Government Hypocrisy Exposed: Army and Calica’s Explosive Methods

The Mexican government experienced diplomatic tension with the United States when it halted the operations of American-owned company, Calica. The company, owned by Vulcan Materials, was accused of operating without the necessary environmental permits in the La Rosita area of Quintana Roo.

In 2022, Mexico's administration, led by Andrés Manuel López Obrador, accused Calica of using explosives to produce construction materials from limestone, a practice for which it had a concession. The government subsequently declared the area south of Playa del Carmen a national protected area, leading to protests from US congressmen and concerns from Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken. He warned that this could negatively impact future US investments in Mexico.

Calica has since pursued legal action against the government for compensation. A separate lawsuit was also settled, prohibiting the company from using explosives to obtain construction materials. In a twist of irony, in January 2024, Calica sued the Secretary of National Defense for refusing to allow the use of explosives, while the army was using the same method for the construction of the Mayan Train.

The Sélvame del Tren collective, a group opposing the train's construction due to environmental concerns, revealed that explosives had been used since 2023 in the construction of Section 5 of the project, an area only accessible by the army and its contractors. The group discovered this while exploring an underwater cave and later filmed an explosion destroying limestone to obtain material – the same method for which Calica was criticized.

Biologist Guillermo de Christy documented how machinery has destroyed ancient cave walls and how concrete piles left by builders have contaminated cenotes with rust and oil. He noted that these open-pit mines were not easily accessible and were often located deep within the jungle. The government did not have the necessary permits to open these mines and only obtained them ten months after they began using explosives.

The government also failed to submit the required Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) under the General Law of Ecological Balance and Environmental Protection, leading to the use of explosives without understanding their potential environmental impact.

Recently, the lack of control over explosives was highlighted when authorities discovered 300 kilograms of explosives in the home of a deceased worker in the Puerto Maya neighborhood. The explosives were stored without any safety measures. De Christy explained that the rush to inaugurate the train, despite it not being finished, led to a high frequency of explosions to extract materials.

The first tour of the Mayan Train took place on December 16, 2023.