Yucatán's state infrastructure agency published its annual public works plan Wednesday, revealing that more than three-quarters of a MX$1.5 billion credit line will go toward a new metropolitan ring road around Mérida — not the city's ailing water system that Gov. Joaquín Díaz Mena had cited as the loan's main purpose. The document, released by the Yucatán Infrastructure … [Read more...] about Ring Road Gets 76% of Yucatán’s MX$1.5B Loan — Water Crisis Gets the Rest
Environment
New Oxford Study Names Mérida Among World’s Most Heat-Vulnerable Cities
A report from Oxford University, published in the journal Sustainable Cities and Society, has reframed the debate with a stark warning for Mexico: Mérida, the capital of Yucatán, now ranks 47th among 205 cities worldwide in heat vulnerability. The city sits ahead of metropolises in Mozambique, India, and Bangladesh, and close to Guayaquil, Ecuador. What makes this … [Read more...] about New Oxford Study Names Mérida Among World’s Most Heat-Vulnerable Cities
Rejection in Mahahual, Cruise Ship Giant Tests Cozumel’s Limits
Fresh off a hard-won victory against a megaproject in Mahahual, environmental activists and residents of Cozumel are now fighting a new battle against the same cruise giant. Royal Caribbean, which recently saw its controversial Perfect Day Mexico project rejected by the federal government, is now under intense scrutiny over its Royal Beach Club Cozumel. This US$75 million … [Read more...] about Rejection in Mahahual, Cruise Ship Giant Tests Cozumel’s Limits
Mexico Blocks Cruise Line’s $821M ‘Perfect Day’ Resort in Mahahual
Mexico's environmental ministry has denied approval for Royal Caribbean's massive "Perfect Day Mexico" project in Mahahual, bringing a dramatic end to a development that had drawn fierce public opposition over its potential impact on one of the Caribbean's most ecologically sensitive coastlines. Semarnat Secretary Alicia Bárcena announced the decision Tuesday at a Mexico … [Read more...] about Mexico Blocks Cruise Line’s $821M ‘Perfect Day’ Resort in Mahahual
3 Sargassum Waves Are Bearing Down on Mexico and the Caribbean
Satellite imagery is tracking three distinct masses of sargassum — the brown, free-floating seaweed that has been choking Caribbean beaches since 2011 — moving simultaneously toward Mexico and the wider Caribbean. Scientists at the University of South Florida's Optical Oceanography Laboratory, which monitors Atlantic sargassum via satellite, say 2026 is on track to be a record … [Read more...] about 3 Sargassum Waves Are Bearing Down on Mexico and the Caribbean