Travel council says suspending flights is not the answer to controlling pandemic

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February 2, 2021

airport travelers — The World Travel and Tourism Council urges nations take a coordinated approach to save the tourism sector.

The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) has slammed the Canadian government’s decision to suspend flights to Mexico and Caribbean countries and oblige travelers entering Canada to go into hotel quarantine, asserting that such measures are not the solution to the coronavirus crisis and will severely damage the tourism sector.

“The Canadian government’s decision to suspend all flights to Mexico and the Caribbean until April 30, and impose hotel quarantines for all arriving passengers, will cause even further damage to its travel and tourism industry, which is already in a fight for survival due to the Covid-19 pandemic,” said WTTC president and CEO Gloria Guevara.

“Blanket flight cancelations and ineffective and costly quarantines are not the solution and will only slow down the recovery of this important sector.”

Guevara, who was federal tourism minister in the second half of former president Felipe Calderón’s 2006-2012 term, called the Canadian measures “drastic” and said that they will cause “untold damage” to Canada’s travel sector, which she said creates more than 1.6 million jobs and in 2019 contributed CAD $143.9 billion to the country’s economy.

“The sector will be key to Canada’s economic recovery once the pandemic has been combatted,” she added.

Guevara said the WTTC believes that that rapid, low-cost testing on departure for all travelers, along with the implementation of a contact-tracing regime is the only way to save the tourism sector.

“These simple and effective measures, along with observing enhanced hygiene protocols such as mask wearing and social distancing, will avoid exporting the virus and enable the free movement of travelers,” she said.

The WTTC chief asserted that quarantines should only be in place for people who tested positive for the coronavirus and therefore testing airline passengers is “absolutely critical.”

“We would also like to see a clear and detailed exit strategy, as the travel and tourism sector needs to restart now, before many businesses crumble and even more people lose their jobs,” Guevara said.

“Our latest research reveals the devastating impact Covid-19 is having on travel and tourism across North America, with between 10.8 million and 13.8 million sector jobs at serious risk. We hope the Canadian government will collaborate with other leaders around the world to agree on a more internationally coordinated approach to restart travel and save the ailing sector.”

Canada’s suspension of flights has also been criticized by Mexico’s government.

gloria guevara — Guevara: testing airline passengers is ‘absolutely critical.’

Tourism Minister Miguel Torruco said that tourism sector revenue could decrease by US $782 million as a result of the three-month suspension of flights from Canada to Mexico, while the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the government hoped that the flight freeze could be lifted “as soon as possible in order to prevent a profound economic crisis in the North American region.”

Aviation experts who spoke to the Canadian Press said the flight suspension will likely cause bankruptcies in Canada’s airline sector and permanent closures of airports and travel agencies.

The announcement that flights to Mexico and the Caribbean were to be halted “was the nail in the coffin for the airline and tourism business,” said Robert Kokonis, founder and managing director of aviation consulting firm AirTrav Inc.

“We’re going to see bankruptcy filings, you might even see a few outright failures. … This will definitely finish off hundreds of travel agents, if not thousands, across the country.”

John Gradek, a lecturer at McGill University and the head of its Global Aviation Leadership Program, said the airlines Sunwing and Transat were most at risk of bankruptcy because of their dependence on flights to so-called sun destinations. But the former denied that was the case.

The Canadian Airports Council said that airports were burning through cash reserves, laying off staff and taking on additional debt as demand for their services has plummeted 85% to 90% since spring.

“Today, there is nothing left to cut, yet the restrictions keep piling on,” said president Daniel-Robert Gooch.

Kokonis said he was disappointed that the announcement of the new Canadian restrictions wasn’t accompanied by an “announcement of aid” for the travel sector.

Meanwhile, Tourism Minister Torruco is attempting to have tourism declared an essential economic activity in Mexico to protect the sector while the coronavirus pandemic continues to rage here and in many other countries.

The Tourism Ministry said in a statement Monday that Torruco made a submission to the economy and health ministers asking them to consider declaring tourism essential.

The tourism minister highlighted that tourism generated annual revenue of US $172 billion before the pandemic, contributed to 8.7% of Mexico’s GDP and provided direct employment for 4.4 million people.

Source: El Universal (sp), El Economista (sp), The Canadian Press (en)

Chichén Itzá to open new site, new experience in 2022

By

MND Staff

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February 1, 2021

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The new section at Chichén Itzá will be open by reservation only.

A new section of the Chichén Iztá archaeological site will open to the public in 2022, the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) has announced.

Called Chichén Viejo, or Old Chichén, the new section is set deep in jungle in an area 900 meters south of El Castillo, the towering pyramid that is the largest structure of the ancient Mayan city, located about 40 kilometers west of Valladolid, Yucatán.

“This new space represents a formidable experience because it’s embedded in the jungle,” Marco Antonio Santos, director of the Chichén Itzá site, told the newspaper Milenio.

“It’s a kind of neighborhood that contains temples and palaces whose decorations evoke scenes that are possibly from the Popol Vuh,” he said, referring to a text that recounts the mythology and history of the K’iche people, who are part of the Maya.

“In other words, [scenes] from the creation of the cosmos. Here [in Chichén Viejo] priests officiated at and performed rituals related to fertility and primal divine deeds.”

Santos said that exploration work in the new section that was halted in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic will resume in 2021 to prepare it for its opening to the public next year.

However, vegetation covering some of the structures will not be removed, the INAH archaeologist said.

In the past vegetation at archaeological sites was completely removed but “we realized that was a serious mistake because we were removing the skin that protected the sites,” Santos said.

“What we’re seeking now is a balance between archaeological research and protection of the jungle,” he said.

“… We want people to see … a Mayan palace in the middle of the original flora. … With the [coronavirus] lockdown, the jungle has regenerated, we’ve seen deer and jaguars return to Chichén Itzá,” Santos said.

The INAH archaeologist said that people interested in visiting Chichén Viejo will have to make a reservation because entry will be limited to numbers well below those who usually visit the main site on a daily basis.

He explained that Chichén Itzá was an enormous city covering around 20 square kilometers and that even with the opening of the new section only 3% will be accessible to the public.

Santos said that about 2.5 million people visited the site in 2019 but numbers fell to approximately 950,000 last year due to the pandemic. He predicted that annual visitor numbers will increase significantly once the Maya Train railroad, which will have a station near Chichén Itzá, is operational.

(The railroad, which will run through Tabasco, Campeche, Yucatán, Quintana Roo and Chiapas, is currently under construction and scheduled to begin operations in 2023.)

“We’re certain that with the Maya Train, those 2.5 million visitors [we had in 2019] will multiply exponentially,” Santos said.

Source: Milenio (sp)

Sweeping electricity market overhaul deals blow to renewable energy

By

Jude Webber

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February 1, 2021

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power plant — Bill makes it clear that climate commitments are irrelevant,' analyst says.

Mexico has proposed a sweeping overhaul of its electricity market to favour the state-owned utility in a move that would deal a blow to the use of renewable energy in the country and raise trade tensions with the U.S. and Canada.

A fast-track bill introduced in Congress would change the order in which electricity is dispatched into the national grid, sending private investors to the back of the queue behind power from the Federal Electricity Commission, or CFE, the state utility.

Renewables producers, currently dispatched first because they are the cheapest, would lose that premier place.

The bill — the boldest overhaul in months of attempts to change rules in the sector — is expected to pass in Congress, where the Mexican government has a majority in both houses. It said it sought to end “years of sacking” by the private sector.

“It’s open war,” said Carlos Ramírez at Integralia, a consultancy, who saw the move as a step forward in President López Obrador’s desire to overturn a landmark 2013 law deregulating the energy industry. “It’s a sign the government is becoming more radical.”

One former energy sector official said some US $41 billion in private sector investments in electricity generation could be at risk and experts forecast it would trigger lawsuits, including claims under the USMCA free-trade treaty with the US and Canada.

Pablo Zárate, managing director at FTI Consulting, said that “although this bill does not mention expropriation or nationalization, it does seem like the kind of action that could be considered to have expropriatory effects.”

Only last month the U.S. warned Mexico that private investment under the USMCA as well as “hundreds of millions of dollars” in development aid co-operation was at risk from attempts to favour state energy companies. “We are obligated to insist that Mexico lives up to its USMCA obligations,” the U.S. wrote in a letter signed by former secretary of state Mike Pompeo and his energy and commerce counterparts.

Among other provisions, the new bill would scrap the use of long-term auctions for power purchases, calling such auctions “a perverse machination dreamed up with the sole aim of guaranteeing profitability to investments by private generators to the detriment of the CFE.” The bill also sought to scrap so-called self-supply contracts, which allow companies to generate electricity for their own use.

Ramses Pech, an energy consultant, said scrapping auctions “left the door open to corruption, since it would just be up to the CFE who they contracted.” Dispatching power from high-cost CFE plants into the grid first would push up costs, he said.

The new bill also contains provisions to enable CFE’s aging hydropower plants to obtain clean energy certificates, a move the industry says is a disincentive to investment in green power.

Jeremy Martin, energy vice president at the Institute of the Americas, said the bill made clear that climate commitments were “irrelevant.”

López Obrador, a fossil fuel champion, said Mexico’s energy laws had left the CFE “in ruins,” making moves to prioritize the utility a strategic imperative. The CFE posted a $3-billion loss in the first nine months of 2020, slipping into the red versus the same period in 2019. It has struggled with aging infrastructure and high pension costs.

Although self-supply contracts have been in force since 1992, the bill said Mexico’s 2013 energy reform enabled supply to third-parties, constituting “a fraud on the law.”

Discover the humble radish’s highly delectable appeal

By

Janet Blaser

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February 1, 2021

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In the city of Oaxaca, enough people love radishes that there is a longstanding Christmastime festival celebrated there called "Night of the Radishes". — In the city of Oaxaca, enough people love radishes that there is a longstanding Christmastime festival celebrated called "Night of the Radishes."

“What about radishes?” said my friend. “Write about them!”

OK, I thought, wondering if there were ways to eat them other than raw in salads or as an accompaniment to tacos. I was in for a surprise.

Turns out that roasting radishes, like with some of their root vegetable siblings, tames their sharpness a bit and gives them a mild flavor that’s similar to turnips.

Their characteristic spiciness comes from naturally occurring chemical compounds (the same as in wasabi, mustard and horseradish), influenced by various factors, including the weather: the hotter the climate they’re grown in, the spicier they’ll be. Radishes need to be harvested properly, as they become tough and bitter if left in the ground too long.

I always encourage you to shop locally, direct from the farmer if possible, to get the freshest produce. Radishes are another instance where the fresher they are, the brighter the taste and crisper the flesh. That’s also your best chance to find other radish varieties that have different colors, shapes and sizes.

Daikon, sometimes called Japanese radish, are large white tubers, eaten cooked in soups and side dishes more than raw. Depending on where you are, these can sometimes be found in your local mercado or grocery store.

A radish sculpted to look like the Virgin of Guadalupe for "Night of the Radishes" in Oaxaca. — A radish sculpted to look like the Virgin of Guadalupe.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the radish’s claim to fame: the annual Noche de los Rábanos, “Night of the Radishes,” celebrated in Oaxaca city every year on December 23. (I’ve never been, but it’s definitely on my rapidly-expanding “Must-See List” once this pandemic is over.)

While no one really knows who started carving radishes in Oaxaca, the unusual Christmas tradition began in 1897, when the then mayor decided to start an annual competition.

Nowadays, a special variety of radish is grown by the city government in a designated plot, fertilized heavily and left to grow long past a “normal” harvest time, which is how they get such strange shapes and gigantic sizes.

Five days before the event, the radishes are harvested and distributed to registered contestants, and the artistry begins. Participants carve the often-huge red-and-white tubers into an amazing array of religious figures, scenarios and creatures, which are then displayed in the main plaza.

The event is so popular that lines stretch for miles with people waiting to view the radish creations, which begin to wilt after only a few hours, although the display is left up for two or three days.

Back in your kitchen, the artistry may be less impressive but hopefully tastier! Try mincing the common round, red radish and adding it to chicken or tuna salad. Slice or cut radishes into thin matchsticks and use them in tacos or quesadillas, especially with carne asada. You can scatter them over nachos. The possibilities are nearly endless: add thin rounds to toast and cream cheese, put slices in sandwiches, toss with pesto and pasta or try any of the recipes listed here. Happy eating!

These roasted radishes will melt in your mouth.

Butter-Glazed Roasted Radishes

Halve radishes if they’re on the bigger side; otherwise, leave whole.

2 lb. radishes
Olive oil
Salt
3 Tbsp. butter
2-3 Tbsp. minced fresh cilantro or parsley

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Line baking sheet with parchment or foil. In a bowl, toss radishes with just enough olive oil to coat; season with salt. Arrange in even layer on baking sheet. Roast, stirring occasionally, until radishes are tender and lightly browned, about 40 minutes.

Melt butter in a medium skillet. Add radishes and toss. Remove from heat, stir in minced herbs. Season with salt if needed. — Serious Eats

Honey and lime juice mix well with radishes' natural spiciness. — Honey and lime juice mix well with radishes’ natural spiciness.

Radish Escabéche

⅓ cup fresh lime juice
1 Tbsp. honey
1 tsp. salt
1 bunch radishes, trimmed, thinly sliced
½ small white onion, thinly sliced
¼ cup fresh mint or cilantro
1–3 serrano or jalapeno chiles, thinly sliced, to taste

Whisk lime juice, honey and salt in a medium bowl until honey is dissolved. Add remaining ingredients; stir. Chill and serve.

Sauteed Radishes with Bacon

2-3 slices bacon
¾ lb. radishes, halved
2 tsp. apple cider vinegar
½ tsp. sugar
¼ cup fresh cilantro or flat-leaf parsley
Salt and pepper

Cook bacon until crisp; remove from pan and chop or break into bite-sized pieces.

Add radishes to same pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 8–10 minutes. Pour off all but 1 Tbsp. fat.

Add vinegar and sugar. Toss with herbs; season with salt and pepper.

Radish Raita

This refreshing side-dish salad is based on a traditional Indian recipe and provides a cooling balance to spicy foods.

1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
⅓ cup chopped fresh mint and/or cilantro, plus more for serving
1 serrano chile, seeded, minced
2 Tbsp. minced red onion
1 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
1 cup coarsely grated red radishes, plus more for serving
Salt

Mix together yogurt, herbs, chile, onion and lime juice. Gently fold in radishes; season with salt. Top with cilantro and grated radish.

Radishes are tubers that can grow to an astounding size.

Roasted Radish, Spinach & Herb Frittata

Spice up your favorite frittata recipe with sliced or halved radishes!

10 oz. frozen spinach (thawed)
3 Tbsp. olive oil
3 bunches radishes, cleaned, trimmed, cut into small wedges (about 3 cups)
1 red onion, thinly sliced
1 celery stalk, thinly sliced
1 serrano chile, sliced
Salt and pepper
8 eggs, whisked
Optional: ½ tsp. garam masala, fresh basil leaves and crumbled feta cheese

Preheat oven to 350 F. Squeeze and drain as much water as possible out of thawed spinach.

Heat oil in an ovenproof skillet over high, and cook radishes for 3 minutes without stirring. Carefully turn, exposing browned undersides, and cook, again undisturbed, until browned but not yet tender, about 3 minutes more. Reduce heat to medium-high.

Add leek, celery and chile. Cook, stirring, until softened but not browned, 6–8 minutes. Stir in garam masala if using, and cook until fragrant, 1 minute. Add spinach, separating any clumps; season with salt and pepper.

Remove from heat. Stir in eggs until evenly distributed. Transfer to oven and bake until eggs are set, 12–18 minutes. Remove and let sit 10 minutes.

Top with basil and feta. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Janet Blaser is the author of the best-selling book, Why We Left: An Anthology of American Women Expats, featured on CNBC and MarketWatch. A retired journalist, she has lived in Mexico since 2006.

Mexican variant? Mutation of coronavirus under study in Jalisco

By

MND Staff

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February 1, 2021

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Healthcare workers in Jalisco, where four cases are being studied for a mutation of the virus.

Health authorities are investigating whether a strain of the coronavirus detected in four people in Jalisco is a Mexican variant of SARS-CoV-2, a senior health official said Sunday.

Four cases of the virus with the E484K mutation were detected on Friday. The mutation, which appears to make the coronavirus more contagious, has been detected in new strains in South Africa and Brazil.

The cases are under investigation by the federal Institute of Epidemiological Diagnosis and Reference and state health authorities.

“We have to characterize their important components, the combinations of several mutations that the virus might have,” said Ruy López Ridaura, director of the Health Ministry’s National Center for Disease Prevention and Control Programs.

He told the Health Ministry’s coronavirus press briefing that it has to be determined if the virus is a new strain and if so it must be established whether it is more virulent or causes a more serious Covid-19 illness.

“… There are most probably mutations of the virus that are circulating among the Mexican public. In order to say [we have] a Mexican variant and to describe it as such, its significance [in terms of contagiousness and potential for harm] has to verified. It’s probable that there are several mutations that don’t have any impact” beyond that caused by the original strain, López said.

Meanwhile, Jalisco Governor Enrique Alfaro announced that the coronavirus restrictions that have been in place for the past two weeks will be extended until February 12.

Restrictions on opening hours and the ban on some economic activities in Jalisco, currently maximum risk red on the federal coronavirus stoplight map, were due to end on Sunday. But Alfaro said the government – which has used it own criteria rather than those of federal authorities to determine restrictions – had decided to keep the current rules in place because Jalisco is now facing “the most critical point of the pandemic.”

“We managed to stabilize things in … the past four days but we are [still] at the peak of the last 11 months of [the pandemic], during which we’ve worked intensively to look after lives and the health of Jalisco residents,” the governor said Friday.

During the extended “emergency button” period, supermarkets and shopping centers remain restricted to 25% capacity while restaurants can operate at 50% but must close by 10:00 p.m. Parks, sports centers and gyms will be permitted to reopen on Tuesday in recognition of the importance of exercise to good mental health but bars and nightclubs must remain closed. Recreation and sports facilities are limited to 50% capacity and must follow all health protocols.

Jalisco has recorded just under 195,000 cases since the beginning of the pandemic, according to state government data. The figure is much higher than the number reported by federal authorities – currently just over 70,000 – because the Jalisco government includes results from private labs and rapid tests.

The western Mexico state has recorded 8,443 Covid-19 deaths, according to both Jalisco and federal authorities, and there are an estimated 4,191 active cases. The occupancy rate for general care beds is 50% while 49% of those with ventilators are taken.

Alfaro said that a comprehensive plan to respond to the pandemic throughout 2021 will be presented on February 12, explaining that it will outline a timetable to return to in-person classes.

Schools in Jalisco and across Mexico closed in March 2020 and have not reopened since in any state, forcing students to learn online and via televised classes. About three-quarters of teachers in Campeche have already received a shot of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine as part of preparations to reopen schools.

But the plan to restart in-person classes hit a hurdle on Friday when the federal Health Ministry announced that Campeche would lose its green light low risk status and become a yellow light medium risk state on Monday.

Source: El Economista (sp), El Universal (sp), Informador (sp)

First of 1,870 sustainable houses delivered to low-income families in Puebla

By

Michelle Aguilar

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February 1, 2021

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Murals adorn the first two houses in a new sustainable housing program.

As it handed over new houses on Sunday to the first two recipients, the government of Puebla took the first steps toward delivering nearly 1,900 environmentally and economically friendly housing units to low-income citizens across the state.

Rosa and Adriana Conde received keys to their new homes in San Andrés Azumiatla, which was rated in 2010 as high in marginalization with 63% of homes lacking running water and 67% lacking a refrigerator.

The 50-square-meter, two-bedroom homes, equipped with solar hot water heaters and ecological stoves, were awarded as part of the state’s “Make a Home, Make a Future” program, which operates with federal funds via the state’s Ministry of Wellbeing.

The program, which began constructing new homes in November and has been providing other sorts of home-improvement benefits to marginalized communities throughout 2020, has promised to provide 1,870 such environmentally friendly homes by the end of 2021, with 870 to be delivered in March. According to state officials, the program is expected to benefit 7,480 people living below the poverty line in overcrowded conditions and without basic services.

Priority is given to single mothers, adults with disabilities, families with children, indigenous people, and senior citizens. However, recipients of homes are required to provide their own piece of land to build on.

Deputy Housing Minister José Antonio López Ruiz said the program has so far impacted 185,000 families in 90 of Puebla’s municipalities — many with forward-thinking home improvements ranging from solar heaters, ecological stoves, and nonconventional electricity sources to rainwater collection units.

Source: Milenio (sp)

With 670,000 doses given, vaccination falls short of January 31 objective by 40%

By

MND Staff

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February 1, 2021

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Doses of vaccine arrive at a vaccination center for teachers in Campeche.

The federal government fell short of its Covid-19 vaccination target for the end of January by almost 40%.

The government said in December that 1.1 million vaccine doses would be administered to health care workers by January 31.

But as of Sunday night, only 673,327 doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine – 61% of the target – had been given, according to federal Health Ministry data.

Of that number, 631,485 doses were administered as the first of the required two shots, while 41,842 doses were given as second shots. That means that only 6.6% of people who received a first shot of the Pfizer vaccine have the fuller protection provided by two shots.

Health Ministry data shows that Mexico has received a total of 766,350 doses of the Pfizer vaccine and used almost 88% of them.

As of Sunday night, there were only 93,000 unused doses in the country, and the next shipment of Pfizer vaccines is not expected until February 10 at the earliest because the company is currently updating its Belgium plant in order to boost production.

It is already clear that Mexico will not be able to administer all of the second required shots 21 days after the first ones were administered, as Pfizer says should occur. Deputy Health Minister Hugo López-Gatell, the government’s coronavirus point man, acknowledged as much on January 18 but stressed that the second dose can be administered up to 42 days after the first according to World Health Organization guidelines.

But due to the delay in delivery of further shipments of the Pfizer vaccine, it appears unlikely that Mexico will be able to meet that timetable for all people who have received one shot to date.

In addition to failing to meet its end of January vaccination target, the government didn’t keep to its plan to inoculate frontline health workers only between December 24, the day the first shot was administered in Mexico, and January 31.

An unknown number of so-called “servants of the nation” who are part of part of brigades of health workers, military personnel and volunteers that have been tasked with distributing and administering Covid-19 vaccines have received a shot of the Pfizer vaccine as have about 17,000 teachers in Campeche.

With regard to the former, López-Gatell claimed that their participation in the vaccination brigades made them eligible for early immunization, even though the government’s vaccination plan makes it clear that they should not be inoculated until March at the earliest.

The justification for vaccinating teachers in Campeche – even when some of the approximately 750,000 frontline health workers had yet received a first dose of the Pfizer shot – was that the Yucatán Peninsula state was low risk green on the federal government stoplight map and a return to in-person classes was possible.

However, that is no longer the case because the infection risk in Campeche rose to yellow light medium on Monday, having switched to that level on the updated stoplight map presented by health authorities on Friday.

Nevertheless, the vaccination of teachers in Campeche will continue because authorities are confident that the state will soon return to green, Health Ministry official Ricardo Cortés said Friday.

The decision to vaccinate teachers has been criticized on social media, where some users questioned why the government was rolling out the vaccine in a low risk state when Mexico City and several other states are going through their worst outbreaks since the coronavirus was first detected here almost a year ago.

Indeed, January was easily the worst month of the pandemic in Mexico in terms of both new coronavirus cases and Covid-19 deaths.

The Health Ministry reported 438,166 new cases in January, an increase of 40% compared to December, which was previously the worst month with 312,551 cases registered.

Reported Covid-19 deaths numbered 32,729 last month, a 65% surge compared to the previous monthly record of 19,867 deaths, which was also set in December.

Hospital occupancy for general care beds is 87% in Mexico City and 82% in México state, according to federal data, and above 70% in Puebla, Hidalgo, Morelos, Guanajuato, Nuevo León and Nayarit. All eight of those states, and five others, are maximum risk red on the coronavirus stoplight map.

In a country with a population of 126 million, it will at least be several months before vaccination begins to have a significant impact on the coronavirus pandemic. However, President López Obrador – currently ill with the virus himself – expressed optimism in a video message on Friday that the death rate will decline once the nation’s seniors are vaccinated.

He said that Mexico will receive 18 million vaccine doses in February and March and predicted that people aged over 60 will have received at least one dose of a vaccine by the end of the latter month.

Mexico expects to receive shipments of the Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Sputnik V and CanSino Biologics vaccines this month, although only the first two have so far been approved by the health regulator Cofepris.

Source: El Universal (sp), Infobae (sp)

Officials seize chameleons, turtles and 39 baby crocodiles and caimans

By

Michelle Aguilar

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February 1, 2021

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A chameleon found in a box at the airport in Querétaro.

Saturday was a busy day for the transportation of protected species: in three different states, authorities discovered chameleons, turtles, and baby crocodiles and caimans being transported illegally.

In none of the cases did the animals have accompanying paperwork to show legal acquisition or permission to transport them, all of which are protected species under Mexican law. The animals are now in the custody of the environmental protection agency Profepa.

Authorities found two chameleons and eight turtles at the Querétaro and the San Luis Potosí international airports, respectively. In both cases, the animals were being transported in cardboard boxes through package delivery services with locations at the airports.

In the Querétaro case, the chameleons were found by National Guard dogs trained to sniff out drugs, firearms and cash. According to the package’s paperwork, the reptiles had been shipped from Celaya, Guanajuato, and were destined for Monterrey, Nuevo León.

At San Luis Potosí, eight turtles were discovered wrapped inside socks. The protected species were discovered while guard members were doing routine inspections. The turtles had been sent from Solidaridad, Quintana Roo, and were supposed to be sent on to San Juan del Río, Querétaro.

In Villaflores, Chiapas, about 95 kilometers south of Tuxtla Gutiérrez, federal authorities were alerted by a citizen’s tip to a shipment of 39 crocodiles and caimans being transported stacked on top of each other in a Styrofoam cooler at a taxi dispatching station.

Sources: Milenio (sp)

Solar farm stalls; residents still without electricity after 10 years

By

MND Staff

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February 1, 2021

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Site of the solar farm on the Oaxaca coast. Work has been stalled since the fall.

Residents of a small fishing village in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec region of Oaxaca continue to live without electricity because construction of a solar farm promised by the federal government is stalled.

Located on a thin strip of land between the Gulf of Tehuantepec and the Laguna Inferior, Santa María del Mar hasn’t had power for 10 years after supply was cut off by the neighboring municipality of San Mateo del Mar amid an agrarian dispute.

In December 2018, the residents lobbied President López Obrador for the construction of a power plant and he subsequently promised to build a solar farm.

A fund for the farm, which is expected to cost 45 million pesos (US $2.2 million), was created in mid-June and the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) started to build it. However, the project was delayed for 10 months because people opposed to it prevented solar panels and other materials from reaching the site.

Work restarted in August last year but was soon suspended again with only 30% of the project completed.

Efraín Solano, an advisor to the residents of Santa María del Mar, told the newspaper Reforma that it was originally anticipated that the project would be finished in March or April this year.

But it will be impossible to meet that timetable as the partially-built solar farm is currently abandoned with no clear information about when the project might resume.

“All the while, we’re still without electricity. There hasn’t been power for 10 years,” Solano said.

He said that erosion has occurred at the solar farm site and that the CFE has been informed but has disregarded the information.

Reforma reported that 20 locals hired by the CFE to work on the project are not currently being paid. The newspaper also said that residents are demanding that the state-owned company complete the project and provide details about the location of the funds promised for it.

Source: Reforma (sp)

Canada’s 3-month flight suspension estimated to cost US $782 million

By

MND Staff

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February 1, 2021

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Tourism sector revenue could decrease by US $782 million as a result of the three-month suspension of flights from Canada to Mexico, according to Tourism Minister Miguel Torruco.

In a statement issued by the Tourism Ministry on Sunday, Torruco said there could be up to 791,000 fewer tourists as a result of the coronavirus prevention measures announced by the Canadian government.

In addition to the suspension of flights between January 31 and April 30, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Friday that all travelers entering the country will have to undergo Covid-19 PCR testing upon arrival at Canadian airports and go into quarantine at hotels for up to three days at their own expense.

The Canadian government said Friday that the mandatory quarantine requirement will start “as soon as possible in the coming weeks.”

Torruco said the cost of the new measures to the Mexican tourism industry could be less than estimated. The Canadian restrictions are similar to those imposed by the United States government and can be mitigated by Mexican airlines and hotels in tourist destinations offering Covid-19 testing to travelers before they return home.

However, it was unclear how Covid-19 testing in Mexico could make up for the hundreds of thousands of Canadian travelers who won’t arrive over the next three months.

Torruco also said that the new Canadian rules could reduce the flow of Mexican travelers to Canada by 372,000, costing that country US $368 million in lost revenue. Aeroméxico announced that it would suspend flights from Mexico to Canada from the second week of February until April 30

The coronavirus pandemic and associated restrictions had an outsized impact on the Mexican tourism industry in 2020 and hopes of a better 2021 have been thwarted by new rules put in place by several countries in light of the emergence of new, more contagious strains of the virus.

A United States rule requiring travelers to present a negative Covid-19 test before boarding flights to that country took effect last Tuesday. According to an executive order signed by United States President Joe Biden, people entering the U.S. are also required to followed Centers for Disease Prevention and Control guidelines and go into isolation for at least seven days.

Coronavirus restrictions and a reduced frequency of flights are also affecting travel to Mexico from European nations, Argentina and Cuba, among other countries. Mexicans cannot enter the EU for nonessential travel and people traveling to France, Spain and the Netherlands have to present a negative Covid-19 test before boarding flights.

The newspaper Milenio reported that Cuba is reducing flights to Mexico and several other countries to just one per week starting February 6 and Argentina has ordered airlines to reduce the frequency of flights to and from Mexico, Brazil, the United States and Europe.

Coronavirus cases and deaths in Mexico as reported by day. milenio

The expected decline in international arrivals is a double-edged sword for Mexico. While fewer tourists is in one respect welcome because it inevitably means fewer cases of the coronavirus are imported, the reduction in visitor numbers also means lower or no income for the millions of people who work in the tourism sector, which before the pandemic contributed to almost 10% of GDP.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs warned that Canada’s suspension of flights could not only affect Mexico but cause a “profound economic crisis” in North America.

Mexico is currently confronting a dual economic and health crisis, with GDP falling 8.5% in 2020 and confirmed coronavirus case numbers approaching 2 million.

As of Monday, 13 states are maximum risk red on the federal government stoplight map, meaning that their economies will function well below capacity for at least the first half of February. Seventeen states are high risk orange on the map while just two – Campeche and Chiapas – are medium risk yellow.

Mexico’s accumulated case tally increased to 1.86 million on Sunday with 7,030 new cases registered while the Covid-19 death toll rose to 158,536 with 462 additional fatalities.

On Saturday, there were 15,337 new cases and 1,495 additional deaths.

Source: Milenio (sp)