Japan’s leading trading company, the Mitsubishi Corporation, has proposed an expansion to its large salt-mining company that is located at Laguna Guerrero Negro. Mitsubishi wishes to expand south to an area surrounding Laguna San Ignacio, occupying 21,000 acres of protected land surrounding the lagoon. Laguna San Ignacio is the second largest breeding and calving area off the western coast of Baja California where Gray Whales visit during the winter months. Mitsubishi’s 7 million ton per year facility at Laguna Guerrero Negro has grown to capacity and the cost of loading and shipping salt has become too expensive because the salt at the facility has to be shipped to Cedros Island. Then the salt has to be transferred onto cargo ships for international export, leading to the "double-handling" of salt. In moving south to Laguna San Ignacio the corporation will lower cost by increasing the amount of salt exported and eliminate the "double-handling" of salt, by creating a mile long pier that can carry the salt out to cargo ships. The irony is that this project would never of been considered if the Gray Whales were not removed from the Endangered Species list, yet, only a month after the Gray Whale was removed from the Endangered Species list the salt project proposal was submitted, possibly endangering this species once again.
THE GRAY WHALE
The Gray whale (Eschrichtius Robustus) is believed by scientists to play an intricate part in the web of life that is not fully understood. Yet, people chose to exploit whales for their resources, not taking into consideration the long-term effects it may have. Humans have twice driven the Gray Whales to near extinction for the convenience of oil or other superficial needs. Fortunately, with the help of the moratorium on commercial whaling and groups such as Grupo de los Cien, Natural Resources Defense Council, World Wildlife Fund, Pro Esteros and others, the Gray Whale numbers are at pre-exploitation, somewhere around 21,000. This salt expansion project could once again cause damage to the Gray Whale population along with the rich biodiversity that inhabits Laguna San Ignacio. The Laguna San Ignacio is the last undeveloped lagoon that Gray Whales can still visit without the interference of man’s progress.
THE POLITICS
Mitsubishi and the Mexican governments’ industrial salt company, Exportadora de Sal (ESSA-which Mitsubishi owns 49%), have set up a web site that describes the impact that they have had on the Laguna Guerrero Negro, the coastal environment and the biodiversity. On the web site, furnished by Mitsubishi and ESSA, it states frankly that "gray whale populations migrating to that region (Laguna Guerrero Negro) reached record numbers in 1997 affirming that whales can co-exist and thrive in a habitat located near such a facility" (bajasalt.com). They seemingly have taken credit for the increased number of whales near Laguna Guerrero Negro facility. The correlation made about the increased number of whales near and around the lagoon is misleading. One could hardly say that it "affirms that whales can co-exist and thrive". At "Laguna Guerrero Negro, ship traffic and pollution now prevents female Gray Whales from nursing and calving their young" (earthisland.org). This causes the nursing whales to move south to the safety of Scammons Bay. Another reason they travel south to Scammons is perhaps due to the lowering of salinity levels at Laguna Guerrero Negro. It is believed that the Gray Whales enjoy the high salinity levels because it gives them that extra buoyancy that keeps them afloat, which is needed for nursing (gurukul.ucc.).
Mitsubishi and ESSA have expressed their concerns about the Gray Whales and state in their web site, "we are committed to a thorough study of the possible impacts of the proposed project on the Gray Whale and on the ecosystem in general"(bajasalt.com). Their deep concerns go back as far as 1994 when their environmental impact statement described the lagoon and surrounding areas as "terrestrial wastelands, with little biodiversity and no known productive use" (Audubon 18). If their environmental impact statement was accurate in its depiction there would probably be no problem in converting 116 square miles of fragile terrain surrounding the lagoon to evaporation ponds. The 6,000 gallons of seawater that would be pumped out from the lagoon each second would not necessarily cause much damage to a so-called "wasteland." Nor the construction of roads, structures, or the "one mile pier which would allow salt to be moved by conveyor belt from a million-ton stockpile on shore to massive container ships anchored in deeper water" (Audubon 18), effect an area of "little biodiversity and no known productive use."
ESSA also insists that the local people are supportive of the project. Homero Aridjis, the director of Grupo De Los Cien, states just the opposite, that the "new saltworks is firmly opposed by the local population, who earn a good livelihood from fishing and whale-watching-related activities" (earthisland.org). The six small villages that total an estimated population of 320 are skeptical of the government. "They based this opinion on the situation at Guerrero Negro, where the local population continues to have a dismal standard of living while the Japanese employees of the saltworks live in a fenced-off compound" (gurukul.ucc.). People from Latin America are all to aware of the disappointing promises brought on by large corporations. Most corporations that move to Latin America do so because of the cheap labor and the less stringent environmental laws.
PROTECTION OF HABITAT
The Mexican government has shown great support in protecting its natural resources. In 1984 under the administration of President Miguel De la Madrid to administer the federal law of Environmental Protection, establishing a National System of Protected Areas comprising of four categories: National Parks, Natural Monuments, Ecological Reserves, and Biosphere Reserves (scilib.ucsd.4.1.2.). In 1988 the General Law of Ecological Balance and Environmental Protection was enacted, bringing two administrative sub-agencies responsible for the environmental conservation and enforcement. These were the National Institute of Ecology (INE) and the Federal Attorney General’s Office for Environmental Protection (PROFEPA). Actions of this sort enabled Mexico to reestablished control over their territory and natural resources
The Biosphere Reserves were created because they contained important representations of ecosystems that are in need of government protection in order to ensure the survival of endangered flora and fauna. It is obvious once one visits Laguna San Ignacio why it is within the boundaries of such a reserve. The Vizcaino Biosphere Reserve covers 2,346,790 hectare, the largest protected area in Latin America. Many of the marine and terrestrial plant and animal species are threatened or endangered of extinction. Laguna San Ignacio is home to sea turtles, dolphins, the endangered pronghorn antelope, mountain lions, coyotes, peregrine falcons, golden eagles, black brant geese, osprey, blue-wing teals, and the list goes on. Sections of the ecosystem consist of shallow waters and mangroves, which provide habitat for shorebirds and waterfowl. Serving "as an important hatchery for commercially valuable fish and shellfish species" (scilib.ucsd.2.1.2). Hardly the wasteland described in ESSA’s 1994 EIS.
Laguna San Ignacio has for centuries been ideal for Gray Whales and their calves in that it provides shelter from ocean storms, crashing waves and killer whales that are the Gray Whales number one predator. Thousands of Gray Whales must migrate from the cold, hostile waters of the, Arctic Ocean near Alaska, in the Bering, Chukchi, and Beaufort Seas, travelling sometimes 6,000 to 8,000 km to the warm waters of Baja California. The lagoon increases the success rate of the whales’ delivery and the calves’ survival, adding to the number of Gray Whales. Fortunately for the Gray Whale, Laguna San Ignacio has remained one of the least manipulated and human populated lagoons.
PLAN OF ACTION
First and utmost, there needs to be a thorough and accurate environmental impact assessment on Laguna San Ignacio and its surrounding areas. It is imperative that all structures to be planned and their immediate long term impacts taken into consideration. Chemicals must be approved along with the security measures that will be applied to them. Levels of temperature, salinity, noise, etc. need to be observed, monitored, and measured to ensure the protection of the biodiversity of this area. Several things need to be taken into account, especially the local people. The local people are just as part of the lagoon as the Gray Whales, and need to be given priority of jobs and benefits if in fact their way of living is going to be disturbed.
Progress should not include the conquering of nature. The short term,
upward stride that includes the depletion of our natural resources, species
or healthy environment should not exist in a developing country. Understanding
and using the precautionary principal ensures that our planet will not
allow detrimental decisions to mold our future or the future of generations
to come. Detailed observation and monitoring of all Gray Whale activities
during all phases of this project is the key to making sure we do not make
any major impacts on the Gray Whale populations. The full extent of the
Gray Whales role is not certain, therefore we should not allow any chance
of eradicating this species because of the knowledge we lack. Let us bestow
the same treatment to all species that we have on our own.
http://www.earthisland.org/journal/f96-16B.html
Reynolds, Susan. "Dooming a Whales Last Best Birthplace." Audubon July/August 1997: 18
The Gray Whale Nursery at Laguna San Ignacio
http://www.nrdc.org/nrdc/nrdc/nrdcpro/graywhale/grwnuint.html
United States. Dept. of Geography and Regional Development. United States Marine Mammal Commission. Conservation and Development in the Gray Whale Lagoons of Baja California Sur, Mexico. Washington: GPO, 1997.
http://scilib.ucsd.edu/sio/guide/z-serge.html
Welcome to the San Ignacio Solar Evaporation Facility Information Center
Whales and Habitat Preservation (MEXWHALE Case)
http://gurukul.ucc.american.edu/ted/mexwhale.htm
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