The Orchid House Hotel and Playa de La Paz make use of the Federal Maritime Land Zone (Zofemat) without having a concession on El Caimancito beach, located in La Paz, Baja California Sur, northwest of Mexico.
Through two requests for information, the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat) confirmed that there are no current concessions in the Zofemat area on El Caimancito beach, which corresponds to the 20 meters adjacent to the last recorded tide and which is public property and for common use.
The company Orchid Design, representative of the Hotel Orchid House Baja, rents the property known as the former House of Governors of Baja California Sur to the state government for 765 thousand pesos per month. However, since December 2023, its beach club and restaurant was installed under a palapa facing the sea that had a bar, and deployed a pergola, swings, lamps, tables, chairs, while in the federal zone it placed infrastructure for permanent rustic shades and lounge chairs for its clients.
There is also no destination agreement in the area in favor of the State Government, which would give it the power to use and take advantage of the space for a certain time without paying fees.
Even in January 2023, they installed a barrier that delimited the space of their lounge chairs and tipis through a series of flower pots and wooden posts buried on federal land, this despite the fact that the General Law of National Assets, in its article 8 establishes that access to the maritime beaches and Zofemat cannot be inhibited, restricted, hindered or conditioned, except for very particular exceptions.
Months later, the shades were removed and tipis with bean bags, rugs, and single beds were installed, while the chairs and tables remained.
Likewise, on the other side of the beach is Playa de La Paz, a complex of condominiums and luxury villa rentals that offer amenities such as the beach and private beachfront cabins, which are made of wood and are permanently installed.
In the beach area in front of the real estate tourism project there is a sign indicating that this is an area granted to United Investments SA. de CV., however, when checking the title of the concession for general use (DGZF-126/07), it was valid for 15 years and according to a request for information from June 2024, it expired in 2022.
For this article, an interview was requested with the tourist complexes, however, there was no response from Orchid House and its beach club, while from Playa de La Paz, up to the time of publication, it could not be finalized.
Although the sea beaches and Zofemat are common-use assets and all people can use them without restrictions, those who want to make special use of this common-use asset require a concession, authorization or permit granted by the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat).
This concession means that a private individual is granted the management and exploitation of a State-owned asset. Being the holder of a concession only gives the right to carry out some economic activities in Zofemat.
Also read: Residents of Agua Caliente beach in Baja California Sur defend their territory against privatization attempts
The Zofemat Regulation for the Use and Utilization establishes four types of utilization: protection, ornamentation, primary economic activity and general. The latter is granted on surfaces where constructions with foundations have been carried out or where profit-making activities are carried out.
The facilities of El Caimancito, Beach Club and Playa de La Paz are for profit, therefore they should have a general use concession granted by Zofemat granted by Semarnat and make the corresponding payment for the use of the area. In addition, only removable furniture should be removed, but this is not the case.
This is how you can report illegal use of land in Baja California Sur
In the case of unauthorized use of Zofemat, Pavel Castro Ríos, general secretary of the La Paz City Council, said that a complaint must first be filed with the Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection (Profepa).
“If there is a complaint for unauthorized use of Zofemat, it would have to be Profepa who has to go and ask them to regularize themselves if necessary,” explained Castro Ríos.
To report the blockage, impediment or condition to access, use and freely transit Zofemat or the beach, an environmental complaint can be made to Profepa by calling 01 800 PROFEPA (01 800 776 33 72), by emailing [email protected] and on the agency’s website www.profepa.gob.mx.
Another way to report and exert social pressure is through a video or photograph of the report on social media tagging Es Mi Playa, Mi Barrio and Metiches por Naturaleza or sending it through WhatsApp 6122144930.
This is a collaboration with the Es Mi Playa, Mi Barrio collective.
Source: es-us.noticias.yahoo
