(09 07 2019)
La realidad detrás las represas hidroeléctricas para que no tengan los ojos cerrados:
https://www.facebook.com/fernando.vargast1/videos/1388350867888946/
Ron Sedgwick
DR. RAFAEL GUZMÁN MEJÍA started this petition to ANDRES MANUEL LOPÉZ OBRADOR, DR. VÍCTOR MANUEL TOLEDO MANZUR, & SERGIO HUMBERTO GRAF MONTERO
DECLARE THE CANYON OF LOS HORCONES RIVER AS A NATURAL PROTECTED AREA
Some natural areas don’t become a conservation priority until the moment we are poised to lose them. The Los Horcones River Canyon is now at that moment.
While only about a 40-minute drive south of Old Town Puerto Vallarta, the Los Horcones River has until now remained well preserved over much of its course from the heights of the Sierra El Cuale (over 2,300 meters) to its mouth at Boca de Tomatlán. Aside from passing some ranches and a few small villages along the way, most of this river’s course flows through vast stretches of intact forest (pine-oak forest along its upper reaches transitioning to tropical dry forest around 400 meters). Its steep granite walls have helped protect it so far along with the amazingly diverse flora and fauna that it shelters—river otters, jaguars, and rare orchids included.
This January, the residents of the working-class village of Boca de Tomatlán found themselves embroiled in a fight against an invalid project threatening to expropriate this river´s water through a dam and pipeline. Purportedly in the name of generating “clean energy,” contractors were given a shady exemption to proceed without the required environmental impact or social impact studies and none of the effected communities were ever consulted. It was a clear insult to the law of the land and the dignity of these communities. Further insulting is that after months of protests, the name of the owner of this would-be dam and pipeline privatizing and commercializing the community’s water has not yet been released publically. Our community deserves to know who will own the water if this project is brought to fruition and the final destination of the energy it would generate.
The damage that has already occurred—clearing of tropical dry forest (one of the world’s most fragile ecosystems), extirpation of fauna, excavations, and demolition down into the very bedrock along the shores of this river—is alarming. But what’s more alarming is what’s at stake if this river is not protected. Not only will the terrestrial species that depend on this river suffer and die, the Bay of Banderas will lose one of its last significant sources of fresh water. Of the other major rivers feeding into the Bay, only the Ameca and Cuale still have a trickle of water making it to the sea year-round. The others (Pitillal, Eden, Palo Maria), are already so overexploited that they flow all the way to the sea only during the few months of the rainy season. As the last significant free-flowing river of our region, Los Horcones provides nutrients and a change in salinity that is essential to marine wildlife including humpback whales, dolphins, and sea turtles.
While we thank the good people of Boca de Tomatlán for staying strong in their resistance so far, this fight can’t be theirs alone. For all who love Puerto Vallarta, wildlife, whales, our planet—and for those who believe in protecting local cultures and their way of life—this fight is yours too.
Learn more at: vivanatura.org/rio
This petition to Mexico’s president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, and top environmental authorities gained over 50,000 signatures within just one week of going public and is quickly picking up momentum.
BOB PRICE: This illegal dam that will destroy the Horcones Canyon is a nightmare on the very doorstep of PUERTO VALLARTA. This multi million dollar project has begun against the wishes of thousands of local residents who believe in preserving their environment. Who are big money interests behind the dam? No one knows for sure but you have to wonder why they would need to go to such extreme measures to grab PVs last untouched freshwater river. There is a freshwater crisis looming on the horizon for Puerto Vallarta that the current infrastructure cannot deliver enough water to keep up with all the building. The water wars have begun. Where are local LEADERS who are allowing this illegal construction to happen without so much as an environmental impact study? ..... Get involved ...... PLEASE:
https://www.facebook.com/bobpricevbg/posts/10157192551677230
______________________________
DR. RAFAEL GUZMÁN MEJÍA lanzó esta petición dirigida para Presidente Constitucional de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos ANDRES MANUEL LOPÉZ OBRADOR y 8 otros/as
8 de jun. de 2019
Estimados amigos, agradecemos sus firmas. Nos falta mucho por alcanzar nuestra meta (250,000 firmas antes del mes de Septiembre) pero con su esfuerzo en la campaña vamos a lograrlo. Favor de compartir con sus contactos y en las redes sociales. ¡VIVA EL RÍO LOS HORCONES!
Dear friends, we appreciate your signatures. We have a long way to our ambitious goal (250,000 signatures by August) but with your dedication to the campaign we can get there. Please share this petition with your contacts and on your social media. ¡VIVA EL RÍO LOS HORCONES!
(TO READ ENGLISH VERSION: scroll down)
VERSIÓN EN ESPAÑOL:
Algunas áreas naturales no se convierten en una prioridad de conservación hasta que estamos a punto de perderlas. Este es el momento en el que se encuentra el Cañón del Río los Horcones.
Aunque ubicado a tan solo 40 minutos en auto hacia el sur de la Zona Romántica de Puerto Vallarta, el Río Los Horcones ha permanecido bien preservado en la mayoría de su cauce, desde lo alto de la Sierra del Cuale (arriba de los 2,300 msnm) hasta su desembocadura en la Boca de Tomatlán. Además de pasar por rancherías y pequeños poblados en el camino, el río fluye en la mayor parte de su curso a través de vastas extensiones de bosques prístinos. (Bosque de pino-encino en su parte superior, integrándose en bosque de selva seca a los 400 msnm, en el límite inferior). Hasta ahora, sus escarpados taludes de granito han ayudado a protegerlo junto con la asombrosa diversidad de flora y fauna que alberga, entre otros, raras orquídeas, nutrias de río y jaguares.
El pasado mes de enero, los habitantes de Boca de Tomatlán se vieron inmersos en una lucha contra un proyecto invalido que amenaza con expropiar el agua del río a través de la construcción de una presa y un acueducto; con la pretensión de generar energía eléctrica limpia. De alguna manera los contratistas obtuvieron un permiso que los exenta de la obligación legal de realizar una Manifestación de Impacto Ambiental —la cual incluye estudios de impacto social—. En este caso ninguna de las comunidades afectadas fueron consultadas. Este es un claro insulto a la lex terrae y la dignidad de las personas. Resulta aún más insultante que tras meses de protestas, el nombre del propietario de este proyecto para privatizar y comercializar el agua de la comunidad, aún no se haya dado a conocer públicamente. Nuestra comunidad merece saber no sólo eso sino el destino final de la energía que se genere.
El daño que se ha hecho, incluye tala del bosque tropical subcaducifolio —uno de los ecosistemas más frágiles del mundo—, extirpación de fauna, excavaciones y demolición de la roca madre del río, lo cual ya es bastante alarmante. Aún más alarmante es lo que está en juego si este río continúa sin protección. No solo las especies que de él dependen sufrirán y morirán, sino que la Bahía de Banderas perderá una de sus últimas fuentes importantes de agua dulce. De los otros ríos principales que alimentan la Bahía, solo el Ameca y Cuale todavía tienen un hilo de agua que llega al mar durante todo el año. Los demás ríos, Pitillal, Edén y Palo María, se encuentran tan sobreexplotados que su flujo sólo llega al mar durante los pocos meses de lluvia. Siendo el último rio de flujo libre en nuestra región, Los Horcones proporciona nutrientes al mar; es un controlador de salinidad de la Bahía, esencial para la biodiversidad marina, incluidas especies tan formidables como ballenas jorobadas, delfines y tortugas marinas.
Agradecemos a los pobladores de Boca de Tomatlán por mantenerse firmes en su resistencia. Debemos reconocer que esta lucha no puede ser sólo de ellos. Es de todos los que aman Puerto Vallarta, la vida silvestre, nuestro planeta, la protección de las culturas locales y sus formas de vida. Esta lucha también es tuya.
Obtenga más información en: http://vivanatura.org/rio/
Have you ever wondered how the muscular waterfalls on the Horcones river look like from up close? I have, so I sent my drone to have a look:
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ENGLISH
DR. RAFAEL GUZMÁN MEJÍA started this petition to ANDRES MANUEL LOPÉZ OBRADOR, DR. VÍCTOR MANUEL TOLEDO MANZUR, & SERGIO HUMBERTO GRAF MONTERO
DECLARE THE CANYON OF LOS HORCONES RIVER AS A NATURAL PROTECTED AREA.
Some natural areas don’t become a conservation priority until the moment we are poised to lose them. The Los Horcones River Canyon is now at that moment.
While only about a 40-minute drive south of Old Town Puerto Vallarta, the Los Horcones River has until now remained well preserved over much of its course from the heights of the Sierra El Cuale (over 2,300 meters) to its mouth at Boca de Tomatlán. Aside from passing some ranches and a few small villages along the way, most of this river’s course flows through vast stretches of intact forest (pine-oak forest along its upper reaches transitioning to tropical dry forest around 400 meters). Its steep granite walls have helped protect it so far along with the amazingly diverse flora and fauna that it shelters—river otters, jaguars, and rare orchids included.
This January, the residents of the working-class village of Boca de Tomatlán found themselves embroiled in a fight against an invalid project threatening to expropriate this river´s water through a dam and pipeline. Purportedly in the name of generating “clean energy,” contractors were given a shady exemption to proceed without the required environmental impact or social impact studies and none of the effected communities were ever consulted. It was a clear insult to the law of the land and the dignity of these communities. Further insulting is that after months of protests, the name of the owner of this would-be dam and pipeline privatizing and commercializing the community’s water has not yet been released publically. Our community deserves to know who will own the water if this project is brought to fruition and the final destination of the energy it would generate.
The damage that has already occurred—clearing of tropical dry forest (one of the world’s most fragile ecosystems), extirpation of fauna, excavations, and demolition down into the very bedrock along the shores of this river—is alarming. But what’s more alarming is what’s at stake if this river is not protected. Not only will the terrestrial species that depend on this river suffer and die, the Bay of Banderas will lose one of its last significant sources of fresh water. Of the other major rivers feeding into the Bay, only the Ameca and Cuale still have a trickle of water making it to the sea year-round. The others (Pitillal, Eden, Palo Maria), are already so overexploited that they flow all the way to the sea only during the few months of the rainy season. As the last significant free-flowing river of our region, Los Horcones provides nutrients and a change in salinity that is essential to marine wildlife including humpback whales, dolphins, and sea turtles.
While we thank the good people of Boca de Tomatlán for staying strong in their resistance so far, this fight can’t be theirs alone. For all who love Puerto Vallarta, wildlife, whales, our planet—and for those who believe in protecting local cultures and their way of life—this fight is yours too.
