| Geo-Mexico, the geography of Mexico - Part 6

Hurricane Patricia, a Category 5 hurricane, about to hit the Pacific coast

 Mexico's geography in the Press  Comments Off on Hurricane Patricia, a Category 5 hurricane, about to hit the Pacific coast
Oct 232015
 

Follow-up, 28 October 2015: In the event, Hurricane Patricia did not cause anywhere near the catastrophic damage that it might have. This was partly because it was narrower than most hurricanes of its size and happened to continue on a path that missed the major resorts of Puerto Vallarta and Manzanillo, and partly because it then rapidly lost strength as it smashed into the Western Sierra Madre (Sierra Madre Occidental), though it did bring torrential rain to many areas. This post-hurricane report in the Mexico Daily News summarizes the impacts.

Post-hurricane photos and video:

Original post:

As of Friday morning (23 October), Hurricane Patricia is a Category 5 hurricane, the highest rating possible, and “now the strongest ever hurricane to hit the eastern north Pacific region”, according to World Meteorological Organization spokeswoman Clare Nullis, citing an update from the US National Hurricane Center (NHC).

Hurricane Patricia’s central pressure of 880mb is the lowest for any tropical cyclone globally for over 30 years.

The maximum sustained winds associated with Hurricane Patricia are up to 325 km/hr (200 mi/hr), “enough to get a plane in the air and keep it flying”.

hurricane-patricia-2

Hurricane Patricia is heading towards land at 16 km/hr (10 mi/hr), and is currently predicted to make landfall somewhere close to Manzanillo in the state of Colima, later today (Friday 23 October).

Map of Pacific Coast beaches. Copyright 2010 Tony Burton. All rights reserved.

Map of Pacific Coast beaches. Copyright 2010 Tony Burton. All rights reserved.

Hurricane warnings are in effect for several towns along the Pacific coast, including the major resort of Puerto Vallarta. Puerto Vallarta has established 18 shelter locations to house evacuees.

People living in the coastal areas of the states of Nayarit, Jalisco, Colima and Michoacán are all likely to experience severe impacts from this hurricane. The hurricane could cause a significant storm surge up to 2 meters high along much of the coast, and potentially up to 6 meters high in some bays such as Barra de Navidad-Melaque, and neighboring Cuestacomate.

hurricane-patricia

Officials are warning residents to prepare for torrential rain (in excess of 300 mm is expected in some areas), exceptionally-strong winds and power outages, and are readying emergency shelters. Air traffic is already being affected, with delays reported for various domestic flights.

Mexico’s national water commission, CONAGUA, reports that the government has 1,782 temporary shelters available in the states of Michoacán, Colima, and Jalisco with a combined capacity of more than 258,000 people. Around 50,000 people should have been evacuated before the hurricane hits land, according to Mexican Civil Protection agencies.

Once it makes landfall, the hurricane is expected to weaken quickly, though inland areas, such as Guadalajara and the Lake Chapala area, will receive heavy rain.

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The Richardson Pan-American Highway Expedition of 1941

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Oct 222015
 

It is easy to forget how rapidly transportation systems have changed since the horse and buggy days. The completion of the Mexican stretch of the Pan-American Highway (i.e. the part from the U.S. border to Guatemala) in the late 1940s was a significant turning-point in the development of Mexico’s road network. The highway made previously remote areas more accessible. It also served as a symbol of unity and Mexico’s progress into the modern era.

The official route of the Pan-American Highway through Mexico is from Nuevo Laredo in Tamaulipas south to Mexico City along Highway 85, and then continuing on Highway 190 to Oaxaca and the border with Guatemala. Various northern “spurs” were later added, including one from Nogales to Mexico City along highway 15, the route used by Richardson’s expedition:

Mexican section of Pan-American Highway, 1941 (from Richardson's Adventure South)

Mexican section of Pan-American Highway, 1941 (from Richardson’s Adventure South)

Prior to its completion, only a handful of intrepid souls had dared to attempt driving the entire route of the Pan-American Highway through Mexico. The most noteworthy expedition was the three-man Richardson Pan-American Highway Expedition of 1941. Amazingly, with only occasional assistance from mules, trucks, passers-by and boats, this expedition successfully drove all the way from Detroit in the U.S. to Tierra del Fuego, Chile.

The three men – christened “The Three Damn Fools” – were journalist Sullivan Richardson, Arnold Whitaker and Kenneth C. Van Hee. The car they used was a 1941 Plymouth 4 door sedan, serial No. 15031250, engine number P11-214804.

In the words of Jim Benjaminson, who (years later) helped track down the whereabouts of the car:

 “The Richardson Pan-American Highway Expedition is perhaps one of the greatest automotive stones of all time. In scope and magnitude it surpasses those pioneer automobilists that first crossed the United States at the turn of the century The Richardson Expedition crossed not only this country but encompassed the area spanning two continents-crossing trackless wilderness, endless mud, uncharted territory and obstacles of every sort that Mother Nature could throw against them.

The men of the expedition, Sullivan C. Richardson, Arnold Whitaker and Kenneth C. Van Hee were many times called “Three Damn Fools” by friends and foes alike. It is a title that was perhaps fitting, considering the almost insurmountable odds against their succeeding -but succeed they did -and now that title is worn proudly- The Richardson Pan American Highway Expedition was perhaps the last great automotive adventure undertaken on the face of this earth.”

Oaxaca section of Pan-American Highway, 1941

Oaxaca section of Pan-American Highway, 1941. (Richardson’s Adventure South)

Oaxaca section of Pan-American Highway, 1941

Oaxaca section of Pan-American Highway, 1941 (Richardson’s Adventure South)

Some idea of the difficulties they encountered can be gleaned from these photographs taken south of Oaxaca, where one 80 km (50 mile) stretch (pictured) took them 25 days to complete! Today, that same section is an hour’s drive along smooth asphalt…

The whole epic story, complete with photos, can be read online here. The story and photos originally appeared in issues #135, #136 and #137 of the Plymouth Bulletin (1982).

Sullivan C. Richardson: Adventure South (Arnold-Powers Inc., 1942).

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Honey, what’s on that label?

 Other  2 Responses »
Oct 192015
 

While updating our posts on honey recently, we took a look at which brands of Mexican honey sell overseas and how these brands are labeled. Let’s take a closer look at two of them.

Alasia Honey from the Yucatan

Alasia Honey from the Yucatan (click to enlarge)

First up is Alasia Honey, labeled as “Pure Mexican Yucatan Tropical Forest Honey”. The smaller print says that “This Mexican honey is from the tropical forests of the Yucatan peninsula, the ancient heart of the Maya people, where beekeeping has been a spiritual art for thousands of years.” Great description, and sounds pretty accurate in all respects. Native Mexican honeybees were, and are, important to the Maya people, and the natural vegetation of most of the Yucatan Peninsula is, indeed, tropical evergreen forest.

Next up is Asda Mexican Fairtrade Organic Clear Mexican Honey:

Asda Fair Trade Mexican Honey

Asda Fair Trade Mexican Honey (click to enlarge)

Anytime the “Fairtrade” name is used, most people assume that it is likely to be more respectful to the producers, and probably also assume that any further description will be culturally sensitive and geographically accurate. This is only partly true for the Asda honey. Below the Fairtrade symbol, it says “Guarantees a better deal for Third World Producers.” The term “Third World” slipped out of fashion (for good reason) a long time ago, so hardly counts as contemporary development terminology.

The small print along the bottom of the label says, “Specially sourced from farms in the remote areas of the Mexican Sierras”. Hmm… really?? There are several areas of high relief in Mexico that are named “Sierra” (“Mountain Range”), the two major ones being the Western Sierra Madre and the Eastern Sierra Madre, both well to the north of Mexico’s main honey-producing states. Most organic honey in Mexico comes from the Yucatán Peninsula, where there are no Sierras. Hence, the claim that this honey originates in “remote areas of the Mexican Sierras” is, at best, geographically ambiguous, and at worst, geographically inaccurate.

We don’t know which honey tastes better, but we do know which has the more honest and culturally-sensitive labeling!

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Chinese imports threaten bicycle manufacturing in Mexico

 Mexico's geography in the Press  2 Responses »
Oct 152015
 

Since we first reported on Bicycle manufacturing in Mexico in 2010, a number of things have changed.

At that time, the website of the National Association of Bicycle Manufacturers claimed that its 14 member companies produced about 3 million bikes a year and employed, between them, 4,000 workers. Today, the group has fewer members – 12 – who make “over 2 million” bikes a year and provide 3,000 jobs.

Stamp of Bike exports

The Mexican bicycle manufacturing industry looks like it has to overcome a tough problem. Recent press reports suggest that the total number of bicycles produced nationally fell to around 1.8 million in 2014. Manufacturers are blaming the uncontrolled imports of less expensive bikes made in China. Gunter Maerker, a representative of the National Association of Bicycle Manufacturers, argues that manufacturers need greater protection from Chinese imports, which have an average cost of about 7 dollars a unit, compared to a unit cost of production that is closer to 20 dollars to make a bicycle in Mexico.

Domestic manufacturers sold 1.5 million bikes in the national market in 2014. Mexican manufacturers believe that sales of imported bikes equaled or exceeded that number. The fall in national bicycle manufacturing has already had impacts on suppliers of components since national bikes are made largely of domestically-manufactured parts (along with some items sourced in China or Taiwan).

Mexican bicycle manufacturers are also worried about the implementation of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), agreed in principle earlier this month, but still needing formal approval in all signatory countries. The 12 countries involved are Mexico, the U.S., Canada, Chile, Peru, Australia, Japan, Brunei, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and Vietnam.

China has had no part in TPP discussions, but it is feared that Chinese manufacturers may triangulate their products into Mexico via signatory countries such as Malaysia or Vietnam.

In 2015, the National Association of Bicycle Manufacturers lists 12 bike manufacturers:

  • Bicicletas Cinelli – Santa Catarina, Nuevo León
  • Nahel – Durango, Durango
  • Goray – Torreón, Coahuila
  • Grupo Veloci – Zapopan, Jalisco
  • Rebimo de Guadalajara – Zapopan, Jalisco
  • Bicicletas Mercurio, Mérida and San Luis Potosí (they acquired the famous Acer-Mex Windsor brand in 2001)
  • Bimex – Mexico City
  • Magistroni – Mexico City
  • Benotto (primarily a distributor) – Mexico City
  • Grupo Oriental – Mexico City
  • Corporativo La Bici – Mexico City
  • Bicileyca – Yauhquemehcan, Tlaxcala

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More water meters for Mexico City

 Mexico's geography in the Press, Updates to Geo-Mexico  Comments Off on More water meters for Mexico City
Oct 122015
 

A recent OOSKAnews report says that Mexico City’s water authority (Sacmex) is seeking to purchase 27,835 more water meters that it plans to install in coming months. Sacmex supplies water to around 2 million separate addresses, of which 1.4 million are already metered. The latest purchase is part of Sacmex’s plan to ensure that 100% of connections to the water system are metered. Sacmex’s current budget includes $3.5 million for an additional 40,000 meters.

sacmex

At present, users without a meter pay a fixed bi-monthly tariff based on the building category, and intended type of water use (domestic/industrial/commercial).

Funding for the meters will be part of a $200 million World Bank-supported “Program to Improve the Efficiency of Operating Organizations” (PROME) which has already financed various projects across the country for urban areas with populations over 20,000. Projects already funded by the Progam include more efficient pumps, the updating of user databases with geo-referencing technology, and studies to gauge the robustness of indicators such as water pressure, water quality and leak detection.

Sacmex is also working on other distribution issues. Earlier this year – see Water in Mexico: a human right that is currently subsidized and wasted – Sacmex CEO Ramón Aguirre Diaz said that the agency required $430 million to combat leakages in the system (currently estimated at around 40% of supply), and claimed that a long-term program to fix the problem would be introduced next year.

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The most livable cities in Mexico

 Mexico's geography in the Press  2 Responses »
Oct 082015
 

Which are the most livable cities in Mexico? In an attempt to find out, each year the consultancy Gabinete de Comunicación Estratégica (GCE) publishes its National Quality of Life Index. For the 2015 version of this index, GCE polled more than 30,000 people in 55 cities about their housing, education, transport, cleanliness, recreational opportunities, security, natural beauty and local attractions.

Cities mentioned in this post

Cities mentioned in this post

Which city came top? The top-ranking city was Mérida, which scored 83.3 out of a possible 100 points, followed by Saltillo (79.6), and Aguascalientes and Mazatlán (tied at 78.8).

Which cities came bottom? The five cities rated least desirable were Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Ecatepec, Acapulco, Ciudad del Carmen and Chilpancingo.

Which cities rose most in the rankings? The cities which rose most in the rankings from last year were Saltillo, which rose five places; Tijuana, which jumped 21 places to #25, and Tlalnepantla, which improved 13 places to #36.

  • Link to full study (pdf file in Spanish)- Ciudades mas habitables, 2015

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Mexican products with denomination of origin status

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Oct 012015
 

Denomination of origin status (aka designation of origin, appellation of origin) has been awarded over the years to numerous Mexican products (see image). The status provides some legal protection to the use of the name and sets geographic limits on the areas where the items can be produced. The general declarations of denominations of origin are issued by the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property and published in the official federal broadsheet Diario Oficial de la Federación (DOF).

mexico-denomiation-of-origin-poster

Three products are related to art and handicrafts:

  • Olinalá (laquer work from Olinalá in the state of Guerrero)
  • Talavera ceramics
  • Amber from Chiapas

Most, however, are related to food and drink:

  • Tequila (Jalisco, Nayarit, Tamaulipas, Michoacán and Guanajuato);
  • Mezcal (Guerrero, Oaxaca, Durango, Zacatecas and San Luis Potosí);
  • Bacanora (Sonora);
  • Coffee from Veracruz (Veracruz);
  • Sotol (Chihuahua, Coahuila y Durango);
  • Coffee from Chiapas (Chiapas)
  • Charanda (Michoacán);
  • Mango Ataulfo from the Soconusco region (Chiapas);
  • Vanilla from Papantla (Veracruz)
  • Chile habanero (Yucatán Peninsula)
  • Rice from Morelos

Perhaps, therefore, it is not surprising that Mexican cuisine has been acclaimed as one of the most varied in the world. In 2010, the traditional Mexican cuisine of Michoacán was added to the UNESCO List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Mexican cuisine was up for more international awards this week when 10 of the country’s restaurants made the list of the top 50 in Latin America.

The World’s 50 Best organization named eight restaurants in Mexico City and one each from Nuevo León and the State of México among the 50 best in Latin America. Three of them — Quintonil which placed sixth, Pujol ninth and Biko 10th —also made the list of the world’s top 50 this year.

They were followed by the only restaurants outside the Federal District: Pangea in Monterrey, Nuevo León, which placed 13th, and Amaranta in Toluca which was 22nd.

The other winners were Sud 777 (27th), Máximo Bistrot (41), Rosetta (44), Nicos (47) and Dulce Patria (49).

Other aspects of Mexican life and culture on the UNESCO list include the Indigenous Festivity dedicated to the Dead (added in 2003); Places of memory and living traditions of the Otomí-Chichimecas people of Tolimán: the Peña de Bernal (2009); the Ritual ceremony of the Voladores in Veracruz (2009); Parachicos in the January fiesta in Chiapa de Corzo, Chiapas (2010); Pirekua, the traditional song of the Purépecha, Michoacán (2010); and mariachi music (2011).

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The continued devaluation of the Magic Town program: 28 more Magic Towns named

 Mexico's geography in the Press, Updates to Geo-Mexico  7 Responses »
Sep 282015
 

The gradual devaluation of Mexico’s Magic Towns (Pueblos Mágicos) program, reported here in earlier posts, continues with the recent addition of 28 new Magic Towns to the list, bringing the total number to 111.

Magic Towns

At the Second Annual Fair of Magic Towns, held in Puebla recently, the Federal Tourism Secretary Enrique de la Madrid announced that 28 of the 180 applicant towns had been accepted into the promotional program. The designation is supposedly reserved for “cities, towns and villages with special symbolic features, legends and history, and opportunities in tourism”, but several existing Magic Towns have very little indeed to offer tourists, and little cultural or historical significance. The same can be said for several of the latest group of 28 Magic Towns.

Towns, by state (September 2015) [corrected]

Mexico’s Magic Towns, by state (September 2015) [corrected]

Towns in the program are eligible for federal grants towards maintenance, rebuilding historic centers, improving infrastructure, installing underground utilities, developing tourism products, training and other projects. According to Magic Town proponents, the program increases visitor numbers and income by between 20 and 30%, though it is very hard to see where such positive numbers come from.

The latest 28 additions to the Magic Towns program are:

  • San José de Casas (Aguascalientes)
  • Candela and Guerrero (Coahuila)
  • Palenque (Chiapas)
  • Aculco, Ixtapan de la Sal [incorrectly given as Ixtapa de la Sal in the press release], Teotihuacán, San Martín de las Pirámides and Villa de Carbón (State of Mexico – Estado de México)
  • Tecozahutla (Hidalgo)
  • Mascota and Talpa de Allende (Jalisco)
  • Sayulita, (Nayarit)
  • Linares (Nuevo León)
  • Huautla de Jiménez, Mazunte, San Pablo Villa Mitla and San Pedro y San Pablo (Oaxaca)
  • Atlixco and Huauchinango (Puebla)
  • Isla Mujeres and Tulum (Quintana Roo)
  • San Joaquín (Querétaro)
  • Mocorito (Sinaloa)
  • Tlaxco (Tlaxcala)
  • Coscomatepec, Orizaba and Zozocolco (Veracruz)

On a positive note, it means that my Western Mexico, A Traveler’s Treasury (2013) now has descriptions and details of no fewer than 18 Magic Towns, rather than the 15 previously included!

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Mexico’s multinationals: Mexichem, a world leader for PVC pipes and other products

 Other, Updates to Geo-Mexico  Comments Off on Mexico’s multinationals: Mexichem, a world leader for PVC pipes and other products
Sep 202015
 

Mexichem is a Mexican chemical and petrochemicals company (2014 total revenues: US$ 5.6 billion), with headquarters in Tlalnepantla, in Greater Mexico City. Mexichem is a world leader in making and marketing plastic pipes and other products required in the infrastructure, housing, telecommunications, drinking and potable water sectors.

It employs 19,200 workers and has 120 manufacturing operations in more than 30 countries, with a sales presence in 90 countries.

Mexichem operations, 2015

Mexichem operations, 2015 (Source: mexichem.com)

The company’s origins date back to 1953 when a group of Mexican and English investors founded Cables Mexicanos S.A. to make high carbon steel wire ropes. Several changes of name and owners later, it emerged in 2005 as Mexichem. Mexichem has grown rapidly since then, largely due to an aggressive series of acquisitions.

In 2006, Mexichem bought Bayshore Group (PVC compounding). In 2007, it bought Amanco (PVC pipe systems and fittings), Petroquímica Colombiana (maker of PVC resins) and DVG, Industria e Comércio de Plásticos (producer of rigid PVC water and sewage pipes).

In 2008 Mexichem acquired Fluorita de Río Verde (fluorspar production plants and two fluorite mining concessions), Quimir (sodium phosphates), Geotextiles del Perú (geotextiles), Fiberweb Bidim Industria e Comércio de Não-Tecidos (Brazilian geotextile producer) and Colpozos (Colombia’s leading supplier of irrigation and well drilling systems).

The list goes on in succeeding years, with a succession of acquisitions of companies making PVC pipes, connections, polymers, resins, and fluorochemical competitors to become a world leader in the fluorine chemical segment, particularly in the production of refrigerant and medical gases.

mexichem-fluor

To consolidate its fluorite business, in 2012, Mexichem bought Fluorita de México, ensuring access to the highest pure fluorspar available worldwide.

Mexichem has four main business divisions:

  • Pipe systems, fittings, conduits and plastic accessories for the delivery of data, video, communications, electricity, water and gas. The pipe systems are made from polyethylene, PVC, polypropylene and specialty flame and smoke resistant compounds.
  • PVC resin and valuable industrial compounds based on chlorine and caustic soda. PVC has uses from pipes that carry drinking water, wastewater or water for irrigation to construction materials and products, as well as  auto parts, household appliances, clothing, footwear, packaging and medical devices. Caustic soda is used to make soap, shampoo, lotions and detergents and to treat water.
  • Fluorine-based products, technologies and services. Mexichem’s “Mine to Market” structure ensures a secure supply chain of flourine-based products for the steel, cement, aluminum, automotive, refrigeration and pharmaceutical sectors.
  • Energy. This division was created in 2014 in order to capitalize on opportunities arising from Mexico’s new energy policies.

A note on Mexico’s importance for fluorite

Exports of fluorite from Mexico were worth $180.7 million in 2014 (29% of the world total), making Mexico the world’s leading exporter of that mineral, ahead of China ($120.2 m). In 2014, Mexico mined 1.1 million metric tons of fluorite, and was the world’s second largest producer after China (4.4 million tons).

Mexichem sits on the world’s largest high-grade fluorite deposits, in its mine in San Luis Potosí. It produced 529,464 metric tons of fluorite from this mine in the first six months of 2015, 96% of the national total.

The world’s largest total reserves of fluorite are in South Africa (41 million tons), followed by Mexico (32 million), China (24 million) and Mongolia (22 million), according to U.S. government figures.

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Thirty years ago: the 1985 Mexico City earthquakes, a major disaster

 Excerpts from Geo-Mexico  Comments Off on Thirty years ago: the 1985 Mexico City earthquakes, a major disaster
Sep 172015
 

The worst earthquake disaster in modern Mexican history occurred thirty years ago this week. On Thursday 19 September 1985 a magnitude 8.1 earthquake struck at 7:19 a.m. and lasted a full two minutes. It was followed by a 7.5-magnitude earthquake 36 hours later.

Mexico's position in relation to tectonic plates

Mexico’s position in relation to tectonic plates.Map: Geo-Mexico.com; all rights reserved

These earthquakes resulted from the Cocos Plate (see map) pushing under the North American Plate. While the epicenters were 50 km off Mexico’s Pacific coast, near the Michoacán-Guerrero border, most of the damage occurred 350 km (215 mi) away in Mexico City because the city center’s subsoil, being former lakebed, is very unstable. The clay and silt beneath the city is up to 50 m thick in the area that received most damage. Geologists have likened the effects of the earthquake to the shaking of a bowl of jelly.

Further damage was caused by liquefaction, a process in which water is squeezed rapidly through the pore spaces in soil, dramatically reducing its cohesion. The sediments beneath Mexico City amplified the ground motions during the earthquakes and many buildings were stressed well beyond building code limits.

Damage from Mexico City's 1985 earthquake

Damage from Mexico City’s 1985 earthquake. Photo: Tony Burton; all rights reserved

Damage estimates range upward to 10,000 deaths, 50,000 injured and 100,000 homeless. More than 500 buildings collapsed, and a further 600 of the 3000 damaged structures were subsequently razed to the ground. The destruction was concentrated in a relatively small area near the city center and included many public buildings, such as government offices, as well as 11 hospitals and clinics, numerous multi-story apartment blocks, 11 hotels and 10 banks. More than 1600 school classrooms were damaged.

Buildings of between 6 and 15 stories were especially hard hit. The underbelly of the city was exposed; dozens of textile sweatshops were destroyed. The damages revealed many instances of poor construction standards and of poor enforcement of building codes. Well-built high rises such as the Latin American tower, designed to be earthquake-proof, were unscathed.

The total cost to the Mexican economy was estimated to exceed $5 billion, equivalent to 2% of the country’s GDP (Gross Domestic Product).

The disastrous 1985 earthquakes led to much tighter building codes, equal or superior to anywhere in the world, and to the formation of well-trained emergency search and rescue brigades. They also resulted in the establishment of a Seismic Alarm System which provides a 50-second warning for any earthquake measuring over 6.0 on the Richter scale occurring off the coast of Guerrero or Michoacán.

This is an excerpt from chapter 2 of Geo-Mexico: the geography and dynamics of modern Mexico.  Many more details of Mexico’s geology and landforms are analyzed in other parts of the book; take a look using Amazon.com’s Look Inside feature before buying your copy today!

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Mexico celebrates 205 years of independence

 Other  1 Response »
Sep 142015
 

Happy birthday, Mexico! On 16 September 2015, Mexico celebrates the 205th anniversary of its independence from Spain.

Mexican flag

When was Mexico’s War of Independence?

The long struggle for independence began on 16 September 1810; independence was finally “granted” by Spain in 1821.

Want some map-related geographic trivia associated with the War of Independence?

Events in the War of Independence called for an accurate map of Lake Chapala, Mexico’s largest natural lake. The cartographer for this map was José María Narváez, whose major contributions to Mexican cartography in succeeding decades have largely been forgotten.

The first truly national map, compiled in 1857-1858 from a meticulous reconciling of the work of numerous local cartographers, was drawn by Antonio García Cubas. García Cubas did not graduate from university until a few years after completing this map!

Nationalism and the start of Mexico-USA migration, but not in the direction you might think…

Following independence, the rush was on to draw an accurate map of all of Mexico’s territory. Mexico’s boundaries following independence were very different to today. Flows of migrants linking the USA to Mexico at that time were from the USA to Mexico, the reverse of the direction of more recent flows, which have seen millions of Mexicans migrate north looking for work:

Some national symbols are not quite what you might think, either!

The story of the national emblem (used on coins, documents and the flag) of an eagle devouring a serpent, while perched on a prickly-pear cactus, is well known. Or is it?

Why is “El Grito” held on the night of 15 September each year?

In 1910, then president Porfirio Díaz decided that the centenary of Mexican independence should be celebrated in style. One of the reasons why the “traditional” Grito (“shout”) is made on 15 September each year, rather than on the morning of 16 September (when Father Miguel Hidalgo apparently gathered his parishioners in revolt) is because 15 September 1910 happened to be Díaz’s 80th birthday. Why not have one big bash and celebrate both president and country at the same time? Even though the Mexican Revolution broke out later that year (and Díaz was later exiled to Paris), Mexico continues to start its annual independence-day celebrations on the evening of 15 September.

Not to be confused with Cinco de Mayo (5 May)

Many people incorrectly assume that Cinco de Mayo (5 May) is Mexico’s independence day. The Cinco de Mayo has nothing to do with Independence, but everything to do with a famous victory over the French. It commemorates the Battle of Puebla, fought on May 5, 1862. The battle marks Mexico’s only major military success since independence:

Independent country, independent book:

Mexico has come a long way in 200 years, but amazingly, to the best of our knowledge, Geo-Mexico: the geography and dynamics of modern Mexico, is the first-ever book in English focused exclusively on the nation’s varied and fascinating geography.

¡Viva Mexico!

Mexican flag

Mexico, paradores and the Route of Cortés

 Mexico's geography in the Press  4 Responses »
Sep 102015
 

We have seen numerous examples in previous posts of Mexico’s astonishingly diverse attractions for international tourism. Having succeeded in attracting mass tourism (e.g. Cancún, Ixtapa, Huatulco), Mexico has sought to diversify its tourism appeal by developing niche markets for visitors with special interests, such as cuisine, adventure tourism, historic sites and health-related holidays.

Mexico’s tourism development agency, FONATUR, recently announced it is seeking help from Spain’s leading cultural tourism firm, Paradores de Turismo, to establish a network of Paradores (luxury hotels in historic buildings) in Mexico. Frequent travelers to Spain will be more than familiar with the Paradores system there which offers visitors the chance to stay in some unique historical buildings without sacrificing too many creature comforts.

Route followed by Cortés, 1519-1521. Credit: Wikimedia Commons.

Route followed by Cortés, 1519-1521. Credit: Wikimedia Commons. Click to enlarge.

In Mexico, a “History Tourism Plan” is being developed by FONATUR and the Federación de Haciendas, Estancias y Hoteles Históricos de México. In the first stage, an inventory will be compiled of the best existing haciendas, monasteries and other historic buildings that already are, or could be converted to, hotels. At the same time, experts will be discussing which “routes” offer the best combinations and provide most interest to tourists. Routes will be developed to highlight specific themes.

The first route to be proposed is The Route of Cortés, linking properties in five states: Veracruz, Puebla, Tlaxcala, State of Mexico and the Federal District (see map). This is a timely idea given that the 500th Anniversary of the arrival of Cortés and his journey to central Mexico comes in 2019.

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Will UNESCO give World Heritage status to Lake Chapala?

 Books and resources, Other  Comments Off on Will UNESCO give World Heritage status to Lake Chapala?
Sep 072015
 

We don’t often champion causes in these pages, but are more than willing to lend our support to a campaign hoping to persuade UNESCO to declare Lake Chapala a “World Heritage” site. The campaign appears to have stalled, and deserves more support.

The following 6-minute video (English subtitles) from 2008 sets the scene for those unfamiliar with the area:

Where is Lake Chapala?

Map of Lake Chapala

Map of Lake Chapala. Credit: Tony Burton; all rights reserved.

Why should Lake Chapala be declared a World Heritage site?

Natural history: it is Mexico’s largest natural lake and home to some unique endemic fauna.

Cultural and historic significance: it is a sacred site for the indigenous Huichol Indian people. Specifically, the southernmost “cardinal point” in their cosmology is XapaWiyemeta, which is Scorpion Island (Isla de los Alacranes) in Lake Chapala.

In the nineteenth century, as Mexico fought for its independence from Spain, Lake Chapala was the scene of a truly heroic struggle, centered on Mezcala Island, between the Royalist forces and a determined group of insurgents. It proved to be a landmark event, since after four years of fighting, an honorable truce was agreed.

At the very end of the nineteenth century, influential families from Mexico and from overseas “discovered” Lake Chapala. For several years, Mexico’s then president, Porfirio Díaz, made annual trips to vacation at the lake. As the twentieth century progressed, the area attracted increasing numbers of authors, poets and artists, many of them from abroad, including such greats as D.H. Lawrence, Tennessee Williams, Witter Bynner, Charles Pollock and Sylvia Fein. (To discover more of the literary and artistic characters associated with Lake Chapala, please see this on-going series of mini-biographies.)

Today, it is the single largest retirement community of Americans anywhere outside of the USA.

Is this enough to qualify Lake Chapala for World Heritage status? I don’t know, but it certainly seems worth a shot!

Posts related to Lake Chapala:

Tourism in the Lake Chapala (Ajijic, Chapala, Jocotepec) and the Lerma-Chapala basin:

Want to read more?

For general introduction and background to this area, see the first eight chapters of my Western Mexico: A Traveler’s Treasury (4th ed, 2013). In the words of Dale Palfrey, reviewing the book for the Guadalajara Reporter, “First published in 1993, the revised and expanded fourth edition of “Western Mexico”… opens with what qualifies as the most comprehensive guide to the Lake Chapala region available in English.“

For a more in-depth account of the history of the Lake Chapala region up to 1910, see my Lake Chapala Through the Ages, an anthology of travelers’ tales. It features informative extracts from more than fifty original sources, linked by explanatory text and comments, together with brief biographies of the writers of each extract. They include some truly fascinating characters… see for yourself!

Both books are available as regular print books, or in Kindle and Kobo editions.

Mexico’s food and beverage multinationals continue to expand

 Updates to Geo-Mexico  Comments Off on Mexico’s food and beverage multinationals continue to expand
Sep 032015
 

Mexico’s seven leading food and beverage multinationals have invested a total of 7.42 billion dollars overseas in the past five years. The investments include acquisitions of other firms, building new plants and enlarging or remodeling existing plants.

The seven firms are:

  • Coca-Cola Femsa
  • Grupo Bimbo
  • Arca Continental
  • Gruma
  • Sigma Alimentos
  • Grupo Lala
  • Grupo Herdez

In terms of the number of countries where they have a presence, the two most globalized food and beverage firms in Mexico are Grupo Bimbo and Gruma, which are in 22 and 18 countries respectively (see map). Both firms are now quite dependent on foreign earnings. About 61% of Bimbo’s revenues, and almost 70% of Gruma’s revenues, originate from outside Mexico. Both firms have the longest reach of any of the food and beverage multinationals: Bimbo as far as China, and Gruma in Australia.

Mexican food-related multinationals

Mexican food-related multinationals are present in all the countries colored blue

In this post, we take a quick look at each of these seven firms and their recent activity abroad:

Femsa, based in Monterrey, is the world’s largest bottler of Coca-Cola products, with 45 plants in Latin America, including Colombia, Brazil and Venezuela, as well as 19 plants in the Philippines. It spent 1.855 billion dollars to buy Brazilian firm Spaipa, and a further 258 million dollars on building a new plant there (its tenth plant in Brazil), as well as 688.5 million dollars for 51% of the Coca-Cola Company in the Philippines. Femas also operates the OXXO chain of convenience stores, the largest such chain in Latin America.

Grupo Bimbo is the world’s largest bread maker and the biggest bread seller in the USA. It is the world’s 4th largest food company behind only Nestle, Kraft, and Unilever. Bimbo has 85 plants in the USA and Canada, 39 in Mexico, 32 elsewhere in Latin America, 10 in Europa and one in Asia. It has expanded primarily via acquisitions. It bought Canada Bread in 2014 for 1.66 billion dollars. In 2011, U.S. agencies authorized its purchase of Sara Lee for 709 million dollars. It also bought Bimbo Iberia (Spain) for 160 million dollars in 2011. It is now awaiting approval from Spanish regulatory authorities to complete its purchase of Panrico for 210 million dollars.

Gruma (main brands Maseca and Mission) is the world’s largest producer of corn flour and tortillas. It has 79 production plants worldwide and operates in North America, Europe, Asia and Oceanía. Gruma recently bought Azteca Foods Europe (Spain) for 48 million dollars. In 2014, it bought Mexifoods (Spain) for 15 million dollars. It also owns Albuquerque Tortilla Company. Gruma has also invested in new factories, including a 50-million-dollar plant in California, opened in 2010, as well as a new factory in Russia costing a similar amount.

Arca Continental, the second largest Coca-Cola bottler in Latin America, has 35 plants in the region. It purchased a milk products firm, Holding Tonicorp (Ecuador), in 2014 for 400 million dollars, and spent around 330 million dollars in 2012 to acquire two snack food firms: Wise Foods (USA) and Inalecsa (Ecuador).

Sigma Alimentos (cold cuts, cheese, yoghurts and other milk products) has 67 production facilities in total, including (in addition to Mexico) the U.S., Costa Rica, El Salvador, Spain, France, Italy, Netherlands, Belgium and Portugal. It recently bought Spanish firm Campofrío for 345 million dollars.

Grupo Lala (milk products) has 18 production plants in Mexico and Central America. It recently bought Nicaraguan firm Eskimo (ice-cream and other milk products) for around 53.2 million dollars.

Grupo Herdez has 13 plants in Mexico, one in the USA and one in Chile. It recently bought Helados Nestlé in Mexico.

What these firms have in common is that they specialize in making products that are relatively easy to adapt to local tastes (glocalization). They have also started their expansions outside Mexico by focusing initially on markets with familiar languages and culture before venturing further afield.

As interesting as where the companies ARE is where the companies are NOT. Astonishingly, the map suggests that no Mexican food-related multinational yet has a toe-hold in any country in Africa, for example.

Related posts:

An evaluation of Mexico’s early warning system for hurricanes (tropical cyclones).

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Aug 312015
 

This interesting graph comes from “El sistema de alerta temprana ante ciclones tropicales desde una perspectiva de riesgo” (“The early warning system for tropical cyclones from a risk perspective”) by Dr. Víctor Orlando Magaña Rueda and his fellow researchers Adalberto Tejeda Martínez and Gustavo Vázquez Cruz, published in: H2O Gestión del agua #1 (Sacmex, 2014).

It shows the economic losses (line graph) and loss of lives (bar graph) resulting from hydro-meteorological events between 1980 and 2013. Some major storm events are named on the graph. The two background colors divide the period into before and after the introduction, in 2000, of Mexico’s early warning system (Sistema de Alerta Temprana ante Ciclones Tropicales, Siat-CT).

Graph from

Graph from Magaña et al (2014)

Overall, the trends are for some reduction over time in loss of life, but a rapid escalation since 2004 in the economic costs associated with storms and other extreme weather events. This echoes the changes seen in impacts around the world for most hazard types in recent decades.

Given that lives are still being lost, however, the researchers suggest that it is time to re-evaluate Mexico’s early warning system for tropical cyclones. Storms such as Wilma and Stan in 2005, Alex in 2010 or Manuel and Ingrid in 2013, they say, show that the system has not been entirely successful in its principal objective of avoiding loss of life.

The increase in economic costs of hazard events is sometimes attributed to insurance payments but in Mexico’s case, and taking the example of Hurricanes Ingrid and Manuel, only about 20% of total losses were covered by insurance, according to the Mexican Insurers Association (Asociación Mexicana de Instituciones de Seguros). Mexico’s federal Finance Secretariat now assumes that hazard impacts will amount to 1% of GDP a year, a figure that reduces the nation’s economic growth rate by about 0.1% a year.

The authors argue that, in addition to an improved early warning system, other changes are needed in order to reduce vulnerability. Specifically, the system should be modified to:

  • target the most vulnerable sectors of the population so that alerts reach them in ample time
  • incorporate periodic reviews, and allow for modifications to be implemented
  • be fully integrated into all levels of government (national, state and local) and the programs of all government agencies

In addition, they suggest that the reliance on the early warning system on the Saffir-Simpson scale, first developed in the 1970s, as a measure of likely damage, should be reconsidered, given that some recent storms (e.g. Stan in 2005, and Manuel in 2013) have led to far greater damage than would have been expected from their position on that scale. The researchers point out that the current model does not do well in predicting local variations in impacts.

As a result, they propose that identifying categories of risk is at least as important as categories of storm intensity. For example, they suggest that the risks associated with both the intensity and accumulation of precipitation should be taken into account, combined with soil conditions and the water levels of streams and reservoirs. Studies of the spatial distribution of impacts after storms could help identify risk factors and suggest ways to improve future warnings.

Even with an efficient early warning system, other actions are still needed. Buildings could be subject to more stringent construction regulations, especially in those coastal areas that are most at risk, while better programs of beach restoration, environmental planning and hazard event response are also needed.

There is no such thing as a perfect prediction and early warning system, but hopefully Mexico will lead the way in Latin America in reducing human fatalities from hazard events.

Related posts:

Case study of Hurricane Alex (30 June–1 July 2010)

Mexico’s tourism development policies: a model for the world?

 Mexico's geography in the Press  Comments Off on Mexico’s tourism development policies: a model for the world?
Aug 272015
 

Mexico welcomed a record number of tourist last year: 29.1 million visitors, a 20.5% increase over 2013. The number of tourists is projected to grow 8% this year. Most tourists visiting Mexico come from the U.S., followed by Canada, U.K., Colombia and Brazil. During the first six months of 2015, the average expenditure/tourist was 865 dollars.

Mexico is the top international destination for U.S. tourists and according to U.S. Commerce Department data, visits to Mexico by U.S. tourists rose 24% in 2014 to a record 25.9 million, despite U.S. travel warnings relating to parts of the country. Figures from the Mexican side of the border suggest a more modest, though still substantial, increase of 11.8% in U.S. tourists entering the country. The differences in the figures reflect slight differences in definitions and methodology.

Just how did Mexico achieve its tourism success? The answer appears to be a combination of its fortuitous proximity to the USA allied with some smart policy decisions. This helps to explain why the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has chosen Mexico as the basis for developing a transferable model to demonstrate the potential of tourism in international development. The in-depth study, to be published next year, will focus on the economic and political aspects of international tourism.

Related posts:

The geography of the Spanish language: how important is Spanish around the world?

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Aug 242015
 

The Index of Human Development ranks Spanish as the second most important language on earth, behind English but ahead of Mandarin.

Spanish is the third most widely used language on the internet (graph), although less than 8% of total internet traffic takes place in Spanish. Spanish is the second most used language on Facebook, a long way behind English but well ahead of Portuguese.

Languages used on the Internet (2015). Source: Internet World Stats

Languages used on the Internet (2015). Source: Internet World Stats

According to El español, una lengua viva – Spanish, a living language, a report from the Instituto Cervantes in Spain (which promotes the Spanish language abroad via language classes and cultural events) there are about 559 million Spanish speakers worldwide. This figure includes 470 million native speakers and an additional 89 million who have some command of the language.

While Mexico remains the world’s largest Spanish-speaking country, with about 121 million Spanish speakers, second place belongs to the USA, followed by Colombia. The USA has an estimated 41 million native speakers of Spanish plus 11 million who are bilingual; Colombia has 48 million Spanish-speakers.

In terms of economic importance, the report’s authors calculate that Spanish speakers contribute 9.2% of the world’s GDP. About two-thirds of Spanish-linked GDP is generated in North America (USA, Canada and Mexico) and the European Union, while Latin America (excluding Mexico) accounts for 22%.

The main concentrations of Spanish speakers in the USA are in the states of New Mexico (47% of the population), California and Texas (both 38%), and Arizona (30%). 18% of New Yorkers speak Spanish and, somewhat surprisingly, more than 6% of Alaskans are also Spanish speakers. Interestingly, the US Census Office estimates that by 2050, the USA will have 138 million Spanish speakers and could then overtake Mexico as the largest Spanish-speaking nation in the world. This assumes that current predictions for Mexico’s population increase over the next 35 years hold true.

Want to learn more?

Related posts:

Chiapas map and index page

 Index page  Comments Off on Chiapas map and index page
Aug 202015
 

This Chiapas map and index page lists the most interesting posts on Geo-Mexico related to the southern state of Chiapas, and also links to a selection of articles about agriculture and poverty that place Chiapas in the national context.

mapchiapas

Map of Chiapas. Click here for interactive map of Chiapas on Mexconnect.com.

Geological background

Indigenous communities:

About 20% of the 4.8 million people living in Chiapas belong to one or other of the state’s numerous indigenous groups. Development and cultural issues relating to indigenous communities in Chiapas are many and varied as can be seen in the following articles:

Tourism:

Chiapas has huge tourism potential, apart from the Mayan site of Palenque, the state capital Tuxtla Gutiérrez, and the beautiful colonial city of San Cristóbal de las Casas (the former capital).

Mexico’s list of Magic Towns has long included the San Cristóbal de las Casas, but now boasts two more recent additions in Chiapas:

Chiapas is also the site for a (proposed) different type of tourist development:

Agriculture in Chiapas:

Posts which refer to Chiapas in the context of national data on agricultural production include:

Poverty and inequality in Chiapas

Chiapas is recognized as one of the poorest states in Mexico: Articles containing recent data on this topic:

Other topics:

Water in Mexico: a human right that is currently subsidized and wasted

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Aug 172015
 

Two recent articles in OOSKAnews, a publication dedicated to news in the water industry, have profound implications for Mexico’s water supply situation. The first (10 July 2015) is a report of a meeting in Guanajuato of national water and water treatment specialists (Segundo Encuentro Nacional de Áreas Técnicas  de las Empresas de Agua y Saneamiento de México).

Selected quotes from the report include,

Mexico’s legal framework for water is out of date and does not reflect the country’s current reality…

Nationwide, water users only pay about 20% of the cost of production; 80% of water costs are subsidized, a situation that is not sustainable…

Legal reforms aimed at protecting human rights with regard to water had harmed service providers, who cannot cut off service to customers who fail to pay their bills.”

The report also comments on the on-going El Zapotillo dam project on the Rio Verde in Jalisco state, saying that it,

is a priority for President Enrique Pena Nieto’s administration, despite ongoing delays and legal conflicts. The $1.24 billion dollar project was approved in 2005 and is more than 80% complete. However, residents of Temacapulín, Acasico and Palmarejo have been fighting construction of the dam, which would flood their villages.”

sacmex

The second report focuses on Mexico City and the estimate by Ramón Aguirre Díaz, the head of Mexico City’s Water System (SACMEX), that fixing leaks in the city’s potable water distribution network would cost around US$430 million. This is a huge cost when compared to the system’s annual budget for maintenance and improvement of infrastructure of about US$135 million.

Aguirre claims that 40% of available water is lost because of leaks in the network. SACMEX is launching a program in 2016 to provide a long-term solution to the problem. In a press interview, the official said that, “A city like ours should be able to supply every citizen by producing 26 cubic meters/second, but currently our system requires 30.5 cubic meters/second”.

The sections of the city with the most severe losses are those like Coyoacán and Tlalpan built on the soft sediments of the former lake-bed, as well as those such as Miguel Hidalgo, Cuauhtémoc, and Benito Juárez, where the supply pipes are more than 70 years old. Combined, these areas house over 2.5 million people.

Aguirre also outlined the progress made in bringing reliable access to potable water to all 1.8 million inhabitants of Iztapalapa, one of the poorest and most densely populated sections of the city. Some 72,000 residents in Iztapalapa lack piped water supply to their homes, and therefore have to depend on provision from tanker trucks. Even those who do have access to piped water have to cope with inadequate pressure, poor water quality and frequent supply outages.

According to Aguirre, the city administration will meet its goal of reliable access to piped water for all of Iztapalapa by 2018. Reaching this point requires the construction of 22 water treatment plants and various other major infrastructure modernization projects.

Related posts:

Online Spanish language World Atlas

 Books and resources  1 Response »
Aug 132015
 

Like many of our readers, we love looking at maps. It is always interesting to study maps compiled by cartographers working in different countries and different languages. It can also be a great way to learn some new words and phrases in a foreign language.

world-atlas-spanish

This latest resource is therefore well worth recommending. It is an outstanding Spanish language World Atlas, accessible online as a series of three pdf files:

The lavishly illustrated atlas was prepared by experts from the Geography Institute of Mexico’s National University (UNAM). It is aimed at high school students and the maps are complemented by carefully selected info-graphics and informative text.

Exploring these maps is a great way for native English speakers to improve their Spanish language geographic vocabulary!

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Mexico City’s Drinking Water Fountains

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Aug 102015
 

Earlier this summer, Mexico City’s Water System (SACMEX) inaugurated a network of 230 drinking fountains installed in public spaces across the city. The fountains are part of the city’s initiative to curb reliance on bottled water. (Mexicans consume more bottled water per person than any other country in the world).

water-fountains-mexico-city

Click for interactive map of Mexico City water fountains

The sites for the fountains were selected taking local water quality into account. An interactive website enables residents and visitors alike to find the locations of the fountains, and offers up-to-date information about the water quality parameters.

water-quality-xochimilco-july-2015.

Sample water quality report – Xochimilco, July 2015 [Click to enlarge]

Water from all the fountains is being tested on a regular basis to ensure that it complies fully with official water quality standards.

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Mexico has highest rate of death from lightning strikes in the Americas

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Aug 062015
 

Last year, three Mexico City climate researchers published a comprehensive study of the 7300+ deaths due to lightning in Mexico during the period 1979 to 2011.

In “Deaths by Lightning in Mexico (1979–2011): Threat or Vulnerability?“, G. B. Raga, M. G. de la Parra and Beata Kucienska examined the distribution of fatalities due to lighting, looking for links to population density, vulnerability and other factors.

The number of deaths from lightning averaged 230 a year for the period studied. Given Mexico’s population, this means a rate of 2.72 fatalities from lightning for every million people. This is the highest rate in the Americas.

Fatalities were not distributed evenly. Seven of Mexico’s 32 states accounted for 60% of all lightning fatalities. Almost one-quarter of all deaths from lightning occurred in the State of México. Other states with high rates included Michoacán, Oaxaca and Guanajuato.

More than 45% of all deaths from lightning were young males under the age of 25 (with those aged 10 to 19 at particular risk). Overall, far fewer females died from lightning than males, though for females, too, the highest rates were for the under-25 age group.

Most deaths happened in the first half of the rainy season, between June and August, when thunderstorms are most likely.

Lightning incidence, North America, 2012-2014

Lightning incidence, North America, 2012-2014. Credit: Vaisala

What do all these numbers mean?

The incidence of lightning strikes in not equal across the country. For example, in the period 2012-2014 (see map) there were far more lightning events in in central and southern Mexico than in the northern part of the country and the Baja California Peninsula. This means that there is no clear connection between deaths by lightning and population density. However, neither is there a clear connection between deaths by lightning and the places where most lightning strikes occur.

The key factor is not just how likely a lightning strike is to occur in a particular place but also how vulnerable the local populace is. Some sectors of the population are much more vulnerable than others. Those working outdoors, for example, are at higher risk than those working indoors. This makes rural workers more vulnerable than urban workers. It also makes younger people more vulnerable than older people.

Education and awareness also play a part. Many countries have seen a dramatic fall in deaths from lightning as a direct result of launching campaigns to make people more aware and provide education about safety precautions. In the USA, fewer than 40 people now die each year from lightning, compared to about 400 in the 1930s, when the population was smaller.

For this reason, the study also concluded that the large number of deaths in Mexico is partly due to “the government’s failure to implement education and prevention strategies in communities living and working in vulnerable conditions”. Sadly, this means that there will probably be further tragic incidents similar to the one that took the lives of several members of the same family last month in the remote mountainous community of Mesa Cuata in Guanajuato.

Reference:

G. B. Raga, M. G. de la Parra, and Beata Kucienska, 2014: “Deaths by Lightning in Mexico (1979–2011): Threat or Vulnerability?”. Weather, Climate & Society, 6, 434–444.

Related posts:

Mexico’s tallest waterfalls

 Other, Updates to Geo-Mexico  Comments Off on Mexico’s tallest waterfalls
Aug 032015
 

As we saw in “How long is Mexico’s coastline?“, geographical “facts” and “records” are often not quite as simple to determine as might appear at first sight.

Take waterfalls for example. Mexico’s “highest” waterfalls are not necessarily the same as Mexico’s “tallest” waterfalls, since height refers to elevation, rather than stature. I’m not sure which is Mexico’s highest waterfall, but assume it is likely to be a small waterfall near the summit of one of Mexico’s many major volcanic peaks.

Mexico’s tallest waterfall, on the other hand, is well-known, or is it? Older sources still list the Cascada de Basaseachic in the Copper Canyon region of northern Mexico as the country’s tallest waterfall. That waterfall is 246 meters (807 feet) tall, according to geographer Robert Schmidt, a calculation subsequent confirmed by measurements made by members of a Mexican climbing expedition.

This short Postandfly video shows the Basaseachic Waterfall from the air:

The Basaseachic Waterfall is normally considered to operate year-round, though very little water flows over it on some occasions during the dry season.

In terms of total drop, however, and if we include waterfalls that are seasonal, the Basaseachic Waterfall is overshadowed by the nearby Cascada de Piedra Bolada (Volada). The Piedra Bolada Waterfall, has a total drop of 453 meters (1486 feet), but flows only during the summer rainy season. It is much less accessible, and its true dimensions were only worked out for the first time by an expedition as recently as 1995 by members of the Speology Group of Ciudad Cuauhtémoc, led by Carlos Lazcano.

This latter sections of this amateur video of the Piedra Bolada Waterfall show some of the amazing scenery in this remote area of Mexico:

Curiously, there is some debate as to whether this waterfall should be called Cascada de Piedra Volada (which would translate as the “Flying Stone Waterfall”) or Cascada de Piedra Bolada (“Round Stone Waterfall”). According to members of the Speology Group of Ciudad Cuauhtémoc, its true name is definitely Piedra Bolada, a name referring to a spherical stone, and used in addition for the local stream and for the nearest human settlement.

So, which is Mexico’s tallest waterfall? Well, it all depends…

Related posts:

Repainting the walls of Palmitas in Pachuca leads to reduced crime

 Mexico's geography in the Press  Comments Off on Repainting the walls of Palmitas in Pachuca leads to reduced crime
Jul 302015
 

Palmitas is a small, densely-populated neighborhood in the city of Pachuca, the capital of the state of Hidalgo in central Mexico. It has a reputation for higher than average levels of deprivation, crime and violence.

An innovative social development project, based on artistic transformation, has turned Palmitas over the past few months into a rainbow-hued, quasi-kaleidoscopic, example of urban renewal.

palmitas-foto-jorge-gonzalez

Palmitas, 2015. Photo credit: Jorge González / UNIÓN Hidalgo

The project involved four main players: an art collective (“Germen Crew”), the city government, Comex (a major national paint manufacturer) and a youth organization that was previously better known for its graffiti art.

The youths joined “Germen Crew” and painted 209 houses, some 20,000 square meters of facade in total, into a single rainbow mural. The specialized materials used, supplied by Comex, have provided maximum long-term protection for the dwellings while turning the streets into ribbons of color. The greatest challenge was that many of the exterior walls were in a very rough shape, and some had never been properly finished or protected.

The “macro mural” has been called the “world’s largest” in some news reports. This title is hotly disputed; other contenders include a mural in Berlin and the Pueblo Levee Project in Colorado.

According to streetartnews, the community involvement in this project from start to finish, led to positive effects on 452 families (1808 people), and a dramatic fall in youth violence, to the point of almost eradicating it.

All the homes were first painted white to symbolize the unity of the community, that all community members are equal, and that all members of the community would benefit from the urban renewal. This pair of photos shows before and after images of Palmitas:

crew-germen-graffiti-town-mural-palmitas

Alongside the months of paintings, numerous community events were held to foment participation and a sense of local ownership of the project.

This short video on Youtube (Spanish) describes the project:

The colorful Palmitas project is an unusual and interesting example of urban improvement, urban renewal or urban regeneration.

Comex has said that it will support similar urban renewal projects elsewhere in Mexico that beautify the local settings and help improve people’s lives, so please report back if you find a similar project happening in your neighborhood.

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The Trans-Isthmus mega-project

 Mexico's geography in the Press  Comments Off on The Trans-Isthmus mega-project
Jul 272015
 

A huge industrial development plan looks set to get underway shortly in the narrow Isthmus of Tehuantepec in southern Mexico. The low-lying Isthmus of Tehuantepec separates the Chiapas Highlands and the low Yucatán Peninsula from the rest of Mexico. The Isthmus was once considered as an alternative location to Panama for a trans-continental canal.

During Mexico’s internal Reform War (1858‑60), between the liberals, led by Benito Juárez, and the conservatives, both sides encountered serious financial problems. At one point in this war, the liberals accepted an offer from the USA to receive four million pesos in exchange for the USA having the “right of traffic” across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec “in perpetuity”. Fortunately, this treaty was never ratified by the US Senate.

Proyecto-Transistmico

In recent years, the Tehuantepec area has received massive investments in wind power, with several major wind farms already operational and more on the drawing board. The latest plans will build on those investments to provide upgraded infrastructure meeting the preconditions for industrial development.

The 300 million dollars allocated to the first phase of the Trans-Isthmus Project will improve railroads, highways, airports, and the ports of Coatzacoalcos on the Gulf Coast and Salina Cruz on the Pacific Coast (see map).

During the second phase, private sector financing will add industrial development areas, which should boost the area’s contribution to national GDP from 2% to 4.5%, and raise the regional GDP/person to $10,000 a year, close to the national average.

The federal government has designated this region as a special economic zone, offering several fiscal incentives to new enterprises. Chinese investors have already expressed interest in building a 200-million-dollar steel manufacturing plant in the isthmus, utilizing nearby iron ore reserves to produce 3 million tons of steel a year.

Posts related to the same general area of Mexico:

Historic photo of the month: Mexico City cave-dwellers

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Jul 232015
 

A shout out to Marcia Ambler for sharing, via email, her memories of Mexico City in the 1950s. Among other things, she recalled how she lived as a child with her family, “in a suburb of Mexico City, where there was a deep barranca with people who lived as cliff dwellers in the barranca walls. There was also a cave nearby with a deep drop which I went in with my friends.”

Her email brought back some fond personal memories of Mexico City from the late 1970s and early 1980s. Shortly after I moved to the city, Time Life published The Great Cities: Mexico City, by John Cottrell. I found this book fascinating at the time, and a quick re-read earlier this week confirms that it still well worth looking for (inexpensive copies available via Abebooks) if you are interested in what makes one of the world’s largest cities tick.

Mexico City cave dwellers. Photo by from The Great Cities: Mexico City" (Time Life books).

Mexico City cave dwellers. Photo by Harold Sund in “The Great Cities: Mexico City” (Time Life, 1979).

Like most Time Life books, it is lavishly illustrated, which brings me back to the caves and cave dwellers, since one of the photos (above), by Harold Sund shows the area that Marcia remembers, and which was also my first introduction to the curious world of relatively modern-day troglodytes in Mexico City.

Sund’s photo shows the Belén de las Flores community, relatively close to western end of Chapultepec Park, though there may well have been, and almost certainly were, several similar settlements elsewhere. This short newspaper article, from the Bangor Daily News in 1978, describes the “year-round comfort” that can be enjoyed in such caves.

I haven’t had the opportunity to revisit this area of Mexico City for more than thirty years, so I’m anxious to know what it looks like now.

Sincere thanks, Marcia, for your message which certainly took me on a trip down memory lane!

Source of photo:

  • John Cottrell. 1979. The Great Cities: Mexico City (Time Life Books, 1979). Photography by Harold Sund.

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Latest additions to Mexico’s Protected Natural Areas

 Mexico's geography in the Press, Updates to Geo-Mexico  Comments Off on Latest additions to Mexico’s Protected Natural Areas
Jul 202015
 

Alejandro del Mazo Maza, head of Mexico’s Commission for Protected Natural Areas (Áreas Naturales Protegidas), says that the formal decrees for seven additional PNAs (Protected Natural Areas) will be published shortly. In some cases, the decrees apply to areas whose status as protected areas was first announced months or even years ago.

The seven new additions are in the north and northwest regions of the country:

  • the Marismas Nacionales biosphere reserve in Sonora
  • Monte Mojino (protected area of flora and fauna), Sonora
  • the Sierra de Tamaulipas biosphere reserve
  • the Playa Boca de Apiza sanctuary in Colima
  • the Islas del Pacífico of Baja California reserve
  • the Semiarid Desert reserve of Zacatecas
  • the Sierras la Giganta y Guadalupe reserve in Baja California Sur

Mexico currently has 177 PNAs (in various categories), and the new additions bring that total to 184.

In addition, preparatory studies are underway to establish two additional biosphere reserves, for the Mexican Caribbean and the Gulf of California (Sea of Cortés).

Mexico's Protected Areas (Gallina, 2012)

Mexico’s Protected Areas (Gallina, 2012)

The Commission of PNAs is working hard to complete formal management plans for every PNA – environmental, social and economic issues. At present, only 97 of the 177 PNAs have such plans in place, with the latest plans published only weeks ago for:

For example, the management program for the whale shark reserve authorizes a maximum of 160 whale-watching boats in an effort to ensure sustainability.

Source of Map:

Sonia Gallina, 2012. “Is Sustainablity Possible in Protected Areas in Mexico? Deer as an Example of a Renewable Resource.” Sustainability 2012, 4 (10), 2366-2376

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Mexico has a 2015 population of 121 million people

 Updates to Geo-Mexico  Comments Off on Mexico has a 2015 population of 121 million people
Jul 162015
 

The latest population estimates released by the National Population Council (Conapo) to coincide with World Population Day show that Mexico has a population in mid-2015 of 121,783,280. Of this total, almost 43 million (35.4%) are adolescents, between 10 and 29 years of age.

A spokesperson for Conapo drew attention to the fact that Mexico still needs to do more to overcome gender inequality in fields such as education, salaries and working conditions.

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Recent eruptions of Colima Volcano, el Volcán de Colima

 Mexico's geography in the Press  Comments Off on Recent eruptions of Colima Volcano, el Volcán de Colima
Jul 122015
 

Colima Volcano (aka el Volcán de Colima or el Volcán de Fuego) continues to erupt, displaying its fiery temper by throwing massive plumes of ash and smoke several kilometers into the air. One recent eruption caused a plume of ash seven kilometers high.

 

Following the eruptions of 10 and 11 July 2015 (see video clip from Webcams de México), a state of emergency has been declared by the state of Colima in 5 municipalities: Colima, Comala, Coquimatlán, Cuauhtémoc and Villa de Álvarez. This enables rapid access to state and federal funds in preparing to cope with any potential disaster.

A precautionary evacuation has been ordered of all communities within a 12-kilometer radius of the volcano’s crater. The 50-60 residents of the closest community to the volcano, La Yerbabuena, live barely eight kilometers (five miles) away from the crater. Five centimeters (two inches) of ash fell on La Yerbabuena in the past few days.

Authorities are concerned that heavy summer rains could generate dangerous and very fast-moving lahars. Lahars are mudflows of volcanic ash, pumice and rocks; they can travel at velocities of up to 100 km/h and move huge boulders and objects as large as houses.

Where is Colima Volcano (Volcán de Colima)?

Location of Colima Volcano

Location of Colima Volcano (Volcán de Colima). Credit: Tony Burton / Geo-Mexico

The volcano is one of the westernmost volcanoes in Mexico’s Volcanic Axis, which straddles the country from west to east. Colima Volcano’s summit is only 8 km (5 miles) from the inactive Nevado of Colima volcano, Mexico’s sixth-highest peak, which rises 4260 m (13,976 ft) above sea level. (Lovers of geographical trivia should note that, despite their names, the summits of both volcanoes are actually located in the state of Jalisco, not in the state of Colima.)

Colima Volcano is considered one of Mexico’s most dangerous volcanoes. Numerous villages in its shadow keep a wary eye on its level of activity, and emergency evacuations have become a regular event over the past fifty years.

How high is Colima Volcano?

The elevation of Colima Volcano is officially given as 3820 m (12,533 ft) above sea level. In the past 400 years, it has been the most active volcano in Mexico, having erupted at least 30 times since 1576. Recent activity means that this exact height may no longer be correct.

The eruption of Colima Volcano on 21 January 2015, shown in this short video, is typical of recent activity.

How often does it erupt?

Historically, the eruptions of the volcano have fallen into a definite cyclical pattern with periods of activity, each lasting about 50 years, interspersed with periods of dormancy. The first cycle of activity (after the Spanish arrived in Mexico) was between 1576 and 1611. Major eruptions occurred in 1680 and 1690, and further complete cycles occurred between 1749 and 1818, and from 1869 to 1913.

The current eruption cycle

Most geologists agree that current activity is part of the fifth cycle, which began in 1961. Judging by past performance, we should be nearing the end of this cycle, though volcanoes can be extremely unpredictable, so don’t bet your house on this happening within the next decade.

Activity has intensified in the past couple of years. In early 2013, we reported that Colima Volcano had erupted, destroying a lava dome first created in 2007 and later that year we looked at how Popocatapetl Volcano and Colima Volcano continued to erupt. At that time, experts monitoring the volcano were reporting up to 200 eruptive events a day, with numerous minor emissions of lava. Colima Volcano has been exhibiting four distinct types of volcanic activity in recent years:

  • lava dome growth
  • explosive eruptions
  • flank collapse
  • lava flows.

In early 2015, activity began to intensify, with several spectacular eruptions, sending ash and dust up to 8 or 9 kilometers (5-6 miles) into the air. Ash fell on towns up to 25 kilometers (15 miles) away from the volcano, in locations including Tuxpan, Zapotiltic and Ciudad Guzmán, but with no loss of life, or significant property damage.

The volcano can be viewed via this permanent fixed webcam operated by Webcams de Mexico. Below the main image on that site are links to 1-minute time-condensed videos showing the past 24 hours of activity.

Three maps (PDF format, Spanish-language keys and text) showing the areas likely to be affected by the volcanic hazards associated with Colima Volcanocan be found via this webpage of Mexico’s National Center for Disaster Prevention (Centro Nacional de Prevención de Desastres, CENAPRED). :

The area around the Colima Volcano is described in more detail in chapter 15 of my Western Mexico, a Traveler’s Treasury (4th edition; Sombrero Books, 2013).

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This is Jalisco: video promoting the state of Jalisco

 Books and resources  1 Response »
Jul 092015
 

The Jalisco state government has released an informative 5-minute video highlighting some of the reasons why Jalisco is one of the best locations in Mexico for farming, business and tourism.

The video can be viewed on Facebook: Esto es Jalisco. This is Jalisco.

Following opening shots showing some of the diverse landscapes of the state, including the Piedrotas at Tapalpa, the majestic Volcán de Colima (whose summit is actually in Jalisco, not Colima) and the Horseshoe Falls near the Dr. Atl park on the northern edge of Guadalajara, the video’s subtitles (in English) turn to techno0logy and innovation. Jalisco is the first state in Mexico to have a Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology. The state capitol Guadalajara is the center for MIND (Mexican Innovation and Design Center) and was chosen by MIT for the establishment of a Creative Digital City.

Map of Jalisco state

Map of Jalisco. Copyright 2010 Tony Burton. All rights reserved.

The city also has major cultural and sporting attractions, from libraries to golf courses to hosting international events in the Expo Guadalajara to concerts and its own international film festival. It also hosts the world’s second largest book fair (after Hamburg). Its industrial activity ranges from agro-processing (including tequila) to pharmaceuticals, information technology, automotive and aerospace firms to renewable energy enterprises.

Foreign investment in Jalisco has risen by an average of 17% a year for the past decade, with foreign firms finding the state’s geographic position advantageous for serving central Mexico and with excellent trade links to Asia and the U.S.

The state’s leading coastal resort is Puerto Vallarta, but tourism is also important in the state’s interior. Jalisco has five places with Magic Town status: Lagos de Moreno, San  Sebastian del Oeste, Tapalpa, Mazamitla and Tequila.

Jalisco currently accounts for 6.6% of national GDP and the state government clearly expects this contribution to grow in coming years. This professionally-produced video is an excellent visual introduction to one of Mexico’s most important states.

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