Comprehensive rescue of the Uayma cenote
On Saturday, November 25th, at 9am, work began on the comprehensive rescue of the Uayma cenote, located a few meters from the main square and the imposing temple and former convent of Santo Domingo, built in 1646. The Convento de Sisal AC Foundation, in conjunction with the Bepensa Foundation, Trivasa Company, the Higher Technological Institute of Valladolid, the H. Uayma City Council, SEDUMA and Expedition Grosjean, carried out activities related to the rescue and comprehensive rescue of this emblematic cenote.
In this first phase of the project, which will last several years, around 150 people came together, including residents, collaborators, authorities, and members of the foundations and institutions that supported the launch of this ambitious project. 400 kilos (6 cubic meters) of solid waste were extracted, including various types of tires (trucks, motorcycles, and bicycles), plastics, bottles, cans, plastics, clothing, and, of particular interest, a bag full of medications, which were undoubtedly highly toxic to the waters of this beautiful cenote.
During the work, while experts carried out sanitation work inside the body of water, residents and students from the Valladolid Higher Technological Institute (IIT) carried out the external sanitation work. Likewise, engineering students from this institute surveyed the cenote with the aim of understanding its characteristics and thus being able to begin designing a tourist resort, with the intention of adding another attraction to the town.
Although the cenote's visibility is only two meters, cave divers were able to observe a large concentration of organic matter composed of trunks, branches, and leaves constantly falling into the cenote. Hundreds of trees and plants adorn the beautiful formation and drop their parts into the cenote. The maximum depth is 11 meters.
At the end of the day, the mayor recognized the foundations, businesses, and institutions that supported the project. In a family-friendly atmosphere that attracted the residents of Uayma, the Convento de Sisal Foundation, in conjunction with the Trivasa company, offered lunch to all the families who came to observe and help. Meanwhile, the Bepensa Foundation distributed T-shirts with the slogan "Caring for Water, Protecting Life" with the intention of raising awareness among residents, especially children. They should always wear their T-shirts, as it is of the utmost importance to preserve this beautiful body of water, which may become an icon, as it was decades ago.
Present as witnesses and supporters for this cause were Dr. Renán Góngora Biachi, President of the Sisal Convent Foundation AC; Fernando Ponce Díaz, President of the Bepensa Foundation; the director of the Valladolid Higher Technological Institute (ITSVA), Narces Mendoza Ambriz; the director of Trivasa, Elsy Méndez Avilés de Alcocer; the mayor of Uayma, Ranulfo Cupul Ceme; the rector of the University of the East (UNO), Gonzálo Escalante Alcocer; and José Ruiz Silva de Seduma.
