José Chi Aké is one of the guardians of the 15 active ponds of the pre-Hispanic salt mine of Xtambú, a traditional harvest site for this mineral at risk of disappearing due to the establishment of real estate and marine tourism projects in the municipality of Dzemul, Yucatán.
The man of Mayan origin opens an improvised gate with wooden logs at the entrance of the salt mine. The place concentrates unique bodies of water that generate salt and that, in spring, show a pink color similar to flamingos that nest near that area. In that place, until two decades ago, there were 113 ponds that were 400 years old, 98 of them disappeared (86%) due to the real estate expansion in the municipality of Dzemul.
Now 64 families are asking the State government for support to protect their heritage, especially because of a new threat: the city council intends to set up a drinking water supply network that will impact this ancient practice.
José is one of the defenders of Mayan salt. Source: Itzel Chan.
The complaints intensified because on February 4, municipal staff carried out measurements to establish future pipes: they project them on the side of the ponds and cover mangrove areas.
The pipes, planned to supply the new real estate complexes, would affect the nearby mangrove soil and, in the event of a leak, will flood the pools where salt forms, locals say.
This project had already been tried before and the Federal Attorney's Office for Environmental Protection (Profepa) canceled it in November 2023 due to the alleged lack of an Environmental Impact Statement, as reported by local media outlet Por Esto.
The population also accuses the City Council of not carrying out citizen consultations and encouraging the delivery of drinking water to new residential areas in the beach area.
At the bottom of the pond you can see one of the buildings for which the drinking water network is required.
“We don't want this project to be done because it's also about 3 kilometers of mangroves that are going to be damaged because they would have to be removed for the large pipes to pass through and the authorities are also worried about summer houses when many houses in the town don't have drinking water,” he says.
The population's concern about mangrove damage stems from the decline of this vegetation, a fact corroborated by the Mangrove Monitoring System of Mexico (SMMM), which records a decrease from 98,756 to 96,873 hectares (ha) between 1981 and 2020. This is almost 2% less.
Mayor doesn't show documents
Despite complaints from the population, José Wilberto Flota Aké, mayor of Dzemul, assures that he has advice from staff from the National Water Commission (Conagua) and the Yucatan Drinking Water and Sewerage Board (Japay) to carry out the project. However, he acknowledged in an interview with Causa Natura that until now his agreement is only in word, but there is no official document to support it.
Mayan salt is at risk. Source: Itzel Chan.
The mayor mentions that complexes along 16 kilometers of coastline, in the communities of San Bruno, San Benito and Chabihau, draw water from private wells that are at risk of causing salinization of the water, while other inhabitants pay their taxes in the municipality of Temozón, located two hours away.
Both situations would be resolved if it had more resources by redirecting the proceeds to the municipality of Dzemul, he argues.
“There are more than 2,500 buildings there and we need to give them water, we already have the facility to extract water. We already have the support of Banobras of almost 1,400,000 pesos and we have to demonstrate what we are investing in. This will benefit new resorts, but also residential homes in the area,” said the mayor.
They keep hope in the midst of the fight
The coastal town is located 62 kilometers from the Yucatecan capital. José, along with six dozen men and women who are part of the Salinera Xtambú Social Solidarity Society, extracts salt with their bare hands and bare feet. In this work, he uses only baskets made with vines.
He says that the months with the highest salt production are April and May, when ponds receive the highest concentration of sunlight. The opposite case is that of rainy seasons, when rainfall hinders the formation of the mineral.
They use baskets made of vines to extract the salt. Source: Itzel Chan.
The economic benefits of this place are such that when the white and crystalline grains are not harvested, the people of the cooperative take tourist tours to share the importance of the site.
“Practically, since I left elementary school I started working here, but this place is 400 years old or more because I have a colleague who is 100 years old, for now he is the oldest and he tells us how they worked to harvest salt. Here we are, nephews, children, grandchildren who have kept this work for many years,” says José Chi.
While talking about the people who work there, he explains that each pond is capable of producing up to 40 tons in a year, but that amount is not always reached, since in 2023 they collected only 11 tons because they did not have enough buyers.
Francisco Hernández is one of the defenders of this ancient place. He says that in Xtambu a salt very similar to that of the Himalayas is generated, due to its color and its health-promoting properties. That is why it seeks, together with other workers, a way to protect its source of work.
“We don't try to seek government advantages and we don't seek to enrich ourselves, only that this place benefits us in different ways, it gives us employment and is a place with history,” he says.
Laura sells, among several souvenirs, Mayan salt. Source: Itzel Chan.
Laura Eugenia Aké sells souvenirs at the salt works. He says that the salt harvest helps families in Dzemul, especially as a way to diversify their income in the face of low tourist arrivals.
“From the visits we get some of the money for maintenance because, in addition, storms and hurricanes hurt us a lot last year because fresh water falls on the ponds, they flood and the salt doesn't come out. We want to take care of this place,” he adds.
* 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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