[Animals] Mexico encourages the creation of a new natural refuge for jaguars on the outskirts of Tulum

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On the outskirts of Tulum, in a still virgin space, the Mexican government plans to dedicate more than 2,200 hectares to a new natural reserve for jaguars.
It happened in January 2022. The Government of Mexico, through the Secretariat of Agrarian, Territorial and Urban Development (Sedatu), presented a unique project in the Riviera Maya. To counter environmentalist criticism of the Mayan Train, the creation of the Jaguar National Park, on the outskirts of Tulum, was proposed.

Characterized by its invasive hotel zone with nature, the coastal city of the Mexican Caribbean receives 414 thousand annual visitors, according to the records of the Government of Quintana Roo. Even with the weight of health restrictions in tow, Tulum did not allow the tourism sector to be left unattended.

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Jaguar National Park: a space beyond the reach of the human hand
Even so, urban advancement in favor of destructive megaprojects has been allowed for the sake of economic development in the area. Even due to state initiatives, such as the construction of the Mayan Train. In response to the criticism that has been leveled at the train tracks, the Government of Mexico hopes that the Jaguar National Park will stop some of that irresponsible growth:

"IT IS SEEKING TO STOP THE UNMEDAL URBAN GROWTH, PARTICULARLY IN THE CITY OF TULUM AND OTHER SURROUNDING AREAS AND BE ABLE TO PRESERVE THE ENVIRONMENT", DECLARED THE HEAD OF SEDATU, ROMÁN MEYER FALCÓN. “SEDATU AND SEMARNAT COLLABORATE TO TURN THE PARK INTO A SPACE OF HEALTHY COEXISTENCE WITH THE ENVIRONMENT AND AN INTERNATIONAL BENCHMARK FOR THE CONSERVATION OF ECOLOGICAL HERITAGE.”

WITH THE JAGUAR NATIONAL PARK IN TULUM #QUINTANAROO, WHICH WILL COVER AN EXTENSION OF ALMOST ONE THOUSAND HECTARES, WE SEEK TO PRESERVE THE NATURAL WEALTH, FLORA AND FAUNA OF THE AREA.

PLAY THE VIDEO AND KNOW THE DETAILS OF THIS ECOLOGICAL AND TERRITORIAL PLANNING PROJECT. PIC.TWITTER.COM/T6LC9B2EXO

– SEDATU MEXICO (@SEDATU_MX) JANUARY 30, 2022

In this regard, in January 2022, Sedatu said that, with the Jaguar National Park, it seeks to "preserve the natural wealth, flora and fauna of the area." In the video, the urban advance in Tulum for 40 years is shown, which it accuses of being "messy" and "a direct threat to the flora and fauna of the entire region".

The institution even blames the illegal purchase of land and changes in land use as the main cause of this expansion of the urban sprawl. To counteract this impact, according to local authorities, an area of more than 2,000 hectares will be dedicated to maintaining the Quintana Roo jungle as it is — out of the reach of human hands.

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An international benchmark for conservation?

Officially, the Mexican government will dedicate 2,249 hectares for this purpose, more than double what was originally proposed. In principle, the Mexican government thinks that the Jaguar National Park will be "an international benchmark for the care and conservation of the environment," as expressed in the official video of the project.

To do this, the space will allow the following activities, integrated into the jungle:

Restoration of degraded areas of the forest
Development of productive activities, such as beekeeping
Conservation strategies for endemic flora and fauna, with a focus on the threatened felines of the Yucatan Peninsula
Wildlife crossings (or natural corridors) so that species can cross from one side of the road to the other without suffering accidents
Even so, the current administration promotes the construction of the Mayan Train: one of the most destructive and invasive megaprojects with the biosphere that have been proposed in the peninsula. In July 2022, the president described it as a "national security play to prevent loss of resources" in his morning briefing.

Before the international gaze, the media do not stop emphasizing that the works of the Mayan Train «have already deforested dozens of hectares of well-preserved jungle«. In contrast, he described the recovery of archaeological sites near the Mayan Train route as "a priority of the Government of Mexico."

Ironically, the first thing that appears in search engines when the words 'reservation Jaguar Tulum' are entered are elite restaurants in the hotel zone.

https://www.ngenespanol.com/animales/parque-nacional-del-jaguar-el-nuevo-refugio-natural-para-felinos-amenazados-en-tulum/