Xcacel has been saved

Date: August 13, 2001
Contact: Dan Evans
Phone: (325) 373-6441

After the revocation of the authorisation given to the hotel developers by the last administration, the Environment Ministry opened up a new consultation process where 90% of 991 opinions and documents received were against the project.

The beach where green and loggerhead turtles nest was sold in late 1997 to Sol Melia one of the five largest hotel chains in the world. The sale violated the 1994 ecological ordinance agreement whereby Xcacel could only be sold to NGOs so as to be turned into a reserve.

For nearly 4 years NGOs have been fighting to stop the devolpment of a project of 1,453 hotelrooms in the area. The fight seemed lost late last year when the Environment Ministry gave the the developers authorisation to build, this brought on several appeals by NGOs and County authorities. The new administration decided to make a landmark decision earlier this year by revoking for the first time in Mexican history an environmental authorisation.

The project was finally rejected on July 28, 2001 by the Environment Ministry!

Congratulations to everyone who participated in saving Xcacel!

Press release information provided by Juan Carlos Cantu,Greenpeace Mexico