The environmental authority in Mexico authorized a new real estate project on San Bruno beach off the coast of Yucatán, despite the fact that its Environmental Impact Statement (MIA) recognizes 94 effects on flora, fauna, soil, social and cultural environment. The decision contributes to the growing invasion of the Yucatecan coast, which reduces public access to the coast for local communities.
Although the estimated time to travel from the center of Mérida to this beach, in the town of Dzemul, is one hour by car, just finding free access to the beach takes more than 40 minutes. Public passages have been closed by private complexes that form a coastal landscape saturated with summer houses, hotels and apartments with exclusive parking lots, where even people from the municipality are banned from entering, as there are plenty of “do not pass”, “no access” and “private property” signs, many accompanied by gates with padlocks placed or security booths.
There is less and less public access to beaches in the area. Source: Itzel Chan.
Real estate projects are moving forward
The mayor of Dzemul, José Wilberto Flota Aké, confirmed that there are more than 2,500 complexes along the 16 kilometers of coastline in San Bruno, San Benito and Chabihau. They all draw water from private wells, putting aquifers at risk of salinization.
Despite multiple complaints from inhabitants of the coastal strip about the progress of these developments, the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat) approved a new project of almost four thousand square meters, simply called “Apartments on the beach”.
The complex will have six levels, each with five apartments, as well as a pool and terrace.
The authorization contradicts what is established by the Ecological Planning Program for the Coastal Territory of the State of Yucatán, which limits the height of buildings to seven meters and requires that 60 meters of coastal dune be respected to preserve the balance of the ecosystem.
The developer, Meljem Alberto Charruf Semerena, said that the development is “compatible” with the area because it is second-home tourism, in reference to visitors with extended stays. The investment will amount to 49.8 million pesos and will be located near the municipalities of Progreso and Telchac Puerto. According to the developer, the preparation and construction phase will last three years.
“Vegetation consisting of shrubs that are directly in the construction area will be removed,” says the Environmental Impact Statement (MIA), a technical document that evaluates the effects of the project.
An excavation in the sand is also contemplated to lay the foundations in this place, which is part of a geohydrological area known as the “Semicircle of Cenotes”, of environmental, cultural and economic importance.
This area would be at risk of contamination to the water table due to debris, dissolved particles and possible accidental spills.
The area of vegetation to be deforested includes species such as nopal, riñonina, carpet, purslane, ch'it, sea grape, chechem and others. The displacement of fauna is also anticipated, as well as the colonization and forced adaptation of species to new artificial conditions, according to the MIA.
In San Bruno it is still possible to find an important coastal dune. Itzel Chan Source.
Dzemul, according to data from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi), has 3,622 inhabitants, more than half dedicated to fishing. Charruf Semerena assured that the project will “increase quality of life” through jobs and higher per capita income. It also denies any alteration to the ethnic identity of the population.
In the MIA, 94 effects have been identified with this project. Source: Itzel Chan.
The inhabitants are not taken into account
José Chi Aké, a resident of Dzemul, reported that there were no citizen consultations before the decision to build the project.
“They never ask us if we want construction or not, we only realize it when the buildings appear and at the same time we begin to run out of water,” he warned.
The resident of the coastal site said that in Yucatán there is opposition among the population to these complexes, however, local and federal authorities ignore their requests.
“We don't want to be just another Cancun, we've always said this, and not only here but also on other beaches in the state people object to us, but they don't listen to us,” Chi said.
In San Bruno there are houses and apartments built on the dunes. Source: Itzel Chan.
María Elena Torres Pérez, a researcher at the Faculty of Architecture of the Autonomous University of Yucatán (UADY), pointed out that these developments directly affect communities: “When these projects arrive, the inhabitants have a place like a stage, but they are excluded from spaces that they traditionally used, unless they are used, but it must be said that not all people are.”
He explained that jobs often involve forced cultural transformations: “People who didn't wear Mayan clothes start doing it to be part of a folkloric scene, in other words, they force them to wear stylized models that don't concern their culture, tradition and roots.”
The researcher mentioned that these tourist developments tend to take cultural identity issues as a pretext or foundation, but in a superficial way, in other words, they offer tourists the tranquility of the place and the closeness to the Mayan culture.
He also stressed that these projects consume basic resources such as electricity and drinking water, seriously affecting the local population, as has already happened in places such as Progreso and Sisal.
San Bruno is currently one of the most sought after beaches in Yucatán. Source: Itzel Chan.
Ana García Silberman, a researcher at Cinvestav, warned about the uncontrolled expansion of real estate development on the coast and in her experience, dune areas, occupied by buildings, have completely lost their beaches due to erosion caused by storms and hurricanes.
Claudia Pérez Aguilar, executive vice president of the AMPI, recognized that “the greatest interest of real estate companies is in the Yucatecan coast”, offering developments with pools, gyms and bars that compete directly with destinations such as Cancun, Playa del Carmen and Tulum.
According to a review of the MiAs entry procedures before Semarnat, from January to June 2025, at least 10 new real estate projects have been registered in Telchac Puerto, Progreso, El Cuyo, San Bruno and San Crisanto.
Land sale signs abound in the area as well. Source: Itzel Chan.
A request for information, via the National Transparency Platform, revealed that from 2018 to 2025, the Federal Attorney's Office for Environmental Protection (Profepa) received 200 complaints in Yucatán for affecting coastal vegetation.
Despite social dissatisfaction, the head of Semarnat, Alicia Bárcena, has acknowledged the problem and said during a visit to Yucatán in June that they will seek to free up public access.
“What we have to do is sit down with all these people who already have their private property to reach an agreement,” he told local media about opening more public access to beaches.
Jorge Herrera Silveira, a researcher at Cinvestav, warned that land use changes on the 1,250 kilometers of coastline of the Yucatan Peninsula have increased in the last 40 years, with tourism and the real estate industry as the main drivers.
The researcher emphasized that these projects entail social and environmental problems, since the original inhabitants suffer the consequences of the scarcity of public services.
“More than 90% of wastewater from all activities both on the coast and in the interior of the peninsula does not receive treatment before being discharged into the aquifer, whose final destination is coastal ecosystems,” Herrera said.
José Chi is hopeful that at some point environmental authorities will no longer grant construction permits to allow for a break for the coast and at the same time reduce the damage to the inhabitants.
“With these projects, we see that the authorities are more concerned about providing services to summer houses and apartments, when many houses in the town don't even have water. We want to stop the developers,” Chi said.
Comentarios (0)