The Bepensa Foundation, with support from the Grosjean Expedition, the Maya University of Quintana Roo, and in partnership with the Benito Juárez City Council, are joining forces to clean the "Del Parque" and "Rancho Viejo" cenotes.
Benito Juárez, Quintana Roo, July 11, 2019. Today, the Bepensa Foundation, in collaboration with Expedición Grosjean, the Universidad Maya de Quintana Roo, and the Benito Juárez City Council, are joining forces to clean the "Del Parque" cenote, located on Av. Puerto Juárez, LB, section 0872, 100.
The Bepensa Foundation's Cenote sanitation and rehabilitation program began in 2015. To date, in collaboration with archaeologist Sergio Grosjean and his "Grosjean Expedition," as well as with the support of institutions such as the Universidad Maya de Quintana Roo and the governments of each region, more than 20 cenotes have been remediated, preventing the contamination of hundreds of thousands of cubic meters of water belonging to the most important underground water reserve in southeastern Mexico.
In the second half of the year, the program reaches Cancún with the cleanup of the Del Parque cenote, from which approximately 6,000 kg of waste were recovered. On a second day, on Friday, July 12, another cenote in the same city, called Rancho Viejo, will be repaired. The program also seeks to remove as much trash as possible to benefit the water supply in this area of southeastern Mexico.
This activity included volunteers from Bepensa, the Universidad Maya de Quintana Roo, and the community. Together with the Bepensa Foundation and the Grosjean Expedition, they will make a positive impact on our environment by cleaning and protecting natural water sources.
Present at the event were Mr. Fernando Ponce, President of the Bepensa Foundation; Carlos Martín Briceño, Manager of the Bepensa Foundation; and Sergio Grosjean Abihmeri, Grosjean Expedition Leader.
Mr. Fernando Ponce expressed his satisfaction with the development of the cenotes program in Quintana Roo. He also thanked the Universidad Maya for its contribution and the City Council for its support and the facilities to carry out these initiatives.
Archaeologist Grosjean shared with the attendees that during the visit to this body of water, it was observed that it is being affected, both inside and outside, by polluting waste from the urban activity around it, as well as a condition conducive to accidents. Therefore, the City Council was advised to build perimeter borders in the 4 cavities of the cenote to avoid accidents and the direct fall of solid waste and organic matter due to drag.
Therefore, the cleanup process will involve a team of divers extracting waste from the bottom of the cenote, while volunteers from Bepensa and the Universidad Maya will collect the trash found on the surface for later sorting.
Along with this activity, the area surrounding the cenote will be reforested with 50 local trees, which will contribute to the recovery of water for the Yucatán Peninsula's water table.
Bepensa and the Bepensa Foundation reaffirm their commitment to environmental protection through ongoing actions to protect water and positively impact the communities where they operate.
