Indigenous communities and environmental activists are maintaining a blockade against the construction and startup of an ammonia and liquefied natural gas plant in Topolobampo, Sinaloa.
The standoff represents a prolonged conflict between industrial development and the preservation of biodiversity in the Ohuira Bay. The project threatens the livelihoods of local fishing communities who rely on the bay's ecosystem for survival.
Mayo-Yoreme indigenous groups and activists have maintained the blockade for approximately seven years [1]. The protesters said the plant poses grave environmental risks, specifically citing the discharge of hot water that could destroy fish larvae, and damage the broader biodiversity of the bay [2], [3].
The project is backed by a financing consortium including PROMAN AG, with Swiss and German capital [4]. Estimates place the cost of the project at 500 billion, though the specific currency was not specified in the reports [5].
Government officials said the project complies with all environmental authorizations [6]. However, the United Nations has warned that the plant would have a destructive impact on the bay [7]. These contradictions have fueled demands for greater transparency and stricter adherence to environmental norms from the developers.
The blockade remains centered in the municipality of Ahome, where the plant's infrastructure interfaces with the sensitive marine environment of the Ohuira Bay [4], [8]. Protesters continue to seek international attention to halt the facility's operation.
“Indigenous communities and environmental activists have maintained the blockade for approximately seven years.”
This conflict highlights the tension between Mexico's industrial goals and the land rights of indigenous populations. The involvement of European capital and a warning from the UN elevate a local land dispute into a broader debate over international environmental standards and the legal protections afforded to indigenous territories during large-scale infrastructure projects.
