Pero acepta: "Los técnicos de la empresa están
estudiando en esa zona la posible utilización del
caudal del río para la generación de
hidroelectricidad, teniendo como limitante la
utilización del río en su cauce natural".
Ante la ola de protestas internacionales por estos
trabajos y que han causado temblores en la zona de
Tenosique a causa de las explosiones advierte: "En
todo momento se consultarán los avances de los
estudios con las autoridades correspondientes".
En su última edición dominical Tabasco HOY publica
que: "En cinco años habrá un millón de desplazados,
300 sitios arqueológicos inundados, un entorno
ecológico afectado incluyendo parte de la reserva de
la Biósfera Maya y Los Pantanos de Centla que en menos
de 10 años habrán perdido el 70 por ciento de su
extensión a consecuencia de la construcción de cinco
represas en el Alto Usumacinta englobadas en siete
acciones similares sobre afluentes situados en Los
Altos de Chiapas. (Nunca se afirma de una cortina sino
de cinco represas).
Y se adelanta que: "En la segunda quincena de marzo la
CFE inicia La construcción de las cinco
hidroeléctricas sobre el último río caudaloso de
México; trabajos contemplados en la "tercera etapa"
consistente en la construcción de carreteras y accesos
a las zonas montañosas así como estudios, pruebas de
pilotaje, ingeniería de suelo y cimentación donde se
destinarán millones de dólares provenientes del Banco
Interamericano de Desarrollo (BID) para sostener el
Plan Puebla Panamá (PPP).
Como parte de la investigación se transcribe que las
palabras del presidente Vicente Fox Quesada del 16 de
diciembre del año pasado en su intervención durante la
comida y reunión de trabajo sobre el Programa
Hidráulico "Proyecto Integral Contra Inundaciones
(PICI)", que encabezó en la Palapa "Los Mangos" del
Centro de Interpretación y Convivencia con la
Naturaleza "Yumká" de esta capital cuando respondió a
la petición de Manuel Andrade Díaz por 2 mil millones
para el PICI: "...la CNA ha tratado de juntar todas
sus `canicas' posibles para apostarle a esta obra,
tiene que hacer lo mismo con otras grandes obras a
nivel nacional. Por eso, desgraciadamente, a veces no
podemos ir tan a fondo como quisiéramos, pero la
voluntad hay... Para resumir, lo que ya podemos hablar
en este momento que se tiene o que se cuenta es, por
un lado, 250 millones de pesos que son viables para
aquí..."
Y ante el argumento federal de la carencia de recursos
y de dónde se podrán disponer para concluir el PICI,
Fox Quesada aseveró: "existe con CFE esa posible
inversión en una presa de generación de electricidad
por la vía hidráulica..."
En la entrega de ese día Tabasco HOY también
transcribe las palabras de Alfredo Elías Ayub,
director general CFE en su comparecencia ante el pleno
de la Cámara de Diputados el pasado 7 de octubre del
2002 donde aseguró: "...ha quedado descartada la presa
de Cortina Alta, siendo una presa que hubiera sido muy
benéfica para evitar las inundaciones de Villahermosa
y altamente generadora de electricidad..."
Pero también Elías Ayub afirma que: "actualmente es
una cortinita -la presa- que significa hincar las
turbinas en el cauce del río para que haya una
generación permanente de electricidad..."
También se defendía de la oleada de acusaciones
internacionales en torno a la construcción: "...son
datos de la presa de cortina, que ha sido altamente
rechazada, por los guatemaltecos, algunas autoridades
locales mexicanas, los habitantes de la zona y las
organizaciones ambientalistas internacionales, esa
presa ya ha quedado descartada", afirmó el titular de
CFE hace tres meses.
Esa ocasión también confirmó que "...la presa de
Cortina Alta hubiera sido muy benéfica para evitar las
inundaciones de Villahermosa, por ejemplo, hubiera
sido altamente generadora de electricidad, pero en
efecto plantea tantos problemas ambientales, tantos
problemas locales, problemas en zonas arqueológicas,
que pensamos que es prácticamente imposible llevarla a
cabo..."
Elías Ayub habló de la sustitución del cual da cuenta
Tabasco HOY en sus ediciones del domingo, lunes y
martes: "Sin embargo, se ha sustituido el proyecto,
por lo que se llama la presa de Cortina Baja, en donde
solamente sufrirán inundaciones las mismas partes de
la Cuenca del Usumacinta que se inundan de cualquier
manera, en la época alta de lluvias actualmente..."
Elías Ayub acotó que: "...la presa de Cortina Baja,
realmente es la instalación en el cauce del río de
turbinas hundidas en una parte del lecho donde se les
permita pasar el agua, de tal manera que, siendo una
presa mucho más chica, pero con el cauce que tiene el
Usumacinta, que es muy rico pudieran generar
electricidad todo el año, sin necesidad de incrementar
las zonas que naturalmente inunda el río
actualmente..."
Afirmó: "...Queda descartada la presa de Cortina Alta,
por las razones y los problemas que se han planteado,
por ello se están estudiando el proyecto en donde
prácticamente no hay cortina, es una cortinita muy
pequeña, que significa hincar las turbinas en el cauce
del río para que haya una generación permanente de
electricidad...".
Y culmino: "...en breve se iniciarán los trabajos de
sísmica en la zona para concretar los trabajos
exploratorios y las zonas suceptibles de inundación
que son las que siempre se anegan en tiempos de
crecientes...".
Con las declaraciones de Vicente Fox y Elías Ayub
Tabasco Hoy realizó una serie de investigaciones en la
zona confirmando los trabajos que la CFE está
realizando para las cinco represas que sustituyeron a
la presa de Cortina Alta y que, según ambientalistas
de Guatemala y México también traerá graves problemas
ecológicos.
Todas estas protestas de inconformidades y reuniones
de trabajo en torno a las represas del Alto Usumacinta
se iniciaron cuando Tabasco HOY publicó el 30 de junio
del año pasado el "Memorandum de Cooperación Eléctrica
con Centroamérica que Fox Quesada había firmado dos
días antes de la publicación, durante la "Expo
Inversión 2002" celebrada en la ciudad de Mérida.
Por igual este medio el 10 de agosto del mismo año,
Tabasco HOY dio a conocer parte del proyecto y en que
consistían las nuevas estrategias del gobierno
mexicano, básicamente del PPP donde se encuentra
programadas las obras del Alto Usumacinta.
A la publicación del Tabasco HOY se sumaron los
diarios Reforma de la capital mexicana, así como los
semanarios políticos Proceso y Milenio, le seguirían
Prensa Libre de Guatemala, La Nación de Costa Rica y
el New York Times en fechas recientes, quienes dieron
cuenta y seguimiento de las acciones que la CFE había
emprendido en la zona.
En diciembre pasado intelectuales de todo el mundo
solicitaron al Ejecutivo Federal detener el proyecto y
la ambiciosa iniciativa para crear un corredor
económico que una al sur de México con los países
centroamericanos, ante la respuesta de Fox Quesada de
que recursos del proyecto hidroeléctrico del
Usumacinta se destinarán para el plan hidráulico de
Tabasco, organismos internacionales se reunirán el
próximo 8, 9 y 10 de febrero en Nuevo Huixtán,
municipio de Las Margaritas, Chiapas en el II
Encuentro Chiapaneco Frente al Neoliberalismo que dará
creación al Frente Cívico contra las represas del Alto
Usumacinta, misma que podría sostener otra reunión en
el poblado de Boca del Cerro municipio de Tenosique,
Tabasco, lugar que tiene la CFE como punto estratégico
para los trabajos que se llevan a cabo silenciosamente
en las caudalosas aguas del Usumacinta.
Los convocantes encabezados por la CIEPAC Grupo
Ecologista Mexicano de Los Cien y la agrupación Ríos
Mayas y el Frente Petenero Contra las Represas, son
quienes sostienen que la construcción inundará muchos
sitios arqueológicos, afectaría los cultivos de la
zona y dañaría innumerables especies de flora y fauna.
Las declaraciones
"..Existe con CFE esa posible inversión en una presa
de generación de electricidad por la vía hidráulica en
el Usumacinta..."
Vicente Fox Quesada
Presidente de México
(16 de diciembre del 2002)
"...ha quedado descartada la presa de Cortina Alta,
siendo una presa que hubiera sido muy benéfica para
evitar las inundaciones de Villahermosa y altamente
generadora de electricidad...actualmente es una
cortinita -la presa- que significa hincar las turbinas
en el cauce del río para que haya una generación
permanente de electricidad...la presa de Cortina Baja,
realmente es la instalación en el cauce del río de
turbinas hundidas en una parte del lecho donde se les
permita pasar el agua..."
Alfredo Elías Ayub
Director general de CFE
(7 de octubre del 2002)
"Los técnicos de la empresa están estudiando en esa
zona la posible utilización del caudal del río para la
generación de hidroelectricidad, teniendo como
limitante la utilización del río en su cauce natural".
Boletín CFE-BP-08/03
(28 de enero del 2003)
Vince McIlhenny forwarded notes from a recent (Jan. 17 2003) meeting between NGOs and the InterAmerican Development Bank. Vince's organization, InterAction, and several others hold periodic meetings to ask about the IDBs plans relating to the Plan Puebla Panama.
Here is an excerpt from the Q&A regarding dams and electricity. Click MORE for the complete meeting notes.
Patricia (World Vision) asked about the hydroelectric dams associated with the PPP.
Marcelo observed that the PPP is frequently—and wrongly—accused of comprising “large projects and dams.” Antinori denied that there are any “mega-projects” in PPP, with the exception of SIEPAC. Roads are limited to mostly rehabilitation, not major new roads (with exception of 48 km in Costa Rica). The IDB has consistently contended that SIEPAC is not about dams, but about a transmission line – which will cause very little displacement. Antinori stated that “…the only large project is SIEPAC,” and expressed interest in finding a way to correct these misimpressions. He acknowledged that although PPP does include linking energy transmission grids, it does not include dams.
Patricia expressed concern for the most impoverished people living largely in rural areas and asked if they would have access to this energy. If they are displaced by the energy projects, will there be a way to give them land/compensation? What about rural roads, in addition to rehabilitation of major highways?
Marcelo differentiated between the two purposes of PPP:
Infrastructure and Integration. He noted that the PPP is the “integration of infrastructure” and that “…you won’t see a program for rural road or infrastructure…When we talk about roads, we are talking about rehabilitation” of principal highways. Rural roads are a national problem. Only infrastructure that promotes integration will be considered in PPP. He went on to say that as of December 18th, there were only 48 kilometers of new roads in PPP, and this did not involve any displacement of people. Marcelo emphasized the fact that there were “no new roads.” He stated that the “PPP has very minor, if any, impact on people [in terms of displacement].” He also stated that an environmental impact study had been done [FOR WHAT].
Infrastructure and Poverty Reduction. Marcelo agreed that the priority should be about “…how PPP affects poor people.” He noted that the IDB would finance two meetings: one on rural integration/ rural electrification, and that El Salvador would organize a meeting on telecommunications. However, “the only thing we’re not discussing is RURAL ROADS.”
Amy expressed that there is concern about a PPP road connecting Guatemala and Belize. Marcelo acknowledged that Amy was right and mentioned that they would have to conduct a referendum in both countries to settle the border dispute, which would take at least a year.
Vince (InterAction) differentiated between the cumulative effects and direct effects of a project like SIEPAC or a highway expansion, asking “to what extent the assessment go beyond the narrowly defined direct effects…to get to impacts, risks, advantages vs. disadvantages of the medium term consequences of a regional energy market. If the cumulative impact of SIEPAC is addressed in a consultation, it becomes impossible to delink a transmission line from new energy generation capacity and from energy policy in general. This is why we continue to hear concerns linking SIEPAC with the prospect of dams on the Usumacinta River for example. Will the IDB enable a debate about these policy issues in discussing SIEPAC?
[In a subsequent conversation with Diego Belmonte, the IDB response to this argument about cumulative vs. direct impact assessment is a skepticism that any methodology permits an accurate estimation of the cumulative impact of a mega project. Diego referred to others who have suggested that a methodology does permit a cumulative impact assessment (Harvard, Berkeley), but he is suspicious about how valid these tools are. The IDB seems to remain unconvinced that anything but the impact of the 100 meter right of way for a 220 kV transmission line is worth examining in depth.]
IDB PPP Meeting Minutes
January 17, 2003
10-12am
In Attendance:
Vince McElhinny, InterAction
Anne Barclay-Hicks, InterAction
Vicky Gass, WOLA
Jane Garrido, Bank Information Center
Amy Gray, Bank Information Center
Susan Saudek, SHARE Foundation
Patricia Forner, World Vision
Marcelo Antinori, IDB
Mario Berrios, IDB
Gonzalo Arroyo, IDB
Analia Gonzalez, IDB
Background to these IDB-NGO/CSO Meetings on PPP:
Plan Puebla Panamá (PPP) is an ambitious $10 billion infrastructure, utility and commercial integration program affecting 62 million people living in the nine southern states of Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panamá (http://www.iadb.org/ppp). PPP is a package of 28 separate “mega-projects” that the region’s leaders claim will attract modernizing private investment, accelerate commercial traffic and bring jobs and prosperity to a long neglected and highly impoverished region. There are eight initiatives within PPP: Energy Sector Integration, Highway Integration, Telecommunications Integration, Sustainable Development, Human Development, Tourism, Trade Facilitation, Disaster Mitigation – plus one special program - Prevention and Information, Consultation and Participation. The IDB is PPP’s most important promoter and for the past year Northern NGOs have held periodic meetings with the IDB staff working on PPP to discuss advances in the specific projects, debate PPP’s impact on the poor of Mesoamerica, and bring to the table questions from groups in the region. The agenda for the meeting varies, but is set by the NGOs. The minutes of this meeting are a synthesis of the discussion, with added contextual items and analysis.
Key Points Raised at the Meeting:
Pessimism about progress on PPP and planned consultations in Mexico.
IDB preparing next round of PPP consultations.
SIEPAC approved in El Salvador after IDB personally lobbies Salvadoran legislators.
Resignation of Belizean Commissioner, Salvador Figueroa (heading up Tourism Initiative) as major regional tourism initiative is launched.
Rural development remains an empty portfolio in PPP.
Upcoming PPP Meetings
Thursday, Jan. 30, noon to 2 p.m. The manager of the IDB’s Regional Operations Department II, Miguel E. Martinez, will speak on at the Bank’s headquarters (in the 7th floor) on the progress achieved so far by Plan Puebla-Panama and the challenges that lie ahead. The presentation, part the IDB’s Forum on the Americas series.
Feb. 7 - Consultation originally scheduled with unions in San Jose, Costa Rica, but postponed until March due to the mobilizations around the beginning of the CAFTA negotiations and disputes related to job security at ICE- the Costa Rican state power company. For more information contact Oscar Rodriguez, PSI Central American Representative.
Feb. 10-12 IDB Consultation with indigenous organizations, Managua, Nicaragua. For more info contact Diego Belmonte, dbelmonte@iadb.org
Late March, PPP meeting to discuss SIEPAC and rural electrification in Guatemala. For more info contact Min. Archila.
Late March, PPP meeting on SIEPAC and social telecommunications in El Salvador (infocentros). For more info contact Commissioner Dada.
Before end of March, IDB sponsored workshop with Centromype and INCAE on formulating a regional action for supporting SMEs in export markets.
New Reports Available:
Nov. 11 PPP Initiative Presentations
Nov. 12 PPP Education MOU
Dec. 18 Roads Progress Report
November PPP Update
Actualización sobre la Información, Consulta, e Iniciativa de Participación (ICP)
- Calendarización del futuro; Consultas en Mexico, y seguimiento al primer ronda de
consultas
Marcelo (IDB) opened meeting by announcing that other IDB colleagues were unable to attend. He felt able to comment on most if not all proposed agenda topics.
Marcelo mentioned that he would meet with Jorge Sapoznikow this afternoon in order to define the action plan for the Information, Consultation and Participation (ICP) Program of the Plan Puebla Panamá. This action plan will define the structure of the next consultations, based on feedback obtained in the first round. The IDB will report the action plan after this meeting, and provide requested summaries and attendance of the Costa Rica and Panama consultations. Mexico is not being considered as part of the ICP action plan, only Central America. Sara Almonte will act as the new coordinator of the ICP in Central America.
Recent consultations were held in Panamá and Costa Rica, completing the first round of PPP consultations, with the exception of Mexico. In Mexico, consultations are planned for two states (Puebla and Veracruz). However, Antinori stated that he was not optimistic given the uncertain commitments to PPP as a foreign policy priority after the resignation of Jorge Castaneda as Minister of Foreign Affairs. The likely appointment, under the new Foreign Minister Derbez, to be Mexican PPP Commissioner is likely to be Miguel Jaquin (?). Antinori stated that Derbez has been supportive of the PPP since its origin and was originally slated to have the position to which Florencio Salazar originally assigned. After the dust settles, the IDB will begin discussions with the Derbez and jaquin about advancing PPP. However, the IDB underscored the decline in confidence that they perceive the Mexican government having toward PPP.
Future consultations, the IDB asserted, cannot be based on “blah, blah, blah”. They must be based on facts. In other words, the IDB will focus the next round of meetings on concrete details of the PPP and not on rumors or issues that the IDB understands as external to the PPP.
Amy of BIC countered that the IDB was responsible for the “blah, blah” character of the initial consultations, mentioning problems noted at the consultations in Belize. Antinori countered that the IDB evaluates the Belize consultation as a “extreme success” and that groups critical of the IDB’s approach should treat them with more respect, basing critiques on facts.
Amy (BIC) asked if Marcelo considered the meeting to be “successful” in the sense that the June 5th Belize meeting was successful—ie, full of “superficial information…no presentation or projects were presented…the information was in Spanish.” Marcelo again stated his opinion that the meeting with the indigenous people was successful, and that he was “…not aware of a single complaint.” An exchange over the issue of translation (the December 18th Progress Reports in Spanish on the website; the English translations—the language of Belize—were not yet ready) underscored the disagreement about the interpretation of the effectiveness of the first round of consultations.
Marcelo noted that in Mexico, there were not “planned actions”, and that “…this is a problem.” He reiterated that they can’t have great expectations about the ICP there, because there is no clear shape.
Addressing Marcelo, Vicki (WOLA) commented that she was impressed by the consultation materials available to critique the first round of consultations. She asked what the IDB is going to do with the ICP now? Will there be follow-up to the first round of consulations? Are there financial and technical resources available for the second round of PPP consultations? Antinori suggested that resources were most limited in Belize, Costa Rica and Panama. Marcelo noted, “Jorge [Sapoznikow] will provide it (action plan). We have the financial, technical, and staff resources to do the second phase in Central America.”
Referring to the second round of meetings in Central America, Marcelo mentioned that in Nicaragua and Guatemala, “…no doubt about it, they have a plan [ICP].” The ICP is being prepared in country (suggestion that preparation is independent of the IDB) by Commissioner Ernesto Leal in Nicaragua and Commissioner Raul Archila in Guatemala. El Salvador represents the greatest challenge at the moment due to the polarization surrounding the legislative elections.
The SICA office in El Salvador, as of January, 2003, has a full time staff working on PPP issues. Salvador Navarette, previously of the BCIE. His task is to prepare a regional strategy for the ICP focusing on improved methods of information disclosure to civil society. Panamá now assumes the Presidency of the PPP (rotates every six months), and has established a PPP office. He said that they will start work on regional ICP strategy, but that he doesn’t see progress in Panama. In three months they might have a strategy, but not in Belize or El Salvador. Marcelo explained that it would take more time there because the relationship between the government and the NGO’s was more “green” (ie, less developed).” The delay in Belize, however, was due to the elections.
Patricia (World Vision) asked about the hydroelectric dams associated with the PPP.
Marcelo observed that the PPP is frequently—and wrongly—accused of comprising “large projects and dams.” Antinori denied that there are any “mega-projects” in PPP, with the exception of SIEPAC. Roads are limited to mostly rehabilitation, not major new roads (with exception of 48 km in Costa Rica). The IDB has consistently contended that SIEPAC is not about dams, but about a transmission line – which will cause very little displacement. Antinori stated that “…the only large project is SIEPAC,” and expressed interest in finding a way to correct these misimpressions. He acknowledged that although PPP does include linking energy transmission grids, it does not include dams.
Patricia expressed concern for the most impoverished people living largely in rural areas and asked if they would have access to this energy. If they are displaced by the energy projects, will there be a way to give them land/compensation? What about rural roads, in addition to rehabilitation of major highways?
Marcelo differentiated between the two purposes of PPP:
Infrastructure and Integration. He noted that the PPP is the “integration of infrastructure” and that “…you won’t see a program for rural road or infrastructure…When we talk about roads, we are talking about rehabilitation” of principal highways. Rural roads are a national problem. Only infrastructure that promotes integration will be considered in PPP. He went on to say that as of December 18th, there were only 48 kilometers of new roads in PPP, and this did not involve any displacement of people. Marcelo emphasized the fact that there were “no new roads.” He stated that the “PPP has very minor, if any, impact on people [in terms of displacement].” He also stated that an environmental impact study had been done [FOR WHAT].
Infrastructure and Poverty Reduction. Marcelo agreed that the priority should be about “…how PPP affects poor people.” He noted that the IDB would finance two meetings: one on rural integration/ rural electrification, and that El Salvador would organize a meeting on telecommunications. However, “the only thing we’re not discussing is RURAL ROADS.”
Amy expressed that there is concern about a PPP road connecting Guatemala and Belize. Marcelo acknowledged that Amy was right and mentioned that they would have to conduct a referendum in both countries to settle the border dispute, which would take at least a year.
Vince (InterAction) differentiated between the cumulative effects and direct effects of a project like SIEPAC or a highway expansion, asking “to what extent the assessment go beyond the narrowly defined direct effects…to get to impacts, risks, advantages vs. disadvantages of the medium term consequences of a regional energy market. If the cumulative impact of SIEPAC is addressed in a consultation, it becomes impossible to delink a transmission line from new energy generation capacity and from energy policy in general. This is why we continue to hear concerns linking SIEPAC with the prospect of dams on the Usumacinta River for example. Will the IDB enable a debate about these policy issues in discussing SIEPAC?
[In a subsequent conversation with Diego Belmonte, the IDB response to this argument about cumulative vs. direct impact assessment is a skepticism that any methodology permits an accurate estimation of the cumulative impact of a mega project. Diego referred to others who have suggested that a methodology does permit a cumulative impact assessment (Harvard, Berkeley), but he is suspicious about how valid these tools are. The IDB seems to remain unconvinced that anything but the impact of the 100 meter right of way for a 220 kV transmission line is worth examining in depth.]
Mention of other upcoming PPP meetings.
Central American Ministers of Environment met last Thursday (1.9.03) in Panama to agree to prepare a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation toward attempting to prepare a Global Environmental Assessment of PPP. This proposal has been pushed by CCAD (Mauricio Castro). Marcelo stated that the CCAD was in charge because they want to be able to have independent people to say that this “is ok”. Also, Marcelo expressed their willingness to respond to any letters or meetings—ie, if we identify a forum, “we will do it.”
Organized labor has requested a meeting with the IDB to discuss the impact of SIEPAC on unions associated with the energy sector. Central American affiliates of Public Services International have organized the event in San Jose, Costa Rica on Feb. 7, with the participation of Marcelo Antinori and Teofilo de la Torre of the SIEPAC Project Executive Unit.
CICA Meeting, Feb. 10-12, Managua to discuss indigenous organization perspective and possible participation within PPP. A draft document of project proposals has been submitted by CICA to the IDB, including the formation of an Intercultural Education Program, Indigenous Courts, and a Fondo Indigena. The ethnotourism initiative exemplifies an area of the PPP that is not emanating from the Commissioners or the demand of the Central American countries, but is promoted mostly by the IDB.
Susan (SHARE) brought up the issue of El Salvador not allowing access to the government; Representatives of the communities around San Salvador who would be affected by the anillo periferico wrote a letter in October to Luis Vergara, IDB Country Representative in El Salvador, requesting a meeting to discuss the project. There has been no response. Antinori responded that he has taken the political decision to forbid anyone at the IDB to discuss the anillo periferico until after the March elections because it is too politically sensitive among the mayors. The IDB has been requested by the Salvadoran government to lead a discussion about the anillo periferico, but Antinori has conditioned that option on receipt of the overall environmental impact study and the second study on the project’s effects on area volcanic lands. Instead, the IDB has focused its support on improvement of the San Salvador bus corridor. There is a loan in preparation to streamline the transit of public transportation through the AMSS. There is a precedent for the proposed project in Brazil.
2. PPP, Competitiveness and Trade Facilitation
Mario Berrios offered a brief summary of the trade facilitation approach within the PPP. The FTAA process is on hold in Central America, with the CAFTA dominating the agenda. There is convergence between the Trade Facilitation Initiative within the PPP and the IDB Integration and Regional Programs Division. Each country will have support in the negotiations (Trade Capacity Building Assistance), but the IDB will help in some countries more than others. In Honduras, USAID will lead, ECLAC in other countries, etc.
In PPP, competitiveness involves supporting the small and microenterprise sector (SME) access export markets, to integrate with the global economy. In the first trimester of 2003, a workshop with Centromype (which the IDB created in 2002), INCAE and academic. The goal of the workshop is help the Central America SMEs formulate a regional action plan (?). To form clusters…
Patricia and Vince asked why the IDB was focused exclusively on capacity building for export promotion and not for improving the relative position of SMEs within respective domestic markets. CRS has helped tomato growers in Morazan sell tomatoes to La Dispensa Don Juan in San Salvador. There are 700 supermarkets in Central America (Patricia) that are increasingly owned by foreign capital. Why is the correction of the structure of national markets not the focus of capacity building?
3. Desarollo Sostenible y Humano: Seguimiento a los Compromisos de Merida
In terms of Antinori – PPP isn’t able to meet your expectations, can’t do everything.
Education & Health
The Central American Ministers of Education signed an MOU to define projects and funding in education. Commissioners are considering a second MOU to address harmonization of educational achievement targets. See “Acuerdo para la Creación de la Comisión de Acreditación y Promoción de Proyectos Educativos para la Region Mesoamericana (CAPP), 12 Nov. 2002
IDB is providing technical assistance to improve national targets in national public goods
Iglesias asked us to look at the MDGs, we are doing that ???
In health, there is an MOU for a project to prevent contagious disease, agreement implementation is contingent on whether Mex Min Health gets appointed to WHO.
In coming weeks, Ernesto Leal (Nicaraguan PPP Commissioner) will be inviting CA Ministers of Agriculture to prepare an action plan in Agriculture. This will be the first concrete effort since the Merida Summit that addresses the pledge to the Rural Development commitments in PPP.
Agriculture too sensitive to deal with in PPP. Land insecurity is another issue that is too politically intractable to deal with in PPP.
In the Tourism Initiative, the IDB is promoting a hotel concept in which the indigenous organizations would be co-owners, reservation services would be handled by Marriott International. It would be a for-profit venture, thus funded by the IDB’s Private Sector arm (PRI). There is a preliminary identification of 13 sites in Central America and Mexico that are potential hotel sites, of these only 6 will be financed (estimate).
[In a related event, the IDB launched the Mundo Maya Initiative – laying out $150 million for the first phase of eco/ethno tourism projects in the Mesoamerican region. See attached press release below.]
[Salvador Figueroa, Belize Commissioner to the PPP and head of the Tourism Initiative, resigned to run for office in the coming elections].
4. Update on SIEPAC
The final SIEPAC loan was approved by the Salvadoran National Assembly in early December. There were two votes on the loan ($40 million IDB loan to finance transmission line in each Central American country). Resistance within in the Assembly had forced the IDB to offer an extension on Nov. 28th, after one year passed since the IDB board approved the loan but the Assembly had not approved it. The first vote failed, the second passed. The FMLN abstained on both votes [? CONFIRM DETAILS]. Antinori argued that SIEPAC was delayed held up by concern about the consumer benefits of regional energy markets. The Center for the Defense of the Consumer in El Salvador was one organization that lobbied effectively until the IDB advocacy push to condition approval of the SIEPAC loan on the reforming domestic market regulation of electricity transactions. BN Americas reported that the IDB took the unusual step of holding a forum in El Salvador in November to set out arguments in favor of approval of SIEPAC and persuade opposition Parliamentarians to approve the loan. Antinori said he met with the consumer advocacy group (?) in El Salvador, and lobbied Salvadoran politicians to vote in favor of the loan in a visit to El Salvador in December. Antinori persuaded the vote by signaling that the IDB would not engage any discussion of internal regulations of the electricity market in El Salvador until after the March elections. The best case scenario is that SIEPAC will be operating by Dec. 2004. A strategic window of support for the SIEPAC project is threatened by the Guatemalan elections in 2005.
On dams, while the IDB claims there is no direct link between SIEPAC and dams, the IDB sees nothing wrong with more dams. The additional dams planned for the Usumacinta River and the Peten are under consideration for exporting energy to Mexico. Boruca dam in Costa Rica is proceeding. Antinori has plans to visit the region affected by Boruca. There are questions about the function of the AES El Faro natural gas plant in Honduras (capacity to export to El Salvador).
There is no movement on natural gas lines to the region. Enron conducted a feasibility study for constructing an underwater gas line from Colombia-Venezuela to Central America, where it would be transformed and the energy would ultimately be exported to Mexico.
5. Roads Update
The December meeting of the PPP Roads Technical Commission proposed two new roads. One connects Puerto Limon, Costa Rica and Managua, passing to the South side of the Masaya Lake.
Observations:
Turnover of Commissioners is a key obstacle to advancing the PPP. There were delays prior to the recent elections in Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica. There is another perceived window of opportunity that begins to close with the upcoming elections (and likely appointment of new Commissioners) in Belize, El Salvador and Guatemala. Of these, Guatemala is perhaps the most significant.
The IDB has maintained that PPP is not a closed process, but that any integration promoting project may be considered for funding. The IDB has attempted to limit the projects that might be considered under PPP as those authentically promoting regional integration. Excluded are those that address exclusively national problems. Looking more closely at this criteria, one begins to see an arbitrary application of this criteria that seems to legitimize a predetermined agenda rather than sponsor a creative debate about what integration really means.
Harmonization of road standards is considered a legitimate regional issue. Highways are considered, but rural roads are not. Agriculture is considered a national issue, not a regional one despite the absence of various regional public goods that prevent small rural producers from competing. The IDB defends its narrow acceptance criteria with the caveat that they are addressing national problems with national loans.
IDB Press Release: Jan 16. 2002 on the Mundo Maya Initiative
***
Recent article posted in Mexico newspaper on dams along the Usumacinta River http://www.tabascohoy.com.mx/th/nuevo/notas/notas.php?nid=28120 PAGINA TRES
Decidirán jueces hidroeléctricas
* CIEPAC y ONG's buscan amparo internacional contra obras en el Usumacinta
* Inundarán 425 kilómetros cuadrados de territorio mexicano, advierten ecologistas
Miguel Avendaño-Murillo
Tabasco HOY/Investigación Especial
SEGUNDA PARTE
Alto Usumacinta, Guatemala.- Ante los trabajos que la Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE) ha iniciado en la zona del Alto Usumacinta para generar energía eléctrica para Centroamérica a través de cinco represas, diversas organizaciones civiles tramitan un amparo internacional para impedir la construcción de dichas obras que afectarán zonas arqueológicas, desplazarán a un millón de personas, afectará la Biósfera Maya de Guatemala y Los Pantanos de Centla.
La primera organización no gubernamental mexicana que ha dado seguimiento a las obras que la CFE realiza en Chiapas en las vegas del Usumacinta es el Centro de Investigaciones Económicas y Políticas de Acción Comunitaria, Asociación Civil (CIEPAC), todo ello en coordinación con el Frente Petenero Contra las Represas de Guatemala para realizar trabajos enfocados a la concientización mundial para que no se `ahorque' al último gran caudal nacional.
"Estamos en estudio de todas las tesis sobre el tema para poder tener los argumentos legales que nos permitan ganar el amparo internacional contra la construcción de las represas sobre el Usumacinta y sus afluentes, además de otros ríos de menor caudal de los altos de Chiapas que se suman al proyecto hidroeléctrico de Boca del Cerro", dice en entrevista Gustavo Castro Soto, integrante del CIEPAC.
Unificación eléctrica objetivos del PPP
En una epístola dirigida a Raúl Archila, Ministro de Energía y Minas de Guatemala por los habitantes de las comunidades del Usumacinta, Pasión y Salinas con fecha 24 de Septiembre de 2002 donde se oponen a la construcción, plantean que en el marco del Plan Puebla Panamá (PPP) se contempla la iniciativa Mesoamericana de Interconexión Energética, con el objetivo de interconectar mercados eléctricos regionales y que en la página web de la CFE (www.cfe.gob.mx) se plantea entre los retos a lograr en el 2003, el inicio de la construcción de una hidroeléctrica con capacidad de 3,978 MW sobre el Usumacinta, único en la zona con caudal suficiente para un proyecto de esta magnitud, situación que ha sido modificada con la misma capacidad pero con cinco represas contempladas en siete grandes proyectos.
Según la CFE, "el proyecto internacional Boca del Cerro sobre el río Usumacinta tiene prioridad, requiriéndose para su consecución la decidida participación de los gobiernos de México y Guatemala... El proyecto Boca del Cerro se localizará a 9.5 kilómetros al suroeste de la ciudad de Tenosique, Tabasco. Consistiría en una presa de 135 metros de altura que formaría un lago artificial de 19 mil 550 millones de metros cúbicos de agua... 42% de la superficie del embalse (300 kilómetros cuadrados) se formaría en territorio guatemalteco"; ahora las cosas cambian con las construcción de diversas cortinas no mayores de 50 metros.
Al mismo tiempo el documento afirma que "es inaplazable contar con un plan de desarrollo intrarregional, tanto para aprovechar coordinadamente el Usumacinta y sus principales afluentes --Lacantún, Ixcán, Xactbal, Chixoy o Salinas y de La Pasión".
Esta afirmación, igual que el objetivo planteado para la interconexión energética en el PPP, refleja que los diferentes países constituyen un conjunto inseparable para el desarrollo de estos megaproyectos, y por lo tanto Guatemala conoce, aprueba e impulsa cualquier proyecto que en alguna medida tendrá un impacto en su territorio.
La carta al ministro de Energía de Guatemala informa que "El Plan de Reactivación Económica 2002 - 2004", presentado por el gobierno el día 11 de Junio del 2002, incluye varios planteamientos relacionados con la generación e interconexión eléctrica, entre los cuales se destaca la "promoción de la construcción y operación de proyectos hidroeléctricos medianos y grandes".
La misiva indica que funcionarios mexicanos del INAH refieren la existencia de un convenio de colaboración firmado en mayo entre el INAH y la CFE para "realizar las modificaciones necesarias en los trazos de los trabajos en subestaciones, líneas de transmisión y generación eléctrica" aplicable al proyecto hidroeléctrico en el Usumacinta.
Exigen información
Con estos antecedentes, los ecologistas chapines sostienen que el gobierno guatemalteco, junto a los otros gobiernos centroamericanos y el mexicano, impulsan el PPP y todas las iniciativas mesoamericanas propuestas.
Por lo tanto, el gobierno guatemalteco, y especialmente el Comisionado Presidencial del Plan Puebla Panamá, Raúl Archila, conocen a profundidad los proyectos del Puebla Panamá.
Agregan que cualquier proyecto hidroeléctrico comprende aguas internacionales y territorio de ambos países, por lo cual el gobierno de Guatemala debe tener conocimiento y una posición ante los planes concretos de aprovechamiento de las aguas, por lo que exigen sean difundidos los planos del proyecto auspiciado por la CFE mexicana.
Con estos argumentos Castro Soto, asegura que el abogado Miguel de los Santos, de la Red Comunitaria de los Derechos Humanos, con sede en San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas, está realizando los estudios para que la demanda sea interpuesta ante cortes internacionales europeas y la obra sea detenida ante el daño ecológico y patrimonial que causará en territorio tabasqueño, chiapaneco y guatemalteco.
Los ecologistas aseguran que existen antecedentes mundiales de lucha contra la construcción de represas hidroeléctricas, en términos de reparaciones para personas afectadas por represas pues ya existe un precedente en Panamá sobre el caso Bayano.
En el caso del Alto Usumacinta el amparo primero se tramitará ante a la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos.
Sí habrá daños: CIEPAC
Independientemente de que la CFE ya dijo que no se construirá una sola presa en Boca del Cerro, sino que serán cinco represas con cortinas no superiores a los 50 metros de altura bajo el argumento de evitar "daños considerables", CIEPAC asegura que el proyecto inundará 425 kilómetros cuadrados del territorio mexicano y 300 kilómetros del territorio guatemalteco, además de que las represas sobre el Usumacinta provocarían inundaciones donde se encuentran 300 sitios arqueológicos, entre ellos Piedras Negras, Yaxchilán y Altar de Sacrificios, asentamientos cooperativistas con más de 50 mil personas y la pérdida de millones de árboles de maderas preciosas y vida silvestre.
Here's the Tabasco Hoy article on the CFE response in my last post. (Click MORE)
Confirma CFE obras hidroeléctricas
* Planea utilización del caudal del río Usumacinta
para la "generación de hidorelectricidad"
Redacción
Tabasco HOY
La Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE) confirmó la
posible utilización del caudal del río Usumacinta para
la "generación de hidorelectricidad, teniendo como
limitante la utilización del río en su cause natural".
Mediante un comunicado la empresa paraestatal confirmó
también lo publicado por Tabasco HOY en el sentido de
que no se construirá ninguna presa de Cortina Alta en
la zona de Boca del Cerro, cuyo proyecto se canceló
desde hace varios años.
Informaciones recabadas por este matutino revelan que
el estudio anunciado por la CFE prevé la construcción
de cinco represas con cortinas no superiores a los 50
metros de altura para evitar "daños considerables" a
la zona. Sin embargo, grupos ecologistas nacionales y
de Guatemala interpusieron amparos por todos los daños
que pueden provocar esas obras.
El asunto ha trasecendido a nivel internacional,
incluso diarios de importancia mundial como The New
York Times ha retomado información sobre el asunto de
las hidorlectricas. Lo mismo has pasado con los
periodicos de circulación nacional.
El Centro de Investigaciones Económicas y Políticas de
Acción Comunitaria, Asociación Civil (CIEPAC), asegura
que el proyecto Boca del Cerro inundará 425 kilómetros
cuadrados del territorio mexicano y 300 kilómetros
cuadrados del territorio guatemalteco, además de que
las represas sobre el río provocarían la inundación de
un área calculada de 10 a 12 mil kms.2 (casi 1/3 parte
de Petén), en donde se encuentran 800 sitios
arqueológicos, entre ellos Piedras Negras, Yaxchilán y
Altar de Sacrificios, asentamientos cooperativistas
con más de 50,000 personas, pérdida de millones de
árboles de maderas preciosas y vida silvestre.
I'm on the road so posts will be a bit ragged. Here are a number of articles that have been sent my way (thanks to Alfonso and Janet). Some will be raw links which I will clean up later.
A CFE response to a recent Reforma story:
http://www.cfe.gob.mx/www2/saladeprensa/sintesis.asp?seccion=Sala%20de%20prensa&seccion_nombre=Síntesis&publicacion=116&aa=2003&mm=1&dd=28&n=3
An animated map feature from Reforma:
http://www.reforma.com/flashes/nacional/usumacinta
Two stories in Reforma:
Desentierra PPP proyecto salinista
http://www.reforma.com/nacional/articulo/264280/default.htm
Chinikija in Reforma
http://www.reforma.com/nacional/articulo/264286/
And below, the text of the third article in Tabasco Hoy (sorry, no link). Click MORE.
SURESTE
Ecologistas exigen ver proyecto PPP
* Ante el ecocidio de los Pantanos de Centla piden al
Senado de la República den a conocer el "Proyecto Boca
del Cerro"
* Se suma Pemex a los proyectos de generación de
energía eléctrica e instalará un planta en Nuevo Pemex
Miguel Avendaño-Murillo
Tabasco HOY/Enviado Especial
San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas.- A través del
Senado de la República y la Cámara de Diputados, el
Partido verde Ecologista de México (PVEM), pedirá al
gobierno mexicano que abra los expedientes del
"Proyecto Hidráulico Boca del Cerro" para que se
conozcan las dimensiones del mismo, las áreas de
embalse, el impacto ecológico y arqueológico que
causarán las obras para generar energía eléctrica.
Pascual Bellizia Rosique dirigente estatal del PVEM en
Tabasco asegura que están trabajando con las
comisiones ejecutivas municipales de la zona de los
ríos para evaluar las zonas de impacto y poder
presentar el ante la comunidad internacional los daños
que las obras sobre el Usumacinta causaran al entorno
ecológico.
PVEM se sumó a la lucha contra las represas del
Usumacinta que ocasionará inundaciones a la reserva de
la Biósfera Maya en el Departamento de Petén
Guatemala, afectará la zona suroriente de Yaxchilán,
Chiapas así como unos 300 sitios arqueológicos no
explorados en la zona del Alto Usumacinta comprendidas
entre Piedras Negras, Chiapas y Boca del Cerro en
Tabasco y provocará que en menos de 10 años el
"secamiento" del 70 por ciento de la extensión de la
reserva de la Biósfera Pantanos de Centla.
El proyecto dado a conocer de manera exclusiva el
junio del año pasado por TABASCO HOY y ampliado
recientemente indica que el gobierno mexicano a través
de la CFE inicia en la segunda quincena de marzo
oficialmente los trabajos y obras de la tercera etapa
que contempla la construcción de accesos a las zonas
donde se construirán cinco represas sobre el sumacinta
que inician unos metros arriba de Piedras Negras en
Chiapas y concluyen dos kilómetros arriba de la
comunidad de Boca del Cerro en el municipio de
Tenosique.
En Proyecto hidroeléctrico comprendido dentro del PPP
para suministrar energía eléctrica a centroamérica
está compuesto por cinco megapoyectos que incluyen
represas en el río Usumacinta y sus principales
afluentes Lacantún, Ixcán, Xactbal, Chixoy o Salinas y
de La Pasión".
Todo es conocido como el Proyecto Binacional "Boca del
Cerro", Chiapas-Tabasco y Guatemala asentado en la
cuenca del río Usumacinta -Altos de Chiapas y selva
Lacandona- en el sureste de México y -El Quiché,
Verapaz y El Petén- ubicados al occidente y norte de
Guatemala, es la región binacional.
Para la CFE y el gobierno federal: "Es fundamental
conceptuar, planificar y construir proyectos y obras
de infraestructura básica de alta participación y
rentabilidad, que por una parte, satisfagan la demanda
de servicios básicos -agua, drenaje, energía
eléctrica, alimentación, educación, salud, vivienda,
caminos, trabajo, seguridad- y por otra, ofrezcan
garantías suficientes a los inversionistas para
fomentar la instalación de industrias, activar el
comercio e incrementar la producción agropecuaria, con
base en las siguientes consideraciones", sin embargo
asociaciones civiles como el Centro de Investigaciones
Económicas y Políticas de Acción Comunitaria , A.C. de
San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas así como el Frente
Petenero Contra las Represas de Guatemala han iniciado
una cruzado internacional en contra de dichas obras
pues los menos beneficiados son los habitantes de la
zona, como esta comprobado con la generación de
Energía Elétrica en Chiapas y es de las tarifas más
altas del país.
"Nosotros vamos a pedir a través de nuestros
representes en la Cámara de Diputados y el Senado de
la República que el gobierno federal entregue y haga
público los planos del proyecto, que se abran
consultas populares en la zona, el proyecto en si, es
un atentado contra la naturaleza y vamos con todo, nos
sumaremos a la lucha civil que se iniciado en Petén
Guatemala", dijo Bellizia Rosique en entrevista con
Tabasco HOY.
Los ecologistas han iniciado la tramitación de un
amparo internacional para impedir la construcción de
los proyectos de multifunciones por desarrollarse en
México: Boca del Cerro, Quetzalli, Huixtan I, Huxitan
II, Jattza, Nance y Bajatzen, que en conjunto contarán
con una potencia de 9 520 megawatts y 33 000 millones
de kilowatts·hora (términos equivalentes al 27% y 20%
de la capacidad y generación nacional).
Las propuestas de la CFE
Para el gobierno mexicanos, para optimizar el
potencial hidroenergético de toda la Cuenca, el
Proyecto Nacional insiste en que Guatemala desarrolle
un plan similar al propuesto para el sureste de México
sobre los ríos Ixcán, Xactbal, Chixoy y de La Pasión,
lo que aumentaría la producción de electricidad para
la venta y ahorraría el uso de hidrocarburos.
El río Usumacinta tiene como principales afluentes los
ríos Lacantún, Ixcán, Xactbal, Chixoy o Salinas y de
La Pasión. La Cuenca cuenta con el 20% de los
escurrimientos de agua del país y puede derivar
grandes volúmenes de agua y energía a la península de
Yucatán. Por tanto, el Sistema "Usumacinta-Tulhá"
(UsuTulhá) pretende controlar así los ríos Tulijá y
Usumacinta, que inundan mucha planicie costera de los
estados de Tabasco y Campeche en parte por las grandes
deforestaciones de las empresas madereras.
De esta manera se propone que las presas queden
entrelazadas por medio de túneles y canales. Se
pretende así que el Sistema "Usu Tulhá" sea "el más
trascendente proyecto de multifunciones de México
-producción hidroeléctrica, alimentación y de
desarrollo integral".
Sin embargo ante las presiones internacionales los
proyectos han cambiado a represas que tendrán cortinas
no mayores de 40 metros sobre el espejo de agua pero
también causaran embalses que dañaran sitios
arqueológicos y el ecosistema principalmente en
Tabasco.
Las presas del proyecto
El megaproyecto no de ha desactivado, solo se han
hecho modificaciones presa "Quetzalli". En el río
Lacantún y se localizará a 90 km al oriente de la
cabecera municipal de Las Margaritas y a 3.5 km al
noroeste de la comunidad Nuevo San Andrés, cerca de la
Estación Ixcán, de la comunidad Flor de Café y a las
orillas donde comienza la reserva de la biósfera de
"Montes Azules".
Presa "Huixtán I". Quedará situada sobre el principal
afluente del río Lacantun, en el río Santo Domingo, a
63 km al oriente de la cabecera municipal de Las
Margaritas y a 23 km al sur-suroeste del proyecto
"Quetzalli". La presa aprovechará los escurrimientos
de agua del río Santo Domingo y tendrá una capacidad
de 1,200 Mw y generará 3,150 millones de Kw/h-a.
Presa "Huixtán II". También ubicada en el río Santo
Domingo. Estará localizada a 9 km al suroeste del
proyecto hidroeléctrico "Huixtán I", donde cruza el
río Santo Domingo con la frontera con Guatemala.
Tendrá una capacidad de 1,413 millones de metros
cúbicos y complementará el aprovechamiento de los
escurrimientos y cascadas del río Santo Domingo. Con
una capacidad de 600 Mw generará 1,900 millones de
Kw/h-a, lo que aumentará el potencial hidroeléctrico
de la cuenca del río Usumacinta.
Presa "Jattza". Estará ubicada en el río Jataté y a 54
km al oriente-sureste de la cabecera municipal de
Altamirano y a 63 km al noroeste del proyecto
"Quetzalli". La altura de la presa será de 235 metros
de altura lo que, dentro del aprovechamiento de la
cuenca del río Usumacinta, es el proyecto
hidroeléctrico de mayor altura que afectará a las
comunidades de la cañada Las Tazas que alberga
comunidades zapatistas así como de la organización
indígena del Aric-Independiente y oficial.
Esta presa tendrá una capacidad instalada de 900 Mw y
producirá 1,970 millones de Kw/h-a, lo que podrá
abastecer de energía eléctrica al norte del estado de
Chiapas, al vecino estado de Tabasco y a la península
de Yucatán.
Presa Central "Nance". Estará ubicada en el río
Tzaconejá en los Altos de Chiapas a 7.5 km al sureste
del municipio de Altamirano y a 2 km al sur de la
población zapatista de Morelia. La presa contará con
440 metros de carga de diseño, Además tendrá una
capacidad de 480 Mw para producir 1,000 millones de
Kw/h-a. Su embalse formará un lago artificial que
inundará 4 km cuadrados de superficie que equivalen a
400 hectáreas de tierras ejidales, para albergar 360
millones de metros cúbicos de agua. Aunque para los
diseñadores de esta presa "será otro atractivo
turístico y productor piscícola", para los pobladores
aledaños significará más pobreza y expulsión y un
beneficio del potencial eléctrico que se irá a otras
regiones empresariales.
Tan sólo estas cuatro represas significarían la
creación de lagos artificiales que inundarán un total
de 737 kilómetros cuadrados de selvas y ejidos, mismos
que equivalen en total a 73,700 hectáreas de tierras.
Esta superficie es más grande que cualquiera de los 88
municipios de Chiapas cuya superficie es menor a estos
737 kilómetros cuadrados de tierras (de un total de
118). Algunos de estos municipios se podrían inundar
desde una vez como el municipio de Tumbalá (705.5 km
cuadrados de superficie) y Frontera Comalapa (con
717.9 km cuadrados); hasta 22 veces el municipio de
Tapalapa o de Tzimol (con 32.3 km cuadrados de
superficie cada uno), o 14 veces el municipio de La
Grandeza (52.2 km cuadrados). Si sumanos a esto los
mil km cuadrados que equivalen a 100 mil hectáreas que
inundarían las presas contempladas en la Cuenca del
Usumacinta, descritas en la primera parte del estudio,
llegarían a inundarse un total de 1,737 km cuadrados,
que sería igual a dejar bajo el agua a cualquiera de
los casi 100 municipios de Chiapas que cuentan con
menos de esta cantidad de territorio. Por ejemplo,
podrían quedar inundados todo el territorio de
cualquiera de los siguientes grandes municipios:
Comitán, Venustiano Carranza, Altamirano, Palenque,
Independencia o La Trinitaria.
CUENCA DEL RIO MEXCALAPA-GRIJALVA
El Sistema Hidroeléctrico del río Grijalva fue
construido entre los años de 1959 a 1987 en medio de
muchos conflictos sociales que provocaron
desplazamientos de población, represión y hasta
población campesina encarcelada e incluso muerta. Este
Sistema se integra con los proyectos de las grandes
represas de Chiapas como son "Belisario Domínguez-La
Angostura" (900 Mw y 2,025 millones de millones de
Kw/h-a); "Manuel Moreno Torres-Chicoasén" (1,500 Mw y
4,500 millones de millones de Kw/h-a);
"Netzahualcóyotl-Malpaso" (1,080 Mw y 3,000 millones
de millones de Kw/h-a) y "Angel Albino Corzo-Las
Peñitas" (420 Mw y 1,450 millones de millones de
Kw/h-a).
Toda la Cuenca del Mexcalapa-Grijalva almacena un
total de 37,000 millones de metros cúbicos que
representan el 30% de los escurrimientos de agua en la
planicie costera de Tabasco. Aporta una capacidad de
3,900 Mw y su producción media anual es de 11,000
millones de kilowatts·hora (Kw·h).
Con los proyectos hidroeléctricos que se proponen para
esta Cuenca se pretende que la potencia aumente en 43%
y la producción en 41%. Del mismo modo beneficiarán a
los grandes inversionistas y turistas ya que
"fomentarán a gran escala las actividades turísticas,
de esparcimiento, la piscicultura y la navegación en
cinco excelentes embalses, donde en sus riberas podrán
establecerse nuevas poblaciones".
Los ecologistas proponen mejoramiento para las presas
de esta Cuenca
El CIEPAC propone resarcir daños por la construcción
de Presa como "La Angostura", Situado a 53 km al
sureste de Tuxtla Gutiérrez en el municipio de
Venustiano Carranza, controla casi la mitad de la
cuenca y regula los escurrimientos de agua normales y
extraordinarios en la parte alta del río Grijalva. "Al
mantener dentro de una variación de seis metros sus
almacenamientos y niveles máximos de operación, en
compatibilidad con la seguridad de los otros proyectos
se traducirá en aumentar significativamente la
generación de electricidad -cada metro cúbico
disponible en su valioso embalse representa un
kilowatt/hora en todo el sistema-, aunado a que podrá
garantizarse siempre la potencia instalada."
Presa "Chicoasén". Ubicado a 21 km al norte de Tuxtla
Gutiérrez, en la salida del cañón del Sumidero, su
operación depende de la represa "La Angostura". La
desforestación-erosión de la cuenca reduce rápidamente
su capacidad de generación, por lo que se propone
realizar presas para control de azolve sobre los ríos
Sabinal, Suchiapa, Santo Domingo y Hondo. "Es decir,
resulta urgente definir el grado y magnitud de
azolvamiento del embalse; pues según los resultados
obtenidos se agilizarán los proyectos de las obras
para prolongar su vida útil. Implica que la
profundidad actual y a mediano plazo de sedimentos,
definiría si aún es conveniente instalar los tres
equipos turbogeneradores faltantes (900 MW), así como
ampliar los sistemas de transformación y transmisión."
La ampliación de la generación de energía por medio de
turbinas ya ha sido concesionada a una empresa
extranjera.
Presa "Malpaso". Situada a 115 km al suroeste de
Villahermosa fue la primera obra construida para
regular el río Mexcalapa. Se le recomiendan hacer
modificaciones de fondo. "Al subir la presa doce
metros, con taludes de 1.25:1 aguas arriba (losa de
concreto rolado) y 1.5:1 aguas abajo (enrocamiento
compacto), el almacenamiento total se incrementará a
18,000 millones de metros cúbicos -será similar al del
proyecto La Angostura-, lo cual facilitará agregar
1,350 millones de Kw·h-a. Desde luego los tres diques
en la margen izquierda y las estructuras-puentes de
las obras de toma se elevarán en igual proporción y,
la subestación Malpaso I, debe relocalizarse."
Además, en un puerto ubicado a 19 km al oeste-noroeste
de la presa "se construirá una nueva obra de
excedencias que descargará al río Nanchital-Uxpanapa,
el cual confluye 7 km al oriente de Minatitlán con el
río Coatzacoalcos y sustituir así los actuales
vertedores".
También "se requiere sobreequipar la central con 540
MW, ya sea ampliando la casa de máquinas o bien,
construir una nueva central hidroeléctrica en la
margen izquierda, utilizando parte de los túneles de
desvío y la clausura de los vertedores. De ser
factible se procederá a comunicar los pozos de
oscilación para convertirlos en galerías de equilibrio
y aumentar la carga productiva".
Presa "Las Peñitas". Ubicado a 83 km al suroeste de
Villahermosa cuenta con un almacenamiento de 1,630
millones de metros cúbicos. Es la presa más pequeña de
la Cuenca antes de que el río Mexcalapa llegue a la
planicie de Tabasco por lo que la convierte en clave
para controlar las inundaciones posibles donde estarán
ubicados puertos, carreteras e industrias del PPP. La
construcción de un nuevo vertedor controlará y
trasladará los volúmenes de agua excedentes desde las
centrales "La Angostura", "Chicoasén" y "Malpaso"
fuera de la cuenca del río Grijalva. Esto prescindirá
del vertedor auxiliar que podría convertirse en una
segunda casa de máquinas para sobreequipar la central
con 300 MW (el puerto-dique "El Mico" situado a 3 km
al noreste de la presa también es una buena
alternativa). El proyecto se refiere a la necesidad de
que en el vertedor de servicios se coloquen pantallas
metálicas de 5.50 metros sobre las compuertas de esta
estructura. Con una potencia total de 720 Mw, la
producción se elevará a 1,850 millones de Kw/h-a.
El estudio "Ingeniería geológica del proyecto
hidroeléctrico Peñitas, Chiapas" fue realizado por
Carlos M. González Cruz en marzo de 1989. La CFE
resume así el estudio: "Las exploraciones geológicas
del sitio y el embalse de la presa ubicada sobre la
parte baja del río Grijalva, duraron poco más de 20
años hasta su construcción; durante este periodo se
logró reunir un gran cúmulo de experiencias de tipo
geológico y geotérmico. Los aspectos que se analizan
son: la cimentación de la cortina que corresponde a un
material aluvial del propio río, los métodos para la
compactación dinámica de los aluviones y la colocación
de una pantalla impermeable de mortero plástico, y las
condiciones geológicas de cada parte de la obra".
Presa "LV Malpaso 2". El proyecto hidroeléctrico se
encontraría sobre el río La Venta, justo en su unión
con el río Negro. Ubicado a 28 km al suroeste de la
presa "Malpaso" y 75 km al noroeste de Tuxtla
Gutiérrez se integrará con una cortina de gravedad de
230 metros de altura, la cual creará un embalse de
3,750 millones de metros cúbicos de almacenamiento que
creará un lago artificial que inundará 51 km cuadrados
de superficie que equivale a 5,100 hectáreas. Tendrá
una capacidad de 540 Mw y generará 1,800 millones de
Kw/h-a que, aumentando el nivel máximo de la represa
"Malpaso" a 200 msnm, aumentará el potencial del
sistema hidroeléctrico del río Grijalva.
Presa "Mexcalapa", Tabasco-Chiapas. Se ubicaría a 27.5
km río abajo de la presa Peñitas con un
dique-carretero de 13 km, y su planta hidroeléctrica
en el extremo oriente con capacidad de 300 Mw, que
generaría 950 millones de Kw/h-a, para poder canalizar
al río Mexcalapa sólo extracciones reguladas. Su
vertedor, que estaría en el empotramiento oeste de la
presa descargaría al río Las Flores, afluente del río
Tonalá. Esto reduciría las inundaciones en la planicie
costera de Tabasco.
Pemex alternativa en generación de luz
Esta semana, el gobierno federal anunció la
utilización de contratos de emergencia por parte de la
(CFE), tanto con entes privados como con las
paraestatales que cuenten con centrales de generación
de usos propios, servirían para mantener el equilibrio
del Sistema Eléctrico Nacional en caso de que no se
logre aprobar la reforma constitucional que modifica
los artículos 27 y 28.
Además, se buscará que Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) y
los productores independientes de energía sean el
soporte del sistema eléctrico nacional en caso de que
en este año la carga de electricidad de la propia CFE
no sea suficiente para el abastecimiento de la red
nacional interconectada.
Con base en este tipo de contratos de emergencia se
buscaría que las nuevas plantas de los productores
externos de energía sirvan como base en el
abastecimiento de electricidad del país, esto ante las
inconformidades por la construcción de nuevos centros
de generación eléctrica.
Según el gobierno al ser plantas base, las centrales
eléctricas ofrecerán las tarifas más bajas disponibles
en el mercado y al no ser adquirida la energía como
excedente sino dentro de un contrato de emergencia con
la CFE.
Por otra parte, la CFE cuenta con los proyectos que se
puedan llevar a cabo dentro de Petróleos Mexicanos de
quien se dice que tiene una capacidad de cogeneración
y autoabastecimiento de 4 mil megawatts, sin embargo,
en un escenario más optimista este monto podría ser de
hasta 6 mil megawatts.
Actualmente, la paraestatal está estudiando la
instalación de por lo menos unas cinco plantas de
energía eléctrica y de vapor en las refinerías Madero,
Salamanca, Minatitlán y Tula, además de otra dentro
del centro procesador de gas "Nuevo Pemex" en Tabasco.
La estructuración del negocio es que en un momento
determinado, estos centros industriales dependan de
sus propias estrategias de abastecimiento de
electricidad e incluso puedan vender energía a la
propia red nacional.
Pemex analiza las tres posibilidades que tiene para
llevar a cabo sus proyectos de cogeneración, con las
empresas que en principio han expresado su interés
para entrar a los nuevos proyectos.
De acuerdo con el esquema de autoabastecimiento de
Pemex, la energía eléctrica que se enviaría a la red
de la CFE constaría de plantas que en parte proveerían
rangos de 255 a 224 megawatts.
Por otra parte, habría venta a CFE de parte de
empresas generadoras externas a la red propia de la
paraestatal.
De acuerdo con la Ley del Servicio Público de Energía
Eléctrica, una de las variantes de los proyectos de
generación se basaría en la producción directa o
indirecta de electricidad, a partir de energía térmica
no aprovechada en los procesos industriales propios.
En el proyecto de Pemex y CFE se puntualiza que es
indispensable que la electricidad generada se destine
a la satisfacción de los establecimientos asociados al
programa.
Plan
El Proyecto comprendido dentro del PPP para
suministrar energía eléctrica a centroamérica se
compone de 5 megapoyectos que incluyen:
Usumacinta y sus principales afluentes
Lacantún
Ixcán
Xactbal
Chixoy o Salinas
La Pasión".
PRESAS
Presa "Huixtán I"
Presa "Huixtán II"
Presa "Jattza"
Presa "Nance"
Tan sólo estas cuatro represas significarían la
creación de lagos artificiales que inundarán un total
* 737 kilómetros cuadrados de selvas y ejidos
Equivalen en total a
73,700 hectáreas de tierras.
Tabasco HOY Derechos Reservados 2003
In Tabasco Hoy today, an article about NGOs bringing a lawsuit against CFE over the proposed dam construction. Full text is below.
Tabasco Hoy || Amparo contra hidroeléctricas
Protestan ONGs por construcción de represas en Usumacinta
Protestan ONGs por construcción de represas en Usumacinta
Amparo contra hidroeléctricas
Organismos No Gubernamentales de México tramitan amparo internacional para
impedir la construcción de cinco presas en la zona del Alto Usumacinta.
Por Miguel Avendaño-Murillo
Tabasco HOY
Alto Usumacinta, Guatemala 01:00 horas
27 de enero de 2003
Ante los trabajos que la Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE) ha iniciado
en la zona del Alto Usumacinta para generar energía eléctrica para
Centroamérica a través de cinco represas, diversas organizaciones civiles
tramitan un amparo internacional para impedir la construcción de dichas
obras que afectarán zonas arqueológicas, desplazarán a un millón de
personas, afectará la Biósfera Maya de Guatemala y Los Pantanos de Centla.
La primera organización no gubernamental mexicana que ha dado seguimiento a
las obras que la CFE realiza en Chiapas en las vegas del Usumacinta es el
Centro de Investigaciones Económicas y Políticas de Acción Comunitaria,
Asociación Civil (CIEPAC), todo ello en coordinación con el Frente Petenero
Contra las Represas de Guatemala para realizar trabajos enfocados a la
concientización mundial para que no se `ahorque' al último gran caudal
nacional.
"Estamos en estudio de todas las tesis sobre el tema para poder tener los
argumentos legales que nos permitan ganar el amparo internacional contra la
construcción de las represas sobre el Usumacinta y sus afluentes, además de
otros ríos de menor caudal de los altos de Chiapas que se suman al proyecto
hidroeléctrico de Boca del Cerro", dice en entrevista Gustavo Castro Soto,
integrante del CIEPAC.
Unificación eléctrica objetivos del PPP
En una epístola dirigida a Raúl Archila, Ministro de Energía y Minas de
Guatemala por los habitantes de las comunidades del Usumacinta, Pasión y
Salinas con fecha 24 de Septiembre de 2002 donde se oponen a la
construcción, plantean que en el marco del Plan Puebla Panamá (PPP) se
contempla la iniciativa Mesoamericana de Interconexión Energética, con el
objetivo de interconectar mercados eléctricos regionales y que en la página
web de la CFE (www.cfe.gob.mx) se plantea entre los retos a lograr en el
2003, el inicio de la construcción de una hidroeléctrica con capacidad de
3,978 MW sobre el Usumacinta, único en la zona con caudal suficiente para un
proyecto de esta magnitud, situación que ha sido modificada con la misma
capacidad pero con cinco represas contempladas en siete grandes proyectos.
Según la CFE, "el proyecto internacional Boca del Cerro sobre el río
Usumacinta tiene prioridad, requiriéndose para su consecución la decidida
participación de los gobiernos de México y Guatemala... El proyecto Boca del
Cerro se localizará a 9.5 kilómetros al suroeste de la ciudad de Tenosique,
Tabasco. Consistiría en una presa de 135 metros de altura que formaría un
lago artificial de 19 mil 550 millones de metros cúbicos de agua... 42% de
la superficie del embalse (300 kilómetros cuadrados) se formaría en
territorio guatemalteco"; ahora las cosas cambian con las construcción de
diversas cortinas no mayores de 50 metros.
Al mismo tiempo el documento afirma que "es inaplazable contar con un plan
de desarrollo intrarregional, tanto para aprovechar coordinadamente el
Usumacinta y sus principales afluentes --Lacantún, Ixcán, Xactbal, Chixoy o
Salinas y de La Pasión".
Esta afirmación, igual que el objetivo planteado para la interconexión
energética en el PPP, refleja que los diferentes países constituyen un
conjunto inseparable para el desarrollo de estos megaproyectos, y por lo
tanto Guatemala conoce, aprueba e impulsa cualquier proyecto que en alguna
medida tendrá un impacto en su territorio.
La carta al ministro de Energía de Guatemala informa que "El Plan de
Reactivación Económica 2002 - 2004", presentado por el gobierno el día 11 de
Junio del 2002, incluye varios planteamientos relacionados con la generación
e interconexión eléctrica, entre los cuales se destaca la "promoción de la
construcción y operación de proyectos hidroeléctricos medianos y grandes".
La misiva indica que funcionarios mexicanos del INAH refieren la existencia
de un convenio de colaboración firmado en mayo entre el INAH y la CFE para
"realizar las modificaciones necesarias en los trazos de los trabajos en
subestaciones, líneas de transmisión y generación eléctrica" aplicable al
proyecto hidroeléctrico en el Usumacinta.
Exigen información
Con estos antecedentes, los ecologistas chapines sostienen que el gobierno
guatemalteco, junto a los otros gobiernos centroamericanos y el mexicano,
impulsan el PPP y todas las iniciativas mesoamericanas propuestas.
Por lo tanto, el gobierno guatemalteco, y especialmente el Comisionado
Presidencial del Plan Puebla Panamá, Raúl Archila, conocen a profundidad los
proyectos del Puebla Panamá.
Agregan que cualquier proyecto hidroeléctrico comprende aguas
internacionales y territorio de ambos países, por lo cual el gobierno de
Guatemala debe tener conocimiento y una posición ante los planes concretos
de aprovechamiento de las aguas, por lo que exigen sean difundidos los
planos del proyecto auspiciado por la CFE mexicana.
Con estos argumentos Castro Soto, asegura que el abogado Miguel de los
Santos, de la Red Comunitaria de los Derechos Humanos, con sede en San
Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas, está realizando los estudios para que la
demanda sea interpuesta ante cortes internacionales europeas y la obra sea
detenida ante el daño ecológico y patrimonial que causará en territorio
tabasqueño, chiapaneco y guatemalteco.
Los ecologistas aseguran que existen antecedentes mundiales de lucha contra
la construcción de represas hidroeléctricas, en términos de reparaciones
para personas afectadas por represas pues ya existe un precedente en Panamá
sobre el caso Bayano.
En el caso del Alto Usumacinta el amparo primero se tramitará ante a la
Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos.
Sí habrá daños: CIEPAC
Independientemente de que la CFE ya dijo que no se construirá una sola presa
en Boca del Cerro, sino que serán cinco represas con cortinas no superiores
a los 50 metros de altura bajo el argumento de evitar "daños considerables",
CIEPAC asegura que el proyecto inundará 425 kilómetros cuadrados del
territorio mexicano y 300 kilómetros del territorio guatemalteco, además de
que las represas sobre el Usumacinta provocarían inundaciones donde se
encuentran 300 sitios arqueológicos, entre ellos Piedras Negras, Yaxchilán y
Altar de Sacrificios, asentamientos cooperativistas con más de 50 mil
personas y la pérdida de millones de árboles de maderas preciosas y vida
silvestre.
Alfonso Morales sent a link to this editorial in Reforma, on the threat to the Usumacinta River.
reforma.com --- Adiós al Usumacinta
Janet Schwartz has brought to our attention a story in Tabasco Hoy today, saying that work on 5 dams on the Usumacinta will start in March. Here's the link:
Tabasco Hoy || Alistan 5 presas en el Usumacinta
And the text is below (click MORE).
En marzo CFE empieza la construcción de las polémicas hidroeléctricas
Alistan 5 presas en el Usumacinta
En peligro de perder un 70 por ciento de su extensión reservas de la
Biosfera Maya y los Pantanos de Centla.
Por Miguel Avendaño-Murillo
Tabasco HOY
Alto Usumacinta, Guatemala 00:57 horas
26 de enero de 2003
En cinco años habrá un millón de desplazados, 300 sitios arqueológicos
inundados, un entorno ecológico afectado incluyendo parte de la reserva de
la Biósfera Maya y Los Pantanos de Centla que en menos de 10 años habrán
perdido el 70 por cientos de su extensión a consecuencia de la construcción
de cinco represas en el Alto Usumacinta, englobadas en siete acciones
similares sobre afluentes situados en Los Altos de Chiapas.
En la segunda quincena de marzo, la Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE)
inicia la construcción de cinco hidroeléctricas sobre el último río
caudaloso de México; trabajos contemplados en la "tercera etapa"
consistentes en la construcción de carreteras y accesos a las zonas
montañosas así como estudios, pruebas de pilotaje, ingeniería de suelo y
cimentación donde se destinarán millones de dólares provenientes del Banco
Interamericano de Desarrollo (BID) para sostener el Plan Puebla Panamá
(PPP).
A pesar de las inconformidades de ambientalistas y unos 60 intelectuales,
el presidente Vicente Fox Quesada utilizó su última gira de trabajo por
suelo choco para confirmar la construcción.
El 16 de diciembre del 2002 en su intervención durante los trabajo sobre el
Programa Hidráulico "Proyecto Integral Contra Inundaciones (PICI)", que
encabezó en el “Yumká”, de esta capital, aseveró: "...Hemos generado a
nivel del Gobierno Federal todo un compromiso alrededor del agua, a grado
tal que la hemos catalogado como un asunto de seguridad nacional".
Sobre la petición de Manuel Andrade Díaz de 2 mil millones para el PICI,
respondió: "Las inversiones tienen que corresponder al año en que se
ejercitan... La otra alternativa sería, sin dejar de empezar a trabajar
sobre la obra, ir buscando una estructura de ingeniería financiera, una
manera de lograr asegurar que sacamos el proyecto y que ya queda su pago
con bases de certidumbre, año con año".
Y agregaba: "Lo que ya podemos hablar en este momento es que se tienen 250
millones de pesos que son viables para aquí..."
Y ante el argumento federal de la carencia de recursos y de dónde se podrán
disponer para concluir el PICI, Fox Quesada aseveró: "..existe con CFE esa
posible inversión en una presa de generación de electricidad por la vía
hidráulica..."
Con esta titubeante filtración el mandatario federal les respondió a
intelectuales como el escritor chileno Ariel Dorfman, el cingalés Michael
Ondataje o el pintor mexicano Francisco Toledo, quienes firmaron la
carta-protesta por las obras en el Usumacinta una semana antes de su gira a
la entidad.
Otra confirmación fue la de Alfredo Elías Ayub, director general CFE,
durante su comparecencia ante el pleno de la Cámara de Diputados el pasado
7 de octubre del 2002. Tras asegurar que el proyecto para la presa de
Cortina Alta quedó descartado, pues aunque hubiera sido muy benéfico para
evitar las inundaciones en Villahermosa y altamente generador de
electricidad, planteaba problemas ambientales y arqueológicas, agregó:
"Se ha sustituido el proyecto, por lo que se llama la presa de Cortina
Baja, en donde solamente sufrirían inundación las mismas partes de la
Cuenca del Usumacinta que se inundan de cualquier manera, en la época alta
de lluvias actualmente..."
Elías Ayub acotó que: "la presa de Cortina Baja, realmente es la
instalación en el cauce del río de turbinas hundidas en una parte del lecho
donde se les permita pasar el agua, de tal manera que, siendo una presa
mucho más chica, pero con el cauce que tiene el Usumacinta, que es muy
rico, pudieran generar electricidad todo el año".
El funcionario confirmó que en breve se iniciarán los trabajos de sísmica
en la zona para concretar los trabajos exploratorios determinar las zonas
susceptibles de inundación.
Piden detener obra
La solicitud de los intelectuales al Ejecutivo Federal para detener el
proyecto ha trascendido las fronteras y el próximo 18 y 19 de febrero en
Nuevo Huixtán Chiapas, cientos de ecologistas de toda Centro y Sudamérica,
se darán cita para el II Encuentro Chiapaneco Frente al Neoliberalismo que
dará creación al Frente Cívico contra las Represas del Alto Usumacinta,
misma que se llevará a cabo en el poblado de Boca del Cerro, municipio de
Tenosique, Tabasco, lugar que tiene la CFE como punto estratégico para los
trabajos que se llevan a cabo silenciosamente en las caudalosas aguas del
Usumacinta.
Los convocantes encabezados por la CIEPAC, Grupo Ecologista Mexicano de Los
Cien, la Agrupación Ríos Mayas y el Frente Petenero Contra las Represas,
son quienes sostienen que la construcción inundaría muchos sitios
arqueológicos, afectaría los cultivos de la zona y dañaría innumerables
especies de flora y fauna.
"Rechazamos la destrucción de uno de los principales recursos ecológicos e
históricos a nivel mundial, que es el río libre más grande e importante de
Centroamérica: el Usumacinta", sostiene el documento.
Las protestas de estos ecologistas es que "el río representa un recurso
regional e internacional sin paralelo y su cauce es una reserva biológica e
histórica de incalculable valor, se debe proteger y mantener en su estado
natural, sin la presencia de presas artificiales, protegiendo así el
patrimonio cultural, biológico y agrícola de la zona".
Para Greenpeace en sus comunicados anuncia que la preocupación no es por
una represa más, sino por el impacto que causará al destruir un ecosistema
natural y los restos de la civilización maya".
Hasta este momento, el Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH)
de México no ha querido responder en torno al las obras que afectaría más
de 300 sitios arqueológicos muchos de los cuales no han sido explorados,
cercanos a la zona de Palenque y Yaxchilán.
Fuentes del INAH aseguran que se trabaja en un censo para hacer un balance
general de la zona y las posibles afectaciones por los embalses.
Organizaciones agrarias de mexicanas y guatemaltecas hablas de unos mil
kilómetros cuadrados de afectaciones en ambos países provocando un millón
de personas desplazadas en un proceso de cinco años.
Tabasco HOY destapó caso
Las protestas en torno a las represas del Alto Usumacinta se iniciaron
cuando Tabasco HOY publicó el 30 de junio del 2002, el "Memorándum de
Cooperación Eléctrica con Centroamérica que Fox Quesada había firmado dos
días antes de la publicación, durante la "Expo Inversión 2002" celebrada en
la ciudad de Mérida.
El 10 de agosto del mismo año dio a conocer parte del proyecto y en qué
consistían las nuevas estrategias del gobierno mexicano ante las protestas
que ecologistas de todo el mundo.
A la publicación del Tabasco HOY se sumaron los diarios Reforma de la
capital mexicana, así como los semanarios políticos Proceso y Milenio, y
luego le seguirían Prensa Libre de Guatemala, La Nación de Costa Rica y el
New York Times en fechas recientes.
Alfonso sent in this link, to a story about the growing protest against plans to build a tourist park in the Sumidero Canyon on the Rio Grijalva.
Proceso.com.mx - Causará destrucción el Parque Ecoturístico Cañón del Sumidero
The InterAmerican Development Bank has documents relating to tourism initiatives and other parts of the plan. The site offers a choice of Spanish or English, but most documents are in Spanish only.
Armando Anaya, who has been studying the Maya sites near Boca del Cerro, has created this map of water levels resulting from a "small cortina" of 30 meters. (Click on the thumbnail to see it full-size)
Here is his explanation:
I've been toying around with a Digital Elevation Model that I created for the Tenosique-Boca del Cerro area, and considering Alejandro Martinez' remarks on a "not so big curtain, 50 to 70 m high" here is what I get with a 30-m rise of the water level. Mind you, my DEM is "home-made" and not as precise as the one that CFE should have, but nevertheless, I think it gives a very likely scenario. In my model some of the "unimportant" sites that would be flooded are according to the map of CFE: "Sitios que pudieron haber controlado, a nivel regional, zonas (extensiones mayores a 3 km2) de produccion. Son centros administrativos...Contienen mas de 50 monticulos visibles. Tienen algunos elementos notables en arquitectura o escultura". So much for the unimportance. I'll continue mocking around with this and will let you know of any other thing that may be relevant.
And his FAMSI report on the sites is here:
The Pomoná Kingdom and its Hinterland - Armando Anaya Hernandez
For those following the Rancho Esmeralda showdown on the Usumacinta weblog, or anyone wanting to see all the posts on that subject, I've moved it all into the "Path" category, which will be used for tourism related news.
The Daily Glyph: Path Archives
As I noted here last week, in the Proceso story on Chinikiha, Janet Schwartz was denied credit for her presence at the discovery of the murals and her subsequent reporting. Proceso this week printed a correction, and in the same issue INAH paid for an announcement reinforcing their concern for the Mexican cultural patrimony. In it, INAH again stated that they have had no official notification of CFE plans in Boca del Cerro. Full text of those announcements is below (click MORE).
En aclaraciones en Cultura, p. 65 Proceso, 22 de diciembre de 2002, numero, 1364
"La historiadora de arte y periodista Janet Schwartz fue una de las pocas personas
que estuvo presente en el hallazgo de los murales prehispánicos con imágenes de
murcélagos en Chinkihá, en Palenque, Chiapas, en la zona ribereña del río
Usumacinta, el 8 de noviembre pasado. Fue Schwartz quien dio aviso del suceso a
este semanario y alertó de la destruccción de los murales por la presa que la
Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE) pretende construir. En el reportaje en
cuestión publicado la semana pasada, al eliminarse la línea en la que se mencionaba
que Proceso estuvo presente en el descubrimiento (dado que la periodista no
pertenece a este medio), su nombre desapareció injustificadamente.
Y, antes, en la pagina 63 de la misma revista el INAH pone una publicidad pagada de
cuarto plana:
"EL INAH PROTEGE EL PATRIMONIO ARQUEOLÓGICO DE LOS MEXICANOS
"Con relación a la información aparecida en días recientes en algunos medios de
comunicación, en la que se manifiesta la preocupación de diversos sectores de la
sociedad por el riesgo que corre el patrimonio arqueológico ubicado en las márganes
del río Usumacinta, ante la posible realización del proyecto hidroeléctrico Boca
del Cerro, el Instituto Nacfional de Antropología e Historia precisa lo siguiente:
1.. Hasta el momento, el Instituo no ha recibido el proyecto técnico definitivo de
Boca del Cerro.
2.. El INAH mantiene comunicación permanente con la Comisión Federal de
Electricidad para conocer con toda oportunidad los proyeectos que esa empresa
lleve a cabo y que puedan afectar el patrimonio cultural, a fin de desarrollar los
estudios de factibilidad de cada obra.
3.. El INAH somete los proyectos para su análisis al Consejo de Arqueología,
instancia colegiada, integrada por académicos prestigiados tanto del propio
Instituto, como de diversos organismos universitarios del país. Este Consejo emite
dictámenes técnicos que determinan la autorización de cada proyecto.
4.. En cuanto se tenga el proyecto definitivo se analizará el impacto real que
eventualmente pudiera tener sobre el patrimonio cultural, prevaleciendo siempre la
protección de éste.
Tal como ha sido durante su larga tradición, el INAH reitera su vocación por
proteger el patrimonio arqueológico de los mexicanos.
CONACULTA-INAH
Rob Johnston has created a website with links to dam-related information. It includes a map that shows possible results of any large-scale dam project.
Mexico-Guatemala Usumacinta Region Destruction by Planned Dam!
After weeks working to get the story of Chinikiha and the dam threats to archaeological sites into Proceso magazine, Janet Schwartz was denied credit for her work in the published stories this week. But the articles cover the letter to Fox, reactions by INAH officials, extensive comments by Moises Morales, and the discovery and documentation of the "bat murals" at Chinikiha by our little group in November. The full text of 2 stories can be found below (click MORE).
Thanks to Janet and to Columba Vertiz who added several interviews, with Moises, Homero Aridjis, and INAH official Alejandro Martinez.
La presa en el Usumacinta destruiría zonas arqueológicas
Hallan murales prehispánicos
Columba Vértiz
La presa hidroeléctrica que pretende construir la Comisión Federal de
Electricidad (CFE) en el río Usumacinta, a la altura de Boca del Cerro, cerca
de Tenosique, Tabasco, destruiría sitios arqueológicos de la cultura maya no
explorados y los ecosistemas selváticos de México y Guatemala.
Por ello, arqueólogos y residentes de Chiapas manifiestan su rechazo al
proyecto, el cual forma parte del Plan Puebla-Panamá. Molestos, exigen que la
CFE haga públicos los planos para conocer las partes que serán inundadas.
El pasado 3 de diciembre, el Grupo de los Cien y la asociación Ríos Mayas
dejaron en Los Pinos una carta al presidente Vicente Fox en la que se le
explica que el Usumacinta dio luz a una de las civilizaciones más importantes
del mundo: la maya clásica. También se lee:
"Las fascinantes ciudades, que luego fueron abandonadas, yacen por doquier a
lo largo de la cuenca del río. Las inscripciones y el arte que fueron
rescatadas durante el último siglo han producido una serie de descubrimientos,
los cuales dan una nueva visión de la historia de esta importante cultura."
Se destaca que el río actúa como la principal arteria de una de las regiones
de mayor vitalidad e importancia bio-cultural del planeta: la Selva Lacandona,
los Altos de Chiapas y parte del norte de Guatemala.
"Es una región de montañas, cañones y bosques que conserva todavía una gran
importancia ecológica y cultural, a pesar de los grandes cambios y conflictos
en los últimos 40 años."
Los dos grupos hacen varias propuestas. En una de ellas consideran que debe
abrirse un plan para la creación de una reserva binacional que pueda proteger
el Usumacinta "con la esperanza de que para el año 2006 el corredor ribereño
sea establecido", abordando desde los tributarios de los ríos Pasión, Chixoy,
Ixcán y Lacantún hasta la desembocadura del Usumacinta en Boca del Cerro, y
uniendo la reserva de Montes Azules, el Parque Nacional de la Sierra del
Lacandón y la Reserva de la Biosfera Maya.
Así este corredor, se explica en el documento, volvería a ser la verdadera
ruta maya que en el tiempo clásico fue.
La misiva está firmada por más de 60 creadores de México y el extranjero:
escritores, poetas, fotógrafos, pintores y compositores, entre los cuales
están Gilberto Aceves Navarro, Raúl Anguiano, Juan Bañuelos, Efraín Bartolomé,
Kathryn Blair, Breyten Breytenbach, Leonora Carrington, Jennifer Clement,
Helen Escobedo, Carolyn Forché, Héctor García, Margo Glantz, Elva Macías y
Francisco Toledo.
Preocupado, el escritor Homero Aridjis, presidente del Grupo de los Cien,
externa en entrevista que la construcción de la hidroeléctrica sería un golpe
mortal contra el río Usumacinta.
Según Moisés Morales Márquez, miembro de Ríos Mayas (agrupación integrada por
arqueólogos, escritores, artistas y ciudadanos de Guatemala, Estados Unidos y
México con el objetivo de salvar al Usumacinta), la presa afectaría a Tabasco,
"pero ahí, como dice la canción, se vive en un edén, nadie ha protestado",
buena parte de Chiapas y Guatemala.
Pero en realidad es poco lo que se sabe del proyecto. El exguía de turistas se
queja:
"La CFE ha tenido el cuidado de que no se sepa gran cosa. Ha sido como un plan
secreto. Se van colando cosas como de costumbre y las noticias que tenemos es
que la presa puede ser de 40 a 100 metros de altura, andan regateando con
ello, y que suministraría 2% de las necesidades del consumo de la energía
eléctrica del país."
Recuerda que Julio Acosta Rodríguez, de la CFE, ha dicho que los sitios
arqueológicos de Piedras Negras y Yaxchilán no se afectarían, pero -reclama
Morales Márquez por teléfono desde Palenque, Chiapas- no se han mostrado
mapas, "no dan información que tenga la credibilidad".
Aridjis también reprocha la falta de información del proyecto y critica el
papel pasivo de la Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales
(Semarnat) y el Instituto Nacional de Antropología (INAH):
"Las dos instancias son como de hule frente a este proyecto de la CFE. Es una
cosa tapada como en los peores tiempos del PRI. La política de Fox es
sacrificar el medio ambiente al concepto que él tiene de desarrollo.
"El gobierno de Fox es el promotor del Plan Puebla-Panamá con el anzuelo de
que va a ser un detonador del desarrollo de la región sur-sureste de México."
En tanto, Moisés Morales Márquez señala que el INAH ha mandado secretamente a
arqueólogos para el salvamento del lugar:
"Hacen el cálculo de qué es lo que se puede sacar antes de inundar. Entonces
vamos a ser el paraíso de los coleccionistas, no el paraíso del conocimiento,
porque se saca del contexto la pieza."
Los dos coinciden en que si se inundan lugares arqueológicos, no habrá la
posibilidad de conocerlos, de investigarlos.
Para Morales Márquez, también se afectará la fuente de trabajo, y da un ejemplo:
"El 80% de la población de Palenque depende del turismo que se desarrolla
aquí. Entonces qué podemos decir del paraíso turístico que se va a inundar
porque necesitamos 2% más de energía eléctrica. ¿Vale la pena dañar una gran
región o cambiar la ecología y desplazar gente? Porque el 2% de la energía
quién sabe a dónde va ir."
Hallazgo en peligro
Uno de los sitios arqueológicos afectados sería Chinikihá, ubicado en
Palenque, Chiapas, en la zona ribereña del río Usumacinta, a 12 kilómetros en
línea recta a Boca del Cerro.
Alfonso Morales Cleveland, arqueólogo encargado de las excavaciones de los
templos XIX y XX de Palenque por parte de Pre-Columbian Art Research (PARI),
realiza un mapa de las áreas que serán inundadas con un complejo equipo
denominado Global Position System. Éste hace cálculos satelitales metros
arriba del nivel del mar para deducir las áreas afectadas por inundaciones en
el escenario de una cortina baja de 40 metros.
El especialista advierte que una presa de 40 metros provocaría una gran laguna
que inundaría hasta Chinikihá, donde el pasado 8 de noviembre se descubrieron
murales prehispánicos con imágenes de murciélagos, animales relacionados con
la leyenda maya de la creación del mundo.
Las pinturas se encuentran en unas ruinas ubicadas en el predio de Macario
Guzmán López, quien junto con el comisario ejidal del poblado Reforma Agraria,
Guillermo Castañeda Urbano, abrió paso a los arqueólogos Alfonso Morales
Cleveland y Julia Miller, y al productor de documentales televisivos
estadunidenses David Pentecost.
Con machete en mano, arrasaron con un estrecho tramo de la densa vegetación
selvática para abrir un sendero que comunica una planicie con un gran
montículo en medio, hasta llegar a una pequeña entrada de una ermita en forma
de bóveda. Apoyados con las linternas se vio que el lugar sirve de vivienda a
cientos de murciélagos y culebras nauyacas. Pero también se descubrieron
imágenes de murciélagos en las paredes.
Estas pinturas, con bordes en tonos rojizos sobre estuco, se perderán si se
construye la presa.
Un episodio del Popol Vuh detalla que los gemelos mitológicos, Ixbalanqué y
Hunahpú, fueron retados en el inframundo, Xibalba, por los quirópteros
asesinos dentro de la Casa de los Murciélagos. Entonces una de esas criaturas
sacó la cabeza de Hunahpú, pero su hermano la reemplazó con una realizada de
calabaza.
En las cresterías de varios templos de Copán, además de esculturas, existieron
grandes representaciones de murciélagos asesinos. En El Hormiguero, zona
arqueológica maya de la región Río Bec en Campeche, un hombre con cuerpo de
murciélago fue tallado en piedra.
En Copán -dice el estudio Scribes, warriors and kings: the city of Copán and
the ancient maya, de William y Barbara Fash- existe un edificio parecido a la
Casa de los Murciélagos descrito en el Popol Vuh.
En enero de 1898, Teobert Maler exploró Chinikihá, y en su obra Researches in
the central portion of the Usumatsinta valley también describió numerosas
pirámides, templos, palacios e inscripciones y mencionó haber visto huellas de
pinturas en una antesala o corredor.
Pero las que encontró el austriaco están hoy otra vez escondidas bajo la maleza.
Chinikihá significa irónicamente "boca del agua desapareciendo", en alusión a
un río que pasaba por un túnel rocoso no muy lejos de estas ruinas. Esta
antigua ciudad tuvo importantes relaciones con los olmecas en la época
preclásica, según un análisis de cerámica realizado por Robert L. Rands para
la Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies (FAMSI).
Y un estudio de neutrones efectuado por los investigadores Ron Bishop y Robert
Rands revela que, durante el apogeo de la civilización maya, los habitantes
del lugar producían la cerámica de lujo encontrada en Tikal, lo cual confirma
lazos importantes entre el señorío de Palenque y el Petén en Guatemala.
Merle Greene Robertson, fundadora de PARI, con sede en San Francisco,
California, también demostró la alta calidad de esculturas de personajes y de
jeroglíficos del período clásico maya (600-900 d. C.).
Alerta Greene, ante la construcción de la presa, que al no poder encontrarse
más piezas, como jeroglíficos, "se perderá para siempre la posibilidad de dar
a luz los complejos detalles de la política y de las guerras en la región".
En entrevista, Juan Antonio Ferrer, encargado por el INAH de la zona de
Palenque y las de la cuenca del Usumacinta, admite que Chinikihá, aparte de
tener una gran extensión y restos de una cancha de pelota, posee nueve cuevas.
Macario Guzmán López, dueño de la propiedad, asegura que en una de las grutas
hay pinturas prehistóricas con dibujos de venado.
Acongojado, Alfonso Morales Cleveland comenta:
"Como arqueólogo, me preocupa que no sabemos qué tenemos de ruinas. Lo curioso
es que el INAH debe de preocuparse. Aún no se sabe la riqueza que puede tener
este sitio."
A su vez, Macario Guzmán López demanda que le paguen si se inunda el lugar:
"Hay que discutir cuánto vale. Son 35 hectáreas y aquí tengo 20 cabezas de
ganado."
LA CFE
En agosto pasado, Rubén Regnier, responsable del área de prensa del INAH,
reveló a Reforma que había un acuerdo con la CFE en el cual el instituto
"minimizaría retrasos en la construcción de subestaciones y líneas eléctricas
a cambio de sugerir modificaciones por descubrimientos accidentales de restos
arqueológicos".
El 7 de octubre, en comparecencia ante el pleno de la Cámara de Diputados,
Alfredo Elías Ayub, director general de CFE, descartó el proyecto de presas de
"cortinas altas" en el río Usumacinta. No obstante, confirmó la existencia a
mediano plazo del proyecto "Hidroeléctrica Usumacinta" en Boca del Cerro.
Se buscó en la CFE una entrevista con el responsable de la hidroelétrica y no
hubo respuesta.
"Rechazamos cualquier proyecto de represa", expresa el comisario ejidal del
poblado de Reforma Agraria, donde viven 150 familias. Y el agente municipal,
Luis Alfonso Bonilla, sugiere que en lugar de una presa "estaría muy bueno un
proyecto ecoturístico porque así habrá entrada de fuentes de trabajo para
mantener a las familias. La gente quiere trabajar si se echan a andar las
ruinas".
En Reforma Agraria, informa, hay familias que en protesta no han pagado sus
recibos de luz que llegan bimensualmente entre 500 y 800 pesos. Luego añade.
"Si desalojan, la gente se va a defender. Va a usar la violencia porque no se
puede tapar el sol con un solo dedo. Será como lo del aeropuerto, otro Atenco.
Habrá sangre."
Luis Alberto López Wario, director de Salvamento Arqueológico del INAH,
declaró a Reforma que sólo en el cañón de Boca del Cerro se tienen registrados
25 zonas arqueológicas sin explorar, y negó que el Instituto dé su aprobación
para inundar Yaxchilán, pero admite que un número no determinado de otros
sitios se verán afectados, entre ellos Chinikihá.
Por su parte, Juan Antonio Ferrer explica a este semanario que de un total de
4 mil 332 sitios arqueológicos registrados en Tabasco, más unos 2 mil 750 en
Chiapas, "hay no menos de 220 en línea recta de Palenque a Boca del Cerro".
En un comunicado, el pasado 26 de noviembre, Norma Barbacci, directora de
programas de World Monuments Fund (WWF), con sede en Nueva York, menciona que
este organismo lleva tiempo de campaña en contra de la iniciativa de construir
represas en esta cuenca.
También Homero Aridjis subraya que el Grupo de los Cien detuvo en 1987 y en
1992 la intención de construir presas sobre el río Usumacinta. Relata que a
mediados de los sesenta, el paraje Boca del Cerro fue propuesto para una presa
hidroeléctrica de gran escala, pero se suspendió. Después hubo otros intentos:
"En 1980, México acordó con Guatemala estudiar la factibilidad de construir
múltiples presas en la cuenca del Usumacinta y hacia 1985 se recomendó a Boca
del Cerro como presa base con cuatro presas adicionales; los embalajes
cubrirían un área de mil 300 kilómetros cuadrados.
"En marzo de 1987, el Grupo de los Cien denunció el proyecto de construir
presas sobre el río. Pidió a los presidentes de Guatemala y México cancelaran
el proyecto. En mayo de 1989, la Secretaría de Desarrollo Urbano y Ecología
(Sedue) suspendió el plan hidroeléctrico del Usumacinta a solicitud del
gobierno de Guatemala."
Recuerda que en 1990 el ingeniero Manuel Rubio fue contratado por la CFE para
hacer un estudio del terreno. Su conclusión fue que la inestabilidad del lecho
del río no permitía la construcción de una cortina de concreto, y tras
declararlo en un medio informativo local fue despedido.
El 15 de febrero de 1992, en Yaxchilán, durante una reunión internacional
sobre biodiversidad, Carlos Salinas de Gortari anunció la creación de una
nueva reserva llamada Yaxbé sobre el Usumacinta. Días después, Aridjis leyó en
los periódicos que la CFE y la Secretaría de Energía, Minas e Industria
Paraestatal (SEMIP) anunciaban la construcción de una presa en Boca del Cerro
y otras sobre el río, pero el Grupo de los Cien se opuso:
"Estábamos a punto de lanzar una campaña internacional con grupos
estadunidenses cuando Arturo Gómez Pompa, consejero ecológico de Salinas, me
comunicó que se cancelaba el proyecto." (Con información de Janet Schwartz). l
"No le veo problema a la represa": Martínez Muriel
Columba Vértiz
Según Alejandro Martínez Muriel, coordinador nacional de Arqueología del
INAH, con el proyecto hidroeléctrico de la CFE se inundará un área muy
chica, de mil 700 hectáreas, y "no hay sitios arqueológicos
espectaculares, como Yaxchilán o Palenque, son de uno o dos montículos".
Martínez Muriel ya recorrió la región, junto con el director de
Salvamento Arqueológico y el arqueólogo que se haría cargo del proyecto
en caso de que lo aprueben:
"Volamos el área. Ya vimos los planos. Nos enseñaron hasta dónde van los
estudios. Por eso se sabe que hay 18 sitios de los cuales la mitad se
inundaría, pero son zonas menores. Yo no le veo problema. Hemos
trabajado muchas presas, no sé por qué la gente la tomó como bandera. Se
ha difundido mucha información mala."
Asegura que si hubiera algo importante, el instituto sería el primero en
parar la obra, como lo hizo hace 10 años. Recuerda:
"Entonces hablamos con la Comisión y el proyecto estuvo ahí latente. Ya
lo cambiaron. Le bajaron las alturas. Hemos detenido cosas que sabemos
que su construcción va afectar a sitios importantes. Por ejemplo,
paramos la línea 8 del Metro."
Si aprueban la represa -la llama así porque la considera muy chica-, el
INAH realizaría un estudio de factibilidad:
"Consiste en un estudio más profundo para constatar que no haya zonas
muy importantes, como para poder decirles '¿saben qué?, no se puede',
pero vemos que son sitios muy chicos.
"En el área hay poca gente porque se ha hablado del problema social y
del problema ecológico. Ahí hay puros potreros. Hay un poco de selva en
la parte de los cañones donde obviamente ahí nadie se mete."
-¿Cuándo se empieza a construir el proyecto?
-Están en estudios. Si los aprueban. Si se empieza la construcción, será
en dos años.
No es una presa como las que ha visto:
"Es como una cortina que canaliza el agua por las turbinas para generar
electricidad, parece que las turbinas son mucho más sencillas y permiten
el paso de materia orgánica, o sea que hasta son ecológicas. Eso nos
dijeron los ingenieros, a menos que sean unos mentirosos. Ya no se
necesitan esas presas que requieren mucha altura y una baja de agua muy
fuerte para que movieran las turbinas, parece que con el puro paso del
agua se puede generar electricidad. Entonces no requiere mucha altura ni
inundar mucho."
-¿Será de 40 metros?
-Sí, pero desde la base del fondo del río. O sea, ellos van a excavar el
río.
No sabe cómo va a ser la cortina:
"Eso es bronca de los ingenieros porque no sé qué les convenga, si
hacerla de concreto o arcilla." l
From last March, a Declaration from the Mesoamerican Forum for Life on dam projects in Latin America.
Via the International Rivers Network
Ron Canter sent this link to a new FAMSI report on Pomoná. He writes:
It gives total detail on the locations of all the Maya sites between P.N. and Boca Del Cerro. it is obvious that sites such as Lindavista and Sto. Tomas would be flooded. Panhale, which appears to be a fortress controlling the exit of the Usu' from the mountains, would be destroyed by the dam construction, since it sits right where the dam would be built.
Reports Submitted to FAMSI - Armando Anaya Hernandez - The Pomoná Kingdom and its Hinterland
UPDATE: From Ron Canter
Today I read Dr. Anaya's report on Maya sites near Pomona more
thoroughly, and found in his description of the second rank ruins of
Panhale these chilling items:
"Panhale has been considerably affected by
the mining activities of the nearby plant, the exploration works of the CFE, and ... looters."
"Unfortunately most of the massive platform on which this group (Group B) lies has been severely damaged by a trench excavated with heavy machinery used by the lime plant to extract rock, and by the CFE. At certain points the trench was bulldozed to a depth of 2 m following an east-west direction for over 200 m, until it reached the edge of a cliff overlooking the Usumacinta River, where CFE constructed a concrete base to set a datum."
This is how the CFE actually regards important Maya sites.
Ron Canter
Janet Schwartz has an article in Tabasco Hoy about the letter to Fox. I'll post the link when I get it. Here's the beginning of the story - the rest is below (click MORE).
SURESTE
Piden no más represas
* Inundaría docenas de sitios mayas aún no excavados
y miles de hectáreas de tierras dicen a Fox.
* La importancia del Usumacinta yace en una biodiversidad sin paralelo.
Janet Schwartz Parnes
Tabasco HOY/Corresponsal
San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas.- Una coalición de escritores,
arqueólogos, ambientalistas y líderes indígenas de México, Guatemala y los
Estados Unidos, además Homero Aridjis y el Grupo de los Cien, entregó una
carta al presidente de México, Vicente Fox, para demandar que frene
supuestos proyectos hidroeléctricos en el Río Usumacinta.
"El Usumacinta es más que el agua que corre en su canal", asegura la
misiva."Es la sangre vital de mesoamérica, y el lugar de origen de una
cultura milenaria que aún vive."
Una de las claves del Plan Puebla-Panamá (PPP), -la propuesta de
incrementar la capacidad eléctrica en el sureste mexicano y centroamérica-,
en el Río Usumacinta inundaría docenas de conocidos y desconocidos antiguos
sitios mayas aún no excavados, miles de hectáreas de tierras agrícolas, y
mucho de un cañón angosto de cientos de metros de profundad, asegura.
También inundaría y afectaría miles de hectáreas de selva tropical y
pantanos, que albergan guacamayas, jaguares, tapires, tortugas, cocodrilos,
saraguatos, y muchas especies en peligro de extinción.
"En términos ecológicos, la importancia del Usumacinta yace en una
biodiversidad sin paralelo", formando parte de un ecosistema "delicado",
además advierte.
Como alternativa de la construcción de represas en lo cual supuestamente
está programada la primera en Boca del Cerro, Tabasco, que permitiría la
producción de 500 megawatts o el equivalente de 2% de la demanda de energía
de México; la asociación "Ríos Mayas", detalla otra visión comprehensiva
para "un corredor binacional ribereño", con formas alternativas de
electricidad, y un desarrollo sustentable que incluye el ecoturismo para el
desarrollo de la región.
Un proyecto para la creación de "una reserva binacional", señala la
agrupación, protegería el Usumacinta a perpetuidad. Deberá empezar de
inmediato, destaca, con la esperanza de que para el año 2006 este corredor
ribereño sea establecido, abarcando desde los tributarios de los ríos
Pasión, Chixoy, Ixcán y Lacantún hasta la desembocadura del Usumacinta en
Boca del Cerro, y uniendo la reserva de Montes Azules, el Parque Nacional
de la sierra del Lacandón y la Reserva de la Biosfera Maya.
La carta dirigida a Fox recuerda que durante el primer milenio dC. el
Usumacinta dio luz a una de las civilizaciones más importantes del mundo,
mientras hoy en día sostiene las comunidades mayas contemporáneas que
atraen miles de turistas al año.
Ahí, sostiene la asociación, un corredor de reserva binacinal volvería a
ser la verdadera ruta maya que en el tiempo clásico fue. Podría desarrollar
una red de senderos por tierra y agua, campamentos, hoteles y posadas
ecológicas, que darían empleos a muchos de los residentes como gerentes,
científicos, guías, académicos, artistas, y artesanos, guardias, etc.
"La importancia natural, cultural, y arqueológico del Usumacinta hace de
ella una región única en el mundo, un recurso que cualquier secretaría de
turismo en los Estados Unidos o Canadá envidiarían. Con el conocimiento que
ahora tenemos de la región, podríamos sin pensar, inundar el equivalente de
una tumba de Pakal de Palenque o la tumba de Tutankamun para siempre",
indica.
En tanto aconseja la implementación de técnicas de agricultura orgánica de
bajo impacto ambiental, mientras subraya los ejemplos de modelos
reconocidos internacionalmente que existen en lugares como Laguna Miramar,
y en Uaxactún en el Petén y el protocolo de conservación desarrollado
durante los últimos veinte años por varias organizaciones no
gubernamentales trabajando con comunidades locales.
"Esto no es la Disneylandia ecoturística que mencionan los Zapatistas, más
bien una oportunidad de desarrollo comunitario único en la historia de esta
región", aclara el escrito.
Antes, la misiva rememora que la construcción de represas hidroeléctricas
en el Usumacinta como parte del PPP es el tercer intento de un proyecto
originalmente propuesto y rechazado en los principios de los años 1980s. Un
proyecto más pequeño fue impulsado por Carlos Salinas de Gortari en 1992,
pero sufrió el mismo destino.
"Estas propuestas fueron desechadas por razones económicas, ecológicas y
culturales importantes, que no han cambiado y hasta la fecha un estudio del
impacto en todas sus facetas no ha sido desarrollado ni publicado",
recuerda el documento.
Consecuentemente, mientras que el río Usumacinta representa un recurso
regional e internacional sin paralelo, su cause, que representa una reserva
biológica e histórica de incalculable valor, "se debe proteger y mantener
en su estado natural sin la presencia de presas o retenes artificiales.
Protegiendo así el patrimonio cultural, biológico y agrícola de ésta zona
de importancia mundial".
Tanto México que Guatemala, abunda, deben cooperar en el desarrollo de
tecnología solar, y geotérmal tanto en el sector industrial como el
doméstico, y formas alternativas de generación hidroeléctrica menos
invasivas y de alta eficiencia. Lo anterior debe convertirse en prioridad
para ambas naciones, y los fondos deben llegar tanto del sector privado
como del público.
Homero Aridjis del Grupo de los Cien, quién luchó con éxito en contra de
las amenazas de construir represas en el Usumacinta en las décadas 80s y
90s, recién preguntó, si "Vicente Fox pasará a la historia como el
destructor del patrimonio cultural y natural del mundo Maya o como su
salvador. ¿Qué decidirá?".
Por su parte, Alonso Méndez, guía de la zona arqueológica de Palenque,
artista y hijo de padre indígena tzeltal maya, dijo que si Fox quiere hacer
algo para la región mesoamericana, "nos pudiera ayudar de una manera que
honre el pasado y la geografía sagrada de nuestras tierras, para asegurar
un futuro mejor para nuestros nietos".
"La primera cosa que tiene que hacer, es frenar cualquier proyecto de
represas", puntualizó.
Mientras sigue el proyecto de construcción de represas en el Río
Usumacinta, "Coalición Ríos" demanda que los planos y diseños con la
ubicación de los sitios afectados, sean publicados por medios como el
internet "de inmediato", además cualquier cambio debería publicarse en
seguida. Además pide a Fox que el proceso sea transparente y abierto a la
inspección del público en general.
Por otra parte exhorta a México, Guatemala y la comunidad internacional
reunir los fondos necesarios para realizar estudios acuáticos, geológicos,
biológicos y arqueológicos, para determinar el número y localización de
sitios arqueológicos, un censo de especies silvestres que serían afectadas,
y poblaciones que ocupan las áreas afectadas.
Estos estudios, apunta, deberían ser hechos por grupos imparciales y
neutros del más alto nivel académico para determinar el efecto que estas
represas tendrán sobre cada una de éstas sistemas. Estos resultados deberán
publicarse al alcance de todo ciudadano/a.
Ecosistema
Inundaría y afectaría miles de hectáreas de selva tropical y pantanos que
albergan
Guacamayas.
Jaguares.
Tapires.
Tortugas.
Cocodrilos.
Saraguatos.
y especies en peligro de extinción.
Tabasco HOY Derechos Reservados 2002
Four very serious activists, in their press conference Dec. 3. Left to right, Alonso Mendez and Moises Morales, from Palenque, Homero Aridjis, leader of the Grupo de los Cien, and Chris Shaw, from RiosMayas.
After the press conference, Chris with Betty and Homero Aridjis, Dave Pentecost, Moi and Alonso.
(Click thumbnail for larger image)
Between these two pictures, we drove over to Los Pinos and delivered the letter. And some of the press folks went off to file stories. Thanks to everyone for their support and attention. Now we move ahead with the effort.
Next: we work toward the spring flotilla, 50 boats floating down the Usumacinta. Join us!
From Janet Schwartz, who has been incredibly helpful through all this, a note on other press coverage:
"Guys: You´ll be glad to know that thru Maya Press, the story came out today in two major Chiapas dailies, El Diario de Chiapas y La Republica en Chiapas !"
(Links to come)
Maya Press is Janet's operation. Among a dozen others. Thanks Janet!
Here's a link to an abbreviated version of the Reforma article, covering our press conference yesterday.
reforma.com --- Exigen a Fox detener hidroeléctrica
For any of you who are still reading this weblog after our long silence, here's an update. Chris Shaw and I spent the last week in Palenque, at the Panchan, getting ready for the press conference to announce the letter to Vicente Fox.
We brought Alonso Mendez and Moises Morales to Mexico City over the weekend and met with Homero and Betty Aridjis, of Grupo de los Cien, who joined with us on the letter.
Yesterday we announced the letter to an audience that included the New York Times, L.A. Times, Houston Chronicle, France-Press, Reuters, NewsMexico, DPA from Germany, and Channel 11 in Mexico. Then we delivered the letter to the office at Los Pinos, the Mexican White House.
An article and the full text of the letter appeared in Reforma today. I'll post the link when I get it. We'll see what other press we get. Meanwhile, here's a brief story in NewsMexico.
The News - Environmentalists protest dam project for ancient river
Janet Schwartz interviewed Bishop Arizmendi recently, learning that he had asked the Mexican Secretary of Energy that there be no more dams built in Chiapas. He also relayed a conversation in which he was assured that there would not be a dam or cortina built, but simply generators placed in the river bed. The full text of Janet´s story, and an additional note, is below.
The chorus of opposition to the dam is growing, and descriptions of the planned construction are changing as well. But as the Bishop himself said, "We will see if it is the truth." We will continue to press for a larger solution to the permanent protection of the Usumacinta watershed.
Janet Schwartz
San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas.- El obispo de la diócesis indígena más grande
del país, Felipe Arizmendi Esquivel, pidió al Secretario de Energía y Minas, además
al Secretario de Gobernación, que ya no se haga más represas en Chiapas.
Ante una incertidumbre sobre los proyectos de represas en el Río Usumacinta, gran
cauce que divide México con Guatemala, que supuestamente inundaría miles de
hectáreas de tierras, el prelado reveló que insistió ante los dos funcionarios
gubernamentales federales, que se debe de buscar otras alternativas.
"Para los campesinos las tierras son la vida, si les quiten las tierras es como la
muerte para ellos", destacó el sucesor de Samuel Ruiz García.
En entrevista al término de la misa dominical, el prelado recordó que en la última
Asamblea de los Obispos en la Comisión Episcopal Mexicana (CEM), se presentó al
Secretario de Energía y Minas las preocupaciones que hay en Chiapas en cuanto a la
posible construcción de presas hidroeléctricas.
El obispo precisó que le dijo al funcionario federal "pero ya no más en Chiapas
porque esto genera mucho incertidumbre para los campesinos".
Y aseguró que al reunirse con Santiago Creel luego de la asamblea de la CEM, le
expresó: "por favor, ya nos dejen en paz en Chiapas. Si se requiere más luz en el
país, se busquen otros caminos, otras alternativas".
En tanto el titular de la diócesis sancristobalense reveló que los dos funcionarios
le aseguraron que "se han cancelado los proyectos que había que solamente en el Río
Usumacinta, aprovechando la corriente de agua, harán algunas plantas generatorias de
electricidad, pero sin invadir, sin inundar tierras".
"Pero hay que estar al pendiente si eso es verdad", afirmó el clérigo, "porque lo
que nos importa es, repito, la seguridad y el bienestar de los campesinos y de los
indígenas".
Por otra parte en el tema de la migración que asimismo se trató en la reunión de la
CEM con representantes de los obispos de Estados Unidos, Guatemala y Centroamérica,
Felipe Arizmendi Esquivel afirmó que "juntos" -"para que tenga más fuerza"-, en
próximas fechas se va a publicar el documento final.
Juntos, "presionemos a la sociedad y al gobierno para que se dé los migrantes el
lugar que les correspondan".
Explicó que en todo el país hay un problema de empleo con la caída de los precios
del café, con el bajo precio de los productos del campo, "nuestra gente tiene que
emigrar. No van por turismo ni para aventura, sino por hambre, por necesidad",
acotó.
Por lo tanto, "nos importa muchísima que se atienda las causas fundamentales de la
migración, que son la falta de empleos, la pobreza, la marginación, la desatención
al campo".
Por otra parte, dijo el religioso, se debe de respetar los derechos humanos de los
migrantes en los EEUU y dentro de esos, los derechos laborales.
Pero al mismo tiempo, abundó, "tomamos consciencia que no podemos exigir a los EEUU
lo que no cumplimos como mexicanos con los centroamericanos que pasan sobre todo por
Chiapas, por Oaxaca y otros estados".
Entonces, recordó el obispo, "hicimos un llamado también a la consciencia nacional
para que veamos a los migrantes centroamericanos como hermanos también y les demos
el lugar que les corresponden.
Aún más, demandó. "Que se siguen implementando otras medidas para proteger sus
derechos laborales, por ejemplo, en las fincas de café que hay en la costa, o en las
plantaciones bananeras y de caña, porque es un trabajo que no realizan los mexicanos
sino los centroamericanos".
Luego Felipe Arizmendi insistió que se siga implementando medidas de protección,
hasta seguridad social, para los migrantes, "porque hay como los mala salvatruchas y
como otras bandas de asaltantes que son lo peor que se puede imaginarse que hacen
demasiado daño a los migrantes".
En ese sentido, el purpurado recordó que hace dos años se querrían colar varios
indocumentados en la peregrinación que organiza la diócesis hacia la Basílica de
Guadalupe a finales de mayo.Pero el padre Eugenio, se dio cuenta, matizó, y tuvieron
que bajarlos todos del camión.
Entonces, el obispo advirtió de estar muy precavidos, porque "no han faltado algunos
que con motivo de las antorchas guadalupanas se dedican a pasar a centroamericanos
vestidos como antorchistas, con la Virgen de Guadalupe, y después les quiten todo y
los dejan a su suerte".
"Hay gente muy mala que se ha dedicado a traficar con los indocumentados, con todas
las trampas que el demonio los inspira", subrayó el católico.
Finalmente el obispo Felipe Arizmendi Esquivel descartó que en su reciente visita
por Chiapas, el cardenal del vaticano, Giovanni Bauttista Re, sugiera que se fuera a
cambiar el obispo de esta ciudad al arzobispado de Monterrey.
Referente al grupo que hizo la insinuación, Arizmendi aseguró: "Es gente que no
tiene otra cosa que hacer que imaginar factibilidades", pero "estoy disponible para
servir donde la iglesia me necesita".
No obstante puntualizó: "Si a mi me interesaba otro puesto, me hubiera quedado con
lo que tenía tan importante en el Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericana (CELAM) a nivel
de toda América".
En tanto aseguró que cada día se siento más contento en San Cristóbal de las Casas
porque "vamos trabajando juntos, continuando el buen trabajo que hizo Don Samuel
Ruiz, y para mí esto es un reto muy importante, que además de diáconos tengamos
sacerdotes indígenas, campesinos, con una formación más inculturada.
"El que podamos tener un liturgía más propia también de las comunidades indígenas,
el que sigamos creciendo en un idea dentro de la pluralidad, diversidad de líneas
pastorales, entonces es un reto muy importante, y sí, me fascina este trabajo de la
iglesia" en esta ciudad.
Finalmente el presbítero destacó que lo que importa es trabajar juntos por la paz en
Chiapas, por ayudar a que los indígenas pueden vivir conforme su dignidad lo merece,
que se siga reconciliando las comunidades. "Sí, estos retos tan importantes son las
que acaparan mi atención más que otra cosa".
Antes, Felipe Arizmendi expuso sobre un proyecto para que vengan los misioneros de
la difunta Madre Teresa de la India, para que puedan venir y atender una casa de
indigentes en esta ciudad.
*****************************************************************
Guys: after the press conference with Arizmendi, privately he told me the
following, but still wasn´t really sure about the specific details, being a bishop
and not an engineer:
Al cuestionarle en exclusiva luego de la rueda de prensa, el obispo Arizmendi
Esquivel aclaró que el proyecto original fue de unas cuatro o cinco represas, pero
que ahora, "ellos me han dicho que se han cancelado estas, solamente piensan hacer
estas plantas generadoras de electricidad en el Río Usumacinta, pero ya sin anegar
tierras".
-¿Ya no van a llevar cortinas?
- No, eso es lo que me dicen. Sin cortina. Eso es solamente allá. Los que estaban
en Huitiupán y Santún, está cancelada. Otras que tenían pensado ya inundar allá
todo aquella parte con el Peten, incluso junto con Guatemala, están cancelados.
- Entonces en donde las van a poner?
- No. Ya no es una presa, sino es solamente plantas generadoras de electricidad
sobre el Río Usumacinta, aprovechando el corriente de agua. Así me explicaron. Vamos
a ver si es cierto.
I´m off to Flores, Guatemala tomorrow to deliver photos to my family in San Jose, across Lake Peten-Itza, where I stayed last spring. To all who know Alonso and Susan of Panchan here in Palenque, there is good news: a healthy baby boy born last night amid friends Kathy and Alessandra, a midwife, and Alonso´s mother, Francis. Big brother Xun is very pleased.
Chris Shaw is coming down to help show around a group of reporters working on a story about the Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve. I´ll be joining all of them in San Cristobal this weekend and driving to Rancho Esmeralda in Ocosingo. Then a small plane to Zapata, and a hike to the shores of the incredible Lake Miramar. We will miss Fernando Ochoa, now in Barcelona, who established Lake Miramar as an ecotourist destination and worked with the communities to get them involved and provide new revenue to their towns.
I´ve just finished a four-day trip on the Usumacinta, to Boca del Cerro, Chinikiha, Piedras Negras, and Yaxchilan. Now I´m back in Palenque, getting ready to go off again, this time to Guatemala.
Alfonso Morales and Julia Miller came along on part of the journey, including the visit to the Chinikiha site, very near the proposed dam location, where we took the first photos of painted walls in some of the ruined galleries. We´ve heard a lot of conflicting information regarding number and height of the dams, and whether or not INAH has a plan to rescue any artifacts at any sites. But we interviewed many people in the threatened areas, and we are following up reports that some people have been offered money and land in Campeche in returning for leaving land that may be flooded.
Janet Schwartz, reporter from San Cristobal, came along on several of our trips. Today she sent an article from Tabasco Hoy on the Usumacinta and PPP that you can find below.
*************************
En defensa del futuro del Usumacinta
Carlos Tello Díaz
El gobierno de México retomó a finales de junio la idea -deshechada ya dos
veces antes, por mala- de construir un sistema de presas en el Usumacinta,
cerca de Boca de Cerro, el nombre del cañón por el que pasa el río, en forma
de raudal, antes de desembocar en Tenosique. En julio, la noticia comenzó a
salir en la prensa del país, con frecuencia en secciones marginales de los
diarios. No era todavía considerada una noticia de primera plana, aunque más
tarde trascendió nuestras fronteras.
El 22 de septiembre, por ejemplo, The New York Times publicó una nota firmada
por Tim Weiner que informaba que el proyecto, rodeado de misterio, había sido
elaborado por la Comisión Federal de Electricidad para discutirlo con otras
dependencias del gobierno. Hablaba de dos posibles presas: una con una cortina
de 40 metros de altura y otra -enorme, desmesurada- con una de 100 metros.
Julio Acosta, el coordinador de proyectos hidroeléctricos de la CFE,
mencionaba nada más el proyecto más modesto, que según sus cálculos habría de
generar un poder de 500 megawatts, equivalentes a 2% de las necesidades
eléctricas previstas en el país para la década que viene.
El Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH), sin embargo, tiene
noticia solamente del proyecto más ambicioso, en el que por lo menos 18 sitios
mayas (los que conocemos) quedarían sepultados bajo 16 mil millones de metros
cúbicos de agua, en una laguna artificial de más de 30 kilómetros de largo,
algo totalmente desastroso.
Un proyecto similar había sido ya antes cancelado, en 1987 y 1992. Las razones
de su rechazo son las mismas por las que debemos hoy combatir, una vez más, el
proyecto de presa de Boca de Cerro en el Usumacinta.
El Usumacinta es el río más grande de México. Nace en el punto donde confluyen
el río de la Pasión y el río de las Salinas, que bajan desde las montañas de
la Alta Verapaz y El Quiché, en Guatemala. Es un río muy voluble. Su nivel,
que es alto en los meses del estiaje, puede llegar a subir más de 15 metros en
época de lluvias. Así lo demuestran las marcas de la corriente dejadas sobre
su lecho, en las partes más estrechas, y la maraña de ramas acumuladas durante
las crecidas en las copas de los árboles que lo bordean. Hay algo mágico en el
Usumacinta, que atraviesa selvas y pantanos antes de desembocar en la Laguna
de Términos. Entre los ríos más grandes del mundo es uno de los muy pocos que
fluyen hacia el norte, como el Nilo.
El río toma su nombre de una población llamada así, Usumacinta (hoy Cabecera),
localizada abajo de Tenosique, a unos 15 kilómetros del Golfo de México. Está
formado por tres palabras de origen náhuatl: ozoma significa "mono", tzin es
un sufijo reverencial y tlan quiere decir "lugar". Es decir, Ozomatzintlan,
"lugar del mono sagrado". El primero en sugerir esta traducción fue el capitán
Teobert Maler, un austríaco legendario que llegó a México con los ejércitos de
Maximiliano para perderse después en la selva del Petén, la cual remontó por
el Usumacinta hasta llegar a la fuente del río, que creyó hallar en las ruinas
de Cancuén, al pie de la Sierra de los Cuchumatanes.
Los mayas, que lo llamaban Xocol-há ("el agua de Xoc", un dios marino),
levantaron a sus orillas algunas de las ciudades más bellas del Período
Clásico, como Yaxchilán y Piedras Negras. En las estelas de sus edificios, a
mediados del siglo XX, Tatiana Proskouriakoff descifró por vez primera los
glifos que contaban la historia de los mayas, así como también el
glifo-emblema del primer soberano de los mayas cuyo nombre volvimos a
pronunciar, luego de más de 10 siglos de silencio: Pájaro Jaguar, ahau de
Yaxchilán.
Decía arriba que la fisonomía del Usumacinta, intacta durante siglos, estuvo a
punto de ser transformada durante la década de los ochenta. México y
Guatemala, en efecto, impulsaron un proyecto muy ambicioso para construir
presas en cinco puntos del río, entre Bethel y Boca del Cerro, con el objetivo
de generar en total hasta 2 mil 890 megawatts de poder hidroeléctrico, más de
lo que puede producir, por ejemplo, la presa de Asuán en el Nilo. Jeffrey
Wilkerson, especialista en el tema, le dedicó en octubre de 1985 un largo y
detallado reportaje en National Geographic, que no está de más consultar en
estos días de prueba.
El costo de la construcción, según cálculos hechos en 1982, sobrepasaba los 3
billones de dólares. No conocemos el costo financiero del proyecto que revive
hoy el gobierno de Fox, quien llegó al poder con el apoyo de los "ecologistas"
del Partido Verde. Sabemos en todo caso que será un costo muy elevado, aunque
no tan alto como el precio que habremos de pagar en términos ecológicos,
históricos y sociales. Cientos de kilómetros cuadrados de selva, poblada por
venados, tapires y jaguares, llena de caobas y de ceibas, quedarán sumergidos
en el fondo de la presa. Muchos de los edificios más importantes de Piedras
Negras y casi todos los templos de la Acrópolis de Yaxchilán, entre ellos uno
de los más famosos, el Laberinto, habrán de ser arrasados por el Usumacinta.
Las poblaciones de Bethel, Corozal y Benemérito de las Américas, entre muchas
otras más, podrán desaparecer para siempre bajo las aguas del lago artificial
en el que se convertiría el río más caudaloso de nuestro país.
Los diarios mexicanos -y sobre todo los estadunidenses- han tendido a destacar
el aspecto histórico y ecológico de la tragedia: la desaparición de Yaxchilán
y Piedras Negras, la destrucción del corazón de la selva más importante de
Norteamérica. Me interesa destacar aquí su aspecto social.
Desde hace ya décadas, los pueblos indígenas de Chiapas han sido regularmente
desplazados de sus comunidades por toda clase de decretos presidenciales, que
invocan invariablemente el interés superior de la nación. Corozal, por
ejemplo, una de las comunidades que serían afectadas por la construcción de la
presa, está poblada por choles originalmente desplazados de la Selva Lacandona
por el gobierno de Luis Echeverría, con la promesa de tener un hogar para
vivir en paz en el Usumacinta. Otros pueblos de la Selva, los asentados en las
Cañadas, optaron en cambio por enfrentar al poder para defender su derecho a
la tierra. Sus nombres -Ibarra, Las Tazas, La Sultana, entre otros- son ahora
conocidos por un público más amplio, pues en 1994 protagonizaron una rebelión
en Chiapas. ¿Es tan corta la memoria del gobierno?
Las presas producen 20% de la electricidad que utiliza el hombre, pero son
responsables de la desarticulación de 60% de los ríos que tiene el mundo. Es
por eso que hoy ya casi nadie (salvo los chinos) las construye. Porque con la
destrucción de los ríos, las presas han destruido también a las poblaciones
que los habitaban, cuyas culturas quedaron para siempre sepultadas bajo el
agua.
I´m leaving San Cristobal today, headed for Palenque and Boca de Cerro, to see whatever can be seen or photographed regarding the proposed dam. I´ll also be taking a friend for a visit to Yaxchilan, the Maya site which may be threatened by the dam plans. I´ll post photos from this trip as soon as I can.
Megan O'Neil and Chris Shaw sent this in. I'm doing Day of the Dead like a maniac and can't go over it right now, but it's important. I'll edit this later, but it's here in its entirety below.
> 26'Oct'2002
>
> Especial para Cuarto Poder
>
> Alerta máxima en la Lacandona
>
> Por Fredy López Arévalo
>
> Lacanjá Chanzayab, Chis.- El presidente del Comisariado de Bienes
> Comunales de Lacanjá Chanzayab, Alfonso Chan Kin, se alzó contra el
> gobierno el pasado 12 de octubre y no tiene pensado parar.
>
> Por eso, ayer celebró asamblea con los decenas de lacandones de
> Lacanjá, Metzabok y Nahá y miles de tzeltales y choles de Frontera
> Corozal, Nueva Palestina, Cintalapa, Francisco León y Lacanjá Tzeltal
> para organizar un plan de resistencia contra el proyecto
> hidroeléctrico de Boca del Toro y la supercarretera de cuatro
> carriles que pretende interconectar a México con Guatemala en tres
> tramos de la selva Lacandona.
>
> La cita fue en Nueva Palestina, hasta donde llegaron delegados de la
> Asociación de Comunidades Forestales de El Petén, Guatemala, para
> alertar a los indígenas chiapanecos del proyecto hidroeléctrico de
> Bocas del Toro, que eventualmente inundaría los sitios arqueológicos
> de Yaxchilán, Piedras Negras, Bonampak y otros 18 que aún no están
> abiertos al publico, así como una vasta extensión de la selva baja de
> ambos lados de la frontera.
>
> "La gente está preocupada, muy preocupada, porque ya oyó que se va a
> hacer la presa, se va a tapar el río, y quién se va a hundir primero:
> Frontera Corozal, y luego, nosotros, porque estamos cerca del río",
> dice Alfonso Chan Kin, quien el pasado 12 de octubre organizó la
> primer sublevación lacandona que se haya registrado en la historia
> moderna.
>
> "No queremos la presa del Plan Panamá, no queremos carretera de
> cuatro carriles, ya no queremos nada, y mi gente va a seguir
> luchando, haciendo lo que podemos, adelante del día 12 de octubre,
> porque donde vivimos nosotros, en Lacanjá, en la Sierra de Cojolito,
> en Montes Azules, se va a inundar todo, ni va a quedar nada", agrega.
>
> Por eso, dice, nos reunimos otra vez el 26 de octubre en Nueva
> Palestina "porque ya estamos muy cansados".
>
> Ealfonso Chan Kin reconoce que "de Guatemala es donde vino la idea
> que va a hundir todo, y por eso los campesinos y también nosotros nos
> estamos levantando, no para pelear, sólo para ver si logramos parar
> el Plan Panamá".
>
> La información que los lacandones posén sobre el proyecto
> hidroeléctrico es muy fragmentada y ambigüa, aunque un comunicado que
> les fue enviado por la Asociación de Comunidades Foerestales de El
> Petén, Guatemala, los alertó de que el proyecto hidroeléctrico
> pretende taponear los ríos Lacantún, Ixcán, Xactbal, Chixoy, Pasión y
> Salinas, hasta cear un lago artificial de 725 kilómetros cuadrados,
> lo que inundaría 300 kilómetros cuadrados de la Lacandona.
>
> "Hay que luchar, no hay de otra, porque yo pienso que nosotros los
> lacandones tenemos derecho de defender nuestro derecho, porque la
> mera verdad el gobierno nunca ha venido a consultar nada", lo secunda
> Manuel Castellanos Chan Kin (pequeño sol), quien tiene en el nombre
> el color de su piel, y padece estrabismo, como todos los lacandones
> albinos.
>
> Y aunque Manuel Castellanos Chan Kin no sabe a ciencia cierta el
> impacto ambiental del proyecto hidroeléctrico de Boca del Toro y los
> alcances del Plan Puebla Panamá (PPP), intuye que su puesta en marcha
> pone en peligro su habitat: la selva Lacandona.
>
> Por eso, el pasado 12 de octubre se caló su túnica blanca, dejó en
> buen resguardo a sus 12 hijos y a su esposa Carmita Naj Kin, y a las
> 07:00 horas exactas se fue al crucero de San Javier para cerrar el
> paso a los vehículos que transitan la carretera fronteriza del sur,
> que divide a México de Guatemala, y enlaza el circuito turístico
> Palenque-Bonampak-Yaxchilán.
>
> Fue, dice, la primera vez en sus 56 años de vida que participa en un
> acto de protesta contra el gobierno, y por eso está más que
> sorprendido ningún medio de comunicación, ni local ni nacional,
> registró la protesta de los lacandones, que hasta antes de la
> aparición pública del EZLN, eran el referente obligado de los
> presidentes de México cuando hablaban de los pueblos indígenas, su
> grado de atraso, marginación y aislamiento, al extremo que Luis
> Echeverría les otorgó 614 mil hectáreas de selva como patrimonio.
>
> "Claro, no todos los compañeros de la comunidad piensan como yo, pero
> ya están abriendo los ojos y se están dando cuenta que si el Fox hace
> la presa en Boca del Cerro, van a inundar la selva, por eso pienso
> que vamos a movernos, que vamos a protestar también", dice,
> entrevistado en su humilde vivienda, en cuya cocina tres adolescentes
> con túnicas estampadas con flores de vivos colores elaboran tortillas
> a mano, y al menos cinco infantes de cabellos largos y túnicas
> blancas, aunque un poco sucias y un tanto raídas, se alternan tres
> hamacas colgadas en ese espacio.
>
> Pero Manuel Castellanos Chan Kin es el único inconformes por el PPP
> desde el último rincón de la patria, donde habita el más reducido
> grupo étnico del mundo, el maya lacandón, compuesto por no más de 300
> familias dispersas en tres pequeñas aldeas: Lacanjá Chanzayab,
> Metzabok y Nahá.
>
> En el bloqueo carretero, que de 12 horas se prolongó a cinco días,
> participaron los 144 jefes de familia de Lacanjá Chanzayab, decenas
> de jóvenes lacandones, y cientos de campesinos tzeltales y choles de
> Frontera Corozal, Nueva Palestina, Lacanjá tzeltal, Nahá y Metzabok,
> porque, según Castellanos Chan Kin, el presidente Vicente Fox tiene
> pensado, como parte del PPP, ampliar a cuatro carriles la Carretera
> Fronteriza del Sur, que partió en dos la jungla, y aprovechar el
> potencial hidroeléctrico de los ríos Usumacinta, Cedros, Santo
> Domingo, Pasión y Lacantún.
>
> Y es que el bloqueo carretero que los lacandones hicieron en Nueva
> Palestina y San Javier dejó varado a cientos de turistas que ya
> tenían comprados viajes para esos sitios arqueológicos, y causó
> quebrantos y malestar entre los empresarios turísticos de
> Villahermosa, Tabasco, Palenque y San Cristóbal de Las Casas, en
> Chiapas, quienes se vieron forzados a reembolsar los cobros
> adelantados y a permanecer inactivos durante cinco días.
>
> "La mera verdad, ese tipo de plantones le parte la madre a la empresa
> turística, porque espanta a los visitantes y también a los posibles
> inversionistas", dice Willy Fonseca, originario de Atotonilco,
> Jalisco, y dueño del restaurante "Vallescondido", la única inversión
> privada en una de las puertas de la selva Lacandona, en el kilómetro
> 61 de la carretera que va de Palenque a Bonampak, donde éste
> empresario engorda 240 novillos, en una hacienda ganadera de 183
> hectáreas que está siendo transformada en un centro ecoturístico,
> inserto justo en el medio del circuito Palenque-Bonampak-Yaxchilán.
>
> Willy Fonseca llegó hace 20 años a la zona, aunque su familia lo hizo
> en los años 60, cuando el gobierno federal donó tierras a los mineros
> jubilados o con problemas de salud del estado de Jalisco, quienes
> fundaron la colonia 11 de julio, en honor a su día, y por eso, dice,
> aunque no está de acuerdo con los bloqueos carreteros, no es ajeno al
> temor de los lacandones: "El rumor de que van a construir las presas
> está desde febrero o marzo, porque yo lleve en mi lancha a ocho
> ingenieros de la CFE cuando vinieron a hacer los estudios, y según me
> dijeron la cortina sería de 40 metros, lo que mantendría el río a
> nivel alto, como cuando se inunda, pero el problema es qué te
> platican y qué no, esa es la verdad", comenta.
>
> Según Willy Fonseca, son cuatro cortinas las que construiría la CFE:
> Boca del Cerro, San José, Cola del Diablo y El Cayo, pero, afirma que
> esto pocos lo saben, y que en verdad lo que alertó a los habitantes
> de la Lacandona fue la fuerte presencia de personal y autos con el
> logotipo de la CFE, que van y vienen por la selva sembrando postes y
> tendiendo cables de alta tensión de Tenosique, Tabasco, a San Javier,
> en la entrada de la Biosfera de Montes Azules.
>
> "Yo estuve en Guatemala hace poco tiempo y la idea, creo yo, es
> electrificar líneas domésticas como parte de convenios binacionales
> de interconexión eléctrica entre México y Guatemala", comenta.
>
> Pero no por ser los lacandones grente de paz se amedrentan con el
> malestar que la protesta causó a los empresarios turístico de
> Palenque ni con el quebranto económico que las ulteriores protestas
> pudiese originar entre los primeros inversionistas que ha logrado
> atraer el Plan Puebla Panamá, que en teoría, pretende integrar en un
> solo bloque a siete estados del sur sureste de México con las seis
> naciones centroamericanas allende el río Suchiate, mediante la
> construcción de hidroeléctricas, supercarreteras, puertos aéreos y
> marítimos, que atraigan la inversión extranjera, generen fuentes de
> empleo y frenen los flujos migratorios hacia los Estados Unidos.
>
> "Sólo el Fox no ha venido hasta acá, y como nosotros no podemos ir
> allá, en el México ciudad, porque quiere mucho gasto y no tenemos
> dinero para ir personalmente a hablar con Fox, entonces luchamos así,
> bloqueando la carretera para después a ver qué sale de resultado, a
> ver si va a manda a su secretario o al gobernador, pero que por favor
> no deje soltar el proyecto Panamá, que no construya la presa en Boca
> del Cerro, porque el río es río y cuando se va a tapar va a subir, va
> a inundar todo Lacanjá, va a inundar la selva, es la verdad, se va a
> hundir todo, por eso se hizo bloqueo en Frontera Corozal y Palestina,
> y también nosotros, en San Javier", comenta
>
> El presidente municipal de Palenque, Alfredo Cruz Guzmán, de origen
> chol, es solidario con los habitantes del ejido Macedonia, al pie de
> Bocas del Cerro, dentro de su demarcación municipal. "Oficialmente el
> presidente municipal no ha recibido ningún comunicado de que se vaya
> a construir presas hidroeléctricas en la zona, pero el rumor existe y
> se está propalando", explica frente a un nutrido grupo de ejidatarios
> de Macedonia preocupados por lo que intuyen se les viene encima.
>
> "Pienso que difícilmente el presidente Fox nos va a desalojar de
> nuestros trabajaderos, porque dónde se va a ir la gente ¿a dónde nos
> van a reubicar, si aquí ya no hay tierras, y en otros estados, como
> Campeche y Quintana Roo, los suelos son muy delgados, de 15 o 20
> centimetros de profundidad, y cuando llueve dos o tres días se
> inunda?Hoy son tiempos modernos y los campesinos son libres y tienen
> autonomía, no creo que el gobierno nos aplaste socialmente, más bien
> yo pienso que hay ciertas organizaciones que quieren capitalizar
> ciertas ideas de oposición al Plan Puebla Panamá", les dice.
>
> "Quién quiere que se inunden las tierras y nos manden a otro lado?",
> demanda a los ejidatarios de Macedonia, que se han reunido justamente
> para consultar al alcalde sobre la veracidad de los rumores que han
> comenzado a movilizar a los habitantes de la selva.
>
> "¡Nadie!", contestan al unísono y luego ovacionan a su autoridad, que
> les dice, está de su lado y dispuesto a defenderlos de cualquier plan
> del gobierno federal sin el consenso de los pobladores de la
> Lacandona.
And how does this impact the Usumacinta hydroelectric dam issue? From Diane Lindquist, in the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Energy reforms in Mexico being held up by politics, observers say
Kathleen Keith ("Spinyarn") has passed along some details of a meeting in Guadalajara this past August, including information about the Boca del Cerro dam project. According to this report, the dam would be 135 meters (tall?) and provide the equivalent of 31% of the total electric power generation of Mexico. We've heard a figure of 2% of total electric power. I'll post the entire email below.
From: Spinyarn
To: Alfonso Morales
Cc: Bonnie Bade
Sent: Monday, October 21, 2002 11:30 PM
Subject: Usumacinta Dan Project underway!
I just ran across this information in a magazine I get. I don't
know if any of you in the archaeological community have heard of this or
not, but I think it needs the widest circulation possible and SOON! ...
Kathleen Keith in Louisville Kentucky
San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico.
I'm heading there on Monday. And it seems that the CFE (Federal Electricity Commission), with which we are battling over the Usumacinta dam, is also busy clearing trees on a private ecological preserve outside San Cristobal. Janet Schwartz has the story:
Debate sur - CFE depreda reserva ecológica
We've been coordinating our efforts with Homero Aridjis and his Grupo de los Cien, who were instrumental in preventing the Usumacinta dams in the past. In today's Reforma, Aridjis published the editorial we've been waiting for.
An official of the Federal Electricity Commission has confirmed a plan to build a dam on the Usumacinta, according to Tabasco Hoy. The article gives figures for area affected and number of archaeological sites, and points out that neither Mexico or Guatemala have submitted plans to the Comisión Internacional de Límites y Aguas entre México y Guatemala (CILAMyG), a binational commission established in 1961 to review and approve any river projects.
Turbinas de CFE inundarán campos
Janet Schwartz filed a report yesterday on the blockades that were mounted on highways around the state of Chiapas. In Rancho Nuevo, the demonstrators "symbolically" took over a military base. Full text is below.
And here's a link to the NewsMexico story
The News - Indigenous groups protest free trade corridor
JANET SCHWARTZ PARNES
Rancho Nuevo, Chiapas (MAYA PRESS). - Con motivo de los 510 años de la
invasión española, la resistencia indígena, negra y popular, miles de
indígenas y campesinos bloquearon todas las principales carreteras del
estado de Chiapas, además la frontera con Guatemala, y en este lugar,
conmemoraron el fallecimiento de compañeros zapatistas en el alzamiento
armado de 1994, al tomar simbólicamente esta sede militar.
A las ocho "horas indígenas", o nueve "horas de Fox", los indígenas
procedieron a realizar los anunciados bloqueos masivos en 26 puntos de
los 118 municipios de esta entidad, para protestar el saqueo de sus
riquezas naturales, la destrucción de su cultura, "sometiendo nuestros
pueblos en la esclavitud", mientras demandaron el cumplimiento de los
Acuerdos de San Andrés, la cancelación del Área de Libre Comercio de las
Américas, y el Plan Pueblo Panamá que incluye la supuesta construcción
de nuevas represas hidroeléctricas sobre el Río Usamacinta.
De acuerdo a los integrantes de la Coordinadora de Organizaciones
Autónomas del Estado de Chiapas (COAECh), simpatizantes del EZLN, se
apostaron en 26 tramos carreteros que comunican esta entidad además con
Tabasco, Veracruz, Oaxaca y Campeche.
En este lugar, sede de la 31 Zona Militar, mientras hubieron algunos
roces entre los automovilistas, otros grupos de indígenas montados a
caballo, y manifestantes, destacó "la clausura" simbólica de las
principales puertas de entrada y salida de los soldados, con la ayuda de
sogas, chamarras, sacos y camisas amarrados, representando "el sudor" de
los discriminados y marginados.
Antes, en las cercanías, los manifestantes organizados en filas
impidieron el paso de los vehículos en el crucero que entronquen las
carreteras que se dirigen a la frontera con Guatemala, a la Selva
Lacandona de Ocosingo y a la ciudad colonial de San Cristóbal de las
Casas, a doce kilómetros de distancia al oeste.
Luego los centenares de inconformes marcharon a las puertas del
destacamento militar, mientras unos soldados documentaron con video a
los inconformes desde dentro del alambre serpentino.
Con una gran manta demandando la autonomía, una bandera mexicana, y
pancartas en las manos exigieron que se cancele el PPP y el Acuerdo de
Libre Comercio de las Américas y la desarticulación de los presuntos
grupos armados que operan en Chiapas.
Un encapuchado dio lectura al manifiesto en nombre de "los indígenas y
campesinos de estas tierras".
Apuntó: "no solo hemos resistido", sino, "hemos sido los que más vidas
humanas hemos puesto en defensa de nuestra patria y de nuestra
existencia".
Y subrayó que el fallo de la Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nacional, a
las controversias constitucionales en materia indígena, "dejo en claro"
sus "intereses y sus compromisos" políticos y económicos con los dueños
del poder".
Aseguró que esto es una señal que nos dieron, donde se "niega una vez
mas nuestra existencia como pueblos".
El vocero de la COAECh por lo anterior demandó el reconocimiento de los
legítimos derechos de los pueblos indios, expresados en los acuerdos de
San Andrés, suscritos entre el EZLN y el gobierno federal en 1996, para
crear así, las condiciones necesarias para alcanzar la paz justa y digna
en Chiapas.
Después de gritar muchas consignas, entre ellos, "fuera ejército de las
comunidades indígenas" y "viva Marcos", se dieron un minuto de silencio
por los acaecidos en Rancho Nuevo durante el alzamiento armado de 1994.
Antes entonaron el himno nacional.
Por su parte Trinidad López Martínez, vocero de la Organización
Campesina Emiliano Zapata (OCEZ), informó que una de las 22
organizaciones sociales que se movilizaron confirmo que en las nueve
regiones económicas de Chiapas se realizaron 26 bloqueos lo que paralizo
parcialmente las actividades de los 118 municipios.
Mientras por todas las regiones de Chiapas del norte, la selva, costa,
frontera, altos, sierra, frailesca, istmo y centro, miles de personas
fueron obligados a realizar varios transbordos de vehículos para llegar
a sus destinos, aunque en algunos lugares dejaron pasar por 15 minutos a
los vehículos cada cuatro horas para ironizar con los famosos "15
minutos" que el presidente Fox dijo le llevaría resolver el conflicto
armado en Chiapas.
Por su parte oficiales de la Policía Federal Preventiva (PFP), de la
Policía Estatal de Caminos, mantuvieron un operativo de seguridad para
la población, realizando patrullajes continúas entre los espacios no
tomados por los indígenas.
En el municipio de Chenalho, integrantes de la organización pacifista
Las Abejas, sobrevivientes de la masacre de Acteal, sitiaron la
carretera que enlaza con San Cristóbal.
Por su parte las líneas de autotransporte publico suspendieron sus
corridas que tenían hacia Centroamérica, la ciudad de México y otros
destinos del país, ante los cierres carreteros.
Al cierre de esta edición los indígenas y campesinos, apoyados en
algunos casos por estudiantes, empezaron a levantar los bloqueos a las
16:00 horas , mientras en lugares más remotos de la Selva Lacandona, los
manifestantes acordaron mantener los caminos cerrados hasta por 72
horas.
A first story on the protests today.
Indians protest Columbus Day across Mexico, Central America
"Indian farmers also put up barricades on four other northern highways in the nearby Peten region to protest the construction of a Mexican hydroelectric dam farther up the Usumacinta River. Opponents say it will flood Mayan archaeological sites."
There's word that more blockades are planned for this weekend (Oct. 12) in the Palenque area, to protest the dam plans. A security officer from the archaeological site said that "...there will be blockades at the Catazaja- Villahermosa intersection as well as the Ocosingo- Chancalá juncture."
If anyone down there has a DV camera, try to get some shots for the future documentary, okay?
Some good news from the Maya region. Plans have apparently been cancelled for a system of roads that would have cut through the Peten of northern Guatemala, connecting to the Yucatan in Mexico and bringing new settlers and construction into the last large tracts of tropical forest.
Janet Schwartz sent the Tabasco Hoy article, which you'll find below.
Algarete el circuito turístico Olmeca-Maya
Truncan carretera México-Guatemala
La vía ha encontrado resistencia de ecologistas y habitantes de El Petén.
Por Miguel Avendaño-Murillo
Tabasco HOY
Villahermosa, Tabasco 01:01 horas
04 de octubre de 2002
El primer revés internacional al Plan Puebla-Panamá (PPP), lo asestaron los
ecologistas de este país: lograron la cancelación de dos carreteras que unirían el
circuito turístico Olmeca-Maya provocando que la vía Tenosique-El Ceibo, sea "una
inversión a la nada", utilizada para el tráfico de ilegales, fayuca, drogas y armas.
De lado guatemalteco, el Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo (BID) canceló la
construcción de una carretera estatal que prácticamente partiría en dos la Biosfera
Maya, al norte del departamento El Petén; también negó apoyos para diversos
desarrollos sociales que entre otros, afectó programas de bienestar social uno de
los cuales destinaría recursos por más de dos millones de quetzales para la
construcción de 22 kilómetros de carretera que unirían la comunidad mexicana de
Tenosique con la guatemalteca El Naranjo.
Hoy existe un gran conflicto de intereses políticos, económicos y ambientales que
han llevado a la confrontación de diversos sectores sociales y gubernamentales con
posiciones en pro y contra para la construcción de ambas carreteras.
De las dos vías, una está cancelada definitivamente, al menos hasta que el gobierno
de César Portillo concluya, es la que partiría desde Tikal hasta el Parque Nacional
El Mirador-Río Azul, en la frontera entre Guatemala y el estado de Campeche en
México.
La otra, donde más se ha invertido del lado mexicano que fue la construcción de 61
kilómetros de Tenosique-El Ceibo obra que se realizara en la administración de
Roberto Madrazo y en la cual se invirtieron 100 millones de pesos.
El último tramo de 22 kilómetros está "suspendida" y sin apoyo del gobierno
guatemalteco, ambos proyectos son parte toral del PPP para unir el "norte con el
sur" y tratar de hacer del sur un "lugar de inversiones y potencialidades
turísticas.
Estrategia foxista
El PPP, en el apartado de "proyectos de impacto regional sursureste", contempla la
carretera de Tenosique-El Ceibo-El Naranjo, como una obra prioritaria para "el
segundo eje geográfico: Frontera con Centroamérica.. donde se ha avanzado para
convertir a Tabasco en la puerta de entrada al mercado centroamericano, vinculando a
las regiones Centro, Golfo, Norte de Chiapas y Península de Yucatán con Guatemala".
La estrategia foxista dice: "La carretera Tenosique-El Ceibo, adquiere importancia
estratégica con la proximidad puesta en marcha del Tratado de Libre Comercio con los
países del triángulo del Norte".
Y afirmaba: "representa una gran oportunidad para aumentar los flujos del turismo
relacionados con el circuito "Mundo Maya" integrado en México por los estados de
Tabasco, Chiapas, Yucatán y Quintana Roo".
Dentro de este proyecto, especificado como el Segundo Eje Geográfico se hablaba para
la realización del proyecto que impulse el desarrollo industrial y comercial del
sureste en la frontera con Centroamérica, es necesario la modernización de las
siguientes tres obras de soporte: Puerto de Dos Bocas; Puerto de Frontera y
Tenosique como ciudad Nafta (zona de libre comercio).
Sin embargo, los ambientalistas guatemaltecos truncaron el proyecto: no habrá
circuito Olmeca-Maya, pues la idea del primer tramo de 80 kilómetros era
descabellada, pero aún así el gobierno chapín la mantenía, dijo Carlos Albacete de
la agrupación Trópico Verde en entrevista con este diario.
BID reprueba el proyecto
Según el gobierno centroamericano el objetivo de la carretera de doble carril era
unir el complejo turístico de Tikal con el parque nacional El Mirador-Río Azul. Los
ecologistas argumentaron que se arrasaría gran cantidad de bosque primario si
embargo el BID canceló el apoyo económico que brindaría para dicha obra.
Luego de estudiar el proyecto, la respuesta no fue la que esperaban las autoridades,
el banco les negó los fondos, por considerar que se destruiría una reserva natural
protegida por el organismo de las Naciones Unidas (ONU).
La carretera en mención llegaría hasta el estado de Campeche y Quintana Roo para
formar parte del proyecto Mundo Maya, que buscaba unir distintos sitios
arqueológicos. Sin embargo, también fue rechazado por el Instituto Guatemalteco de
Turismo ante la presión de los ambientalistas. Julio Galicia, viceministro de
Comunicaciones, Infraestructura y Vivienda de Guatemala, reconoció que se tenía
planeado ejecutar la ruta, pero ecologistas y el BID, así como la población de El
Petén se opusieron, por lo que definitivamente no se llevará a cabo, como lo
hubieran deseado, a pesar de que esta rúa permitiría llegar a México de forma más
rápida, dijo en entrevista telefónica con Tabasco HOY.
Santuario natural
La Cuenca Mirador, se encuentra situada a 160 kilómetros al norte de la cabecera del
departamento El Petén, es un Santuario considerado una de las maravillas del Mundo.
En sus 2,128 kilómetros cuadrados se encuentra uno de los últimos pulmones del
planeta. Milagrosamente se ha conservado la selva prístina con su magnífica
biodiversidad.
La cuenca mirador
En la Cuenca Mirador se encuentran al menos 20 sitios arqueológicos mayas que
sobresalen por su arquitectura monumental. En el sitio arqueológico de El Mirador se
encuentra la pirámide más grande que existe en el mundo.
Según los ecologistas las carreteras abren el paso a invasiones sin control y a la
tala de los bosques por lo que exigieron la permanencia de la Cuenca en su estado
silvestre, y la participación de las comunidades de los alrededores que han vivido
del chicle, del xiate y la madera, tienen la oportunidad de obtener el beneficio de
un nuevo recurso económico: el turismo de bajo impacto.
Las estadísticas indican que la tradicional tumba roza y quema descontrolada y falta
de recursos para combatir incendios son las principales causas de la avanzada
deforestación y destrucción de la Biosfera Maya, en El Petén.
La otra carretera a la que se oponen los ambientalistas guatemaltecos es la que
uniría las comunidades de Tenosique en México y El Naranjo en Guatemala. Hoy sólo
quedan los trazos de lo que sería el "gran lazo comercial con Centroamérica".
Inversiones millonarias al bote de basura
Los datos del Ministerio de Comunicaciones del gobierno guatemalteco indican que la
carretera Tikal-Mirador-Río Azul que está cancelada tendría una longitud de 80
kilómetros con un ancho de corona de 12 metros y de dos vías y costaría
aproximadamente unos 8 millones y medio de dólares.
Con lo que respecta a El Ceibo-El Naranjo la cual también está cancelada tendría una
longitud de 22 kilómetros con un ancho de corona de 12 metros y de dos vías y un
costo por medio de tres millones de dólares, su interconexión Tenosique-El Ceibo la
cual está concluida tiene una extensión de 61 kilómetros con un ancho de corona de
12 metros de dos carriles y se erogaron 100 millones de pesos.
En Guatemala triunfó la cultura ecológica y de preservación pero aún no está dicha
la última palabra sobre la carretera que sólo sirve para todo tipo de ilegalidades.
David Stuart sent in a link to a study on the Usumacinta, specifically the international law issues of the river as border. It's a pdf document from the University of Florida College of Law.
THE USUMACINTA RIVER: Building a Framework for Cooperation between Mexico and Guatemala
From the NWA News in Arkansas, a report on a tour by Carlos Humberto Muralles through the South. He is speaking on threats to indigenous communities in Central America.
Guatemalan Agronomist To Discuss Effect Of Proposed Development
As we prepare to send President Vicente Fox of Mexico a letter concerning the planned dam, a reminder from John Ross of the career and current activities of the ex-Presidente.
The Pesadilla of Ernesto Zedillo
Here's a page of water flow and catchment area data for Boca del Cerro which might be useful to hydrologists. It also has links to other river systems in North America for comparison purposes.
Interesting report on the once sunken church of Quechula, now emerged, but soon to be flooded again.
Chris Shaw has prepared a letter to President Vicente Fox of Mexico, expressing our concern over recent confirmation of a dam plan. It is still being edited, but the current text can be found below.
We are still collecting signatures, with 20 or so confirmed at the moment.
****************************************
Estimado Presidente Fox :
Recently the New York Times reported your office's confirmation that
plans are under way for a hydroelectric dam of either132 or 330 feet on
the Usumacinta River, at Boca de Cerro, near Tenosique, Tabasco, that would
provide two percent of the nation's electrical needs. We
recognize the need for increased electrical capacity in the region, for both
household and industrial power, and as a requirement for sustained economic
growth. Yet we reject the premise that this goal requires
the destruction of the region's premiere natural and scenic wonder, one of
the world's richest ecological and historical resources, and the largest
wild river in Central America: the Usumacinta.
In the first millennium, the Usumacinta nurtured one of the world's
greatest civilizations, the Classical Maya. Their commerce and their
industry depended on it; their spectacular abandoned cities lie everywhere
in the watershed and along its shores. Inscriptions and art work found there
in the last century have provided breakthroughs in understanding that have
come to light only in the last twenty-five years.
Today, the river drains one of the most vital and interesting bio-cultural
regions on the planet: the Selva Lacandona, the Selva Maya, and the Maya
highlands of Chiapas and Guatemala, a place of mountains and canyons, of
great forests, ecological
richness and cultural importance, that has undergone enormous change and
trial in the
last forty years. Much has happened geographically, environmentally, and
historically to contribute to its underdevelopment and poverty. Now its
upheavals have subsided. Its
people, inherently energetic economically, remain unable to
overcome low agricultural prices, loss of manufacturing jobs overseas, and
depressed currency rates. Nevertheless, a rebirth of the region's full range
of cultural and economic expression appears at hand. .
Yet government and the public must avoid the mistakes of the past, and,
following the example of history, make wise choices that will allow for the
best development for the region's long term well-being.
Ecologically, the Usumacinta is unparalleled in aquatic, terrestrial and
avian life. It pours an enormous volume of water annually into the southern
Gulf of Mexico, providing life-giving fresh water to Mexico's largest
fishing fleet. Its delta comprises some of the richest and most diverse
wetlands south of the Everglades, the centlas, home to endangered manatees
and crocodiles. The upper Usumacinta's one-of-a-kind aquatic ecosystem also
supports endangered crocodiles and turtles making strong comebacks after
depletion by overhunting, as well dozens of endemic fish and amphibians.
Its forests harbor jaguars, guacamayas, and a profusion of further
biological wealth. Yet it has been studied hardly at all.
A dam at Boca de Cerro would deprive the centlas of the
precious floods that renew them every year and speed a decline already
begun by oil development and deforestation in the watershed of the upper Rio
Candelaria. Furthermore, the river's tributaries carry huge loads of silt
from eroded agricultural highlands that would fill reservoirs, reducing
water volume through turbines and degrading or ruining the turbines
themselves.
In the 1980s, the report that outlined the first
ambitious hydro program for the watershed said porous limestone around Boca
de Cerro was too weak to anchor massive dams,
especially in the case of earthquake or hurricane, both common in the
region, and would promote power loss through leakage. Large reservoirs also
lose power through evaporation, and create
greenhouse gases that promote global warming. Such
problems have bedeviled existing dams in Oaxaca and Chiapas, and in the
Guatemalan highlands on the upper Rio Chixoy. For these reason and others,
alternate decentralized sources must be considered as part of any large
scale strategy for energy generation in the region.
The CFE's hydro commissioner, Julio Acosta Rodriguez, suggests
that while the river's best known archaeological sites of Piedras Negras and
Yaxchilan will
remain safe (for now), dozens of
lesser-known sites will be inundated or relocated. INAH has cooperated with
the CFE to identify these sites for relocation. At Abu Simbel on the
Nile, in the 1960s, relocation proved an expensive and disastrous
undertaking. Disconnected from their geography such monuments lose
any significant meaning and research value.
The current proposal reflects the frustration of two previously unsuccessful
dam proposals on the Usumacinta and its tributaries, and the slowness of
development in southern Mexico and Guatemala.
Something must be done, everyone believes, and the Usumacinta has enormous
hydroelectric potential. But those
proposals were defeated for important economic, cultural and
environmental reasons. The reasons haven't changed, and to date no
environmental, cultural, economic, or archaeological impact studies have
been released, nor, as far as we know, conducted.
***
Therefore, we resolve that whereas the Usumacinta represents an unparalleled
regional and international resource, and its watershed a unique biological
and cultural enclave, its channel should remain free-flowing and devoid of
bank-to-bank
dam structures or locks. NO habitat, agricultural land or archaeological
sites should be drowned or otherwise lost or compromised.
Plans, blueprints, locations, for any and all potential and future dams must
be published on the Internet immediately, their web addresses made known,
and they must be updated whenever they change. The process must be kept
transparent and open to public scrutiny.
Mexico, Guatemala, and the international community must
provide funds for new and comprehensive aquatic, geological, and biological,
and archaeological studies,
to determine wildlife populations, the number and location of archaeological
sites, the location and needs of human communities, and other necessary
information, to determine the effects of
dams on those systems at each and every dam site proposed going back to
the1980s. Timelines must be established and the results made public.
The two nations must cooperate in developing household
and industrial solar, geothermal and other alternate forms of energy
generation in the watershed, including small, efficient, high-technology
hydro where appropriate. This should become a priority of both nations.
Funding should come from public and private sources in both nations and
beyond, and an ambitious timetable
should be established for its completion.
Planning must begin immediately for the establishment by
2006 of a binational riparian corridor to protect and preserve the
Usumacinta in
perpetuity, stretching from the tributaries to Boca de Cerro, and linking
with the Sierra Lacandon National Park, Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve, and
the Maya
Biosphere Reserve. It should include networks of land and water
trails, campsites, low-impact interior lodges, year round jobs with benefits
for local residents as managers, scientists, guides, scholars,
artists-in-residence, maintenance workers, and guards, with user fees and
incentives to local communities. All existing legal
uses would be allowed, though better regulated and including the promotion
of low-impact organic agriculture. Internationally recognized models
exist at Lake Miramar, in Chiapas, at Uaxactun, in Peten, and in
the conservation protocols developed in the last twenty years by various
ngos working with local organizations. This is not the "environmental
Disneyland" the Zapatistas refer to, but one of the greatest opportunities
for rational community development in the region's history.
To foster the resumption of thriving, viable and profitable recreational
use, the two nations must immediately establish local law enforcement
patrols in the river corridor, to protect private,
commercial, and other legal navigation of the Usumcinta.
In the Times, Senor Acosta suggested that he wants to "help the region, not
hurt it." We believe the best way for this to happen is to make the
Usumacinta corridor and watershed the wisest model for humans, nature, and
appropriate
development on the planet. The sacrifice would be small, the rewards long
lasting, the gratitude of future generations inestimable.
The Usumacinta's natural, cultural, and archaeological importance make it
unique in the world. We believe this is not the time to rely on
old-model development schemes, but to seek solutions offered by new
economic and technological models. The Usumacinta is more than just the
water in its channel. It is the lifeblood of Mesoamerica, and one of the
birthplaces of culture and meaning in the western hemisphere.
It is also a resource that any tourist board in the U.S. or Canada would
envy. At our current level of knowledge a dam could unwittingly drown the
equivalent of Pacal's Tomb at Palenque, or
Tutuankhamen's tomb, forever. Neither nation's patrimonial heritage is so
intact or
complete as to allow such a loss for 500 megawatts, or two percent, of
Mexico's energy needs.
Very truly yours,
NO MAS PRESAS, (o rios mayas)
Christopher Shaw, writer
David Pentecost, filmmaker
Roan Balas McNab
Ronald L. Canter, FAA Cartographer
This week news of the Usumacinta plans first became public, and reaction on the Guatemala side was immediate. I have an excerpt from one of Carla Molina's emails that describes some of this. (click More below).
After last week's media coverage in Guatemala and the Ministry of Energy
& Mines subsequent denials about any project on the Usumacinta or as
part of the Plan Puebla Panama there have been several articles on the
Guatemalan press. First, it was that the Minister would request
information to the Mexican authorities if there were any such plans.
Finally, in the past couple days we have finally seen the information we
have all known for months on the local newspapers, where the Bocas del
Cerro project is mentioned and also where the CFE (Comision Federal de
Electrificacion) finally admits that they are conducting studies to do
this entirely on the Mexican side with no energy going to Guatemala
unless an agreement to sell us energy is signed. I would honestly like
to commend our local press for waking up and even the minister for
beginning to ask the right questions. (It was high time.)
Additionally, in the Peten region there are several organized groups,
one of which is called PETENEROS CONTRA LAS REPRESAS. They are being
taken very seriously, as the minister Archila went to meet with them
this week, promised that he would get to the bottom of this and meet
with them again next October 11th.
Chris sent this link to an article in Prensa Libre
Peteneros rechazan proyecto hidroeléctrico
What we've suspected has been confirmed by Tim Weiner in the New York Times. Now the battle begins.
Mexico Weighs Electricity Against History
There's a good overview on PPP, including dams and energy, at CorpWatch.org.
PPP: Plan Puebla Panama, or Private Plans for Profit?
Ron Canter sent an addition to his draft paper on river navigability. I'll post this here (with additional links to each article) and I'll update the earlier entry. Ron writes:
Any bibliography on the Usu' wouldn't be complete without Stephen Houston and Hector Escobedo's FAMSI articles on the Piedras Negras Project. They cover the ups and downs of all the region along the Usu' gorges from Pomona to Yaxchilan. My apologies for the oversight.
Ron
In the Land of the Turtle Lords, Stephen Houston, 2000. FAMSI Report
Among the River Kings, Stephen Houston, 1999. FAMSI Report
Between the Mountains and the Sea, Stephen Houston, 1998. FAMSI Report
The Piedras Negras Project, Stephen Houston and Hector Escobedo, 1997.
FAMSI Report
Ron Canter has tried to get some information on the location, size, and impact of the proposed dam. Here's Ron:
The emails are flying thick and fast so I thought I'd toss one in.
As best I can tell from maps, a dam in the Boca del Cerro gap would be in Tabasco at the east end and Chiapas (barely) at the west end. Since the mountains end here, it is the last practical dam site. In the coastal plain downstream there are no hills to put a dam between. Any dam at Boca del Cerro will flood far into Chiapas, both upstream and up side valleys to the west. They would have to get Chiapas's OK to build. (MORE below)
I've tried to get some better figures on a possible dam but there's
not much to get. Conagua's website http://www.cna.gob.mx is extensive,
but doesn't have any real data on anything. It goes on about
conceptualizations and action plans, but the only thing of interest was a
link to "Agua Para las Americas en el Siglo"
http://sgp.cna.gob.mx/financiamiento/evento_2002/index_aa2.htm . This
"Water for the Americas in XXI Cen" forum will be in Mexico City Oct 8
through 11. Might be someone with answers at it, but its $2000 pesos a
head.
The CFE website http://www.cfe.gob.mx has a section on future
projects, which includes a map showing three hydros in Chiapas and one
combined cycle plant in Tabasco. Unfortunately the map is very
generalized, with little tailfin symbols for hydros only roughly located.
The one most likely to be Boca del Cerro is slated to be finished by 2011,
a time frame that allows working out any differences with Chiapas over
taxes. Its capacity is to be 3,978 Mw, of a total 28,862 Mw increase
planned for all of Mexico. In other words CFE hopes that the Usu' will
supply 1/7 of all the increase in electric generation for Mexico in the
next 10 years. CFE and Conagua may not give up right away on this.
Comparing Hector Perez Ruiz's figure for area drowned, 302 mil
hectares, to that in the Tercier Milenio proposal, 725 mil hectares from a
130 m dam, suggests that the actual dam planned is between 50 and 60 m
high. Any dam over 15 meters (50 feet) is classified as "High" by the
World Bank, so the Boca del Cerro Dam would definitely be a high dam.
My take on all this is that Chris is on target. The Usu' needs some
real protected status or the dam will just keep resurfacing.
Here's a story out on the EFE wire (a Spanish news service). The story
appeared today on www.thenewsmexico.com, where I also work. Best regards,
Janet Schwartz
No new dams without rate reductions, Chiapas governor says
EFE - 9/5/2002
TUXTLA GUTIERREZ, Chiapas - The government of the southern state of Chiapas
plans to fight construction of three new hydroelectric power plants,
officials said.
Chiapas Governor Pablo Salazar Menduguchia said Tuesday the state would
oppose the project as long as the federal government and the Federal
Electricity Commission (CFE) refused to cut electric rates.
Chiapas is one of Mexico's largest power producers, but also one of the
regions with the highest electricity fees.
Thousands of hectares of land were flooded and dozens of communities were
wiped out during construction of the La Angostura, Chicoasen, Malpaso and
Peñitas dams, all part of the El Grijalva energy complex.
Construction of the new dams was part of electricity industry reform
legislation promoted by the administration of President Vicente Fox.
Salazar criticized the Fox administration for failing to consult him on the
construction of three more dams on the Usumacinta River, along the
Guatemalan border, and the CFE for attempting to justify the project as an
expansion of service and infrastructure.
He also criticized the Fox administration for making important decisions
without consulting governors of states directly affected by those
decisions.
© Copyright 2002 EFE
Ari Hershowitz, of the Natural Resources Defense Council, has experience in fighting dams, and offers his support:
"NRDC has been working with groups in Belize to stop the Chalillo dam, as part of our BioGems project, to protect important threatened natural areas in the Americas. We worked with some groups in Guatemala to stop expansion of Anadarko's (at the time, owner of Basic Resources) oil exploration in the Maya Biosphere Reserve. (see NRDC BioGems - Save Endangered Wild Places).
We have put the Maya Biosphere Reserve on our "watchlist" for potential
threats, such as the roads and dams which are part of PPP. In the next
few months, we would like to meet with groups and communities in Mexico,
Guatemala and Belize to determine what the most pressing threats are and
see how we can help local groups mount an effective international
campaign to protect the area."
Carla Molina, a specialist in ecotourism in Guatemala, has been working in parallel with us on the dam issues. She writes:
"Chris Shaw made a comment about the Johannesburg Summit for
Sustainable Development. I would like mention that one of the
representatives who assisted officially to represent Guatemala was no
less than the Minister of Energy & Mines himself, Mr. Raul Archila, who
is also the National Commissioner for the PPP or Plan Puebla Panama...
Mr. Archila has expressed interest in meeting us about including
ecotourism as part of the PPP, which is perhaps a way in which we are
supposed to focus on that and stay off the subject of hydroelectric
dams. I am not sure...
"Further comments on Mr. Archila, are that he has appeared on the
Guatemalan press repeatedly denying any construction plans on the
Usumacinta, in spite of all the documentation that is easily accessible
through your website and other sources. Denials have also come from the
local BID officials. Please keep in mind that BID (Banco Interamericano
de Desarrollo) or IADB in English... (Interamerican Development Bank)
have also appeared on the papers saying that the IADB is not funding
such project, as rumoured in the Guatemalan press."
Carla sent us a draft copy of the Plan-Puebla Panama tourism program, which she got from the BID/MUNDO MAYA office in Guatemala. She stresses that it is only a draft.
You can read the entire document by clicking MORE below.
Organización mundo maya
secretaría técnica permanente
PLAN PUEBLA-PANAMA
PROGRAMA DE TURISMO
DOCUMENTO PARA DISCUSIÓN
preparado por
Miguel Angel Correal Secretario Técnico
Andrés Navia Gerente de Proyectos
MAYO 2002
CONTENIDO
1 Antecedentes y Justificación
2 Criterios para la formulación de un Programa
3 El PROGRAMA
PLAN PUEBLA-PANAMA
PROGRAMA DE TURISMO
PERFIL
Antecedentes y Justificación
Centroamérica y México han iniciado esfuerzos de integración regional en diferentes sectores, específicamente se puede citar a la Organización Mundo Maya –OMM- que vincula a 5 países que buscan mejorar el sector turismo de cultura y naturaleza con el consiguiente impacto positivo en las economías y comunidades locales.
Si bien las experiencias de integración en Centroamérica son incipientes o han tenido obstáculos dadas las diferencias en los niveles de desarrollo y condiciones geopolíticas entre los países, la experiencia de la OMM es aplicable para la creación de espacios de interlocución y estrategias de integración regional que llevan a la práctica proyectos concretos .
A través de esta experiencia comienza a surgir la conciencia generalizada de reinvidicar el patrimonio cultural y las riquezas naturales dentro de las agendas nacionales de turismo, en una sana competencia basada en el manejo del mercado y no en un concepto absoluto de soberanía.
La OMM ha propiciado el diálogo sobre las ventajas comparativas, por ejemplo de México frente a sus vecinos, planteando respuestas bajo un modelo de integración regional y no del proteccionismo que daría el manejo o restricción de fronteras .
Los resultados positivos de estas experiencias permiten recomendar el desarrollo de modelos similares en la región centroamericana.
Para lograr lo anterior se requiere reconocer varias premisas que hacen viable la iniciativa de instaurar modelos que promuevan el desarrollo turístico por subregiones:
Territoriales y Sociales
La existencia de áreas protegidas y ecosistemas interconectados biológica y funcionalmente, constituyen el patrimonio de destinos turísticos, que ameritan esfuerzos conjuntos para conservarlos y aprovecharlos en forma sostenible.
La conexión existente de las áreas naturales con potencial turístico y el servicio que prestan para el aprovechamiento y proyección hacia otros destinos como playa, sitios de interés, compras, etc.
La presencia de comunidades rurales e indígenas en todos los países, que evidencian gran diversidad cultural. Desde grupos y comunidades diferenciados política y administrativamente con identidades culturales muy definidas, en lucha por posicionarse, como en Panamá y Nicaragua, hasta la presencia diseminada y entremezclada, pero conservando su identidad cultural como en Guatemala y México. Todas con potencial para convertirse en atractivos.
El factor común de la pobreza y las deficiencias de niveles de desarrollo, comprometen al sector turismo a presentar soluciones que se integren y dinamicen las demás estrategias de desarrollo locales.
Las tendencias modernas del turismo hacen énfasis hoy en la demanda por la aventura, cultura y naturaleza, condiciones contrapuestas a las viejas concepciones de que la infraestructura física, especialmente la construcción de hoteles y la promoción exclusivamente, son las fuentes para fortalecer este sector .
Políticas y Económicas
La necesidad de lograr espacios de integración regional frente a las nuevas tendencias globales del comercio y de las economías
El aprovechamiento de estrategias supranacionales para la resolución de conflictos entre países.
La necesidad de posicionar internacionalmente productos y servicios que den identidad a la región y fortalezcan las economías
La tendencia a diversificar los rubros de las economías nacionales en virtud de las limitaciones de la región en materia de manufacturas y recursos energéticos.
La presencia de pequeños productores y comunidades que demandan incentivos a la microempresa en actividades directas y conexas con el turismo.
La necesidad de democratizar el acceso a los servicios de los recursos naturales y atractivos turísticos a través la participación de la comunidad.
La remanencia de condiciones de posconflicto que persisten en algunos países de la región que afectan los avances hacia el desarrollo integral del turismo en lo que respecta a seguridad ciudadana, derechos humanos y procesos de democratización.
Institucionales
Las permanentes solicitudes e iniciativas del sector privado para que los gobiernos regulen, planifiquen e incentiven el turismo sostenible.
La debilidad de las agencias gubernamentales para planificar el territorio si se tiene en cuenta que las iniciativas de turismo sostenible se basan en el patrimonio natural y sobre las características de la cultura viva o patrimonio social.
La deficiente coordinación entre las agencias sectoriales relacionadas con el turismo, especialmente las encargadas del medio ambiente, recursos arqueológicos, áreas protegidas y políticas económicas.
Criterios para la formulación de un Programa
Los anteriores aspectos políticos, sociales e institucionales unidos al atractivo de la región, justifican el desarrollo de un Programa de inversiones que desarrollen el turismo sostenible en centroamérica y contribuya a mejorar la capacidad de regulación y planificación de las agencias del sector. Las características de la región permiten identificar los criterios en los que se fundamenta el Programa:
Integración regional
Preservación del patrimonio natural, cultural y social.
Participación de las comunidades y sociedad civil
Incentivos y fomento a la inversión y participación del sector privado
El PROGRAMA
OBJETIVO
El proyecto tiene por objeto promover, el desarrollo del turismo, la naturaleza y cultura de los países centroamericanos y el sur de México a través del concurso del sector Público y Privado. El contexto en que se realizará aprovecha los ecosistemas interconectados, el potencial cultural y antropológico tanto histórico como vivo y las posibilidades de conexiones hacia numerosos destinos que satisfacen diversos intereses en el mundo.
Objetivos Específicos:
Fortalecer las instituciones que menejan y regulan el sector en la región
Adecuar las legislaciones de manera que permitan la modernización, democratización y manejo ambiental de la industria turística.
Establecer un sistema turístico de información que permita planificar, evaluar y regular el sector.
Integrar el turismo a las demás estrategias del Plan Puebla Panamá en materia de infraestructura y desarrollo social.
Desarrollar proyectos turísticos que generen beneficios económicos, maximicen la facilitación de servicios a los turistas, preserven y mantengan las características sociales y culturales de cada país o subregión. Los proyectos promoverán el patrimonio natural y cultural de las comunidades, con énfasis en la arqueología, arquitectura, el arte visual, artesanías, danzas, música, literatura, etnoturismo y agroturismo.
Contribuir con la estrategia ambiental de la región para preservar el patrimonio natural y cultural de Centroamérica.
Facilitar y promocionar la participación del sector privado como dinamizador de nuevas inversiones.
Descripción
Para el logro de los objetivos se ha diseñado un programa con 5 componentes:
Fortalecimiento Institucional y Formulación del Plan Maestro
Facilitación Turística
Infraestructura Turística
Aprovechamiento sostenible del Patrimonio Natural y Cultural
Participación de las Comunidades y del Sector Privado
Fortalecimiento Institucional y Formulación del Plan Maestro
Este componente busca mejorar la gestión de las agencias encargadas directamente del turismo y de las que deben coordinar acciones complementarias como las del sector ambiental y recursos arqueológicos . Se desarrollará una estrategia por país para facilitar la adopción de tecnologías que permitan planificar le territorio para el uso del turismo bajo la perspectiva del manejo sostenible y el ordenamiento territorial en consonancia con los demás sectores de las economías nacionales.
Se apoyará la conformación de bases de datos que integren las cuentas satélites en las instituciones, de manera que la alimentación e intercambio de información entre países permitan el seguimiento, regulación y continua modernización de procesos y estándares que garanticen la calidad de los destinos y de las actividades de turismo. Todo lo anterior debe conducir a la formulación de estrategias similares a las aplicadas por la OMM en el sentido de conceptualizar, estudiar y poner en marcha circuitos de integración regional .
En el primer año de proyecto se deberá contar con un plan maestro indicativo por país que integrado, conforme el plan maestro centroamericano para el turismo.
Facilitación Turística
Busca la integración de los países centroamericanos a través de la facilitación migratoria y el mejoramiento de la seguridad turística en los principales cruces fronterizos. El componente desarrollará proyectos tecnológicos y normativos tendientes a eliminar obstáculos y facilitar procesos al movimiento de turistas de cualquier nacionalidad en Centroamérica y el sur de México.
Infraestructura Turística
El componente está orientado al diseño y ejecución de obras de infraestructura que apoyen el turismo. Estará condicionado al beneficio de las comunidades locales, ya sea para incentivar su participación en actividades directas al turismo o su participación en actividades complementarias, que en todo caso contribuyan a consolidar el tejido social en las zonas turísticas.
En este componente se podrán desarrollar vías, hoteles, museos, centros de visitantes, acueductos, proyectos energéticos locales, proyectos de adecuación para la producción agropecuaria, infraestructura requerida por microempresas o comunidades organizadas que operen servicios turísticos, (como restaurantes, lavanderías, comunicaciones, transporte, infraestructura para programas de turismo de aventura, etc.).
El componente será desarrollado y estandarizado en su totalidad bajo el concepto de bajo impacto ambiental y respeto por las tradiciones y culturas vivas.
Aprovechamiento Sostenible del Patrimonio Natural y Cultural
Bajo este componente se desarrollarán actividades para aprovechar el potencial de atractivo del patrimonio cultural y natural . El desarrollo de proyectos tendrá como premisa las restricciones y condicionamientos que la conservación y preservación de estos recursos impongan.
Se apoyarán proyectos de restauración y rescate arqueológico, manejo de áreas con categorías de manejo especial para el turismo, aprovechamiento de otros elementos del patrimonio cultural que sean atractivos, en los que se incluyen expresiones orales, coreográficas, artísticas, rescate de la memoria viva, vinculación de territorios indígenas a formas empresariales concertadas.
Participación de las Comunidades y del Sector Privado
Este componente será aplicable a los 4 anteriores, busca maximizar el protagonismo de las comunidades locales en todas las actividades del turismo, incluye 3 subcomponentes:
Promoción y apoyo a las microempresas y empresas comunitarias
Capacitación de comunidades en temas relacionados con turismo y en particular en lo relacionado con la actividad microempresarial.
Capacitación de profesionales y técnicos
Se incluye como parte de este componente la promoción y la concertación con el sector privado a fin de fomentar, regular y hacerlo partícipe en las inversiones y ejecución que implique la puesta en marcha del proyecto PPP para turismo.
Here is a similar story as government press release published today en La
Jornada...... Best regards to all. Janet
Estados
Resolver temas pendientes en Chiapas, como el de las tarifas eléctricas,
prioridad, afirma
Se opone Salazar Mendiguchía a que se construyan tres presas
hidroeléctricas sobre el cauce del río Usumacinta
ANGELES MARISCAL CORRESPONSAL
Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chis., 3 de septiembre. El gobernador Pablo Salazar
Mendiguchía expresó ante 50 alcaldes y Cristóbal Jaime Jáquez, director
general de la Comisión Nacional del Agua (Conagua), su desacuerdo con que
se construyan tres presas hidroeléctricas sobre el cauce del río
Usumacinta, previstas en el marco de la propuesta de reforma eléctrica del
gobierno federal.
Salazar Mendiguchía, reunido este martes con el funcionario y los ediles,
dijo que primero deben resolverse "asuntos pendientes con la sociedad
chiapaneca, como el de las tarifas justas en el consumo de energía
eléctrica", de lo contrario no aceptará se construya en la entidad alguna
hidroeléctrica.
El mandatario sostuvo que durante una reunión de trabajo realizada "en días
pasados", donde se le planteó el proyecto, hizo saber de su posición al
titular de la Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE), Alfredo Elías Ayub, a
quien dijo que las presas anteriormente realizadas en la entidad "inundaron
miles de hectáreas de las mejores tierras que tiene Chiapas y todavía no
terminan de pagar indemnizaciones a algunos campesinos". Agregó que
cualquier determinación que involucre a los ciudadanos del estado será
consensuada con éstos y debe obtener el respaldo de todos los presidentes
municipales.
Igualmente acotó que existen comunidades asentadas en torno de presas
hidroeléctricas que no están electrificadas, "y de pilón en Chiapas se
pagan tarifas eléctricas más caras que otros estados que no producen
energía eléctrica".
Por su parte, el Centro de Investigaciones Económicas y Políticas de Acción
Ciudadana (Ciepac) dio a conocer en un comunicado que en territorio de los
municipios de Ocosingo, Las Margaritas, Margarita Tenejapa y La Trinitaria,
se realizan estudios de factibilidad para la construcción de las citadas
tres presas hidroeléctricas, sin la autorización de las casi 20 comunidades
involucradas.
El Ciepac sostuvo que la construcción de una nueva red hidroeléctrica
inundaría un área de entre 10 y 12 mil kilómetros cuadrados, donde habitan
unas 50 mil personas.
Thanks to Chris for his response to Pablo's release:
Yeah, Tabasco is still in play. We can’t just say it's okay to flood all those small-time sites in Tabasco as long as Yaxchilan and PN are saved. Do we know everything we need to know about them? Will the "low dams" down there block navigation and the upstream-and-downstream movement of aquatic life? Will they subject their reservoirs to siltation? How will they affect the centlas? and what about the undiscovered or forgotten sites?
It sounds to me like Boca de Cerro would still back up into Chiapas, flood San Jose Canyon, and destroy Budsilha Falls and most of the Chocolha. (As well as El Porvenir?) All these places are downstream from Piedras Negras, but in river terms they’re the main events.
[ Click MORE below]
Salazar is great, and all his points are important
politically, though temporary. We still need details,
many of which I'm beginning to believe don't exist:
where are the dams planned, what are their exact
specs, who will build them (canadian firms?), and will
they serve the stated needs? And where the hell are
the impact studies?
Any extended argument against big hydro, Salazar or no
(and he could disappear in a few years), still demands
looking at the watershed comprehensively and making
recommendations for alternate power sources. The
recent sustainability conference in South Africa
called for an increase of 13 to 15 percent for
alternative energy use worldwide. We need to find out
what Mexico’s percentage is, Guatemala’s, etc.
And how do we get the world to take the Usumacinta off
its drawing board and end the inevitable call for new
dams in the future. When so many places are in
trouble, what makes the Usumacinta so special, why
does it deserve special consideration? The
environmental ngos have their own priorities and
long-term plans: their political capital is spread
thin. But if we make a clear enough, well-balanced and
clearly knowledgeable argument, they may come on
board.
I’d like to propose a few ideas to shoot for:
– no net loss of land, habitat, or archaeological
resources to flooding or construction.
– development of the obvious alternative energy
sources for the growth of sustainable local and
regional economies in the region: micro hydro in the
tributaries (and at points in the corridor with
existing road access?), solar, small wind etc.
– the establishment of a “protected”
corridor–including all current legal uses, better
regulated–along both shores and inland between agreed
upon points somewhere between Altar and Tenosique, at
least from Corozal to Boca de Cerro, and the
development of comprehensive system of trails, camp
sites, low-impact interior lodges etc; archaeology
tours, river trips, birding, to provide full-time year
round jobs with benefits, such as guiding,
maintenance, protection.
Before anything can happen the river needs to be made
safe again, as soon as possible. We need to start
pumping people down it. This is all happening in the
darkness cast by the bandits and the Mathews attack.
It’s time to turn that around.
It would take stable governments and economies, and
real money. But I’ve heard all the reasons why such an
idea is unworkable pipe dream, and I think they’re
wrong.
Best, Shaw
ps, while we're at it let's call for some aquatic studies, like goldman's
survey.
Here's news from Chiapas, via Janet Schwartz, reporter and photographer:
Dear Dave/Chris/Alfonso/All:
Looks like Pablo Salazar settled the issue with this press bulletin, at least for awhile.
Oh by the way, I guess we should still look out for one damn to be built in Tabasco !!! But I imagine they'd have to get permission for that from Chiapas since it would more affect us than them ! Janet
Comunicado de prensa
03 de septiembre de 2002
No. 2150/ Año 2
"No Más Presas Hidroeléctricas en Chiapas": Pablo Salazar
a.. Existen pendientes que no se han cumplido con la sociedad chiapaneca
b.. Firma Convenios de Colaboración para Promoción de Decretos de
Condonación de Contribuciones con CNA
c.. Retribuyen a 17 municipios casi 2 millones de pesos
Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Chiapas.- El Gobierno del Estado de Chiapas no permitirá
que la Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE) construya una presa
hidroeléctrica más hasta que no se resuelvan los grandes temas pendientes
con los chiapanecos, entre ellos las tarifas justas que se han reclamado
históricamente, afirmó el gobernador Pablo Salazar Mendiguchía en un
encuentro con alcaldes y el gerente general de la Comisión Nacional del
Agua (CNA), Cristóbal Jaime Jáquez.
El mandatario chiapaneco estableció que la postura del Gobierno del Estado,
frente a las pretensiones de la paraestatal de ampliar su cobertura, es que
en Chiapas no se permitirá la construcción de una presa más, hasta que no
se resuelvan los problemas ancestrales que datan desde la construcción de
las centrales hidroeléctricas.
El Gobernador Pablo Salazar explicó que en la Reforma Eléctrica, propuesta
por el gobierno federal, la CFE pretende ampliar su cobertura y para ello
construiría tres presas hidroeléctricas más en territorio chiapaneco, algo
que no se permitirá.
El mandatario dijo que construir más presas hidroeléctricas, en
consideración del potencial acuífero de la entidad, no resuelve los
problemas que demanda la sociedad.
"La posición nuestra es que en Chiapas no permitiremos que se construya una
presa hidroeléctrica más hasta que no resolvamos temas que están pendientes
como el de las tarifas justas, porque ese es un reclamo de hace muchos años
de la sociedad", expresó el gobernador y, con aplausos, los alcaldes se
sumaron a la determinación oficial.
Pablo Salazar informó que, en una reunión con el presidente Vicente Fox, el
gobierno de Chiapas formalizó esta posición: "Le dijimos al Director de la
Comisión Federal de Electricidad que las presas inundaron miles de
hectáreas de nuestras mejores tierras, que perdimos producción, que el
proceso indemnizatorio fue tortuoso y que firmaron compromisos que hasta
hoy no han sido cumplidos", abundó.
"La posición del Gobierno del Estado es clara: no vamos a permitir una
presa más hasta que no resolvamos las asignaturas pendientes que tiene CFE
con nosotros", afirmó. El Ejecutivo precisó que la oposición oficial a las
presas no está relacionada con la reforma constitucional.
En la reunión de evaluación de los avances de los programas y del proceso
de federalización del sector hidráulico en Chiapas, el jefe del Ejecutivo
explicó que en cuestiones de agua, el gobierno tiene definida una política
institucional de desarrollo sustentable y sobre todo, una política de
preservación, conservación y uso racional del vital líquido.
Refirió que en año y medio de gobierno, a los diversos programas relativos
al agua, en Chiapas se han destinado más de 200 millones de pesos que
acreditan la importancia que se le da al tema y que contrastan con los casi
10 millones que se invertían en el 2000.
"Nuestra principal riqueza natural y atractivo como estado, hoy, sigue
siendo el potencial que tenemos en el agua", indicó Salazar Mendiguchía.
Sin embargo, aclaró que el agua es una de las principales potencialidades
de Chiapas, uno de los atractivos que ofrece "siempre y cuando tengamos una
política de Estado que nos permita preservar y aprovechar bien esta
riqueza".
Pablo Salazar Mendiguchía aclaró ante el titular de CNA, que el gobierno de
Chiapas no está de acuerdo con la disminución del gasto federal en el
sector hidráulico, porque para este año se han perdido 41 millones de pesos
y no hay justificación alguna.
Finalmente, el Ejecutivo solicitó al gerente general de la CNA la supresión
de la veda sobre los sistemas de riego del bajo Río Grijalva que datan de
1957, que no existe y que encarece el agua. Asimismo pidió la revisión de
la clasificación a la zona de disponibilidad de los municipios de Chiapas.
Joann Andrews passed along a scan of a Reforma article from August 9th. It contains assurances from the INAH director of the Registry of Public Monuments (Francisco Sanchez Nava), that Yaxchilan and Piedras Negras would not be affected by the proposed dam.
It also listed the sites that would be flooded:
In Tabasco: Cortijo el Nuevo, Agua Sucia, Redencion del Campesino Numero Uno, Redencion del Campesino Numero Dos, Camino a San Marcos, La Parcela, El Mangal, El Camino, Francisco Ortiz y Dona Salud.
In Chiapas: Chinikiha, La Reforma, Chancala, Santa Margarita, El Chile, Cueva San Pablo, and El Cayo.
If I can find a link to this article I'll post it. If anyone has a map that shows all of these sites, let me know.
Here's a historic document from 1993, outlining that era's mobilization to prevent dams on the Usumacinta.
I'll post the whole text below in case it disappears from the web for any reason.
Date: Sun, 27 Feb 94 01:29:58 EST
Subject: E-Link;_Rainforest_Rivers.txt
Date: Fri, 19 Feb 1993 11:05:57 -0500 (EST)
From: Student Enviro-Link
Subject: E-Link: Rainforest & Rivers
Date: Thu, 18 Feb 93 8:32:50 PST
_GRAction_ #1/93 February 9, 1993
Usumacinta Hydroelectric Project--Mexico
-box-
*"The Usumacinta is essential for the natural circulation of water in
the rain forests of the region....Its well-being and fate are
inextricably linked to that of the Lacando'n Forest."* -Homero Aridjis,
President of the Mexican environmental organization "Grupo de Los
Cien", at a press conference calling for the cancellation of any
destructive development projects along the Usumacinta River.
-end box-
*Global Response* members are asked to write letters to help protect
the *Usumacinta River* from the negative effects of a proposed
hydroelectric dam project.
In 1989 the Mecican government, bowing to domestic and
international pressure, shelved plans to build a series of dams on the
Usumacinta River. Mexico has _reintroduced_ the project and has
scheduled construction on the first dam to begin in 1994 at *Boca del
Cerro*, at the mouth of the *San Jose Canyon*, 20 miles from the
Guatamalan border. Environmentalists and archaeologist are concerned
that this "dangerous and costly scheme of multiple hydroelectric dams"
will severely damage the ecology of North America's largest surviving
rainforest and destroy ancient Mayan civilization centers.
The project was originally estimated to cost between $2.1 and $3.7
billion and would have flooded an area of 500 square miles. The
*Inter-American Development Bank (IADB)* is currently funding a $2
million feasibility study for the development of a regional power
network. Electricity from the proposed Usumacinta dams is included in
these power grid schemes.
The Usumacinta is the largest river in Mexico south of the Rio
Grande. Draining an area of more than 40,000 square miles, it is the
backbone for the *Lacandon Rainforest*.
The Lacandon Rainforest is home to endangered species such as
ocelots, jaguars, crocodiles, howler and spider monkeys, toucans, and
tropical songbirds. Its incalculable archaeological and cultural
resources include the largely unexplored *Classic Maya* ruins of
*Piedras Negras* and *Yaxchilan*, and the *Lacandon Indians*, a small
band of several hundred nomadic gatherers and rudimentary
agriculturalists. The Lacandon are the purest descendants of the Maya.
*Recommended Action-Letters/Fax to:
{}Enrique V. Iglesias/President - IADB*
-Mention that you are aware of the IADB's funding of a feasibility
study for a regional power grid using Usumacinta hydroelectric power;
-Stress that further IADB funds for this project should be withheld
pending a full analysis of the impact the dams will have on the
Usumacinta's ecosystem;
-Remind Mr. Iglesias that alternatives such as conservation, increased
energy efficiency, and *alternative energy sources* are available to
meet the region's power needs; and,
-Ask Mr. Iglesias and the IADB to join Mexican environmentalists in
opposing *any* damming of the Usumacinta River.
-box-
*Background: Tropical hydroelectric dams* not only inundate forest
resources and kill wildlife, but they can also lead to the spread of
undesirable aquatic vegetation, increased incidence of disease such as
schistomaisis and malaria, forced resettlement of human communities,
and the loss of productive agricultural land. Potential problems to
the dams include the destruction of hydroelectric equipment by hydrogen
sulfide produced by decomposing forest vegetation and the premature
siltation of reservoirs caused by the destruction of the surrounding
forest.
*Piedras Negras*, on the Guatamalan side of the Usumacinta, and
*Yaxchilan*, on Mexico's side of the river, are considered to be two of
the New World's most important *Classic Maya* sites. Archaeologists
are just beginning to explore their magnificent ruins of temples,
palaces, sports arenas and baths. A dam at Boca del Cerro would flood
much of Piedras Negras. Companion "check dams" needed to make the Boca
del Cerro dam economically feasible would flood Yaxchilan, inundate
dozens of indigenous villages along the river, and perhaps forever
cover many still undiscovered sites.
At the mouth of the Usumacinta is Mexico's most important wetlands
resource--the *Great Delta Wetlands*. It is feared that this 4.9
million acre system of fresh water marshes, coastal lagoons, mangrove
forests, and transitional lowlands will be adversely affected by the
changes caused to the seasonal pattern of water flows by the Usumacinta
dams. These wetlands are a major waterbird habitat and support
Mexico's largest shrimp fishery and significant fresh and salt water
fisheries.
*{GR}*
-end box-
*Addresses:* The *President* of the *Inter-American Development Bank*
is in a position to help protect the *Usumacinta* (Mayan for "River of
the Sacred Monkey") *River*. Given that the IADB has already funded
the feasibility study for the power grid, it is considered likely that
they will be asked to help finance the construction of the *Boca del
Cerro Dam*. Please send copies of your letters to President Salinas of
Mexico in care of the Embassy of Mexico in your country.
*Note:* As reported in the December 1992 *Action Status*, the *World
Bank*, in spite of intense worldwide pressure and against the
recommendations of its own *Independent Review*, decided to continue
funding India's controversial Sardar Sarovar Dam. (GRAction #8/92)
The reluctance of major lending institutions to sever the funding
pipeline for ongoing projects, no matter how socially and
environmentally destructive, emphasizes the need for us to apply
pressure on the IADB while financing for the Usumacinta Dam project
remains uncertain and *before* construction begins.
Mr. Enrique V Iglesias
President
Inter-American Development Bank
1300 New York Avenue NW
Washington DC 20577 USA
(tel: 202-623-1101) (Fax: 202-623-3614)
President Carlos Salinas de Gotari
c/o Ambasador Gustavo Petridoll
Embassy of Mexico
1911 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington DC 20006 USA
-box-
The information for this *Global Response Action* was provided by the
following organizations: _International Rivers Network_, 1847 Berkeley
Way, Berkeley CA 94703 (510-848-1155); _Grupo De Los Cien_, Sierra
Jiutepec No. 155-B, Lomas Barrilaco 11010 Mexico DF
-end box-
GLOBAL Response Environmental Action Network
POB 7490
Boulder CO 80306-7490
(303)444-0306
"As environmental awareness and activism help reveres destructive
trends at home, one result has been the export of severe ecological
degradation to the developing world. GLOBAL RESPONSE is a dedicated
letter-writing network of environmental activists focusing attention
on specific planetary environmental threats, and mobilizing broad-based
campaigns to hold those responsible accountable. GLOBAL RESPONSE issues
_GRActions_ [bulletins] on rainforest destruction, ocean dumping and
pollution, atmospheric contamination, nuclear disarmament, extinction,
and threats to marine mammals and fisheries. GR also issues a monthly
_Young Environmentalist's Action_, a simplified, larger print version
of our _GRActions_ for use by elementary and junior-high school
students."
GR also publishes an Action Status report on the results of
earlier campaigns. If you want the whole publication, subscribe!
--
Transcribed by Cameron Spitzer, not far from Penitencia Creek
cls@truffula.sj.ca.us
Thanks to Ron Canter, who has sent a draft of his report on river navigation by the Maya in Classic times.
Click "More" below to see the complete text, including bibliography and links to related websites.
DRAFT COPY
Last Update, 8-29-02
RIVERS AMONG THE RUINS
THE USUMACINTA, SAN PEDRO MARTIR, AND CANDELARIA RIVERS, LAKE PETEN ITZA,
AND THEIR COMMERCIAL NAVIGABILITY BY THE ANCIENT MAYA
by Ronald L. Canter
"He who excels in traveling leaves no wheel tracks" - Lao
Tzu
A major component of the transportation network used by the Maya
throughout their history has been the system of navigable rivers within
Yucatan, Peten, and the highlands of Chiapas. Rivers were the railroads
of the preindustrial world. They were far more efficient than roads or
trails, but limited by topography to only certain routes. Of the 18th
century, geographer Peirce Lewis said, "If you get away from a navigable
river or the sea, you might as well be on the face of the moon." It
applies equally well to the 8th century.
Though the importance of rivers as major trade routes has long been
recognized, there currently is no comprehensive source detailing which
rivers were or were not navigable by the Maya in the past. Richard E. W.
Adams, in "Routes of Communication in Mesoamerica: the Northern Guatemala
Highlands and the Peten", outlined well the basic frame of trade routes
throughout the Yucatan Peninsula and Los Altos. This paper hopes to add
some detail for the Usumacinta watershed.
Rivers are grouped by watershed, with the main river first, and
significant tributaries listed in order from head to river mouth.
Alternate names (of which there are many) are shown in brackets, with
probable Postclassic and earlier names underlined. Translations are given
in quotes. For simplicity, accent marks are not shown in names. Mayan
names are normally accented on the last syllable. Since bare bones river
descriptions tend to be rather desiccated reading, I've added some
anecdotes relating to navigability.
The river descriptions are brief and not meant to be a detailed
guide, though detail is given for features critical to understanding them
as part of a larger transportation network. "Navigable" and "not
navigable" refer to commercial navigability by fully loaded dugout canoes
5.5 m or more in length. A commercially navigable river has a dependable
season* with adequate depths, and not so many rapids that large cargoes
can't be carried safely and economically. I would expect that there were
exceptional Maya canoeists in the precontact period who occasionally
traveled up or down more difficult rivers, but these lie outside the norm
of navigability.
*Ftnt [A dependable canoeing season may be short, only a few months
of the year, but it can be relied on from year to year.]
Important factors affecting navigability which could reasonably be
inferred were: the type of dugout canoes used, the average skill level of
ancient paddlers, and some probable portage routes between major rivers.
Determining the types of canoes used and skill levels of ancient Maya
boatmen was based on surviving illustrations of precontact dugouts,
historical records of canoes used and rapids run, and distribution of Maya
sites along rivers. Possible portages were located using historical
accounts, site distribution, known trails, and detailed terrain analysis.
See the Appendix for a more thorough discussion of the factors affecting
navigability.
In order to understand and compare different routes, knowing whether
or not a river might float a loaded canoe is not quite enough. Without
precise information on the location and difficulty of rapids, the effect of
changing water levels, and of current speeds in different seasons, travel
times can't be determined. Accurate travel times make comparisons of
alternate routes possible.
The rivers were part of a far larger trade network at times
stretching from the turquoise mines of New Mexico south to Lake Nicaragua
and beyond. Much of the trade was carried in the bottoms of canoes
following the seacoasts. The location of major salinas along the north
coast of Yucatan guaranteed heavy coastal canoe traffic. These saltwater
routes are well described in many sources, and will only occasionally be
touched on here.
The rapids of the Rios Usumacinta, San Pedro Martir, Candelaria, and
tributaries offer an untapped opportunity for discovering what was actually
traded, and for recovering artifacts in good condition. "Whitewater
archaeology" of the sort so successfully done in the Quetico-Superior
Underwater Archaeology Project by the Minnesota Historical Society has not
been tried in the land of the Maya. The possibilties make me sincerely
regret my lack of diving experience.
RIO USUMACINTA-
The Usu' watershed includes two extensive systems of navigable
rivers: an enclosed interior basin above the canyons, and a large part of
the Grijalva-Usumacinta compound delta below.
Usumacinta, written phonetically as "Usumatsintla" by Teobert Maler,
is from the Nahuatl "osumatli" and "tsintla". It translates as "Place of
the Monkey", but is usually given more broadly as "River of the Sacred
Monkey". It was also the name of a Postclassic town on the river near
Balancan. Moreley thought Ayn, "crocodile", was the ancient name of the
river. Adams confirmed Ayn as a past name for at least the Rio Pasion.
Spanish expeditions referred to the upper Usu' as the "Sacapulas". Louis
Halle nicknamed the Usu' " River of Ruins" in his book of the same name,
and that name has also stuck.
One source gives the Postclassic name of the river above the canyons
as Xocolha, and Scholes and Roys give the river name as Tanochel at
Tenosique. "Xocolha" simply means "The River" in Chontal.
In the Classic the Usumacinta watershed offered at least three
parallel routes between the Tabasco lowlands and the upper basin. Each had
advantages and limitations. The Usu' itself was a swift path downriver but
slow upriver. Its canyons posed a difficult choice headed downstream, and
forced a long portage going upstream. The parallel Rio San Pedro Martir
was overall much easier to ascend, but would have required a long portage
back into the Usu' basin. A route up the Rio Tulija, overland past Tonina,
and down the Jatate would have been faster than the long slow ascent of the
Usumacinta, but required whitewater skills to travel safely.
The most efficient approach would have been a circuit trip. Traders
could use the Tulija/Jatate or the San Pedro Martir to go from west to
east, visit the cities of the upper Usumacinta basin, and then return by
the main river, stopping at Yaxchilan and Piedras Negras on the way out.
Upper Usumacinta [Xocolha, Ayn, Sacapulas]:
*Junction of Pasion and Salinas Rivers at Pipiles [El Trapiche] to Frontera
Corozal- 96 km
The Usu' is flat with a definite current for the first 50 km to the
mouth of the Rio Lacantun, at Benemerito Segundo Seccion, and then for
another 21 km to Boca del Cerro (not the dam site). It picks up speed
where it squeezes through deep ravines, but remains easy. There are no
large rapids, but currents and eddys are strong in the wet season, when the
river rises 10 m or more. Small Maya sites are spaced roughly 7 to 9 km
apart along the river.
6.5 km below the Rio Lacantun, Arroyo el Chorro spreads and tumbles
over travertine falls along the right shore. Five km downstream the river
splits around Isla Grande [Isla Colmoyote], the first of several. After
another 9 km (21 from the Lacantun) the Usu' slips between high hills at
Boca del Cerro (a different one than the dam site). For 7 km the river is
swift, with strong eddys, through Encajonado de Gonzales. At Arroyo el
Mocho and the abandoned Agua Azul [Filadelphia] airstrip, the hills recede.
8 km downstream, at Isla la Paleta below Bethel*, another narrows begins,
this one only 3 km long. There are small sites at each end. Frontera is
only 5 km farther.
*Ftnt. At Bethel there is a Guatemalan customs station and bus
service to La Libertad [Sacluk].
The strong current is a constant of the river from Boca del Cerro to
Rio Chancala. It would have made the Usu' an excellent route to deliver
bulk goods from upstream sites to Yaxchilan or Piedras Negras. Hauling
loads upriver would have been tedious, though still more efficient than by
land. The huge meander loops in the lowlands of Tabasco, a long portage
past the canyons, and the strong current all combine to make the Usu' a
less than ideal Gulf to Pasion route. A route up the Tulija, overland to
Topiltepec on the Jatate, and then downstream to the Usu' above its
swiftest part works out as fast or faster. See the Tulija writeup for more
detail.
*Frontera Corozal to Yaxchilan- 20 km
The river is mostly flat but swift ( 3 to 5 kph per George Stuart and
Chris Shaw) for all 20 km. At Arroyo Yalchilan* there is a Class 1 rapids
formed by debris washed into the river by the arroyo. Paso Yalchilan, the
Guatemalan landing here, marks a major change in the river. Just
downstream the Usu' again enters a gorge between steep hills, but this time
it stays within a defile all the way to the lowlands. From Arroyo
Yalchilan to El Pilar, the start of Yaxchilan's waterfront, is 13 km
*Ftnt [Yalchilan and Yaxchilan are confusingly close in spelling,
though well separated along the river.]
Yaxchilan "Green Thing Scattered About" ie. Green Stones, [Yaxchilan
Xlabpak, Yalchilan, Menche Tinamit, Tsah Kanac.] is a major Classic Period
site nestled within a huge circular meander. In the Classic Yaxchilan's
name may have been Tsah Kanac or Itz'am Kanak, "Cleft Sky Place", per
Carolyn Tate. On Stela 4, the city's emblem glyph has a deep split in its
top per Stuart and Houston. In the skyline east of the city is a
prominent gash in the Sierra del Lacandon, likely the "cleft sky" in city
name and glyph. Following a transcurrent fault, the narrow pass may have
been more than a nice scenic feature.
Because of its strong current the Usu' is a great downriver run, but
a grind going upriver. Alternate routes that bypassed part or all of the
swiftest section would attract travelers trying to go from the Tabasco
lowlands to the upper Usu' basin. By paddling up the San Pedro Martir to
Ocultun [La Florida] and then carrying southwest through the "Cleft Sky"
pass, a traveler could bypass the Usu' canyons and 65 km of rapids and fast
water. A trail from Ocultun to Yaxchilan would be 43 km long, slightly
shorter than an upriver carry past the Usu' canyons. Though the San Pedro
Martir has an extra 7 km carry past cascades at Reforma, the route is 20 km
shorter overall and has little current between Reforma and Ocultun.
Because of the deep pass in the Sierra del Lacandon, there is no severe
climb.
A trail through the cleft would have put Yaxchilan at a crossroads of
river and land routes. Teodoro Paschke's 1889 detailed map of Guatemala
shows just such a trail from Laguna de la Cruz to Paso Yalchilan, though
modern maps don't. Desire Charnay used a similar approach by land from
Tenosique to Yaxchilan. Whether or not there may have been an actual
Classic Period route through the cleft could be checked by looking in the
heart of the pass. In southern Belize a smaller pass, guarding the
approach to Chac Bolai from the Bladen Branch, is fortified with a wall and
gateway at the narrowest point.
While exploring the ruins in 1882 Alfred P. Maudsley was given
something, carefully wrapped up in paper, by one of his men who had been
upriver. It was a gentleman's card, that of French scientist Desiree De
Charnay. By coincidence, his expedition had just arrived, and was stranded
across the river. Mausley graciously lent his canoe and in return De
Charnay shared the exploration with Maudsley, who was officially only an
amateur at the time.
In the river a massive artificial pile of stone, El Pilar, marks the
start of the ancient waterfront. Various people have identified El Pilar
as a royal grave, a breakwater for the city landing, a river level gauge,
or a pier for a bridge. It is definitely not a grave but could have been
any or all of the other possibilities. James Okon has located a
cooresponding stonework, more ruined by floods, in the river near the
opposite shore. He theorizes that they were piers for a huge suspension
bridge _ m long.
Yaxchilan, almost alone among large Maya cities, is sited without
apparent relation to good farmland. It is confined within a mountainous
meander. The nearest arable land is across the river and over a steep
ridge, in the broad valley of the La Linea Syncline. By land, the city has
only a single exit, southwest along the ridge of the meander neck.
However, the meander is as near perfect a natural fortress as one could
find anywhere.
The dip in the neck is a great location for a wall and gate like that
found in a pass leading to Chac Bolai on the upper Bladen Branch in Belize.
So far as I know no one has yet checked the neck for defensive works,
though Mario Aliphat has done a botanical transect of the neck. Even
though it would bypass 13 km of upriver, the neck of the meander is too
high and steep for a practical portage.
Yaxchilan to El Cayo Venado ? 45 km
The river is pinched in a narrow gorge, 200 to 250 m deep, carved
deep into the shattered core of an anticline. Now hemmed in, the Usu' has
nowhere to go but up in wet season. There are surprisingly few rapids of
consequence.
The river swiftly encircles Yaxchilan with a watery moat, and
straightens out as far as the minor site of Anaite I, 21 km from Yaxchilan.
Here it turns sharp right, along a transcurrent fault, and sluices through
minor rapids, Class 1 El Raudal Chico. Since these rapids are just below
the modern hamlet of Anaite, they are often called "Anaite Rapids",
inviting confusion with the larger ones downstream. The river then swings
left to continue down the heart of the Usumacinta Anticline.
Los Raudales de Anaite:
The most serious rapids between Yaxchilan and El Cayo are Los
Raudales de Anaite, now commonly called Chicozapote Falls. Like so many
localities in the region, the rapids have acquired two names. "Chicozapote
Falls" came into vogue with commercial rafting of the river. For this
article "Raudales de Anaite", the name used by Maler, Blom, and local
boatmen for nearly a century, will be used in preference to the more
recent, even at risk of confusion with a smaller rapid near the Anaite I
site. "Anaite/Chicozapote" is too awkward, and "Chicozapote Falls" has
less historical depth.
28 km below Yaxchilan, the rapids begin with boulders on the west
(Mexican) shore forcing the river through a wavy chute. The main current
swings to the right, then left, before settling into a long train of +1 m
waves near the west shore. A large rock sits left of center in the waves,
but is easily skirted. The rapids are not long, only 0.5 km from top to
tail.
The annual wet season rise keeps the foreshores clear of vegetation
for 20 m above the river. The steep right (Guatemalan) shore is strewn
with large blocks which make walking a chore and portaging even a light
boat difficult. Jutting out from the west shore at the head of the rapids,
a line of boulders creates a long eddy hugging the west shore under a
cliff, and just outside the main current.
50,000 cfs is a medium flow. At dry season flows below 15,000 cfs,
usually Feb through May, the rapids are hardest. Steep waves up to 2 m
high march down the main channel. At wet season levels, June through Nov,
the rapids wash out and are straighforward, per Scott Davis. The river has
exceeded 200,000 cfs, though not often.
Los Raudales de Anaite [Chicozapote Falls] appear to be formed not by
a bedrock barrier, but by a side stream on the south shore. An arroyo, the
sometimes outlet of Laguna Santa Clara, pries boulders and lesser debris
from the Cretaceous Upper Boca Del Cerro Formation, and dumps them into the
Usu'. The river continually tears away at the debris dam, but every local
flash flood renews it. Debris fan rapids are common in narrow canyons.*
*Ftnt [Most rapids in the Grand Canyon of Arizona are formed this
way. They are gradually getting harder to run, since dams upstream have
stopped the annual high water levels that used to reduce the debris fans.
The sole exception is Lava Falls, formed when a lave flow cascaded down the
canyon wall and dammed the Colorado River.]
Los Raudales de Anaite are straightforward high volume Class 2-3
rapids, but you wouldn't know it from historical accounts. When Louis
Halle rode a cayuco through Anaite, the boat spun round and round, out of
control. His bogadors let the bow get caught in eddies, causing a series
of involuntary eddy turns. Dimitar Krustev cautiously walked the shore
while Romulo soloed their boat through, but Krustev also handled his folbot
so poorly at Piedras Negras that they were swept past the landing. On a
1905 expedition, "prudently mistrusting my irresponsible Tenosique
simpleton" Teobert Maler bundled up his notes and hitched a ride in a
passing cayuco manned by able vogas. However his own "cayuco was dashed to
pieces on the rocks and disappeared in the brawling waters".
Barely noticed in these accounts of terror and disaster is that
competent boatmen ran Anaite without any trouble. The rapid is just
serious enough to punish incompetence, but forgiving to the skilled. As
Chris Shaw remarked, "The rapids reputation had been exaggerated". For
several years motor lanchas* have routinely run up and down Los Raudales de
Anaite to service Stephen Houston's and Hector Escobedo's project at
Piedras Negras.
*Ftnt. [It takes about 75 hp to buck the current.]
According to 19th and 20th century accounts, timber companies
discouraged their vogas from running Raudales de Anaite, but they usually
did so anyway. Lining downstream is slow, and dragging a heavy dugout
overland out of the question. The safest landing when heading downstream
is on the east (Guatemalan) shore, where a flat shelf of rock offers an
easy landing. Sometimes part of the cargo was carried past the rapids via
a rough trail along the steep, rocky east shore, then the lightened boat
run through.
In all past accounts of canoe voyages in the Americas, part or all of
the cargo was frequently carried past a rapid to reduce weight and increase
freeboard enough to avoid portaging the canoe itself. In expedition
reports, this is variously called "carrying the loads past", "packing the
load across", or "portaging". The terms "Decharge" and "Demi-charge" used
by Canadian voyageurs are more precise.
"Decharge" meant that the entire load was carried past a rapid, but
not the canoe. The crew then ran the lightened canoe down the rapid. If
headed upriver, they poled or tracked the empty canoe up the rapid.
For a "Demi-charge" roughly half the load was taken out. Going
downriver the half load was carried past the rapids to meet the canoe.
Going upstream, the crew would deposit a half load at the bottom of a
rapid, track the canoe to the top, and deposit the other half load there.
They then ran back down, reloaded, and brought the second half up.
Tracking up the rapids twice was usually faster and less work than carrying
even a half load past them by land.
Maler is the only early Mayanist who really knew what could be done
with dugouts. His cool assessment of upriver possibilities was remarkable.
Anaite thoroughly intimidated most travelers. The towering walls, broken
shores, and leaping waves were impressive. Maler judged that his vogas
from El Cayo, though not expert, could track their boat up the rapids.
Jutting out from the west shore at the head of the rapids, a line of
boulders created a long eddy hugging the west shore under a cliff, and just
outside the main current. As he related, "the cayuco, gliding along at the
foot of the sheer rock, remained invisible to those hauling the ropes".
Maler's crew, even though unfamiliar with Anaite, succeeded in tracking all
the way up the Mexican shore without a demicharge or decharge, but his
vogas lost their nerve on the top drop.
At the top was the one tricky part, swinging a canoe through a strong
chute between the boulders. Maler again correctly gauged the danger, and
had the boat unloaded, a "decharge", before trying to haul it up the last
drop. He could see it was possible, and probably would have succeeded with
a more competent crew. In the Classic, Maya boatmen, familiar with the
river at different levels, should have long mastered passing a boat around
the rocks at the top.
Compare ascending Raudales de Anaite to the effort overcoming
the chutes of the First Cataract of the Nile, as witnessed by Charles
Dudley Warner in 1875. Hauling an 8 meter dugout up Raudales de Anaite
seems rather straightforward by comparison. Warner was riding on a
dahabeah, a sailing ship over 36 meters long, being tracked up the
cataracts. His narrative not only summarizes the various stratagems used
to get a large boat up rapids, but gives the flavor of the effort.
"The place where we lie is barely long enough to admit our boat; its
stern just clears the rocks, its bow is aground on hard sand. The number of
men and boys on the rocks has increased; it is over one hundred, it is one
hundred and thirty; on a re-count it is one hundred and fifty?
The swimmers come on board for reinforcement. The poor fellows are
shivering as if they had an ague fit. The dragoman brings out a bottle of
brandy. It would burn a hole in a new piece of cotton cloth. He pours out a
tumblerful of it, and offers it to one of the granite men. The granite man
pours it down his throat in one flow, without moving an eye winker, and
holds the glass out for another. His throat must be lined with zinc.
Judging by the eye, the double turn we have next to make is too short
to admit our long hull. We just scrape along the rocks, the current
growing every moment stronger, and at length get far enough to let the
stern swing. It is a close fit. The stern is clear; but if our boat had
been four or five feet longer, her voyage would have ended then and there?
We have come to the real cataract, to the stiffest pull and most
dangerous passage. The chief cataract is called Bab Abu Rabbia from one of
Mohammed Ali's captains who some years ago vowed that he would take his
dahabeah up it with his own crew and without aid from the cataract people.
He lost his boat. ?
For this last struggle, in addition to the other ropes, an enormous
cable is bent on, not tied to the bow, but twisted round the cross beams of
the forward deck, and carried out over the rocks?
The water of this main cataract sucks down from both sides above
through a channel perhaps one hundred feet (30 m) wide, very rapid and with
considerable fall, and with such force as to raise a ridge in the middle.
To pull up this hill of water is the tug; if the ropes let go we shall be
dashed into a hundred pieces on the rocks below and be swallowed up in the
whirlpools. It would not be a sufficient compensation for this fate to
have this rapid hereafter take our name.
We are now carefully under way along the rocks which are almost
within reach, held tight by the side ropes, but pushed off and slowly urged
along by a line of half-naked fellows under the left side, whose backs are
against the boat and whose feet walk along the perpendicular ledge. It
would take only a sag of the boat, apparently, to crush them. But we are
held firmly by the shore lines. The boat is never suffered, as I said, to
get an inch the advantage, but is always held tight in hand. Men come
riding down on logs as before, a sort of horseback feat in the boiling
water, steering themselves round the eddies and landing below us.
At the right moment the sail is again shaken down; and the boat at
once feels it. It is worth five hundred men. The ropes slacken; the crowd
thins out, dropping away with no warning; and before we know that the play
is played out, the cataract people have lost all interest in it and are
scattering over the black rocks to their homes."
In the Classic, the Rios Candelaria and San Pedro Martir appear to
have been improved for navigation at several ledges. Simple improvements
at Anaite could have minimized the already moderate time and labor costs of
tracking up it by eliminating any need for a demi-charge. Most likely
would have been a good towpath along the cliff on the west (Mex.) shore,
and a skidway over, or a cleared chute through, the worst obstacle at the
top.
Such modifications can only be speculative unless traces of
improvements are found at Anaite, which may be difficult. The seasonal rise
keeps the foreshore clear of vegetation, but may also have erased any trace
of a simple towpath. An artificial sluice would have been filled over time
by debris from the arroyo.
Continuing down the river:
Four km downstream of Raudales de Anaite is the small Chicozapote
site, at a natural landing on the west shore. The river is swift
throughout, but the only other rapid , a Class 1 too minor to merit a name,
is two km downstream from the Chicozapote site. Six km from the
Chicozapote site is the El Chile site, also on the left shore. El Chile is
near a spring, possibly an underground outlet for Laguna Santa Clara. 47
km from Yaxchilan is the sandbar island of El Cayo Venado, with ruins on
both shores. Paddling at a modest 5 kph, with a boost of 3 kph from the
current, a run from Yaxchilan to El Cayo should have taken at most 6 hours
by canoe.
A likely scenario is for upriver traffic to have used different
routes according to the type of traffic and urgency of travel. As Mario
Aliphat observed, downstream visitors to El Cayo or Piedras Negras may have
often elected to walk back via the parallel "Intermontane Valley" along the
La Linea Syncline to the northeast. It would have taken about 15 hours to
return overland to Yaxchilan via La Pasadita, instead of approx 25 by
water. Unencumbered travelers and perishables may have gone by land; heavy
nonperishable loads by boat. During floods and unusually high water,
nonperishables could have been stockpiled.
A detour through Laguna Santa Clara might possibly have been used
during high water when Anaite was too difficult to ascend. It would have
required portaging cargo 3 km uphill from El Chile to boats waiting on
Laguna Santa Clara, then paddling uplake 5 km, and finishing with lugging
the cargo 9 km to the Anaite I site on the river above Raudales Chico.
With 12 km of carrying (steeply up and down at each end) a route through
Laguna Santa Clara would usually have required more labor than slowly
working boats up the river itself.
El Cayo to El Porvenir- 19 km
At El Cayo Venado "Venison Island" [the rafter's Paradise Island],
usually shortened to El Cayo, a huge sandbar divides the river and forms a
minor riffle and large eddy. The narrow river gorge widens into an oval
valley, the only one below Yaxchilan.
El Cayo was probably a well used ferrying point in the Classic. Not
only is there a broad midstream eddy at all water levels, but a trail
follows the Arroyo Machabilero down through a break in the high rugged
hills lining the east shore.
El Cayo lies between two major Classic centers, Yaxchilan and Piedras
Negras. Though only 16 km from P.N. vs 37 km from Yaxchilan by trails
along the "Intermontane Valley", El Cayo paradoxically takes less time to
reach from Yaxchilan by water. This is because travel down the swift
Usumacinta River is much faster than paddling against the same current. In
addition, not far upstream of P.N. is Rapidos el Caribe, a strong Class 2,
which would have required tracking from shore. On a downstream run from
Yaxchilan, Raudales de Anaite, though dangerous , would not slow
experienced boatmen down.
*Ftnt. Current speed varies from 3 to 5 kph, depending on season.
Traveling at 8 kph (3 kph current, plus 5 kph paddling speed) the 47 km by
water from Yaxchilan to El Cayo would take 5.9 hours. At 2 kph (5 kph
paddling speed minus 3 kph current) the 16 km from Piedras Negras upriver
to El Cayo would take 8 hours by water, plus additional time to track up
the rapids. Walking the 15 km of trail from P.N. to El Cayo would take
about 5 hours, only slightly less than from Yaxchilan by water.
The modern village of El Cayo is on the Mexican shore, but a sizeable
Maya site has structures on both sides of the river. The largest ruin, a
two story palace, is on the Mexican side, where the valley opens out more.
In June of 1997, Dr. Peter Mathews attempted to rescue an altar stone
here before it was looted. He and his party were robbed, beaten, and
nearly killed by villagers. They escaped by swimming across the river, and
hiding until they could flag down a launch bound for the new dig at Piedras
Negras.
Five km below El Cayo is another break in the karst hills of the
eastern shore at the hamlet of Desempeno, "Redemption". After losing some
men and boats in the canyons, timber companies strictly forbade their vogas
from running below Desempeno, and this became the general 19th century foot
of navigation.
Downstream, in the 11 km between Desempeno and Piedras Negras, the
river runs through a narrows with several minor rapids, and a sizeable one.
6 km below Desempeno a rough road comes down to the river at Nuevo
Jerusalem [Arroyo Jerusalem], at a shingle beach on the Mexican side.
The Class 2 Rapidos el Caribe, with good surfing waves, are only 2
km upstream of the ruins of Piedras Negras. According to one source, they
would have been impassable by dugout. Per another, the hydraulics in El
Caribe are easy to skirt. Motorized lanchas have routinely run up and down
the rapids to supply the dig at Piedras Negras, clearly demonstrating that
large dugouts could at least navigate them downstream in the past. Unless
both shores are sheer cliffs, any Class 2 rapid can normally be lined if it
can't be run. The shores at El Caribe are steep, broken rock, not easy
walking but not impassable cliff either.
From a high bluff the Preclassic through Late Classic Period ruins of
Piedras Negras, abbreviated P.N.* overlook a sandy cove, the city landing,
holding a jagged black slab of limestone, called La Roca De Los Sacraficios
by Maler, with seated figures in a circle carved on it. The river
sometimes rises over in the wet season. Maler speculated that it was a
sacrificial altar, but river gauge seems a more likely use. An inscription
at P.N. records a royal visits by canoe.
*Ftnt [Classic name Y-okib, literally "Cave Entrance", from a huge
cenote, 200m deep and 200m across, nearby. The full meaning is more like
"Portal to Xibalbal".]
Just below the ancient city landing is another Class 2, Raudal El
Porvenir, with hydraulics to be avoided. On a large pool 3 km downstream
is El Porvenir, a Maya site spanning the Preclassic to Late Classic
Periods. Ruins extend unbroken between El Porvenir and Piedras Negras.
There is a large natural landing area on the right shore. As the last
practical stopping place for travelers headed to the lowlands, it is the
most likely start for a portage past the canyons downstream. Continuing
downstream would have committed a boat to running the gorges.
*El Porvenir,"The Future", to Rio Chocolha - 25 km
In 1994 Guatemalan banditos ambushed and shot up a raft trip near
Budsilha Falls. This brought the commercial rafting business on the Usu'
to a sudden halt. The bandits (not guerillas) are still hanging around
below Piedras Negras and rafting is still on hold. Their base is rumored
to be in the San Jose Canyon. They have not halted all traffic.
Motorboats still risk the canyons, reportedly carrying such cargoes as
cocaine and mahogany.
Rafting had altered the local economy with the promise of cash and
consumer goods, but it had also built international support for protection
of the river. Plans to dam the river below the Rio Chancala [properly
Chocolha?], and incidentally flood many Maya sites such as El Cayo and part
of Yaxchilan, were shelved because of international pressure.
Two km below El Porvenir is another strong Class 2 rapid, named Cola
de Diablo, "The Devil's Tail" (formerly called simply Los Saltos), with
waves too heavy for small dugouts. Cola de Diablo is regularly ascended by
motorized lanchas.
The next 23 km of river have a swift current and mountains all
around. 9 km below El Porvenir, the Rio Budsilha [Butzijah] emerges from
underground in time to come tumbling in on the left over a travertine falls
24 m high. A road has been pushed through to near Budsilha Falls. The
last 4 km are by mule trail. Later the Rio Chocolha [Chancala] bursts from
a side canyon after stepping down lots of Class 2 ledges. It marks the end
of easy travel.
It is worth noting that the river from El Porvenir to the Rio
Chocolha would have been easier for the Maya in the Classic to navigate
than the preceding section. Though swift, there is only one rapid of
consequence in the entire 25 km. To my knowledge there are no sites on the
river, no evidence that it was well traveled in the Classic. This may
reflect lack of use in the Classic, or it may be there are sites still to
discover.
Downstream of El Porvenir, the river valley becomes a cul de sac,
with no low gaps in the towering eastern ridge for a traveler to slip out
through toward the lowlands. The rugged canyon of the Chocolha does not
offer an easy exit either. The only way forward is down the river through
the gorges.
The Spanish entrada under Alonso Davila faced this quandary in 1530.
After struggling overland NNE across ridges and swamps from Laguna Miramar
to the banks of the Usumacinta, they headed downriver in dugouts toward the
lowlands. After some easy going they came to a major rapid. Seeing no
other choice, they continued down the Usu' canyons. After a harrowing
trip, full of close calls, they emerged at Boca del Cerro, the first
Europeans to run the canyons.
Alonso de Luján, a member of Davila's force, reported to Gonzalo
Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés that the first rapid was about 3 leagues from
the last major one, now called San Joselito Rapids. 18 km (4 leagues)
upstream of San Joselito is Rapidos La Linea. Since there are no rapids
upstream for another 5.5 leagues, La Linea is the most likely candidate for
Davila's first bad rapid, and his entrada took to the river somewhere below
Cola de Diablo.
The Usumacinta Canyons [Tanochel?] Rio Chocolha to Tenosique [Tanodzic] ?
53 km, of which half are of uncertain navigability.
Just downstream of Rio Chocolha, the Rapidos La Linea, a Class 2
chute with large waves, marks the start of the Usumacinta canyons, where
the river worms through the Sierra del Lacandon. Before the trouble in
1996, the river was regularly run by modern whitewater rats, and sometimes
by motorboats.
At first, the Usu' slices through a ridge 600 m high, with powerful
but not complicated rapids rated Class 2 to 2-3 in the dry season. At
Poste Rock [Postol] in the San Jose Canyon* , the entire river squeezes
through a narrow cliff bound slot. After Raudal Saluarte, a Class 2-3
rapid with diagonal waves, the river slacks off approaching El Retiro.
This long calm stretch, where the La Linea Syncline crosses the river, is
the best ferrying point in the canyons.
*Ftnt [The first section of San Jose Canyon is sometimes called Big
Canyon.]
At San Jose the canyon resumes. In the San Jose Canyon are two
heavy Class 3 rapids, Los Rapidos San Jose [Raudal Grande de San Jose] and
San Joselito. The actual character of the rapids was captured well in
"Road to the Edge of the World", a video by Tom Rodgers.
The river cuts one last canyon, Iguanas, before sliding over Boca Del
Cerro Ledge and leaving the mountains for good under the combined
road/railroad bridge at Boca Del Cerro. The final 17 km are a long, slow
meander to Tenosique, near the site of Postclassic Tanodzic.
Did Maya run the Usu' Canyons?
Did Maya boatmen have the boats, skill, and nerve to run the gorges
in the Classic Period? There were economic incentives to make the run.
Haggling first for porters and then a new set of boats always consumes time
and costs more. Any big canoes brought down the river would find a ready
market as replacements for worn out craft in the lowlands. On the minus
side the risk was real, the canyons were given a wide berth by 19th century
vogas, and there are no significant riverside sites reported between El
Porvenir and El Retiro.
In the Northwest USA and Canada, Native Americans ran large (+10m)
dugouts through strong but straightforward Class 3 rapids like those in the
Usumacinta canyons . Lewis and Clark's Corps of Discovery ran the massive
Dalles and Cascade Rapids of the Columbia, Class 3 to 4, in dugouts. In
the Guyana Highlands of South America, both Native Americans and Bush
Negroes routinely shot Class 3 rapids in medium sized canoes designed for
serious whitewater. Skilled Maya boatmen should also have been able to
take large (+10m) Lacandon style canoes through heavy but uncomplicated
Class 2 and 3 rapids.
Piedras Negras and El Porvenir are both below strong Class 2 rapids,
avoided by vogas until the late 20th century. The Maya appear to have run
them, suggesting that they were bolder rivermen than most of their
historical successors. How much bolder is unclear. Some Maya may have
taken the risk and run the gorges. Others may have chosen a long portage
from El Porvenir or Piedras Negras to the lowlands, where the river was
again easy. Not enough is currently known to be sure of the answer. One
certainty is that a return trip up San Jose Canyon was not practical. A
portage past all the gorges was necessary at least for upriver travel.
It should be possible to end speculation and determine whether the
Maya ran the canyons by diving in the eddy at the foot of a major rapid
such as San Jose. The cargo of any boat lost in the rapids would end up in
the cracks and crevices between boulders on the bottom. Salt, corn,
textiles, feathers and such would leave no trace but granite metates from
the highlands, obsidian from El Chayal, Motagua jade, and smaller elite
goods should still be there.
From 1960 to 1975 a team from the Minnesota Historical Society
searched in the eddies below rapids along Voyageur routes. Among the
boulders they found trade axes, copper kettles, knives with wooden handles,
flintlocks, and a few far older items. Though most were 200 years old they
were often in good shape. If such a search in the Usu' canyons yielded a
trove of artifacts, then the Maya must have ran cargo canoes through the
canyons. The best rapids to search, San Jose and San Joselito, are
unfortunately very close to the bandits preying on rafting trips.
The Usumacinta Portage-46 km from El Porvenir to Tenosique
Many past portage routes can only be tentatively reconstructed by
extrapolating from ends of navigation, controlling terrain features, and
distribution of Maya sites. When this approach is applied to finding the
most likely carry past the Usumacinta canyons, the logical route is along a
linear karst valley in Guatemala and Mexico running to Corrigedora Ortiz
[Tres Champas], then over a low pass to Francisco I. Madero [called El
Retiro before a spate of revolutionary renaming] . There is a small Maya
site here. The valley follows the La Linea Syncline, and is the only route
that avoids climbs over high, dry, and rugged karst ridges.
Not only is this route the obvious choice topographically, it is
indeed the well documented 19th century portage trail. From Desempeno the
historical trail at first worked through karst ridges, on which sit Piedras
Negras and El Porvenir, and then followed a karst valley for the rest of
the way. It would have been the best route in any period, from Preclassic
to Postclassic, though the Maya probably shortened it by starting at El
Porvenir in the Classic.
20 km from El Porvenir (33 km from Desempeno), El Retiro is on a nice
calm pool, one of the very few places deep in the canyons where a ferry
crossing by canoe is practical, but it is not the end of portaging. The
19th century portage trail continued north another 26 km, first following
the river, then climbing over ridges along the east rim of the San Jose
Canyon before dropping down past Los Rieles and Adolfo Lopez Mateos and
then beelining to Tenosique 46 km from El Porvenir (59 km from Desempeno).
It is a good compromise between a reasonable grade through the mountains
and directness, and probably follows an ancient trail.
I use "probably" because for this part there is are other possible
options. By ferrying across in the relatively calm water at El Retiro,
porters could shorten the carry by 8 to 12 km at the cost of running the
minor rapids of Iguanas Canyon ending at Boca De Cerro. A broad valley
runs from the crossing west to Victorico Grajiales, where old trails ran
north to the river opposite Chuncheje (10 km upstream of the bridge at Boca
Del Cerro) and northwest to Lindavista 3 km upstream of the bridge. A
chain of Maya sites runs right down the valley. These options were not
used in the 19th century because vogas were simply forbidden to run any
part of the canyons.
As another option porters might have continued from El Retiro
northwest down valley 38 km, all the way to the vicinity of Arena de
Hidalgo, a few kilometers from the Pomona site. Both the Rios Usumacinta
and Chacamax would have been equally accessible from there. Pomona has an
associated site, Panhale, which was well fortified. Chinikiha is also on
the line between El Retiro and the bend of Rio Chacamax at La Reforma.
Lower Usumacinta River [Tanochel, Usumacinta, Ayn, Sacapulas?]
*Boca Del Cerro to Frontera [Putunchan]- 350 km
The lower river is all of a piece: wide, broadly meandering, and slow
in the dry season, and a big swift river spilling across the lowlands in
the wet season. It was navigable for any kind of canoe, though back
channels were often used to work upriver in the wet season to avoid the
main current.
The lower Usumacinta is part of an immense riverine system stretching
from Cardenas [Cimatan] in the west to the Laguna De Terminos in the east.
Prior to Spanish contact there were few trails but many, many winding
channels lacing this grand compound delta. Travelers heading east or west
played a kind of game of chutes and ladders by riding down a big river,
then working up smaller streams, against lesser currents, to the next big
river, and so on. The largest Usu' tributary, which joins 18 km above
Balancan [Usumacinta], is the Rio San Pedro Martir, itself an important
navigable river.
The first 190 km of the Usu' from Boca del Cerro to Emiliano Zapata
[Monte Christo] is so meandering that one travels four km to advance only
one. Upriver travel must have been tedious and, in the wet season,
intolerable. For those headed into the highlands, a detour using the Rio
Chacamax would have been much faster and less work. See separate writeup
for Chacamax. Rios Chico, San Antonio, and Las Playas/Laguna Catazaja are
also described separately.
The principal distributaries of the Usu' are the Palizada, covered
separately, and the Rio San Pedro y San Pablo. Nearing the Rio Grijalva
the Usu' breaks into three channels, two of which join the Grijalva at Tres
Bocas (Three Mouths). The last 16 km from Tres Bocas to Frontera
[Postclassic Potonchan, "Putun Snake"] are on the Grijalva. The Rio
Grijalva [Mescalapa, Tabasco] is navigable for almost 300 km west to
Malpasito, a Postclassic Zoque site at the foot of the mountains of
Chiapas.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Routes of Communication in Mesoamerica: the Northern Guatemala Highlands
and the Peten, Richard E. W. Adams, 1978. In "Mesoamerican Communication
Routes and Cultural Contacts", New World Archaeological Foundation
Classic Maya Landscape in the Upper Usumacinta River Valley, Mario M.
Aliphat, 1994. University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Site Interaction and Political Geography in the Upper Usumacinta Region
During the Late Classic: A GIS Approach, Phd Dissertation by Armando Anaya
Hernandez, 1999
America's Ancient Mariners, Anthony Andrews, Oct 1991, Natural History
Maya Salt Production and Trade, Anthony Andrews, 1983, Univ of AZ Press
Conquest of Yucatan, Franz Blom, 1936. Houghton Mifflin Co. [partial
reading]
New Boats for Mosquitia, - Jim Brown, WoodenBoat School
Maya Settlement Patterns in Northeastern Peten, Guatemala, William R.
Bullard, American Antiquity, Vol 25, 1968
Manche and Peten, the Hazards of Itza Deceit and Barbarity, Fray Augustin
Cano, 1697
Above the Gravel Bar, David Cook, 1985.
Secret of the Forest, Wolfgang Cordan, 1963. Victor Gollancz, Ltd.
The Fifth Letter, Hernan Cortez, 1525
The True History of the Conquest of Mexico, Bernal Diaz de Castillo
Long Distance Transport Costs in Pre-Hispanic Mesoamerica, Robert D .
Drennan, American Anthropologist Research Reports, 1984
Journey to the Far Amazon, Alain Gheerbrant, 1954. Simon & Schuster.
Ancient Maya Traders of Ambergris Cay, Thomas H. Guderjan, 1993, Cubola
Books, Belize
River of Ruins, Louis Halle
Ancient Maya Civilization, Norman Hammond
Classic Maya Canoes, Norman Hammond
In the Land of the Turtle Lords, Stephen Houston, 2000. FAMSI Report
Among the River Kings, Stephen Houston, 1999. FAMSI Report
Between the Mountains and the Sea, Stephen Houston, 1998. FAMSI Report
The Piedras Negras Project, Stephen Houston and Hector Escobedo, 1997.
FAMSI Report
Commerce and Trade Routes of the Maya, Christopher Jones, 1990, University
Museum, UPA.
River of the Sacred Monkey, Dimitar Krustev, 1970
Enchanted Vagabonds, Dana Lamb
Machaquila, Albert Lisi, 1968, Hastings House, NY
Alexander Mackenzie's Voyage to the Pacific Ocean in 1793, Alexander
Mackenzie, Esq, 1801. Reprinted 1931 Lakeside Press
Explorations in the Department of Peten, Guatemala, Teobert Maler
A Glimpse At Guatemala, Anne C. and Alfred P. Maudslay, 1899. Reprinted by
Flo Silver Books, 1992
The Ancient Maya, Fourth Edition, Sylvanus Morely, George W. Brainerd,
Robert J. Sharer
The Discovery of the Americas, the Southern Voyages, Samuel Eliot Morison
Fur Trade Routes of Canada, Then and Now, Eric W. Morse, 1969. Queen's
Printer , Canadian Government
The Title of Acalan-Tixchel, 1614. Pablo Paxbolon
Palenque, the Walker-Caddy Expedition, David M. Pendergast, 1967. Univ. of
Oklahoma Press
Into the Underworld: the El Tirgre Underwater Research Project, Paul
Pettenude, Nitrox Diver, Vol. 96-3.
Report on 1996 Field Season at El Tigre, Paul Pettenude, MURC
The Canoe, Roberts & Shackleton, 1983, International Marine Publishing.
Through the Brazilian Wilderness, Theodore Roosevelt, 1919. Charles
Scribner's Sons
The Rise of a Maya Merchant Class, Jeremy A. Sabloff, Scientific American,
Oct 1975
A Tale of Three Cities, Wm. Sanders & Robert Santley
A Forest of Kings, Linda Schele & David Freidel, 1990. Wm. Morrow & Co.
The Maya Chontal Indians of Acalan-Tixchel, France V. Scholes & Ralph L.
Roys, 1948.
Sacred Monkey River, Chris Shaw, 2000, W.W Norton & Co.
Incidents of Travel in Yucatan, John Lloyd Stephens & Catherwood
Incidents of Travel in Central America, Chiapas, and Yucatan, Stephens &
Catherwood
Paddle to the Amazon, Don and Dana Starkell, 1989, Prima Publishing.
Classic Maya Place Names, David Stuart & Stephen Houston
Among the Indians of Guiana, Everard F. im Thurin, 1883. Dover
Publications.
Canoes and Navigation of the Maya and their Neighbors, J. Eric S. Thompson,
1951, Journal of the Royal Anthropological Society
Maya Archaeologist, J. Eric S. Thompson, 1963, Univ. of Oklahoma Press
Agricultural Base of the Ancient Maya, B. L. Turner, Fall 1988, Mesoamerica
Voices from the Rapids, Wheeler, Kenyon, Woolworth, & Birk, 1975. Minnesota
Historical Society
River Notes: Thanks to the following people who have generously shared
their information and experience on the rivers.
Candelaria- Alfred Siemens
Jatate & Lacandon- Chris Shaw, Cully Erdman
Salinas- Ben Harding & Filip Sokol
Sebol and Pasion- Steve Radzi, John Montgomery
Tulija- Donna Obrecht, Chris Shaw
San Pedro Martir and Chocop- Brian Houseal
Usumacinta & tribs- Scott Davis, Chris Shaw, Tom Rodgers, George Stuart,
Steve Radzi
Maps
The Ancient Maya World, Cartographic Division, NGS, 1989
Carta Fotogeologica Del Peten, series of reconnaissance geological maps at
1:100,000
La Selva Lacandona, y Tierras Colindantes, Frans Blom, 1953. Superb map.
Map of El Peten, Guatemala, and Bounding Regions of British Honduras and
Mexico, Carl Hubbs & Henry van der Schalie, 1937
Map of Tabasco, 1579, circle map attributed to Melchior de Alfaro Santa
Cruz.
Mapa Base de las Cuencas de los Rios, Mexico y Guatemala, 1:500,000, 1980.
Mapa de la Republica de Guatemala, Escala 1:1,000,000, Teodoro Paschke,
1889. Shows colonial trails,
Peten, Escala 1:800,000, 1900. Rough schematic of trails.
Sistema Fluvial Tabasqueno, 1946, map showing limits of navigability for
rivers of Tabasco.
and over a dozen ruins.
Topographic Maps of Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize, 1:250,000 series and
partial coverage 1:50,000 series
Web Sites:
Candelaria canals and more, air photos by A. Siemens
1875 ascent of First Cataract of the Nile
International Scale of River Difficulty, American Whitewater Association
Kuimen Pass and Yangtze Gorges
Trip to La Constancia, Dec '99, by boat via Rios Ixcan, Jatate, Lacantun, &
Tzendales
River pictures by John Montgomery
Virginia Canals & Navigations Society
Alternative energy generation is not something I know a lot about, but I'm trying to come up to speed. Let's assume, naively, that the plans for huge dams on the Usumacinta reflect real, local needs for power, instead of (more likely) a misguided attempt to power a PPP boondoggle farther north, and subdue the last frontier in the process. The watershed provides an opportunity to create small, widely dispersed hydroelectric generators that would not destroy the ecosystem and the cultural matrix. A summary of other micro hydro power projects can be found in this report from the World Bank:
Best practices for sustainable development of micro hydro power in developing countries
This company is in New York State, about an hour away from where I sit. I should find out more about them. They sell very small micro hydro power generation systems designed to charge 12, 24, or 48 volt storage batteries. They would work for a small settlement on the river bank.
A larger system that can provide power to a village of 50 to 80 houses is described in this page about a project in Papua New Guinea. Click on this sketch for a larger, useful diagram of their operation.
Here's a pdf file about a larger generating system built in Nicaragua.
And here's another pdf, an excellent overview on micro hydro power
.
The New York Times today (free registration required), noted that Mexican electrical workers have taken out a 2-page ad in Proceso, opposing Fox's bill to allow foreign companies to compete in the Mexican electricity market.
Mexico Workers Object to Power Sector Bill
Joel has directed me to Charles Golden, recently of the Piedras Negras Project, who is doing a survey of Maya sites between Yaxchilan and PN on the Guatemalan side.
Until I know more, here is the Homepage of the Sierra del Lacandon Regional Archaeology Project.
It has a terrific summary of the dam situation, with maps, called Threat of Dams on the Usumacinta River
And thanks to his resources:
This new article in Archaeology Magazine on dams in the Mundo Maya.
And this pdf file from The Center for Governmental Responsibility at the University of Florida's Levin College of Law: The Usumacinta River: Building a Framework for Cooperation Between Mexico and
Guatemala.
To see some of what we could lose if the dams are built, some photos from Yaxchilan 2001, with my kids: Mick, Will, Tina.
The boat from Frontera Corozal. The Ceiba de Oro, landmark tree on the Usumacinta. A tree in the plaza at Yaxchilan. Detail of lintel. (Click thumbnails)
Visit or revisit Mesoweb's report on threats to Yaxchilan.
Reread an evocation of Yaxchilan in Classic times, by Linda Schele and David Freidel:
A Forest of Kings: The Untold Story of the Ancient Maya
Here's a Tabasco Hoy story that Alfonso sent along, describing 2 dams that threaten Zapatista communities. I don't have the link, but the full text is below
SURESTE
"Sepultaría" PPP pueblos zapatistas
* La construcción de dos presas
hidroeléctricas inundaría a más de 20 comunidades
* Esto implicaría el desplazamiento de más indígenas,
advierte el Ciepac
Isain Mandujano
Tabasco HOY/APRO
Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Chiapas.- Terrenos zapatistas del
municipio autónomo Tierra y Libertad, así como 20
comunidades más de Las Margaritas, Maravilla Tenejapa
y La Trinitaria, podrían desaparecer con la
construcción de dos presas hidroeléctricas --la
"Huixtán I" y "Huixtán II"--, previstas dentro del
Plan Puebla Panamá (PPP), advirtió en su informe
mensual el Centro de Investigaciones Económicas y
Políticas de Acción Comunitaria (Ciepac).
En un análisis sobre los megaproyectos hidroeléctricos
del PPP, el centro de investigación sostiene que las
comunidades implicadas han rechazado tales proyectos,
sin embargo, un equipo de monitoreo y estudios de
campo ya se encuentra trabajando en la zona. El Ciepac
explica que la presa "Huixtán I" quedará situada sobre
el principal afluente del río Lacantún, en el río
Santo Domingo, a 63 kilómetros al oriente de la
cabecera municipal de Las Margaritas. La presa
pretende aprovechar los escurrimientos de agua del río
Santo Domingo y tendrá una capacidad de mil 200
megavatios; incluirá una presa de arco de 175 metros
de altura que formará un lago artificial, cuyo embalse
tendrá una capacidad de 6 mil millones de metros
cúbicos e inundará un total de 90 kilómetros de
tierras.
En tanto el proyecto "Huixtán II", ubicado en el río
Santo Domingo, está localizado a 9 kilómetros al
suroeste del proyecto de la hidroeléctrica "Huixtán",
donde cruza el río Santo Domingo con la frontera de
Guatemala.
Este tendrá una capacidad de mil 113 millones de
metros cúbicos y completará el aprovechamiento de los
escurrimientos y cascadas del río Santo Domingo, con
una capacidad de 600 megavatios, lo que aumentará el
potencial hidroeléctrico de la cuenca del río
Usumacinta.
Además, contará con una presa de arco de 225 metros de
altura y un embalse que inundará 44 kilómetros de
tierras indígenas, que equivalen a 4 mil 400
hectáreas, de los cuales 3 kilómetros estarán en
territorio guatemalteco.
El informe del Ciepac apunta que algunas comunidades
tendrán que "desaparecer", ya que quedarán inundadas;
sin embargo, el proyecto justifica que se buscan
"ampliar las perspectivas de bienestar y empleo en la
zona sur de la selva Lacandona", y sustituir las
comunidades afectadas, como son Amparo Agua Tinta, Ojo
de Agua, Las Flores y California, por "nuevos centros
de población" con todos los servicios municipales,
comunicándolos con una amplia red local de caminos y
sistemas de navegación.
La construcción de la red hidroeléctrica provocaría la
inundación de un área en donde se encuentran asentadas
unas 50 mil personas. Ahí también se ubican 800 sitios
arqueológicos, entre ellos Piedras Negras, Yaxchilán y
Altar de Sacrificios; ello sin contar millones de
árboles de madera preciosas y vida silvestre.
Esto implicaría el desplazamiento de las comunidades
indígenas de la zona, y su consecuente
empobrecimiento. También, una mayor presencia militar
en la región, "no olvidemos que el municipio de
Ocosingo, Chiapas, y el departamento del Petén, en
Guatemala, son de las regiones más militarizadas de
Mesoamérica", sostiene el Ciepac.
Cabe recordar que los presidentes Alfonso Portillo, de
Guatemala, y Vicente Fox, acordaron la construcción
del Complejo Hidroeléctrico Sureste, que conforman
cinco hidroeléctricas que estarían ubicadas en los
altos del Usumacinta, que corre a lo largo de ambos
países.
El acuerdo se firmó el 28 de junio, en la
Expo-Inversión 2002, realizada en la Cumbre de Mérida,
en Yucatán, según se asienta en el memorándum de
cooperación técnica con Centroamérica, explica el
Ciepac.
Las "cinco pequeñas presas" estarían ubicadas en la
frontera entre El Petén y Marqués de Comillas, en
Chiapas, y terminan en territorio de Tabasco, con el
proyecto binacional hidroeléctrico "Boca del Cerro".
Millonaria inversión
Según el expediente técnico, la obra tendrá un costo
de 240 millones de dólares, que serán aportados por el
Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo (BID), "para apoyar
un proyecto de interconexión eléctrica en América
Central, primer paso hacia la integración energética
mesoamericana planteadaen el PPP", denuncia el Ciepac.
En México, la Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE)
tiene desde 1987 los estudios técnicos relativos, en
donde se sostiene que el proyecto será una"red de
grandes diques", desde Sayaxché, Guatemala, hasta la
presa final en Piedras Negras, punto donde el nivel
del río alcanzaría 25 metros sobre el pico máximo en
invierno, y aproximadamente 45 metros sobre el mínimo
en verano.
El Complejo Sureste, específicamente los proyectos
hidroeléctricos para Chiapas, son los denominados
"Quetzalli", "Huixtán I", "Huixtán II","Jattza" y
"Nance", y aportarían 27 por ciento del consumo de
energía a escala nacional. Tras especificar el
potencial de las presas, los afluentes que
desembocarían en ellas, su capacidad y datos
específicos sobre su construcción, el informe del
Ciepac añade que el embalse creará un lago artificial
que inundará 396 kilómetros cuadrados de selvas y
tierras indígenas.
Los proyectos "Huixtán I y II", según la
investigación, serían concesionados a empresas
extranjeras, vía Guatemala, concretamente a la
corporación transnacional española Unión Fenosa, dueña
de la empresa Deorsa, la que cuenta con el monopolio
del servicio de la energía eléctrica en el norte de
Guatemala.
En el municipio de Huixtán los pobladores denunciaron
que en los últimos meses han arribado a la zona unas
50 personas, quienes argumentaron estar haciendo
estudios para la creación de "lagos".
Por ello han convocado a sus habitantes a asambleas
extraordinarias, para exigir a las autoridades les
informen y consulten sobre la construcción de
cualquier obra que les afecte, explicó Mateo López
Martínez, promotor de las reuniones.
Según el Ciepac, la cantidad de proyectos
hidroeléctricos en la región augura procesos de
resistencia por parte de las comunidades afectadas.
Los indígenas de la región han denunciado que en las
últimas fechas personas extrañas se han presentado a
esta región de la Selva, con el objetivo de hacer
algunos estudios para la supuesta creación de dos
grandes lagos en plena selva, en donde se podrían
poner en marcha dos hidroeléctricas como parte de los
"proyectos de represas para Chiapas dentro del Plan
Puebla Panamá".
"En la selva se están reuniendo miles de indígenas en
contra de este proyecto que pretenden crear y el cual
destruirá miles de hectáreas y desaparecería cuando
menos unas 20 comunidades, entre éstas las de los
compañeros zapatistas", aseveró Mateo López Martínez,
habitante de Huixtán.
Rechazan el Puebla Panamá
* El proyecto justifica que se buscan ampliar las
perspectivas de bienestar y empleo en la zona sur de
la selva Lacandona
Zonas afectadas:
Tierra y Libertad
Las Margaritas
Maravilla Tenejapa
La Trinitaria
Amparo Agua Tinta
Ojo de Agua
Las Flores
California, entre otras
800 sitios arqueológicos,
Millones de árboles de maderas preciosas
Nombre de las presas:
1) "Huixtán I": Quedará situada sobre el principal
afluente del río Lacantún
- Tendrá una capacidad de mil 200 megavatios
2) "Huixtán II": Ubicada en el río Santo Domingo con
la frontera de Guatemala
- Tendrá una capacidad de mil 113 millones de metros
cúbicos.
Tabasco HOY Derechos Reservados 2002
Finally, the listserv is running. You may have gotten an email invitation. If not, go to the MayaRivers Info Page.
At IRN, countering claims by dam lobbyists that dams are climate-friendly.
International Rivers Network: Rivers, Dams and Climate Change
Thanks to CS.
Until he says stop, I'll just keep posting Ron Canter's sleuthing on the dam question. He found the site which lays out the whole project.
Ron writes:
Here is the Proyecto Binacional Boca del Cerro homepage.
I just about dropped my teeth when I opened it, especially when I saw the map. All the project info is right there, and it is unbelievable. It's like China's Three Gorges Dam transplanted to Mexico. There is only one dam, a "small" one 130 meters (430 feet) high. For comparison, the Three Gorges Dam is 185 meters high.
It will flood the Usu' all the way upstream to beyond El Cayo, 80 km upriver. The side valleys between El Retiro and Boca will be completely flooded, so much so that two dams (Diques #1 and #2) will be needed to prevent the water from spilling out east of Tenosique and west near the Chinikiha site. The entire side canyon of the Rio Chancala will be flooded. Salto Busilha will be deep underwater. Any future attempts to dive the rapids of the Usu' for artifacts will be deep sea diving.
An added surprise was their plan to divert water from the Usu' through a 30 km canal, the Canal de Derivacion (sic) de Balancan, north into the Rio Chumpan and hence Laguna de Terminos. The canal will be a combined hydro and ship canal. The wild swampland of the Chumpan will be torn up to cut a navigable channel at least 60 km long.
They also have the nerve to prattle on about the benefits to wildlife, the forest, and the local tourist economy. "Pomposity writ in concrete" for sure.
Count me in.
Ron
The whole text of the Boca del Cerro site is below, in English.
Boca del Cerro Binational Project - Mexico (Chiapas, Tabasco and Guatemala)
The Usumacinta river's basin -Chiapas highlands and Lacandon jungle- in the Mexican southeastern region, and El Quiche, Verapaz y El Peten, in the western and northern areas of Guatemala, represent a binational region requiring priority activities and large-scale construction works due to its strategical resources and potential richness: water, energy, jungle, forests.
Today, the unrestricted deforestation, the resulting soil erosion (mainly in the Mexican area), the new agriculture and cattle raising lands, the over-exploiting of precious wood, the increasing populational sites, and the non-existence of adequate employment, colonization and urbanization programs, are dangerously affecting the natural equilibrium of ecology and human settlements in the area.
It is imperative to establish common development planning for a coordinated and efficient utilization of the Usumacinta river and its main affluents (Lacantun, Ixcan, Xactbal, Chixoy, and La Pasion) to promote, improve, and execute an broad-perspective, long-extent, and high-scale program with which the prevailing problems in those jungle regions can be solved definitely. Due its position it would be unavoidable to plan and to construct high-revenue and high-participation works, which can satisfy the demand for basic services in both sides of the frontier: water, food, housing, health, sewerage, roads, energy, employment, and education. Those techno-social works must offer also enough guarantees to investors in order to develop industrial settlements, trade activation, and higher agricultural production; according to the following actions:
1. Widening and strengthening binational (Mexico-Guatemala) cooperative agreements. These actions would extent the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) reach to Central America nations.
2. Utilizing in a rational and complete way the rich natural resources of that river basin, in order to provide a sufficient and high-quality infrastructure which would optimize the function and objectives of each project, in addition it would allow productive investments for an adequate regional progress.
3. Supplying social and economical benefits which can raise the standard of living for all the population. The population would have access to the regional richness, its use, and sharing from the beginning of the project works starting point by their direct actions and aiding the construction.
The Boca del Cerro Project has a strong priority based on the seven multi-purpose principal projects to be developed in Mexico (Boca del Cerro, Quetzalli, Huixtan I, Huixtan II, Jattza, Nance and Salto de Agua), which would provide energy with 9 520 power-generating megawatts, and 33-billion kilowatt-hours production (equivalent to 27% and 20% of Mexican electric capacity and generation, respectively).
Boca del Cerro, requirements:
a) The firm commitment of cooperation between the Mexican and the Guatemala governments to promoting in the financial world the proposed hydraulic base: maximum water elevation, 125 meters above sea level, which according to the planning and programming conceptions would supply optimum benefits to both nations.
b) Provide all investments for the project works, electromechanical constructions, and installations -the main land compensations would remain in Mexico; 65% of future water reservoir inflows will come from the Guatemala affluents. The benefits supplied by the electric energy generation would be covered by the standards and rulings of the Tratado Internacional de Límites y Aguas, and under a special agreement to be established.
c) Based on its important total volume (63.5-billion cubic meters), each reservoir meter would correspond to 150 million kilowatt-hours. This would equal to a 250 000 fuel-oil barrels saving per year. These considerations support the optimal dam height for the optimum surface to be flooded. This basic project's characteristic must consider the technical restrictions, and the allowable social compensations.
d) The reservoir capacity would guarantee a reliable functioning and the most useful life. These conditions would be extended after the regulation, control, and utilization of the five main Usumacinta affluents.
According to these concepts, the Boca del Cerro Project, would be located 9.5 kilometers southwest from Tenosique, Tabasco. It would have a 130 meters-high dam creating an artificial lake formed by the 19 550-million cubic meters reservoir. The dam generating power of electricity would be 4 200 megawatts for a 17 400 million kilowatt-hours production (the 67% of hydropower in Mexico, it can save 29 million of fuel-oil barrels).
The project would allow Mexican and Guatemalan countries start a strong industrial, commercial, and touristic development, with all social and economic benefits -employment, housing, agriculture and cattle raising, navigation, roads, environmental and ecology protection-
Also, it would set the basis for a future electric interconnection of Central America and Colombia with the Mexican national electricity network.
Country Maximum water level Flooded area Stored volume meters above sea level square kilometers million cubic meters
México 125 425 13850
Guatemala 125 300 5700
Total 250 725 19550
The reservoir area for Guatemala is 42% approximately. In Mexico, the large surface to be flooded has deforestation. The Boca del Cerro Project may allow an effective conservation and regeneration of jungle resources with the raising of freatic levels, and increasing the aquifer storage. Also, it may improve the floods control. The binational project would contribute to the natural cycle restitution, would create new population centers around the lake (which would have all basic services), and offer a great number of employment opportunities in agricultural and cattle raising industries, pisciculture, and tourism. The high pressure on the ecology and natural resources would be diminished.
The joining of Boca del Cerro Project systems with the Balancan diverting canal, would give a decisive impulse. That canal would transfer the Usumacinta river flow quantities to Laguna de Terminos, and would permit the generation 1 250 million kilowatt-hours in a additional hydropower plant (low-head). This system is to be complemented by other dam, Salto de Agua, which would control Tulija river floods. Northern and eastern regions of Tabasco, and the southwest of Campeche, would receive a great economic improvement. All of this -in conjunction with a complete sewerage and navigation plan- would allow the reclaiming of over one million hectares of lands apt for agriculture and cattle raising. Also, it would create large aquaculture areas.
Likewise, from the reservoir's right side, it is possible the construction of a big river-canal, with several branches for divert abundant water volumes for irrigation of large surfaces in Yucatan peninsula. These constructions will give a better future for the area's populatin, and may conform an important system for the ecological equilibrium recovering. The river-canal (a hydroway) may be also a powerful pisciculture producer, and would attract the establishing of industries, factories, and trade centers on its riversides. Those manufacturing plants and commercial sites would create employment aimed to reactivate the interstate economy, and the processed items export.
It is of very important to fully utilize the hidroelectric potential of Ixcan, Xactbal, Chixoy, and La Pasion rivers, and to coordinate activities with the Guatemala government. With the construction of large multi-purpose projects on those affluent streams, our Guatemala neighbour could satisfy its energy demand on medium and long-term basis, with an important fuels savings. Besides, that nation would export surpuls energy to other Central America countries. The hydropower plants may widen and consolidate the regional electric interconnection programs along with the northern area of South America. The result would be an impressive internationally integrated progress.
The Boca del Cerro Project may be the most transcendental infra-structure system to be shared by Mexico and Guatemala, being an essential joint effort towards a true progress era in the Usumacinta river basin. The high-scale project would allow the two nations to access the XXI century with the best possibilities for full development.
The estimated investments would be 50 000 million Mexican pesos (5-billion U.S. dollars) to be placed on a six-year term. It would guarantee profitable investments returns from foreign financial organizations and private national firms, within the most positive national agreements signed by Mexico and Guatemala governments.
In the current years, Mexico and the other Hispanic-American nations must be conscious of their necessary new actions for having a best future in the world, based on a powerful planning for the oncoming Third Millenium.
e) The land compensations in both frontier sides must be evaluated with positive interests. In all those actions, the archaeological ruins in Yaxchilan, Chiapas -on the left riverside- have special importance; based on the proposed alternative, they would be moved 40 meters upward on the same site, and Piedras Negras, Guatemala -on the right riverside- would require fixing its elevation new value.
While I'm looking for the link, here's a history of another dam, a massacre, and the role of the World Bank. From IRN via CS.
IRN's Chixoy Reparations Campaign
A Debt Unpaid
Never hesitant to exact loan repayment in perpetuity
for projects it has funded (even failed projects), the
World Bank balks at paying its own debts. In the case
of the Chixoy dam, it is a blood debt.
In 1982, the World Bank was teamed with a brutal
dictatorship in Guatemala known to be waging a war of
annihilation against Mayan communities. The village of
Rio Negro stood in the way of the Bank's plans to
construct a hydroelectric dam. After villages refused
to relocate from their ancestral lands, the Bank
averted its eyes when the army massacred some 400
Maya, mostly women and children.
Despite sending numerous missions to oversee the
project during construction, the Bank kept silent
about the massacre until 1996, when human rights
groups forced the issue. The Bank's own internal
investigation then absolved it of responsibility.
Further, Bank officials claim that a program providing
inferior lands more than a decade after such massacres
sufficiently mitigated the survivors' trauma, on the
grounds that their 1980 standard of living has been
restored.
An international campaign is holding the World Bank
accountable to pay reparations for the disasters it
has caused by financing dams and other "development"
boondoggles. This is debt repayment we can endorse!
Joel Skidmore at Mesoweb has a summary of the dam threats to Maya sites at Mesoweb Reports. It includes this map from the early 90's of proposed dam flooding in the Usumacinta and Pasion watersheds, and from Seibal to Cancuen.
It also has a Yaxchilan map, showing the entire main plaza flooded by higher river levels.
Many thanks to Joel.
But the link to this came from Ron Canter. He also writes:
Boca del Cerro would flood small Maya sites, and most or all of the rapids in San Jose Canyon. "Small dam" seems to be a fuzzy term. In Belize on the Macal it means about 50 feet high. The dam related road being built off the road to Frontera is most ominous. It has no connection to Boca del Cerro, which is far downstream at the end of the canyons. Road suggests that a dam at El Porvenir is back in the plan, and maybe the one at La Linea too.
These would flood the entire river up to Yaxchilan. Ruins at Cayo would be flooded, plus some of P.N. and many smaller sites.
The chance to map and unravel the workings of the complex river road which connected Usu' cities would be lost too.
As Chris writes, this explains a lot. Free registration required for this New York Times article by Elizabeth Malkin, Mexico's Fox Proposes Opening Power Sector.
(In full below)
MEXICO CITY, Aug. 18 — President Vicente Fox is asking Mexico's divided Congress to change the constitution in a bid to attract billions of dollars in private investment to its state-run electricity sector, a move so far opposed by a majority of legislators.
The proposal would allow private investors to build power plants that would compete with the public Federal Electricity Commission to supply large industrial customers. The government estimates that Mexico needs investment of $5 billion a year over the next decade to modernize and expand the electricity sector to keep up with growing demand, money that would otherwise come from public spending.
"Imagine what we could do with these resources," Mr. Fox said before sending the bill to Congress late Friday. "I am sure we could resolve the enormous challenge of education. With these resources we could totally resolve the challenge of having an excellent health system with national coverage."
Mexico's business community and foreign investors have long made the overhaul of the state's antiquated electricity sector a crucial test of Mr. Fox's ability to deliver substantive economic change. In the two years since his election ended the 71-year-old rule of the Institutional Revolutionary Party, Mr. Fox has been unable to win approval for any significant economic proposal. Another failure would diminish his stature ahead of midterm elections in 2003.
Legislators from the PRI and the center-left Party of the Democratic Revolution have promised to fight constitutional reform of the energy sector. A two-thirds vote from Congress is needed for a constitutional change, so Mr. Fox will need to lobby heavily to win the PRI's support.
In April, a combined Senate committee voted to shelve earlier proposals for an overhaul, rejecting any possibility of a constitutional change. "There isn't going to be a constitutional reform," Senator Manuel Bartlett Díaz, a PRI stalwart, said.
Mr. Bartlett, as president of the Senate Committee on constitutional issues, leads the opposition to Mr. Fox's proposal. The electricity commission "is totally self-sufficient," said Mr. Bartlett, citing a litany of troubled Latin American electricity privatizations. "It has always had enough to keep up with Mexico's growth. It doesn't need foreign investment." However, the electricity commission says that its debt, backed by the Mexican government, represents 130 percent of its sales.
The PRI and P.R.D. have both presented proposals for revamping of the commission without recourse to private investment. The government argues that only private investment can meet the shortfall. Mexican per capita electricity consumption, at 1,997 kilowatt-hours a year, is less than one-sixth American consumption. "We want Mexico to shine like the U.S. and Europe," said the under secretary of energy, Nicéforo Guerrero.
Legislators from Mr. Fox's National Action Party argue that reform is necessary. "If there is good lobbying, good work, then the reform is possible," Senator Juan José Rodríguez Prats, president of the Senate Energy Commission. "The PRI needs to take a decision. Otherwise, the government could blame the PRI for being obstructionist."
Indeed, some PRI members have said they are open to discussing constitutional reform.
An earlier proposal circulated last week that would have opened petroleum refining and natural gas production to private investment. Mexico needs to expand natural gas production to supply power plants. Mr. Fox's proposal backed off from asking for changes in the petroleum, but the energy secretary, Ernesto Martens, said today that he expected Mr. Fox to soon send a bill on natural gas to Congress.
Modernizing the electricity sector has bedevilled successive governments for a decade. A 1992 law opened up power generation to the private sector, but limited investors to building plants for self-supply or for sale to the electricity commission under long-term contracts. Since then, plants with 18,000 megawatts of capacity have been built or are under construction with $10 billion in private investment.
The electricity commission estimates that an additional 29,000 megawatts of capacity are needed by 2011 over the country's existing 37,000 megawatts at a cost of about $30 billion. At least that much again will be needed to expand the distribution grid, provide maintenance and improve distribution.
Despite the 1992 law, Mr. Fox's predecessor, Ernesto Zedillo, was concerned that investment was not flowing fast enough to meet demand, which is expected to grow at 5.5 percent a year. He proposed a complex reform in 1999 which would ultimately have led to the sale of the electricity commission and the much smaller money-losing Mexico City distributor Central Light and Power. It sank in Congress. In response, Mr. Fox has pledged to keep both companies in state hands.
Thanks to Chris Shaw for this link to a letter (English translation) in which Guatemalan communities asked for information regarding the PPP dam proposals. You can find it at theInternational Rivers Network website.
I'll also quote it completely below. It includes the list of people that the original letter was copied to (CC). But at the website, you can see the signatures of the community leaders.
Petén, Guatemala August 4, 2002
Mr. Raúl Edmundo Archila Serrano
Minister of Energy and Mines
Presidential Commissioner to the PPP
Guatemala City, Guatemala
Dear Minister,
On behalf of the communities of the Usumancinta, Pasión and Salinas rivers we bring you cordial greetings and good wishes.
According to information we received on the "Expo-Inversión 2002" which took place in Mérida, June 28, the Mexican and the Central American governments signed a memorandum of energy cooperation. We understand that this is the formal announcement for the beginning of the construction of hydrodams on the Higher Usumacinta, a project consisting of five dams from the Guatemalan border to Tabasco, Mexico.
In view of this situation, we wish to express our great concern about construction of these dams on the Usumacinta, Pasión and Salinas rivers. For decades we have been living on these lands and have already undergone great sacrifices. We think that these projects would impact our communities, our families and the natural and archaeological richness of this region.
We are also greatly concerned about the limited information which the Guatemalan and Mexican government have provided to us about these hydroelectric projects. That is why we are requesting that all information is released from your office - to allow citizens’ participation in the development processes of our Guatemala.
We, the concerned communities with all due respect, demand an urgent meeting with you so that we may become knowledgeable of details on the aforementioned hydroelectric projects. We propose to this effect that the meeting takes place on August 21 of this year at 9:00 AM in Sayaxché, Petén.
Awaiting your response, we ask that you contact Agustín Tebalán of the Cooperativa Los Laureles (tel.: 861-2877/78 or 8000503) or Faustino Calmo Chávez of La Cooperativa Bonanza (tel.: 861-2757/58/59).
Sincerely,
The undersigned representatives
(SIGNATURES)
c.c.
Pablo Schneider
Presidente Ejecutivo
Banco Centroamericano de Integración Económica – BCIE
Honduras
Fax: (504) 228-2183
Luis Fernando Andrade
Gerente Regional
Banco Centroamericano de Integración Económica – BCIE
Guatemala
Fax: 331-1457
Carlos Barbery
Representante,
Banco Inter-Americano de Desarrollo - INTAMBANC
Guatemala
Fax: 335-3319
Miguel E. Martínez
Manager, Regional Operations Department 2
Inter-American Development Bank
USA
Fax: (202) 623-3096
Eduardo Somenssatto
Presidente Representativo
Representación Banco Mundial
Guatemala
Fax: 502-366-1936/366-2033
Mr. Jaques Lecornu
Secretary General - Treasurer
The International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD)
France
Fax +33 1 40 42 60 71
secretaire.general@icold-cigb.org
Richard Taylor, IHA Executive Director
International Hydropower Association (IHA)
UK
Fax: +44 20 8770 1744
Dr. Donal T. O'Leary
Secretary General
Hydro Equipment Association
Germany
Fax: +49.30.88.92.3200
Sr. José Antonio Ocampo
Secretario Ejecutivo
Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe - CEPAL
Chile
Fax: (56-2) 208-0252
Dr. Oscar Alfredo Santamaría
Secretario General
Sistema de la Integración Centroamericana - SICA
El Salvador
Fax: (503) 289-6124/25
Haroldo Rodas Melgar
Secretario General
Alfonso Pimentel Rodríguez
Director Ejecutivo
Sistema de Información de la Integración Económica de Centroamérica – SIECA
Guatemala
Fax: 368-1071 y 337-3750
Paola Rodríguez
Gerente del País – Guatemala
INCAE
Guatemala
Fax: 367-2001
Sra. Rebeca Grynspan
Directora
Sede Subregional de CEPAL en México
rgrynspan@un.org.mx
Rekha Thapa
Director
Fax: 1 (212) 906-5634
Programa de Naciones Unidas para el Desarrollo – PNUD
USA
Fax: (212) 906-5364
Juan Pablo Corazzoli
Representante - Guatemala
Programa de Naciones Unidas para el Desarrollo – PNUD
Guatemala
Fax: 337-0304; 337-3316
L. Enrique García
Presidente Ejecutivo
Corporación Andina de Fomento – CAF
Venezuela
Fax: (58212) 284-2880 or (58212) 209-2382
Lic. Florencio Salazar
Oficina del Plan Puebla Panamá de la República de México
México D.F.
Fax: (52-55) 5663-3881
Dr. Klaus Toepfer
Director Ejecutivo
Proyecto de Represas y Desarrollo – UNEP
South Africa
Fax: +27 (0) 21 426-0036
Dr. Julio Arango
Procurador de los Derechos Humanos
Procuraduría de Derechos Humanos – PDH
Guatemala
Lic. Flor de María Morales Dardón
Procuraduría de Derechos Humanos – PDH
Guatemala
Dr. Enrique J. Lahmann
Director Regional
Unión Mundial para la Naturaleza -
Oficina Regional para Mesoamérica (UICN/Mesoamérica)
Costa Rica
Fax: (506) 240-9934
Correo Electrónico: correo@iucn.org
WWF Central America Regional Office
Centro Agronómico Tropical de Investigación y Enseñanza
Costa Rica
Fax: +506 556 14 21
Amy Gray
Director, Latin America Program
Bank Information Center
USA
Fax: (202) 624-0624
amy@bicusa.org
Rachel Farley
Program Officer for Central America
Washington Office on Latin America
USA
Fax: 202-797-2172
wola@wola.org
Vince McElhinny
Program Manager
InterAction
USA
fax: (202) 667-8236
vmcelhinny@interaction.org
Carleen Pickard
Mexico Program Coordinator
Global Exchange
USA
Fax (415) 255 7498
carleen@globalexchange.org
Monti Aguirre
International Rivers Network
USA
fax: 510-848-1008
monti@irn.org
Brendan O'Neill
ACERCA
USA
Fax: 802-864-8203
colombia@acerca.org
Guatemala News and Information Bureau, GNIB
USA
voice & fax: 415-826-3593,
gnib@igc.org
NISGUA
USA
fax: 202-223-8221
nisgua@igc.org
A week offline. What a treat, actually. I had a great time, kayaking and driving around the Adirondacks, after my computer crashed on my first night in the woods.
And I met Chris Shaw for the first time, staying overnight in his true Adirondack camp - the real thing: log cabins, solar panel for a laptop (we stuck to conversation), no running water. A clean combustion of good ideas, love of Chiapas, and plans for new river passages.
I'll have photos posted this evening. In the mean time, here's my original post about Chris's book.
The latest articles on the Plan Panama/Maya dams issue.
El Economista - Necesaria la reforma del sector eléctrico para Plan Puebla Panamá
El Economista - Requiere México de $6,000 millones para proyectos en sector eléctrico: SE
Thanks, Alfonso!
Here is an article on a themoelectric project in the
Usumacinta by the city of Emiliano Zapata in the road
to Merida. It shows that we will have the electric
needs covered for at least five years.
Saludos, Alfonso
El Economista - Invertirán US2,000 millones en construcción de siete termoeléctricas en el país
Some more Reforma articles. At some point I'll collect all of these links in one place.
Homero Aridjis/ La guerra global contra los animales
Demanda Relator prevenir la violencia
Alfonso is bombarding me with Reforma links. This is really the last for today. I have to go to my wireless meeting. But I think I have caught up.
Dave:
Another interesting article. it is about that if the
indigenous communities do not agree with the BID project they will not be done, we need to get more indian groups involved against the dams, I will get some information to the town people of Corozal and maybe to others in the area of el Cayo, I hope I do not get the Peter Mathews treatment, Saludos, Alf
Nine more articles from Reforma, sent by Alfonso Morales:
Acuerdan ONG estrategias contra las hidroeléctricas
Exige Chiapas mantener subsidio a luz
Visitan a Yaxchilán 32 mil personas
Pide Fox abrir el PPP a participación social
Destina BID préstamo a Plan Puebla-Panamá
Advierte BID riesgos en globalización
Reclaman indígenas un lugar en programa
Proyectan con PPP luz y dos carreteras
(List of articles updated 5:40 pm) No more for today, Alfonso!
From Alfonso Morales and Julie Miller:
I want to take a couple of minutes to let everyone know about some of the contacts that we have been making in Palenque over the last few weeks. The benefit of being in Palenque is that lots of people come through! (Now that I have finished the message, I apologize for the length, we have been busier than I had realized.)
We have been trying to interest reporters in the
story. So far we have contacted the following people.
I am including their email addresses (when we have
them) so that people can send them more information
when it is available. [Note: email addresses are left out of this posting]
Janet Schwartz based in San
Cristobal, writes for a number of Chiapas and Tabasco
papers and has contacts with a lot of U.S. papers
Naomi Austin works in the
history documentary production division of the BBC
Susan Ferriss, Mexico correspondant
for the Cox Newspapers (6 major newspapers in Georgia,
Texas, and Florida)
Ricardo Sandoval
Correspondant for the Dallas Morning News
Marty Nives Pioneer Productions.
He is currently producing a program for Discovery
Channel. He is very interested in coming back after
his current program and doing a program about the
Usumacinta and the proposed dams
Jorge Berry Televisa anchor man
We also sent the information to Ken Garrett (NGS
photographer) and he forwarded it to others in the NGS
organization.
We also had an NEH study tour through here and more
than one person expressed interest in hearing more
about the dam project. We have all of their email
addresses
On Sunday we met two women from Guatemala who are
deeply interested in fighting the dams. One of them,
Carla Molina, has an
ecotourism business and has contacts at various levels
of the Guatemalan government and elsewhere. She gave
us phone numbers and email addresses for the president
of the BID (Enrique Iglesias), a finance officer of
the BID (Marcelo Antinon), and two of the people
working on the PPP at the BID (Juanita
Salazar--tourism, and Jorge Sapozinkow--Energy). We
can send those phone numbers and email addresses to
anyone who is interested.
Other tidbits:
We received reliable information that a group of
engineers had been on the Usumacinta inspecting
potential dam sites and were giving quite detailed
information about water levels at specific points.
They also said that there would be a new road built
going to the Usumacinta from the highway to Frontera
Corozal. This road will be used during the
construction of the dams. They have started work on
this road already. Our source for all of this
information had been asked to keep it quiet by the
engineers.
Alfonso went to visit the local head of the Comision
Federal de Electricidad to ask him what he knew about
the dams. He said that yes there were dams planned but
that they would be low dams. When Alfonso asked how
low, he said that he would try and find out. He also
had some specific knowledge of some of the areas that
would be affected by the dams.
We were in Yaxchilan a couple of weeks ago and talked
to some people in Frontera Corozal. They are
interested in finding out more information, since they
will be dramatically affected by all of this. We were
also told there that one of the plans in the PPP is to
build a road directly to Yaxchilan -- which doesn't
make a whole lot of sense since a large part of
Yaxchilan will probably be under water!
The trip to Yaxchilan really stressed to us the
enormous loss that will be incurred by this project.
We saw a wider variety of animals, birds, and reptiles
than usual. Alfonso says that it is the first time in
25 years that he has seen scarlet macaws in the area
(we saw four macaws feeding in a tree near Str. 33).
We also saw both howler and spider monkeys, a
coatimundi, alligators, and lots of birds along the
river.
Julie and Alfonso
To help organize the effort against the dams on the Usumacinta, I will be setting up a separate weblog on that topic only. There will be a link to it from this page.
Meanwhile, Joann Andrews has written to ask for information:
"We need urgently to find out: what international financial body is financing the project; what plans have been submitted by whom to what entity in the Mexican and Guatemalan governments."
Click comments below to leave any information you may have.
Joel Skidmore, webmaster of Mesoweb, has sent 3 more links to stories about the proposed dams, threatening key Maya lands. All are in Spanish - Joel will have translations on his site soon.
Temen que el agua sepulte a Yaxchilán
Reconoce el INAH daños por presa
Rechazan ONG nuevas presas por riesgos al medio ambiente
I've been looking for links to articles on the plan to build dams in the Lacandon and Peten. If any of you have good sources of information, please send them in.
Meanwhile, I'll post this story and look for more.
Alonso Mendez sent me a link to a "Tabasco Hoy" story in Spanish.
On my way out the door, to a weekend in the Adirondacks. As I leave for a northern lake, I remember a trip last year to Lake Miramar in the Lacandon forest. Please click on the thumbnail to see Alonso Mendez, Janet Schwartz, and Fernando Ochoa, companions in a spectacular spot that Fernando has worked hard to protect.
Chris Shaw (see entry about his book) has passed along some correspondence regarding a revived proposal to build large dams which would flood the Lacandon forest and the Peten, with drastic economic and cutural impacts. I've edited it down a bit, but here's a start to a continuing discussion on how to oppose this project:
"The following is from my friend Ron Canter, a cartographer at the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, and an amateur Mayanist, who has been documenting and tracing trade routes in the Maya region for years. I wrote about him in my book...
Some sort of technical and economic specifics are necessary to compare with previous proposals. Also need to find out what if any environmental/archaeological impact studies/statements have been made or planned--their lack provided major ammo against the '92 proposal. One thing I will again insist on is the need to think big, to get the possibility of the big dam scenario squashed for good through some kind of international corridor protection, with money attached, and by making a proposal for alternative regional power production through small hydro, solar, etc."
(Letter from Ron follows)
chris,
this is deja vu all over again. from the 'land drowned' figures, this has to be the big dam scenario resurrected. big dams have been discredited as effective development tools around the world. even the world bank came out against the three gorges dam in china. but, the dam building industry is still eager to milk third world countries via big dam projects. canadians seem to be even more eager to help build the big ones than us firms.
simon winchester described such dams as "little more than pomposity writ in concrete, as a way of impressing the peasantry with the ruler's energy, acumen, and skill". daniel beard, of the us bureau of reclamation, made a speech in 1994 that signalled the days of big dams were over in the usa. he said "large dams are tremendously expensive. they always cost more than you thought and tie up huge sums of capital for many years...there is no more visible symbol in the world of what we are trying to move away from than the three gorges dam." big dams, whether in china or mexico or belize, are all linked. the same firms are pushing to get them built, and angling for the contracts.
all this is courtesy of my having just read "the river at the center of the world", by winchester. he goes into great detail on the biggest dam project in the world, and what is very wrong with it. he sat at the bar and chatted with the vultures pouring into china looking for contracts. alonso should get the book. it will furnish references and ammo'.
buenos suerte,
ron
Chris Shaw has written a wonderful book about his travels in the Usumacinta watershed, tying his journey into the world of the Maya past and present. The book is SACRED MONKEY RIVER, and you can read a conversation with Chris on the Planeta website.
I'm hoping that I can get Chris to contribute to this log. Alonso Mendez, who accompanied Chris on his trip, will be sending in some examples of his work on Maya art and design.
And, I'll be putting in a section of featured books, with links to Amazon. Watch for it.