A hundred environmentalists demanded that federal and local authorities halt construction of the fertilizer plant being built by the company Gas y Petroquímica de Occidente (Proman-GPO) in Topolobampo Bay, Sinaloa. They stated that the plant will devastate this ecosystem, which they described as a wetland of international importance vital for thousands of migratory birds, dolphins, whales, and for the fishing that sustains indigenous communities.
Cristina Santillanes, of the ¡Aquí No! Collective, pointed out that construction continues on the foreign-owned plant, which will produce more than 6,000 tons of methanol daily, and a floating unit that will liquefy 15,000 tons of fracked gas, transported via pipelines from Texas. All of this is taking place in a coastal lagoon from which whale-killing vessels would operate.
The activists marched from the Diana the Huntress roundabout to the Monument to the Revolution, where they chanted several slogans, including “No to ecocide,” “They sell it as progress, but it’s ecocide,” “Mexico will not be a sacrificial lamb,” “They’re not going anywhere, we’re going to kick them out,” “Out with GPO,” and “Water yes, ammonia no.”
According to Santillanes, the opposition to the installation of the ammonia plant by GPO and the Mexino project stems from the fact that “the rights of the Yoreme-Mayo indigenous communities of northern Sinaloa, specifically those in Oguira Bay, have been violated.” The Ramsar Site, which is internationally protected, has been deforested for the construction of this plant, and despite legal injunctions, the plant continued to be built.
Victar (sic) is originally from Topolobampo, but has lived in Mexico City for 11 years. He explained that the area is considered the second largest natural bay in the world.
“For 10 years, this German company has wanted to build an ammonia plant in a wetland protected by UNESCO since 2009 as a wetland of high international importance. They are building the ammonia plant where they intend to generate thousands of tons of ammonia per day, and we are not going to allow it. Furthermore, it will affect the livelihoods of thousands of fishermen,” he lamented.
Source: jornada
