The growth of the urban area is contaminating seawater to a greater extent, much more than the industry in Yucatán, said the director of “Va Por la Tierra”, Salvador Castell-González, who emphasized that the increase in housing construction and unregulated hotels, especially in municipalities in the interior of the State, is worrying.
Within the framework of the third Forum on Sustainability, Industry, and Tourism 2024, held last week in the auditorium of the Secretariat of Economic Development and Tourism (Sefoet), the marine biologist and master of science in genomic biotechnology specified that this problem It is aggravated by the decrease in the percentage of water sanitation in the region, which went from 7% five years ago to 4.7% today, which is why it is urgent to take effective measures to counteract this trend.
He recognized that Mérida, Conkal, and Progreso already have regulations that require wastewater treatment and the installation of biodigesters in new constructions. On the contrary, in other less developed areas, these regulations are scarce or non-existent, which has increased from fixed sources of pollution.
The also president of the College of Postgraduates in Environmental Sciences and Biotechnology of the Southeast, AC, said that, despite the regulatory efforts in the industry, the latest Conagua report of 2023 indicates that .67% of pollution discharges to the aquifer comes from the agricultural industry, which includes chickens and turkeys, among others.
In contrast, domestic services and activities represent more than 75% percent of these discharges, which means that approximately three-quarters of the pollution in the state’s aquifer comes from offices, plazas, and homes.
Castell-González recalled that the mandatory installation of treatment plants or drainage systems in new constructions has been a proposal raised repeatedly, however, no effective measure has yet been achieved in this regard, which is why he called for awareness. and the adoption of more sustainable practices from homes, as a fundamental solution to mitigate water pollution in Yucatán.
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