At a press conference in La Paz, members of the Citizen Front in Defense of Water and Life (Freciudav) called on residents to mobilize once again to protect the Sierra La Laguna Biosphere Reserve, warning that recent legal reforms could clear the way for the so-called “Uncle ChecoSanctuary” project. They allege the private initiative seeks to circumvent environmental law to enter the heart of the protected mountain range.
Activists said the proposed conservation and species introduction project is focused on land at the summit of Sierra La Laguna, specifically the Nuestra Señora del Rosario property. They contend the work planned for the San Miguelito property, located below the biosphere reserve, is being used as a distraction.
“They want us to focus our concern on a project ‘at the foot of the mountain,’ as stated in their Environmental Impact Statement, while their true interest lies in the upper part of the range,” Freciudav said. “They will likely attempt to quietly advance procedures for that area, which is why we have requested detailed information.”
The group urged the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat) to deny any authorization to the Brotherhood in Harmony Foundation, which is promoting the project.
“Our demand is directed at the authorities, not private individuals,” members said. “It is the authorities who must reject requests that could alter the mountain ecosystem.”
Freciudav announced it has activated a legal and social defense strategy, including public demonstrations like those that in previous years halted proposed large-scale mining projects.
The group also called on Semarnat’s Baja California Sur office not only to reject the proposal but also do so with clear legal justification. “It is not just a matter of denying the project, but of denying it with solid legal grounds,” they said.
The Brotherhood in Harmony Foundation, whose leadership includes individuals linked to the Green Ecologist Party of Mexico (PVEM), submitted an Environmental Impact Statement seeking approval to build a conservation and reproduction center for exotic species on a 90-hectare portion of the San Miguelito property, below the reserve.
However, activists warn that the foundation previously acquired the Nuestra Señora del Rosario property within the biosphere reserve, where it intends to introduce species such as bighorn sheep and pronghorn, animals that have never inhabited Sierra La Laguna.
Jorge del Ángel Rodríguez, president of the South Baja California Academic Collective, said relocating species to the reserve poses a threat to its biodiversity. The General Law of Ecological Balance and Environmental Protection and the General Law of Wildlife prohibit the introduction of exotic species into protected natural areas. But a reform approved this week in the Chamber of Deputies could remove that restriction, potentially opening the door to the sanctuary project.
More than 60 percent of Baja California Sur’s population depends on water originating in Sierra La Laguna, Freciudav noted, underscoring the ecological importance of the reserve.
According to the Chamber of Deputies’ gazette, the reform was approved with support from federal deputies Manuel Cota (PVEM) and Francisco Pelayo (PAN), while Luis Armando Díaz (PT) was recorded as absent.
Freciudav said it is urging citizens to remain informed and vigilant to prevent authorization of a project it believes could cause irreversible damage to one of the state’s most important natural reserves.
