While some beaches in Mexico exceed pollution limits, Yucatán remains in the green zone.
Prior to Holy Week, health authorities analyzed 289 beaches across Mexico.
The permitted limit is 200 enterococci per 100 ml of water, and Yucatán passed, as all its beaches registered levels below that threshold.
The director of health risk prevention for the Yucatán Health Secretariat, Domitilo Carvallo, explained:
“Typically, each month, we have 17 sampling points where we collect samples for marine water monitoring (specifically regarding safe water for recreational use; we have 17 points, but in total we collect 24 samples throughout this region). Month after month, we collect 24 samples, but when a holiday period like the one we are currently experiencing comes around, we begin a more intensive process. Two weeks prior to the holiday period, we collect samples during the first week, taking three consecutive samples at each of those points. This gives us a total of 144 samples collected for monitoring marine water for recreational use.”
Destinations in Yucatán Comply with Regulations
Among the destinations that comply with regulations regarding enterococci levels on beaches are:
Progreso
Sisal
Celestún
Telchac
San Felipe
In contrast, other states did have beaches that exceeded the limit.
In Yucatán, the state government and civil society constantly carry out beach cleanups.
Last year’s program collected more than 33 tons of waste along the entire coast in 14 locations visited, and a simultaneous cleanup was also carried out in September, in which 11 coastal locations were cleaned or attended to in a single day.
Francisco Alfaro, head of the Integrated Waste Management Department at the Yucatán Secretariat of Sustainable Development, stated:
“Well, the truth is that I think it reflects the results of the Secretariat’s beach cleanup program, carried out in coordination with Limpiemos Yucatán (Let’s Clean Yucatán) and the coastal municipalities. It also encourages us to further strengthen and complement this program with other activities that will have a more lasting impact. As I mentioned, the impact of these awareness campaigns that accompany the cleanups is reflected in these results reported by Cofepris (Federal Commission for Protection against Sanitary Risks).”
According to the pre-holiday beach monitoring for Holy Week 2026, all beaches in Yucatán are suitable for recreational use.
Source: unotv
