“Maya Train Project: Ecosystem in Peril – Exclusive Insider Report”

As the world's attention is drawn to the delicate cave system due to the upcoming presidential elections, scientists and environmentalists are raising the alarm. They warn that the Maya Train project, a flagship initiative, could lead to a long-term environmental catastrophe.

Deep within the jungle, the peaceful sounds of dripping water inside the cave are disrupted by the roar of heavy machinery. Above ground, the construction of the elevated train line is progressing rapidly. The caverns echo with the noise of drills piercing the limestone to secure nearly 15,000 steel pillars, each one meter wide. These pillars will support the train along this section of its route. Water expert and engineer Guillermo D. Christy, who has spent over two decades studying the quality of water flowing beneath the Yucatán Peninsula, watches the transformation of the pristine cave into a construction site with a mix of pain and anger. "Pouring concrete into a cave, directly into the aquifer, with no regard and no care. That is an absolute ecocide," he laments.

In the profound darkness of the cave, D. Christy navigates between limestone columns and steel pillars embedded in the rock formations. The darkness is interrupted by huge holes, each a meter wide, drilled into the cave's ceiling to accommodate more pillars. Unhesitatingly, the 58-year-old engineer wades into the underground river, its water now murky from the rusted metal of the pillars. He squeezes through a narrow passage in the rock and takes a seat next to one of the already installed pillars. From a plastic box, he retrieves a series of syringes and bottles and begins to sample the water surrounding the pillar. "You can clearly see there the characteristic color of iron corrosion," he says, holding up a syringe filled with yellowish, murky water. "We're going to take a sample". He pours the water into a glass jar and adds a chemical that turns it a vivid blue, indicating the presence of iron. Elsewhere in the cave, piles of stalactites broken by the vibrations from the train construction lie scattered on the ground like earthquake debris. In other areas, concrete from the pillars has spilled over the limestone. While the long-term environmental impact of the project remains uncertain, geologist Monroy-Ríos affirms that the entire ecosystem is already undergoing significant transformation.

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