UNESCO Seeks Clarification on Hotel in World Heritage Site

The UNESCO World Heritage Centre expressed concern over the construction of a hotel within the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve, a designated World Heritage Site. The hotel, part of the Mayan Train project, was initiated by the Ministry of National Defense (SEDENA) without formal notification to UNESCO, as required for projects within World Heritage Sites.

Following an article published by Proceso reporting the construction of a hotel within the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve, UNESCO requested detailed information from Mexican authorities regarding the hotel's construction and its potential impact on the Outstanding Universal Value of the Calakmul site. UNESCO considers this information crucial to assess the project's compliance with the World Heritage Convention's guidelines, which aim to protect the cultural and natural heritage of designated sites.

Calakmul, an ancient Maya city and its surrounding tropical forests, was inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List in 2002. The site was later expanded to include the entire Calakmul Reserve as a Mixed Cultural and Natural Heritage of Humanity.

The construction of the Mayan Train’s Calakmul hotel within a core conservation zone, where only scientific and conservation activities are allowed, has sparked criticism from environmental and heritage conservation groups. SEDENA began construction in January 2023, raising questions about the project's adherence to Mexico's environmental and heritage protection laws.

According to UNESCO’s office, once the requested information is received, the World Heritage Centre will proceed with a technical revision to verify the potential impact of this project on the Outstanding Universal Value of the site. Results will subsequently be delivered to the Mexican authorities, to guide the institutions responsible for the conservation and management of the site. Any relevant information resulting will be taken into account in the monitoring of the property's conservation status carried out by the World Heritage Committee.

According to Proceso, the status of Mixed World Heritage was granted to the Calakmul Reserve in 1989, when President Carlos Salinas de Gortari declared it a Protected Natural Area. This decree established a large core zone where only activities for the preservation of ecosystems, scientific research, and ecological education were allowed, prohibiting the construction of hotels or other tourist activities. However, in January 2023, SEDENA began construction of the Calakmul Mayan Train hotel within this zone, just 10km from the Calakmul archaeological site, violating the decree. The Mexican government modified the decree in September 2023, to retrospectively grant permission for construction through a zoning change within the reserve.