In Mérida, trees are felled to make way for the construction of houses, offices, streets, shopping malls or warehouses. In the midst of this process, only 26 have the right to be protected.
The Ceiba is considered a sacred tree by the Mayan culture and in this state capital a decade ago it was still common to find one on every corner. However, as time has passed, it has become more difficult to find green spaces within the urban area, despite the fact that a state law requires that at least 30% of subdivisions conserve this vegetation.
The ceiba tree is important to the Mayan culture. Photo: Itzel Chan
The municipal palace of Mérida is located in front of the city's main square, from where 40 endemic trees were removed in 2024, to make way for the remodeling of the area, with an investment of 120 million pesos and with the promise of planting other specimens.
A measure derived from the City Council's conservation strategies is the declaration of protection of 26 trees due to their specific characteristics, said Raúl Fernando Escalante Aguilar, director of the Environment and Animal Welfare Unit of the City Council. For example: they measure more than 15 meters and are more than 50 years old.
“These are trees that are many years old, and although the growth of the fractions revolves around them, they are still preserved, besides being a gigantic germplasm bank (part of the plants that can generate a new one),” he described.
For their care, municipal authorities carry out environmental education programs in communities where the trees chosen are located so that the people who live there care for them and irrigate them if necessary.
Meanwhile, every month, in different parts of the city, there is a new construction. The municipal official acknowledged that choosing 26 copies from thousands that need protection is not enough, so the main work is done with construction companies.
“We have had meetings with several developers and asked them to reach their goal of 20% vegetation conservation, especially because in the city we have areas with higher temperatures due to the lack of trees. To give municipal construction permits, we ask for 20% of each project,” said Escalante.
The Mexican Association of Real Estate Professionals (AMPI) classifies as real estate developments large scale projects that can be categorized as vertical, horizontal, industrial, commercial, corporate, residential and mixed projects.
Despite the fact that the Real Estate Development Law of the State of Yucatán states in its Article 16 that each new development must preserve a minimum of 30% for urban green areas, the City Council of Mérida only requires 20% for each project individually. Experts indicate that construction companies do not respect either of them.
The northern area of Mérida tends more to concentrate new subdivisions. Photo: Itzel Chan
Dr. María Elena Torres Pérez, a researcher at the Faculty of Architecture of the Autonomous University of Yucatán (UADY), witnesses that urban growth is based on constant deforestation: an area with vegetation is converted from one day to the next into total concrete.
“It's about housing construction, new streets and little or no green area remains. In the subdivisions, it can be seen that in houses at most they leave a picture with grass, but from there there is no more vegetation. So, in reality, in each subdivision, an area of 90% is left non-permeable and we are left with a scarce 10% of permeable areas, which is not necessarily a green area. There is massive deforestation in Mérida,” he said.
What the researcher attributes can be supported by records made by the Information System for Forest Cover Changes in the Yucatan Peninsula (SICAMFOR), which indicate that by 2016 the forest cover of Mérida was 41,750 hectares and by 2023 this figure was reduced to 38,816 hectares. Thus, in seven years, vegetation in the city decreased by 7.03%.
According to the Greenpeace report “Greening cities. Urban spaces and their impact on health and well-being”, rule 3-30-300 for urban forestry, developed on the basis of proposals from the United Nations (UN), proposes that all citizens see at least three trees from home, that development companies provide 30% of vegetation cover or tree tops in each neighborhood and a distance of 300 meters between homes and the nearest green area.
“We celebrate the fact that there are 26 botanical jewels, but I think it's too little. In addition, in 2012 there was a catalog of the municipality's Natural, Mayan and Cultural Heritage and at that time there were 100 trees on the list, but I'm sure many of them are gone,” said Dr. María Elena.
Every day a new area is observed with clearing. Photo: Itzel Chan
There are 300 active developments
The trees in Mérida have been disappearing due to the deforestation that caused the construction of 300 developments, which the executive vice president of the AMPI, Claudia Pérez Aguilar, confirmed that they are active, that is, houses, apartments, offices or warehouses currently occupied, for sale or rent.
In August 2023, there were 203 newly built projects and in just one year another 100 were added, according to an AMPI record.
In addition to residential buildings, the industrial sector is currently expanding in the city, especially in the metropolitan area that borders the municipalities of Umán and Kanasín, 30 minutes and 20 minutes from Mérida, respectively, Pérez Aguilar said.
“There are laws that indicate the percentage that has to be transferred in a construction, but the ideal is that we no longer have to abide by the minimum, but rather we must move towards a more sustainable and sustainable city. We have to maximize green spaces because of the lack of trees there is the issue of heat. The more construction, the fewer trees,” he stressed.
Wildlife at risk of extinction
Deforestation means that mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and other types of fauna lose their habitat, such as a lizard or iguana (Cachryx defender, known as' chop 'in Maya), which is at risk due to real estate development.
This is an endemic species in the region that, if developments continue as before, will become extinct, said Luis Fernando Díaz Gamboa, a member of the Yucatan Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Network.
The iguana is increasingly losing its habitat and is at risk of extinction. Photo: Yucatan Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Network
“It loses its habitat because it lives in the trunks of trees and they are kept there,” he explained.
These animals displaced from their homes have nowhere to go and become targets of the people who live in the subdivisions.
Temperature rise due to deforestation
During 2023 and 2024, temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius (ºC) were recorded in Mérida. Specialists warned that there is a high risk of experiencing much more heat in the coming years due to the rate of clearing that exists.
Dr. Gerardo Carrillo Niquete, from the Research Area associated with projects of the Natural Resources Unit of the Yucatán Scientific Research Center (CICY), is researching the increase in temperature in areas such as Mérida and the municipalities of Umán, Kanasín, Ucú, Conkal and Progreso. Compare satellite images to distinguish areas where vegetation cover is rapidly being lost.
“We have found that between 2007 and 2012, the greatest deforestation occurred in the metropolitan area of Mérida and it has a good coincidence with the development of housing and commercial areas,” he said.
During his investigations, he tests and measures with a thermometer what temperature there was in a land with forest foliage and another only of concrete: the difference is 16ºC. With his observations, he proves that when an area is deforested, it gives way to a 'heat island'.
His colleague, Dr. Celene Espadas Manrique, a research technician at the Unit, explained that something recurrent is that only palm trees are placed in parking lots of shopping malls or in suburban areas, which, however beautiful they look, actually provide minimal shade and do little to mitigate the effects of high pavement or cement temperatures.
Trees help mitigate the effects of high temperatures. Photo: Itzel Chan
“The ideal would be to plant plants and trees that are adapted to the climate of the area and we must bear in mind that vegetation is our main ally in counteracting the effects of global warming. Let's not lose sight of the role that vegetation plays in the water cycle,” he said.
* This article was written by Itzel Chan, who covers coastal communities thanks to the support of the Report for the World program .
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