Mexico City.– Organized crime is behind clandestine logging on conservation land in the Tlalpan and Milpa Alta mayoralties, acknowledged the head of the Mexico City government, Claudia Sheinbaum. After the starting signal of the Green Challenge 2022, the president of the capital pointed out that they were foreign groups to the country’s capital.
“There is one more area where burning has to do with clandestine logging, there is an area near Morelos where the community of Topilejo is and there is another part near the State of Mexico, where it is part of the Ajusco community, where there are logging and presumably organized crime, which is dedicated to logging, could be involved. It is not that there is drug trafficking or something like that, but rather they are criminal groups that are dedicated to logging, ”he said in an interview with the media.
The head of the local Executive pointed out that the corresponding investigations are already being carried out to determine the groups behind these crimes, as well as the destination of the wood.
“Investigation folders and investigations are being made with PROFEPA (Federal Environmental Protection Agency) and the Attorney General’s Office to find out what group it is and be able to make the arrests”
It is estimated that clandestine logging has affected around four thousand hectares of conservation land.
Sheinbaum added that they have had support from the federal government to address this situation. “We already have very important support from the National Guard, they are at kilometer 48 of the Federal Highway to Cuernavaca, which is right where they enter, and also support in different places,” he said.
CDMX pioneers the use of drones to fertilize trees in the forest
Mexico City became the first entity in the Mexican Republic to use drones to fertilize trees in forests. These are four large drones, as they weigh approximately 60 kilograms and their function is to spray agroecological fertilizer and disperse endemic seeds.
The head of the Natural Resources and Rural Development Commission (CORENADR), Columba López, who explained the operation scheme. “It is the first that is introduced in the country in the application of drones in the Forest (…) we want to do fertilization so that the trees are healthier, we are also going to fight pests and diseases, and another important part is going to be reforestation or restoration in situ, which is the mixture of plants”, detailed the public servant.
Columba López said that around 80 hectares of conservation land are scheduled daily, under this scheme. The four drones will be operating in the nine municipalities that have conservation land, such as Tlalpan, Milpa Alta, Xochimilco, Magdalena Contreras, Cuajimalpa, among others. With the implementation of this project, which is called Technology at the Service of Nature, there are economic savings.
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More or less, it is replacing 1,500 wages per day, that is, the economic part is also going to be reduced”
The head of government, Claudia Sheinbaum, added that this Commission also acquired a LiDAR drone, which is a methodology that allows topography to be carried out with drones; with them they are seeing the sinking of the Xochimilco canals, the differential subsidence, and also the areas that are deforested and the urban growth on the conservation land. During the starting signal of the Green Challenge 2022, the president of the capital; the Mayor of Tlalpan, Alfa González; among other officials, they witnessed a demonstration of these drones.
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